Looking Past the Capital City

A Reinvented D.C. Could Offer New Destinations in All Directions

By Paul Schwartzman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, May 9, 2008; Page B01

The recent opening of the Washington Nationals' baseball stadium culminated a decade of panoramic change in the District, one in which downtown and an array of long-forlorn neighborhoods blossomed.

So what is Washington's next horizon?

If the city has purged much of the blight that helped make it a symbol of urban dysfunction, what is it aspiring to now?

The answer, voiced by a wide range of District officials, planners and developers, is nothing less than transcending Washington's primary identity as the nation's capital and ever-proper home to the federal government.

The Washington that they envision is far more cosmopolitan, in the spirit of Paris or London, national capitals better known for a wide variety of attractions: vibrant neighborhoods, scenic riverfronts, pedestrian-jammed sidewalks, art museums, shopping and fine cuisine.

In the future Washington, they say, newly created waterfront neighborhoods, long established areas such as U Street and Georgetown, and a 24-hour downtown would be as defining as the White House and Capitol are today.

"The federal city and the real city will shift," said Richard Bradley, executive director of the Downtown D.C. Business Improvement District, a nonprofit organization that promotes revitalization. "Whereas before, the federal city has been in the foreground and D.C. has been the background, D.C. will emerge as the foreground."

Source: Washington Post. View Article.

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