A Big Approval for DC's 11th Street Bridge Park

• October 11th 2022

by Tani Levitt

The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) gave a boost to the city's 11^th Street Bridge Park project last week, approving the final plan for the long-awaited park and bridge. The project, from Building Bridge Across the River, will reuse parts of the former 11th Street Bridge (map) spanning the Anacostia River to create DC's first elevated park. 

“I think the park design is very innovative and it is a public space that will better connect the communities on both sides of the Anacostia River," NCPC chair Beth White said. "I am certain that this will be a space for everyone to enjoy and come together.”

Since the plans were first submitted in 2014, the vision of the project has remained largely unchanged. Combining functional elements, including the existing piers from the old bridge, the park will have features such as an amphitheater, a café, a boat launch, a community farm, a hammock grove and a garden.

The new design upgraded access and signage plans and emphasized native plants and milkweed for monarch butterflies. With that said, NCPC noted that “the applicant is still in discussions with the District Department of Energy and Environment regarding measures related to wetland changes and pier dredging.”

With the plan approved, the next step for the project will be for the development team to seek a general contractor, and hopefully break ground soon after.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/a_big_approval_for_dcs_11th_street_bridge_park/20180.