In case the photos weren’t enough, here is a minute long video of the installation process!
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Closing in on our second to last summer intern meeting, Rich, Ben, and I gathered around the conference table to enjoy some mango and rabbit-shaped graham crackers, with our fearless leader, Vanessa. These weekly rendezvous have been a chance for interns and staff to discuss goals and successes, obstacles and setbacks – to celebrate and troubleshoot together. Sadly, David Krieger’s last day in the office was Wednesday. But soon we should have a new Community Director to spearhead our community initiatives. Vanessa is actively searching for fall interns to help spearhead our working groups around resource efficiency and building improvements, green infrastructure and stormwater, innovative and sustainable economic development, and urban agriculture and local food. We are also looking for people interested in working on public art and space projects. Fall is looking to be a very busy time – and part of the adventure is meeting and working with new people. Summer has been an amazing time as we get to understand the history and present-day context of Gowanus and South Brooklyn, brainstorm with our neighbors and experts during the community innovation workshop, and begin building coalitions around community priorities. We have accomplished quite a bit in the past few months, but there is still much to do to make our vision a reality. Our next steps include forming working groups, building up relationships with businesses and residents of Gowanus, and going after sponsorship and financial support for longer-term operations in the neighborhood. We are confident that with the continued support from the community we’ll be able to see this vision through, creating a livable city one block at a time. On July 30, Living City DC 14th & U launches a project on the grounds of the Paul Laurence Dunbar Apartments to create a community garden. The garden will create a welcoming space for residents and the community to meet and will give the Paul Laurence Dunbar residents access to fresh flowers and produce. To do this, Living City DC has partnered with dc greenworks. This community garden serves many purposes concurrently. At face value, as a garden, it is a convenient source of interaction with nature and plants for the seniors living in the apartments, as well as a source of fresh produce. It also allows for young people in the community to build something of value within their own neighborhood, and provides a space for people from all parts of the LCDC 14th & U community to meet with the residents of the Dunbar Apartments. In order to make this project a success, we need your help! RSVP via our Facebook Event More information: JAIR LYNCH Development Partners and the Paul Laurence Dunbar Residents Association, Inc. are jointly redeveloping the Paul Laurence Dunbar Apartments. The two organizations jointly purchased the property in June of 2010 and refinanced it in June of 2011 with low-income housing tax credits and tax-exempt bonds in order to maintain it as affordable senior housing. JAIR LYNCH Development Partners is an urban regeneration company that specializes in the responsible transformation of urban markets.
Author: Michael DeVito, Green Roof Intern As part of my internship with Living City DC 14th & U, I’m looking at the potential for bringing large-scale green roofing to the neighborhood. “Green roofing” is a broad term that can take many different forms, but it simply means installing plants on a building’s roof. Depending on how the plants are set up, the green roof could provide a host of benefits, from improving air quality and helping to deal with storm water, to energy savings and even the potential for growing food. In my work, I am creating a comprehensive analysis of green roofing and what it takes to bring green roofs to buildings at Living City DC 14th & U. My study involves all aspects of the process and the environmental and cost impacts of green roof systems. The major benefit of a green roof system is that it brings the attributes of nature back into a developed space. Green roofing will be beneficial both for the immediate 14th & U Street neighborhood and the city as a whole. Locally, a green roof would act as a layer of insulation on top of the buildings, preventing heat loss during the winter and acting as a buffer against solar radiation in the summer. This translates to significant energy savings over the course of the life of the building. Green roofs also help to improve air quality by removing prominent air pollutants, such as ozone and nitrogen dioxide. The District as a whole will benefit from green roofing as part of its strategy to address the issue of storm water runoff. When rain falls in urban areas, concrete and buildings prevent the water from being absorbed in to the soil, as it would in a forest. As a result the water moves along the street and through the storm water system. During periods of high rainfall, this untreated water overflows into local waterways. Green roofs allow for water retention, reducing the burden on the District’s combined storm water and sewer system and reducing overflow into the Anacostia and Potomac rivers. Green roofing will have a direct positive impact on the water quality of the District.  Rendering by dc greenworks On July 23, Living City DC 14th & U launches a project on the grounds of the Dunbar Towers Apartments to create a community garden. The community garden will sit on what has been an underused shuffleboard site. The gardens will create a welcoming space for residents and the community to meet and will give the Dunbar Towers Apartments access to fresh flowers and hopefully even produce. To do this, Living City DC has partnered with dc greenworks, the One City Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP), Jair Lynch Developers, and Paul Laurence Dunbar Resident’s Association. dc greenworks is a non-profit organization that works to grow livable, sustainable communities here in the District. They have partnered with LCDC 14th & U and designed the gardens for the Dunbar Towers Apartments, which will be contained in raised planters to allow residents to grow and maintain the gardens while sitting, rather than bending down. dc greenworks is also a leading DC resource for green roofs and rain gardens, which serve to reduce hard surfaces around homes and other buildings. LCDC 14th & U will also rely on youth from the SYEP. SYEP is open to young adults ages 14-21 every year, and provides temporary summer employment. SYEP offers youth a chance to earn money, gain skills, and expand interest in new careers. LCDC 14th & U has arranged for 12 youth directly from the from the community to assist with developing and maintaining the community garden at the Dunbar Towers Apartments for between now and August, where they will help with building and planting in the raised boxes. The SYEP programs is managed by Deborah Thomas, the LCDC 14th & U Director of Community Outreach and an ANC 1B Commissioner. This community garden serves many purposes concurrently. At face value, as a garden, it is a convenient source of interaction with nature and plants for the seniors living in the buildings, as well as a source of fresh produce for residents of the Dunbar Towers Apartments. It also allows for young people in the community to build something of value within their own neighborhood, and bring people from parts of the LCDC 14th & U larger community into contact with the residents of The Dunbar Apartment. In order to make this project a success, we need your input! Here is how to get involved:
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