11th Street Bridge Park construction to begin in 2021

D.C.’s first elevated public park is slated to break ground in 2021 and be completed by 2023, according to Building Bridges Across the River, the nonprofit spearheading the multimillion-dollar project, and the city. More imminently, planning officials will hold a public meeting on the 11th Street Bridge Park project, which will stretch roughly 1.5 miles across the Anacostia River, between Anacostia and Navy Yard, September 25 to discuss the would-be bridge and get feedback. The meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Anacostia High School.

The project, which recently received $5 million in funding from energy giant Exelon, would be built on the piers of the former 11th Street Bridge. Designed by the architectural team of OMA + OLIN, the bridge would be built on the piers of the former 11th Street Bridge and has been described as the District’s very own High Line, the New York City park installed on old, elevated railroad tracks that opened in 2009. “The objective of this project is to create a place that supports the community’s physical, environmental, cultural and economic health,” notes the District Department of Transportation (DDOT). DDOT is hosting the meeting next week.

Once built, the project will feature art and performance spaces, play areas, plazas, urban farming plots, an amphitheater, and more. As of July, the project had raised approximately 80 percent of the $139 million in funds it is thought to need, the Washington Post reported.