The DC chapter of the Sierra Club has sent out a statement saying they don't support the current plan for the shuttered McMillan Sand Filtration Site because it isn't parklike enough. The full text of their letter sent to the Historic Preservation Review Board is after their jump and it joins a growing crowd of groups that aren't in favor of it. The screengrab above is from a 3D version of an alternative plan for the site, including an idea for what a recreation center should look like. It will include many bikini-clad women, fyi.
The full text of the letter:
On behalf of the Sierra Club and its 2,500 members living in the District of Columbia,
I write to express our concerns regarding the proposed master plan and design guidelines for development of the McMillan Park and Sand Filtration Site.In our view, the present design plans do too little to preserve the parklike
characteristics that dominate the present space. Though the site has, regrettably, been fenced off over the past decades, its vast green vistas have always given us hope that the inevitable commercial development plans would honor that tradition and provide nearby neighborhoods with the myriad blessings of accessible parkland. A more balanced plan for the McMillan Park site would devote half or more of the surface to contiguous park and park-like use. Further, this park space should be unfenced and thus available for the use and enjoyment of all of the City's residents and visitors.The Sierra Club therefore asks that the Board reject the currently-proposed master
plan and insist on the submission of creative alternative plans that achieve a better balance of commercialization and parkland preservation.
· Friends of McMillan [OfficialSite]
· DC chapter of the Sierra Club opposes McMillan development plan [BloomingdaleNeighborhood]
· The People's Plan for McMillan Park_Central Site [YouTube]