Park View, D.C.

In this year’s AlleyPalooza 3, at least two more alley’s in the neighborhood have been identified for renovation.  AlleyPalooza 3’s goal is to provide construction, improvement and repairs to 8 alleys in each of the 8 wards in 12 weeks for a total of 64 alleys. The cost to do this is approximately $10.5 million. The alley repair campaign is Mayor Bowser’s summer program to reconstruct and repair alleys in all eight wards across the city.

I know that there are a lot of factors that go into selecting the alleys for inclusion each year, but want to give a shout out to Commissioner Rashida Brown, the Luray-Warder Neighborhood Association’s Audra Grant, and Ward 1 MOCR Gabriel Rojo (and I’m sure there are others) for taking the time to walk alleys in the southern part of the neighborhood, identify alleys, and advocate on behalf of their repair.

The slides below are from the slide deck listing the alleys to be repaired in Ward 1.

On July 8, 2015, Mayor Bowser announced the launch of  “the first-ever AlleyPalooza to improve 64 alleys across the city in just two months.” In Ward 1, most of the alleys that will be repaired are in Columbia Heights, though there is one in Mt. Pleasant and appears to be one on T Street on the Ward 1/2 border. There was also one on Manor Place in Park View.

(Map showing location of Ward 1 alleys to be repaired.)

In checking out the Manor Place alley, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the work was well underway on July 8th and appeared to be finished on July 9th (Photos below.)

According to the full press release:

Alleys represent a vital, but often unseen, part of our city’s infrastructure. The District has more than 350 miles of alleys. These backyard lanes are important for transit, parking and services like trash pickup – and increasingly, they also serve as places for families to hang out, neighbors to catch up with neighbors, and kids to ride their bikes.

We’ve heard from the community that we can do a better job of updating our alleys. With input from residents through 311, my team has identified 64 alleys – eight alleys in all eight wards – that will be repaired or renovated by mid-September. You can stay up to speed on our progress by checking out the following map. Bear with us during the construction process – we promise the end result will be worth it.

AlleyPalooza comes on the heels of our successful PotholePalooza – the District’s annual effort to fill in those pesky potholes that plague our streets every spring. This year, the DC Department of Transportation (DDOT) used new technologies and strategies to effectively identify and repair potholes across all eight wards. I’m pleased to report that DDOT has already filled nearly 32,000 potholes across the District, and they’ve hired more crews to get the job done.

We want our streets and alleys to reflect the quality and strength of our neighborhoods. With AlleyPalooza and PotholePalooza, we are two steps closer to making that a reality.

Photos of Manor Place alley: