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Old Posted May 26, 2014, 5:12 AM
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Anacostia: Not the part of DC you're used to seeing

Anacostia, DC
(scroll down to skip the narrative and just get the pictures)

Anacostia is one of the dwindling number of DC neighborhoods that some might still call a ghetto, although it's a much healthier place today than it was in the really bad years of the 20th Century. This thread will be a short tour of the place. But first let me show you where Anacostia is. Outside DC, many people refer to the entire section of the city east of the Anacostia River as "Anacostia." And although it's hard to deny that's an easier nickname than "East of the River," it's incorrect. Technically only a single neighborhood bears the name.




Actual Anacostia, occasionally called Old Anacostia or Downtown Anacostia, started off as an independent suburb of Washington. In 1854 it was incorporated as the city of Uniontown, DC. During the 19th Century the District of Columbia had multiple different jurisdictions within its borders, more like a small state than a single city. There were the cities of Washington, Georgetown, Alexandria, and Uniontown. In 1847 the parts of DC south of the Potomac River were given over to Virginia, but Washington, Georgetown, and Uniontown remained separate jurisdictions within DC until 1878, when they consolidated into a single municipality and became the DC we know and love today.

Anacostia remained a middle class suburb through the streetcar era until the late 1950s. But white flight was especially bad for the place, and it spent the latter half of the 20th Century as one of DC's worst and most notorious ghettos.

Today, all the East of the River neighborhoods still remain poorer and less happening than the rest of DC. But it's not really the ghetto anymore, especially Anacostia, where there are a handful of artist spaces, restaurants, and even new buildings.

Let's start on the main street, MLK Avenue. You've heard know the joke, right? It's no Connecticut Avenue, but neither is it a warzone.














Yes, that's a really big chair.




Turn the corner onto the other commercial street, Good Hope Road. It's less developed than MLK, with more empty storefronts. Although these pictures are from Sunday so some of these places are just closed.














The rest of the neighborhood is predominantly residential. It's an eclectic mix of garden apartments, rowhouses, and detached houses.


















Probably the most famous thing in Anacostia is the Frederick Douglass house. It's a national park, and sits on a prominent hill.






The Douglass house enjoys broad vistas of central DC. Pardon the cell phone quality of this. The cluster of buildings on the left is Rosslyn, VA. Then to the right of them you can see the Washington Monument, pointing above all else. Moving to the right you then see the smokestacks of a power plant in the mid-ground, and the towers of the National Cathedral in the background. At the right edge just before the tree is the US Capitol dome.




And that's Anacostia. Or at least one afternoon worth of pictures of it, anyway.
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Last edited by Cirrus; May 26, 2014 at 4:22 PM.
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  #2  
Old Posted May 26, 2014, 8:50 AM
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Anacostia doesn't resemble any part of the built form of DC proper and looks like a suburb. Interesting thread & pics though.
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Old Posted May 26, 2014, 9:17 AM
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yeah good job interesting to see unsung dc
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Old Posted May 26, 2014, 10:37 AM
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Awesome Cirrus! So glad you did this. Lately I've been interested in Anacostia and it was actually the next neighborhood in DC that I was going to do a tour of. But it looks like its been covered and covered better than I could have. Great work!

Reminds me, I still need to upload my Dupont photos..
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Old Posted May 26, 2014, 12:08 PM
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thanks for the pics. i thought of going out there when i was in Alexndria for work two weeks ago but the jetlag was bad so i didn't go out far.

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Old Posted May 26, 2014, 6:06 PM
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It's not that bad looking, thanks for sharing.
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Old Posted May 26, 2014, 6:46 PM
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You're right. It's a hell of a lot better than it used to be (got family there).
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 2:17 AM
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Lovin' it.
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 5:25 AM
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Very nice.
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 7:54 AM
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I was actually expecting something quite a bit more substantial and lively for some reason. Maybe, it's how its photographed, but it looks like some sleepy village on the outskirts of the urban area. Still, it's interesting to see a place I've only ever heard about. I've only ever been to DC as a tourist, so needless to say I never got over the river.
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 12:37 PM
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It's certainly not the most lively area, but DC as a whole is slow on Sundays. There is normally a lot of pedestrian and bus activity.

Cirrus, you got the essentials down, well done. Only prominent thing you missed imo was the Shannon Place Warehouse reno. Oh, and the streetcar tracks, but those are outside of HA.
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 1:18 PM
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Sure has changed since I first moved to DC back in '80. I got lost in SE DC back then and ended up driving down MLK one evening. Yikes.
Now I often drive through in the afternoon to get around the 11th Street bridge construction. Very active during the weekdays. Dramatic changes over the years. I guess eventually we'll see how the street cars will affect the area. Thanks for the tour Cirrus.
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 5:48 PM
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It's very sleepy because the population density is low, and its reputation as dangerous and downtrodden means it has even fewer stores than its low density should be able to support. People leave this neighborhood to do anything. It doesn't even have a supermarket.
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 6:21 PM
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Quote:
People leave the neighborhood to do anything
Wrong wrong wrong! I agree density should be higher (the neighborhood is fast improving), but apparently it is enough to support 3 sit down bar/restaurants, multiple art galleries, vintage shops, carryouts, office buildings, a small biz incubator etc.

Yes, the grocery store in the neighborhood closed a year and a half ago (it was reportedly profitable) when a businessman bought it and has gut renovated the building (note there is another grocery a mile away at Good Hope marketplace - not ideal, but still).
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 6:44 PM
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OK not "anything." But the services in Anacostia are approximately equivalent to 1 small suburban strip mall, without the anchor grocer. People have to leave to do a lot.

That's not a permanent situation. It'll change as more people move there.
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 6:47 PM
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Great photos. I need bike over to Anacostia and explore that area some more. At Congresswoman Norton's National Park Service town-hall last week, someone from the Park Service said that they will be conducting an Anacostia riverfront study soon. I need to follow-up and find out more information about this.

As the Navy Yard/Capitol Riverfront and Southwest waterfront continue to develop, I expect that this will greatly benefit Anacostia. It might take 10-15 years but I think that as the Navy Yard area continues to become an extension of downtown, Anacostia will benefit greatly, since it is one metro station away.

I think DC missed a huge opportunity by not moving the monstrosity that is the University of the District of Columbia from its Van Ness location in upper Northwest to the Saint Elizabeth's campus. This could have created many good jobs east of the river, as well as providing convenient access to higher eductaion for neighbors.
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 6:57 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cirrus View Post
OK not "anything." But the services in Anacostia are approximately equivalent to 1 small suburban strip mall, without the anchor grocer. People have to leave to do a lot.

That's not a permanent situation. It'll change as more people move there.
Very fair assessment. Agreed.
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  #18  
Old Posted May 27, 2014, 7:09 PM
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It looks reasonably dense to me, from the other side of the country. (Correction: looking from bing maps, it looks pretty sparse near MLK, and it's also a bit separated from other neighborhoods. Walking across the river doesn't look easy, though 295 appears to have a walkway?)

Stating the obvious, but if it's a low-income area that means low spending power. And low-income often coincides with high rates of shoplifting/robbery (or guesstimation thereof, based on some decent precedent). Those are both huge factors in where retail goes. Fairness is a fine thing but few retailers will bet millions when the odds don't look good enough.
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Old Posted May 27, 2014, 8:00 PM
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Interesting tour! Looks better than when I saw it in 1992....much better. I was on course in DC back then, and drove through there one Saturday afternoon. When I mentioned it to the instructor he freaked at me, saying I was lucky to be alive lol.

Thanks for posting.
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  #20  
Old Posted May 28, 2014, 7:12 PM
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Looking at 2010 data, the density is just over 10,000 ppsm for 6 Census Tracts, 2 of which include Anacostia Park and a big chunk of Fort Stanton Park, around Historic Anacostia. That's likely higher now with some completed development the last few years.

I agree with 202_Cyclist and believe Anacostia will be a hot neighborhood in 10-15 years. The debate over gentrification will be kicked into high gear if it reaches a neighborhood like Anacostia.
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