Across the Anacostia River from Nationals Park nestled between the Frederick Douglass and the 11th Street bridges, 110 acres of mostly wooded park and wetlands waits to be developed.
Much like the RFK Stadium campus, Poplar Point is federal land Congress transferred control of to D.C.
“We will have a 70-acre waterfront park and 40 acres of development,” Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development Nina Albert said.
“Anacostia waterfront is approximately 1,200 acres of natural and open green space along the Anacostia,” she said. “I don't think people realize that it rivals Rock Creek Park in terms of environmental and natural assets.”
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“Part of the redevelopment of Poplar Point includes preserving 70 acres of open and green space, and I think it's going to be a real world-class natural amenity and provide access to the river in a way that other parts of our waterfront development have not been able to,” Albert said.
Albert’s office began a series of community meetings previewing the three alternatives under consideration, including the possibility of a large anchor tenant that would draw crowds.
“I think that the point is a logical place,” Albert said. “It's also directly across from [Navy Yard] and Nats ballpark, and so, there's a natural synergy of having an anchor destination on one side of the river and another destination on the other side of the river.”
Real Estate
In the past when D.C. tried and failed to develop the land, one of the biggest hurdles was relocating the U.S. Park Police heliport and other facilities currently located there. Albert said the city is close to a deal with the park service.
“They've always been open to moving the helipad,” she said. “The requirement of the land transfer is that we find a suitable location and that we pay for those replacement facilities.”
While any development is still several years away, Albert is confident this time it will become a reality.
While Congress approved the transfer of the 110 acres to D.C. almost 20 years ago, it won’t be finalized and development can’t begin until the park service agrees to a new location for the helipad, and the District must allocate space for two federal memorials.
An environmental assessment of the land is underway.
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