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On Wednesday, June 29th, activists belonging to the groups SW Action, and Ward 3 Housing Justice, delivered a petition, containing nearly 1,000 signatures to the Mayor Muriel Bowser, calling on her to purchase two lots for sale in Southwest, D.C. and transfer ownership to the Douglass Community Land Trust. 

On June 24th, 2022, while on the Politics Hour radio show with Kojo Nnamdi, the Mayor was asked whether she would support the petition, to which she replied “I’ll certainly review it.” Later that day, a meeting request with the Mayor was made via her website. When the activists delivered the petition on the 29th, they reiterated their call for a meeting with the Mayor. The activists hope that the Mayor and other elected and government officials will act on this unique opportunity for residents to collectively own and steward land in the city.

SW Action released a press release on June 6th calling on the DC government to purchase the lots at 425 and 375 M Streets SW and transfer ownership to the Douglass Community Land Trust to allow community ownership and community-led stewardship of the parcels.

Join us on Friday, June 3rd, 5-7pm at 425 M Street SW as we hold a rally to express how much this space means to us and to keep the pressure on elected and government officials to make this happen!

The lots at 4th & M, 425 and 375, are on the market. They were initially purchased for $10. We are calling on the DC Government to purchase the land and transfer ownership to the Douglass Community Land Trust to allow for community-led and community-owned development. The lots have become a vital gathering space in the neighborhood that provide a place to gather, obtain fresh, locally grown produce for people of all incomes, and support small, predominantly Black and Brown, artists and vendors. To sign the petition, click here.

In response to the loss of 10 significantly sized trees on public land, the minimal amount of money paid by the developer, and the lack of transparency involved in all of this, we wrote the letter linked below.

The loss of our tree canopy is not just an environmental issue, but also a racial one as well, since people of color are more likely to be exposed to the heat island effect than Whites. Although the Black population has decreased 20%, due to developments like these that offer minimal amounts of affordable housing, there is still a significant Black population that live in the area that deserve to receive the benefits an established tree canopy provides. If you agree with the concerns listed, please sign on in support. Link to letter.

Residents of Greenleaf Gardens were given a resolution that did not include a promise to fulfill the promise of "Build First" in order to prevent displacement during its redevelop. We wrote this letter and sent it to the DC Housing Authority's Board of Commissioners asking that they vote against the resolution and ensure that the promise Build First is fulfilled: Link to letter.

Members of SW Action wrote a letter to the sub-committee on redistricting detailing their concerns about the redistricting process and requesting that the committee focus on making sure racial equity, among other topics, is central to the process. The chairperson of the committee, Councilmember Silverman, reached out and would like to arrange a meeting with the group. You can read the letter here.

The community development working group was interested in learning from residents what types of businesses and community organizations they'd like to see in our neighborhood, so they conducted a survey. The group's plan is to use the survey results to inform our outreach to elected officials. You can browse through the results of the survey here.

Members of SW Action wrote an op-ed in The Southwester newspaper about the DC Auditor's report detailing a failure to address lead in Greenleaf housing. To read the story, click here.

On August 12th, Coy McKinney and Vaughn Perry, presented to a hybrid crowd of people in-person and on Zoom about Community Land Trusts and about the effort to establish one in Southwest. A reporter from the DC Line and Street Sense, attended and wrote an article on the effort. Although it is not a complete recording, you can watch about 25 minutes of the presentation here.

On June 3rd, Ward 6 Councilmember, Charles Allen, wrote a letter to the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development asking that a Community Land Trust model be used for the site. Predicting development timelines is notoriously tricky, but CM Allen believes that in about 4 years, the site will be ready for redevelopment. During that time, SW Action will continue to do outreach and come up with a plan that will serve the Southwest community. You can read more about the model and petition here.

On Saturday, April 24th from 12-3 PM, SW Action supported the Ward 6 Mutual Aid's Clothing Giveaway at King Greenleaf Recreation Center. In addition to 100 meals donated from World Central Kitchen via Rasa, the special event included a 'treasure' table next to SW Mutual Aid's clothing tables where SW community members took clothes, shoes, jewelry, spa items, and any other miscellaneous treasures that caught their eye! We also shared information about SW Action, the CLT petition, and encouraged those that dropped by to fill out our community development survey.

SW Action is launching a petition to expand the Douglass Community Land Trust (DCLT) into Southwest at the current fire truck repair station, which will be relocated in the future. SW Action wants to start a SW chapter of the DCLT to guide how the land will be developed. To learn more about CLTs, how they have been proven to create long-term affordable housing, affordable retail space, visit this page.

SW Action released a press release regarding all the problems with the Cotton Annex project, including a clear conflict of interest between Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner, Andy Litsky, and the non-profit group, the SW Community Foundation, who is supposed to be receiving $100,000 from the developer. Read the press release here.

24 Southwest residents signed on to a letter urging Councilmember Allen to reject the Comprehensive Plan as proposed. The letter asks the Councilmember to include stronger language in the Plan and require more protections and benefits for historically underserved communities. You can read the letter here.

In this second event, we'll be looking at the history of development, displacement, and homelessness in NOMA (includes Union Market)—juxtaposed with BID-sponsored, million dollar underpass art installations and mural festivals like Pow!Wow! DC.

Letter in support of the Buzzard Point Concerned Residents & Friends for Better Air Quality & Environmental Justice's public comments calling for the denial of hte of Vulcan Material Plant’s permit. Link to letter.

This is the first in a series of events on how Business Improvement Districts in different neighborhoods have paved the way for gentrification. Each event will involve panelists and community activists and solicit ideas for change. Link to video.