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92-603: The need for a new bridge spanning the Anacostia River was first identified in 1949 after worsening traffic at Barney Circle led to widespread citizen complaints. The bridge was proposed to cross the Anacostia by extending East Capitol Street over the river. This bridge was opposed by the National Capital Park and Planning Commission (NCPPC), which asked that a bridge be built by extending Massachusetts Avenue SE through

184-520: A traffic light allowed only a few cars onto the bridge's southbound lanes during rush hour . Four lanes of traffic (two northbound, two southbound) passed beneath the bridge's terminus, dead-ending at a non-existent Inner Loop and connected haphazardly to the northeastern side of the circle. An off-ramp delivered most northbound bridge traffic around the incomplete Barney Circle and under the bridge onto Interstate 695 westbound. A dangerous right-hand turn with no deceleration ramp left local traffic coming to

276-573: A channel 15 feet (4.6 m) wide on the Anacostia's west bank from the 11th Street Bridges to Massachusetts Avenue SE , narrowing to a 9 feet (2.7 m) wide channel from Massachusetts Avenue SE to the Maryland -District border line. In addition to this channel (which was meant to facilitate the passage of cargo ships) the McMillan Commission proposed building a dam across the Anacostia River at Massachusetts Avenue SE or at Benning Bridge to form

368-773: A clientele who avidly support the Washington Nationals and D.C. United . Wisdom, a gin parlor, opened in 2008 is known for its luxe cocktails and large selection of absinthe . The completion of the pedestrian bridge northwest of the Sousa bridge connected the neighborhood to The Wharf via the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail in the second decade of the 21st century. Barney Circle has three additional common green spaces where residents walk their dogs, practice guerilla gardening, and other beautification efforts: Dennis Dolinger Memorial Park, Commodore Barney Circle itself, and

460-877: A flattened oval about a mile in radius centered on the White House . The middle beltway would have formed an arc along the northern portion of the city, running from the proposed Barney Circle Freeway (whose terminus would have been near Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium ) through Anacostia Park , cutting northwest through the Trinidad neighborhood along Mt. Olivet Road NE, following the Amtrak rail line north to Missouri Avenue NW , along Missouri Avenue NW to Military Road NW , along Military Road NW across Rock Creek Park to Nebraska Avenue NW , down Nebraska Avenue NW to New Mexico Avenue NW , and down New Mexico Avenue NW and across Glover-Archbold Park until it terminated near 37th Street NW at

552-428: A gently curving peninsula that extended 800 feet (240 m) into the western side of the lake. 1.3 million cubic yards (990,000 m) of fill would be used to raise the peninsula 35 feet (11 m) above the low water mark, and the western approaches built on the new land. Bids for the entire $ 12 million construction project were solicited on May 23, 1952. The Arlington, Virginia , firm of J.A. LaPorte Inc. won

644-478: A heavy load of silt and effluent in the Anacostia. In 1805, local landowner Benjamin Stoddert built a wooden bridge over the Anacostia River at the present site of Benning Bridge. The bridge was sold to Thomas Ewell, who in the 1820s sold it to William Benning. Thereafter the structure was known as Benning's Bridge (or Benning Bridge). The wooden bridge was rebuilt several times after 1805. This included construction of

736-568: A large lake for fishing and recreational boating. The commission also proposed using dredged material to build islands within the lake. The Washington Post reported in July 1914 that Congress had approved the plan for a dam on the river at Massachusetts Avenue SE. By 1916, the Corps of Engineers was still planning a dam, with access to the 9 feet (2.7 m) deep lake behind it controlled by locks . The Corps also planned to create several large islands in

828-535: A local builder presented a paper on Barney to the Columbia Historical Society in 1910. The neighborhood experienced a building boom between 1919 and 1924, when over 70% of its buildings were constructed. At one point, up to 25 percent of the neighborhood was populated by individuals who worked at the Navy Yard . The rowhouses built to serve those blue-collar workers were modest, but comfortable. Most of

920-537: A lock in the southern end of the lake to give pleasure boats access to it, and began laying plans for a second lake (East Lake) on the eastern side of the Anacostia River opposite Kingman Lake. That same year, the National Aeronautic Association proposed filling in all or part of Kingman Lake to build a new city airport. In early 1929, a channel 6 feet (1.8 m) deep was dredged under Benning Bridge as it passed over Kingman Lake. (As of 1998, due to

1012-407: A man leapt from the bridge and landed on a moving vehicle below. Another traffic fatality occurred on the bridge on November 13, 1986, when a driver struck a disabled vehicle on the bridge and was himself rear-ended by a third car. In February 1990, an ambulance taking a patient to the hospital was struck on the bridge by an automobile traveling at about 100 mph, leaving the driver and passenger in

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1104-478: A more commercially viable channel that would enhance the local economy as well as provide land where factories or warehouses might be built. The material dredged from the river would be used to build up the flats and turn them into dry land, eliminating the public health dangers they caused. Most of the reclaimed mudflats were subsequently declared to be parkland and named Anacostia Water Park (now Anacostia Park ) in 1919. The original dredging plan called for

1196-580: A narrow and dangerous ramp that led to northbound D.C. Route 295 (the Anacostia Freeway). The combination of traffic lights, left turn, and mixing of both through-traffic and local traffic created extensive traffic congestion on the Sousa Bridge during evening rush hour . In 2009, the District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT) began the replacement of the 11th Street Bridges. It closed

1288-589: A new bridge would cost about the same. Federal highway officials also testified that the bridge would help ease access to Maryland Route 214 , which was originally planned to connect with the Baltimore–Washington Parkway at the District line but which had been forced into a more southerly direction. Members of Congress inspected both the Massachusetts Avenue SE and East Capitol Street sites, and

1380-473: A playground be built on the shores of Kingman Island. A number of development proposals were made for Kingman Lake throughout the 1960s. The National Capital Parks Commission banned boating on the lake in October 1961. The commission also proposed filling in 59 acres (24 ha) of Kingman Lake (about 50 to 60 percent of the lake's total area) and relocating some of the riprap walls, making Islands 3 and 4 part of

1472-604: A plot to inherit her substantial fortune and win custody of their 12-year-old son. Four men who had learned of the plot were attempting to extort money from Ammidown. In separate trials, Judge John J. Sirica found Ammidown and Lee guilty of murder. Ammidown received a sentence of life in prison, but Lee received the death penalty . Eight days after sentence was imposed, the United States Supreme Court held in Furman v. Georgia , 408 U.S. 238 (1972) that death penalty laws in

1564-464: A significant portion of the traffic using Sousa Bridge, from 50,000 vehicles per day (each way) in 2004 to an estimated 35,000 vehicles per day (each way) in 2030. DDOT also redesigned and rebuilt the ramp from Pennsylvania Avenue SE to northbound D.C. Route 295 to improve its safety. Decommissioned Interstate 695 began to be transformed into a boulevard named "Southeast Boulevard". The reconstruction project, estimated to take 18 to 24 months, raised

1656-440: A steel bridge in 1892. The construction of Benning and other bridges and the diversion of inflowing streams to agricultural use also slowed the river's current, allowing much of the silt to settle and be deposited. Between 1860 and the late 1880s, large mudflats ("the Anacostia flats") formed on both banks of the Anacostia River due to this deforestation and runoff. At this time, the city allowed its sewage to pour untreated into

1748-420: A swift halt to access 17th Street SE — but not Kentucky Avenue SE, which now had to be accessed from local streets. K Street SE now curved north and east around the west side of Barney Circle, and traffic lights on the street caused even more backups both on K Street and on the Sousa Bridge. In 1975, federal, regional, and city transportation planners proposed an extension to I-695/Southeast Freeway to be called

1840-655: Is a 110-acre (0.45 km ) artificial lake located in the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. , in the United States . The lake was created in 1920 when the United States Army Corps of Engineers used material dredged from the Anacostia River to create Kingman Island . The Corps of Engineers largely blocked the flow of the Anacostia River to the west of Kingman Island, creating the lake (although some water

1932-511: Is permitted to enter the lake to prevent it from completely evaporating and to refresh its waters). Kingman Lake is currently managed by the National Park Service . Prior to the arrival of European settlers in the 18th century, the Anacostia River was a fast-flowing and relatively silt-free river with very few mudflats or marshes. White settlers cleared much of the surrounding forest for farmland, however, and extensive soil erosion led to

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2024-654: The Barney Circle Freeway , which would have linked Interstate 695 (which dead-ended at a junction with Pennsylvania Avenue SE ) to the Whitney Young Memorial Bridge by building a six-lane freeway from Barney Circle to the bridge through Anacostia Park . The plan would also have built a new bridge across the Anacostia River from Barney Circle to connect with the Anacostia Freeway near E Street SE. After numerous delays and strong citizen opposition,

2116-687: The Eastern Methodist Cemetery operated from 1824 to 1892. Even though the neighborhood now known as Barney Circle was located near the District's Eastern Market and the Navy Yard , the construction of ammunition depots and the Washington Asylum Hospital in the mid-19th century push development southward on Barrack's Row in lieu of eastward on Pennsylvania Avenue SE. The neighborhood known as Barney Circle remained relatively undeveloped and its streets remained unpaved throughout

2208-489: The "Barney Circle Freeway" to help alleviate the problems created by the failure to complete the Inner Loop. The freeway would extend I-695 past its existing terminus at Barney Circle and travel along the western bank of the Anacostia River (through Anacostia Park ) to East Capitol Street and Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium . A new bridge over the Anacostia River at Burnham Barrier would provide vehicles easy access to

2300-518: The $ 2.2 million contract to the build the superstructure. District officials sought approval from Congress to spend $ 4.3 million in District of Columbia highway budget funds in September 1953. The city also applied for $ 4.2 million in federal matching highway funds to help finish the bridge. Driving of piles for the foundation began in December 1953. About 120 individuals helped construct the bridge deck. All

2392-480: The 19th century. The Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge that connected the neighborhood known as Barney Circle to neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River built until 1890. The neighborhood began to develop in 1902 after Arthur E. Randle won approval from the Congress to lay streetcar tracks across the bridge. The first houses in the core of the neighborhood were built in 1905. The East Washington Heights Traction Railroad

2484-494: The Anacostia Freeway. The Barney Circle Freeway would have delinked Barney Circle from I-695, and reconstructed the on- and off-ramps to Sousa Bridge so that the bridge returned to its traditional function as a local bridge rather than a route for commuters to access the Anacostia Freeway and points east in the state of Maryland. The combined bridge and freeway project was ready for construction to begin in 1981, and its cost

2576-615: The Anacostia River and Kingman Lake. In 1934, the Corps of Engineers transferred ownership of the Anacostia Flats and Kingman Lake to the National Park Service. As the Corps continued to dredge fill, it expanded the flats on the eastern side of Kingman Lake, making it smaller than originally intended. Work on the lake stopped in 1941 due to budgetary and resource shortages associated with the advent of World War II . Health issues regarding Kingman Lake again became prominent in

2668-416: The Anacostia River waterfront. DDOT also began exploring whether to connect Southeast Boulevard to 12th, 13th, 14th, and 15th Streets SE. By 2014, DDOT's plan involved possible reconstructing of Barney Circle into an intermodal transportation hub as well. DDOT planners said that construction on this project might begin as early as 2016, but as of 2017 no work is planned. Kingman Lake Kingman Lake

2760-450: The Anacostia. Marsh grass began growing in the flats, trapping the sewage and leading public health experts to conclude that the flats were unsanitary. Health officials also feared that the flats were a prime breeding ground for malaria - and yellow fever -carrying mosquitoes . By 1876, a large mudflat had formed just to the south of the western end of Benning Bridge, and another mudflat about 740 feet (230 m) wide had developed in

2852-586: The Barney Circle Freeway project was cancelled in 1997. A federal report in March 1972 listed the East Capitol Street Bridge as one of several "deficient" bridges needing repair in the District of Columbia. D.C. officials disagreed with the report's conclusions, arguing they had not submitted complete data on the bridge. In September 2013, United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) rated

Whitney Young Memorial Bridge - Misplaced Pages Continue

2944-514: The Crypt" chamber music concerts. The cemetery also hosts film screenings and weddings. The announcement to build Nationals Park in September 2014 in Navy Yard - a thirty-five minute walk from the core of Barney Circle - catalyzed further development in the neighborhood like Trusty's Full-Serve bar. Trusty's has functioned as neighborhood tavern that has operated in Barney Circle since 2005 with

3036-648: The Earth , Kingman Park Civic Association, the Barney Circle Neighborhood Watch, Urban Protectors, and American Rivers sued to force the city to scale back the freeway even further, add exit ramps at the junction of Pennsylvania Avenue SE and I-695, and alter traffic patterns (e.g., creating more one-way streets) on Capitol Hill. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) officials agreed in August 1994 to conduct an additional environmental impact assessment regarding

3128-591: The East Capitol Street span on May 1, 1950. The Greiner Co. had recommended a $ 2.7 million steel plate girder bridge . The bridge was designed to pass under Minnesota Avenue SE and the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad tracks on the east side of the river and connect with Kenilworth Avenue NE. The cost of the eastern approaches was estimated at $ 6.7 million. The western approaches would split over Kingman Island and connect Independence Avenue SE and C Street NE. Work on

3220-568: The House Subcommittee approved the East Capitol span in mid-March 1950. A $ 395,000 contract studying the two sites was granted to the J. E. Greiner Company of Baltimore, Maryland, on September 9, 1950. The company was also asked to study whether the approaches from the west to the East Capitol Street span would travel along that street or be divided between Independence Avenue SE and C Street NE. D.C. highway officials gave their approval to

3312-447: The Inner Loop left the Sousa Bridge's approaches incomplete and confusing. The bus and streetcar terminal were removed, and Pennsylvania Avenue SE now ran directly through the center of the circle. M Street was disconnected from the circle, and now dead-ended in a roundabout a block east of 12th Street SE. Unmarked Interstate 695 delivered three lanes of traffic to a one-lane on-ramp to the bridge, and traffic backed up for miles every day as

3404-480: The Kenilworth Avenue exits were almost complete by this time as well, but the railroad track underpass (being built by S. Wikstrom Co.) was only 46 percent complete and not due for final work until November 1955. Officials said the bridge would open once Kenny Construction finished connecting the railroad underpass to East Capitol Street in the east. Kenny Construction began work on the final $ 2.3 million phase of

3496-526: The Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge. On August 19, 1911, President William Howard Taft signed S. 306 into law (Public Law No. 33), formally changing the name of the circle to "Commodore Barney Circle" in honor of Commodore Joshua Barney, though it was sometimes referred to as "Admiral Barney Circle". In 1939, the construction of the downstream span of the new John Philip Sousa Bridge reconfigured Barney Circle. A streetcar turnaround and bus lane

3588-610: The Pennsylvania Avenue SE median. Neighborhood Restaurant Group is planning to open a "culinary clubhouse", branded as "The Roost" in 2020 that will accommodate over 400 seats. The Roost will include a sundae and frozen shop, "retro German health food", a taco stand, a beer bar, and a cocktail bar that will specialize in cocktails with a low alcohol percentage. Hill Rag , a monthly community newspaper "of record", has reported on developments in and around Barney Circle since 1976. The Seafarers Yacht Club of Washington, DC,

3680-750: The Subcommittee on District Appropriations of the House Committee on Appropriations turned down a request to fund a study of the Massachusetts Avenue site, and the Subcommittee on the District of Columbia of the House Committee on Expenditures in the Executive Departments held hearings which supported the D.C. Commissioners. The Subcommittee on the District of Columbia estimated that reconstructing ramps and reconfiguring traffic patterns around existing bridges would cost $ 9.5 million, while building

3772-526: The United States constituted cruel and unusual punishment and thus were unconstitutional . Lee's sentence was changed to life in prison. The Court later upheld new death penalty laws in Gregg v. Georgia , 428 U.S. 153 (1976). The Ammidown/Lee trial was the last death penalty case in the District of Columbia. (The District of Columbia abolished the death penalty in 1981.) In 1982, D.C. officials proposed building

Whitney Young Memorial Bridge - Misplaced Pages Continue

3864-626: The Whitney Young Memorial Bridge both "fracture critical" and "structurally deficient". The "fracture critical" rating meant that the if a single component of the bridge fails, the entire bridge would collapse. The "structurally deficient" rating meant that at least one major component of the bridge was in "poor" condition. DDOT officials said they had reinforced the bridge, but these temporary measures were not enough to cause either USDOT assessment to be lifted. DDOT said it had no means of funding any permanent repairs. The Washington Post in April 2014 called

3956-406: The Whitney Young Memorial Bridge one of the three "busiest deficient bridges" in the District of Columbia, along with Arlington Memorial Bridge and Key Bridge . DDOT began an extensive program of preventive maintenance to ensure the bridge did not deteriorate further in advance of a planned 2018 major rehabilitation. DDOT said it would inspect the bridge again at the end of 2015 in order to reassess

4048-755: The area is outstanding, the neighborhood has retained its historic appearance. Few homeowners have installed modern siding or altered their structure in an ahistoric manner. DCPS operates four schools that serve the neighborhood, including Eastern High School , Eliot-Hine Middle School, Payne Elementary School and the Capitol Hill Cluster School. The cluster school has three campuses: Stuart-Hobson Middle School, Watkins Elementary School, and Peabody Elementary School. President Barack Obama visited Stuart-Hobson in 2011 to commemorate Martin Luther King Jr. Day and First Lady Michelle Obama surprised

4140-461: The bridge on the morning of July 13, 1967. The first major accident on the bridge occurred on March 7, 1969, when two vehicles collided head-on on the span, killing two people. Another major crash occurred on September 18, 1971, when a vehicle on the bridge was rear-ended, killing one of the occupants. In October 1977, a man traveling at high speed across the bridge rear-ended another automobile and died. Another suicide occurred on December 16, 1986, when

4232-488: The bridge project on November 6, 1954. Work was due to end in 540 days. The Greenway Apartments (located at 3539 A Street SE) obtained an injunction in February 1955 stopping work for a month on the project after alleging that the excavations for the road would affect the foundation of their building. The East Capitol Street Bridge opened on November 10, 1955. Tippy Stringer, a local television personality at WRC-TV (and later

4324-538: The bridge would be carrying only about 60,000 vehicles per day—about 10 percent fewer than in 1996. In 2019, the District began another rehabilitation project for the bridge. The work includes repairs to both the substructure and the superstructure, rebuilding and widening (to 6 foot 3.5 inches) the sidewalks and their approaches, repair to the bridge rail, installation of new overhead signs and other small repairs. The East Capitol Street Bridge saw its first suicide when one-legged 48-year-old Adolphius L. Groom leapt from

4416-414: The bridge's condition. Barney Circle, Washington, D.C. Barney Circle is a small residential neighborhood located between the west bank of the Anacostia River and the eastern edge of Capitol Hill in southeast Washington, D.C. , in the United States. The neighborhood is characterized by its sense of community, activism, walkability , and historic feel. The neighborhood's name derives from

4508-597: The community is located within Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6B. The core of Barney Circle is zoned in ANC 6B09, and may extend into 6B06, 6B07, 6B08, 6B10, and 7F07. The Congressional Cemetery was created in 1807 holds the remains of Elbridge Gerry , a signer of the Declaration of Independence and former Vice President , Civil War photographer Mathew Brady , the "March King" John Philip Sousa ,

4600-433: The dam idea and proposed creating a 6 feet (1.8 m) deep lake on one side of the Anacostia River by linking several of the mid-river islands it had built with dikes. That same year, Congress specifically prohibited the Corps from extending Anacostia Park beyond Benning Bridge, which forced the Corps to drop its plans for a drawbridge. By March 1926, the Corps had begun calling the lake it had created Kingman Lake, after

4692-428: The deck of the bridge and adding safety improvements. The bridge was carrying about 56,000 vehicles a day at that time. One side of the span was closed at a time, with two-way traffic proceeding on the open portion. Safety improvements included adding a median wall and barriers between the road and the sidewalk and replacing the barrier on the outside of the sidewalk with a higher fence to prevent suicides. It also narrowed

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4784-445: The dredging contract, and the D.C. firm of Morauer & Hartzell won the fill contract. The work was expected to take 15 months. The NCPPC approved the city's plans to connect the new bridge to Kenilworth Avenue NE on December 13, 1952, and a $ 5.5 million plan to widen Kenwilworth Avenue into a divided, 10-lane freeway on March 24, 1953. D.C. officials paid $ 250,000 to buy the land for the exit ramps onto Kenilworth Avenue. Construction on

4876-661: The eponymous former traffic circle Pennsylvania Avenue SE just before it crosses the John Philip Sousa Bridge over the Anacostia. The traffic circle is named for Commodore Joshua Barney , Commander of the Chesapeake Bay Flotilla in the War of 1812 . The Barney Circle neighborhood or also known as Hill East covers the area bounded by L street SE, Southeast Boulevard SE, 14th Street SE,East Capitol Street SE, 22nd Street SE and Independence Avenue SE. However, many of

4968-493: The existing bridges were resolved and the need for a new span made clear. Federal engineers said that study would take two months. Members of the United States House of Representatives from the state of Maryland , whose state would be impacted by eastbound traffic from any new bridge, favored the East Capitol Street site and encouraged the D.C. Commissioners to bring the fight to Congress for resolution. In early March 1950,

5060-571: The former FBI Director , among other famous notables. The revival of the Congressional Cemetery in the early 2000s helped rejuvenate the neighborhood. The Association for the Preservation of Historic Congressional Cemetery manages the cemetery's K9 program, a program that allows 770 dogs the privilege to roam freely over the 35-acre property, as well as the "Rest in Bees" honey and "Notes from

5152-579: The former parade grounds in the western ellipse, parking lots filled the land on both sides of the approach and connections to the parking were built as part of the stadium. In early 1974, the East Capitol Street Bridge was renamed the Whitney M. Young, Jr. Memorial Bridge in honor of Whitney Young , an activist during the Civil Rights Movement and National Urban League Executive Director . In 1980, District officials spent $ 8.5 million reconstructing

5244-591: The freeway's cost had ballooned to $ 160 million and it remained unbuilt. By 1993, although costs for the project had increased to $ 200 million, D.C. Mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly gave her approval for construction to begin. But construction was delayed yet again when the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, Anacostia Watershed Society, Committee of 100 on the Federal City , Citizens Committee to Stop It Again, D.C. Federation of Civic Associations, Friends of

5336-518: The lake and planned to replace Benning Bridge with a drawbridge to accommodate the cargo traffic through the lake. The firm of Sanford and Brooks began the dredging in January 1903, at which time the Army Corps of Engineers began surveying the surrounding land to determine whether the federal government or private landowners had title to the marshes themselves. By 1920, the Corps of Engineers had dropped

5428-401: The lake back into a tidal marsh . The Corps said it would remove some of the riprap wall and create 42 acres (17 ha) of marsh north of Benning Bridge and 7 acres (2.8 ha) of marsh between Benning Bridge and East Capitol Street Bridge. Work on the tidal marsh would be complete by March 2000, and during the summer of 2000 the Corps intended to plant tens of thousands of aquatic plants in

5520-445: The mainland and adding 19 acres (7.7 ha) to Langston Golf Course (located on the northern half of Kingman Island). This plan was never acted on. Since 1999, a variety of proposals have been made for Kingman Lake, most focusing on retaining the lake's character as one of the few remaining wild places within the city's limits. In September 1999, the Army Corps of Engineers—which retained ownership of Kingman Lake—began transforming

5612-438: The mid-1950s. An American University biologist found that the bed of Kingman Lake was composed almost entirely of fecal matter , and warned that no one should swim in the lake due to the extensive pollution. The immense amount of raw sewage in the lake was attributed to low water flows, and the lack of southern locks to allow water to more freely pass out of the lake. Nonetheless, a year later city officials were advocating that

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5704-423: The needy. The drainage of raw sewage into Kingman Lake and the Anacostia River first became an issue in the early 1930s. An open sewer channel drained into Kingman Lake through the middle of this tract, but a footbridge was constructed over it to link the two areas. Later that year, the Army Corps of Engineers spent $ 853,000 to extend Washington's sewer system to Bladensburg to collect raw sewage being dumped into

5796-485: The new marshlands. The cost of the wall removal, marsh restoration, and plantings was estimated at $ 4 million. A five-year scientific effort would monitor changes in the tidal marsh from 2001 to 2006. Deaths and accidents in and around Kingman Lake have unfortunately been numerous. The first confirmed death in Kingman Lake occurred on August 5, 1937, when William O'Bryant, a 19-year-old African American youth, drowned in

5888-602: The north end of Georgetown . As part of this plan, Barney Circle was again rebuilt in 1971, now with freeway ramps leading to the Southeast/Southwest Freeway and the John Philip Sousa Bridge. Two decades of protest led to the cancellation of all but the Interstate 395 and Interstate 695 portions of the plan. The unbuilt portions of the project were finally cancelled in 1977. The failure to complete

5980-484: The project, but later said the assessment's findings did not alter its earlier conclusion that construction of the roadway and bridge project was economically feasible, technologically appropriate, and environmentally sound. However, the D.C. City Council had the final say on whether to proceed with the project or not. In December 1994, the City Council bowed to neighborhood opposition and voted overwhelmingly to reject

6072-598: The project. Since the cancellation of the Inner Loop Expressway, motorists wanting to access the Baltimore–Washington Parkway or U.S. Route 50 in Maryland (the John Hanson Highway) would often travel Interstate 695 to Barney Circle, wait at the traffic light there, cross the Sousa Bridge, wait at a traffic light on the southwestern terminus of the bridge, and make a left turn against oncoming traffic to access

6164-477: The purpose of building a rail crossing over the Anacostia. This along with reports by the Office of Public Buildings and Grounds (OPB&G) in the 1880s and 1890s that much of the area was under water at high tide, prevented the construction of a circular park as had been planned. By 1903, was constructed as a traffic circle instead, with the name "Pennsylvania Avenue Circle", and Pennsylvania Avenue passing through it to

6256-516: The reconstruction of Benning Bridge and other changes, this had been replaced with a 30 feet (9.1 m) wide culvert.) The dredging ship Benning also dredged about half of Kingman Lake to deepen it. By this time, the conduit and gates had been installed in the lake's lower exit, and the upper gates were expected to be installed soon. About 200 acres (81 ha) of the western shore of Kingman Lake between Gallinger Hospital and Benning Bridge were set aside for gardens in March 1933 to provide food for

6348-518: The residents of the surrounding areas (such as the Lincoln Park and Capitol Hill East neighborhoods) consider themselves to live in Barney Circle. The neighborhood's imprecise boundaries may stretch as far north as East Capitol Street , as far south as the Southeast Boulevard, and as far east as D.C. Jail at 19th and D Streets SE. The Congressional Cemetery was established in 1807 and

6440-487: The river south of that. By 1883, a stream named "Succabel's Gut" traversed the upper flat and another dubbed "Turtle Gut" the lower, and both flats hosted substantial populations of American lotus , lily pads , and wild rice . In 1898, officials with the United States Army Corps of Engineers and the District of Columbia convinced the United States Congress that the Anacostia River should be dredged to create

6532-527: The roadway 20 feet (6.1 m) to bring it level with the grade of the surrounding streets. The six-lane former highway began to be turned into a four-lane grand boulevard with a landscaped median and pedestrian nature trail. Southeast Boulevard was designed to link Barney Circle to 11th Street SE. In 2013, DDOT published plans to reconfigure Barney Circle. Priorities for the project included improving and restoring access to neighborhood streets, and adding pedestrian and bicycle connectivity to local streets and

6624-581: The sidewalks to 3 feet 9 inches (1.14 m). The bridge continued to have work done as it neared a half century of use. The roadway's condition was noticeably rough in 1997, and so in 2004, the District of Columbia resurfaced the deck and made repairs to three piers at a cost of $ 3.4 million. In 2009, the Federal Highway Administration 's National Bridge Inventory rated the bridge as "not deficient." The District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT) estimated that by 2015,

6716-435: The single-family brick rowhouses homes have at least two stories, two-three bedrooms, a couple of bathrooms, small yards, and low porches. Earlier developments on Capitol Hill featured homes which were narrow and deep, while the homes in the Barney Circle neighborhood are relatively wide and shallow. These type of homes, an innovation in the first decade of the 20th century, are known as "daylight rowhouses" because each room

6808-498: The students of Watkins in 2016 to promote gardening. The District of Columbia Public Charter School Board operates Friendship Public Charter School in Barney Circle that serves students from pre-K through the eighth grade. Barney Circle is located within Ward 6 . Charles Allen has represented the neighborhood on the Council of the District of Columbia since January 2015. The heart of

6900-438: The substructure and most up the superstructure had been completed by August 1954. Widening of East Capitol Street east of the river was also completed in 1954. Completion was expected in October 1955. By late September 1954, 73 percent of the superstructure had been completed and only stone protections for the piers remained to be finished for the substructure. District transportation officials also said that ramps and overpasses for

6992-547: The three D.C. Commissioners (then the sole government of the District of Columbia) approved a bridge at East Capitol Street. But just three weeks later, the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge opened across the Anacostia River, alleviating traffic congestion in southeast. A few days later, the NCPPC voted to suspend approval for any new bridge across the Anacostia River until traffic patterns and congestion around

7084-577: The undeveloped Hill East/Reservation 13 area and connecting it with its namesake street in the Greenway neighborhood on the east side of the river. The Commission was supported by an influential group of business people and civic leaders known as the Committee of 100 on the Federal City . D.C. officials, however, opposed this route for fear of the negative effects it would have on nearby Gallinger Hospital (later renamed D.C. General Hospital ). On December 29, 1949,

7176-433: The vehicle in critical condition. The bridge was also the scene of a famous rape and murder in D.C. history. On October 1, 1971, Richard Anthony Lee was accused of kidnapping Robert L. Ammidown and his wife, Linda E. Ammidown; forcing them to drive to the East Capitol Street Bridge overpass above the railroad tracks; and raping and killing Linda Ammidown. Police later learned that Robert Ammidown had hired Lee to kill Linda in

7268-421: The well-regarded former head of the Corps, Brigadier General Dan Christie Kingman . The name was formally proposed in September. Improvements to the island and lake continued: The Corps spent $ 55,000 for a rock and concrete riprap wall around Kingman Lake, and another $ 20,000 for gates and conduits at the north and south ends of the lake to maintain a constant water level in lake. The Corps wanted to install

7360-480: The west side were built through what had been planned as Anacostia Park, a recreation area and National Sports Center. Construction of the bridge required redesign of that park, and abandonment of the Kingman Lake feature of the plan. The western approach included an ellipse that was to serve as a parade ground, but by 1957 planners were already viewing it as a stadium site. In 1957, the Kenilworth Expressway

7452-475: The westbound segment of Interstate 695 from the 11th Street Bridges to Barney Circle in late November 2012, and the eastbound lanes in early 2013. This portion of was Interstate 695 was subsequently decommissioned, turning roughly five blocks of six-lane highway into city streets from the National Highway System . The unfinished "mixing bowl" exchange on the southern terminus of the 11th Street Bridges

7544-465: The western approaches was blocked for a month after residents of Suitland, Maryland , (upset by loud trucks passing down their streets) won a month-long restraining order against the project so that contractors could devise and implement a noise-abatement program. Construction on the bridge itself began in 1953. Baltimore Contractors, Inc. won the $ 1.2 million contract to build the bridge's substructure, and DeLuca Davis Construction (also of Baltimore) won

7636-411: The western approaches was estimated at $ 2.3 million. The NCPPC approved the plan on May 10, and the United States Army Corps of Engineers did so on August 20. But after a final site visit from the NCPPC in September 1951, the approaches were moved slightly westward. The new approaches required dredging 650,000 cubic yards (500,000 m) from Kingman Lake and replacing it with sand and gravel to create

7728-413: The wife of NBC news anchor Chet Huntley ), cut the ribbon opening the bridge. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Robert V. Murray drove the first vehicle across the bridge. About 300 people attended the ceremony, which was held in a driving rain. Also present were all three D.C. Commissioners and Rep. George Hyde Fallon (chair of the House Committee on Public Works ). The bridge and approaches on

7820-499: Was also altered. Local traffic was separated from through-traffic by the construction of a bridge dedicated for local traffic only, and ramps connecting the bridge to D.C. Route 295 were created. Construction of the new ramps began in May 2012, with the ramp from southbound D.C. Route 295 onto the 11th Street Bridge completed in July 2012. The ramp from the bridges to northbound D.C. Route 295 opened on December 19, 2012. These changes removed

7912-403: Was carved from the center of the circle, and a $ 7,000 bus and streetcar terminal occupied the western portion of the site. The terminal opened on January 26, 1941 and ceased operation in 1960. In 1956, federal and regional transportation planners proposed an Inner Loop Expressway composed of three circumferential beltways for the District of Columbia. The innermost beltway would have formed

8004-462: Was completed in 1942 and is named after the famed composer and DC native, who had died in 1933. Barney Circle was part of the original L'Enfant Plan for the District of Columbia. However, it was designated a square, not a traffic circle, on the city's original plats. In 1867, the Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington Railroad obtained the rights to the land where Barney Circle would be built for

8096-449: Was constructed to connect the bridge to the new Baltimore-Washington Parkway and along with that eastern approach was changed to include ramps between the two. This project rendered the downstream sidewalk obsolete for more than 50 years. By 1964, the Anacostia Freeway had been extended north to meet the Kenilworth Expressway, which was later subsumed by the freeway. In 1961, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium (later renamed RFK) opened on

8188-525: Was established in 1945 south of the Congressional Cemetery. It is, by some assessments, the oldest African American boat club on the East Coast. Barney circle is accessible via metro, express bus lines, highways, and Capital Bikeshare dock. The neighborhood is served by Potomac Avenue station and Stadium–Armory station and the 36 Pennsylvania Avenue busline. The John Philip Sousa Bridge

8280-422: Was estimated to be $ 93.5 million. But after protests from residents of Capitol Hill (who feared the Barney Circle Freeway would cause more traffic to flow into the area) as well as environmentalists , the District of Columbia agreed to reduce the number of lanes on the Barney Circle Freeway to two from four. The protests and legal and regulatory challenges to the proposed freeway did not end, however, and by 1992

8372-541: Was incorporated on June 18, 1898. By 1903 it ran from the Capitol along Pennsylvania Avenue SE to Barney Circle, and by 1908, it went across the bridge to Randle Highlands (now known as Twining ) as far as 27th St SE. By 1917 it had been extended out Pennsylvania Avenue past 33rd Street SE., but the company ceased operations by 1923. In 1911 the Congress passed an act "to confirm the name of Commodore Barney Circle", after

8464-408: Was lit as much as possible by sunlight coming through windows. The homes in the Barney Circle neighborhood generally are set back from the street at a uniform distance, and have a small front yard and an open-air porch . As with most rowhouses, the homes typically have mansard roofs with dormers which provide third-floor sleeping, working, or storage space. Although little of the architecture in

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