After hearing all about the absolutely dismal news of Fort Reno Park closing yesterday, and the uncertain faith of the summer concert series we have decided to take things into our own hands. Or I should say, Jeff, our ideas man (read: no one really knows what he does on BYT but he has ideas, that IS for sure, and we love him for it) decided to take things into his own hands. And somehow involve Marion Barry.
Naturally.
In the spirit of helping Fort Reno (and Jeff and Marion) we will be liveblogging with updates on this throughout the day (because you know, we can) so stay tuned. -ED.
(From Waxing Poetic with Marion Barry)
WHO WILL SAVE YOUR SOIL?
Brightest Young Things is calling on our readers to help our city’s leaders to save Fort Reno and the Arsenic-ridden soil that lies beneath it.
As you may have seen in yesterday’s Washington Post blog (and subsequently every other DC publication)
Please help do your part by emailing your local city official, the Mayor’s office and/or former Mayor and current City Council member, Marion Barry.
For your convenience, we have created a generic email that may be sent to Mr. Barry’s city council email address: mbarry@dccouncil.us
Dear Mr. Marion Barry,
The Fort Reno Summer Concert Series is a D.C. institution that has
been taking place for over 40 years. As you may have heard this
morning, the United States Geological Survey along with the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers have closed the Fort Reno Park after testing
reported high levels of arsenic in the park. There are a number of
questions that remain unanswered at this point in time. Hopefully, a
highly regarded civic leader such as yourself will get to the bottom
of what is happening and quell the concerns of the citizens.
First off, Mr. Barry, many people would like to know if there has been
any potential harm suffered by repeat attendees of the Fort Reno
Concert Series. As a City Council Member, hopefully you can help us
to find out how many times would one have had to come into contact
with the soil to be affected by the high concentrations of arsenic?
Second, what is the future of the Fort Reno Concert Series? It is
safe to say that this tradition of seeing free, live music outdoors is
a one-of-a-kind experience enjoyed by many different peoples, from
wards all over the city, including the citizens of Ward 8, your ward,
sir. I am certain that your constituents are as gravely concerned
over the possibility of not being able see their favorite bands in
such an environment for an extended period of time. What is to be
done about this?
There is a real opportunity here, Mr. Barry, for you to be a champion
of the people on this issue. I know it is in the city’s best interest
for a true leader such as yourself to step to the plate and ensure
that the Fort Reno Concert Series continues this year and in future
years, with the utmost concern shown for the safety and health of all
attending.
I look forward to your comments on this issue in a timely matter.
Thank you, …..
this place had like 1 good show a year..if that. all the b grade dischord/lovitt bands (and friends) will just have to play in their backyards or something.
May 15, 2008 at 9:21 amI love Meridian Hill Park, but it’s under construction (still), and I know it’s supposed to be finished by June, but I’ve sort of lost that hope.
what about… somewhere in Rock Creek? I would say Carter Baron, but I’m sure they already have stuff scheduled…
May 15, 2008 at 9:29 amThat’s it. Who Cares is right. Everybody just stop with the letter writing and the whining and the complaining about a decades old DC musical institution. Who Cares is here to show us the light, people! He is our savior. All praises due to Who Cares, he is the beacon of wisdom in a our collective fog of stupidity.
Oh thank you, Who Cares for your wise insight. What else do you have to share conveniently anonymously monikered wise one?
May 15, 2008 at 9:33 amNever happen at Meridian Hill (Malcolm X). neighbors complain about the hippy (white kids who did 3 months serving rice in Africa and now think they’re multicultural) drum circles they have there as it is.
As it stands, however, this is a huge overreaction (because people are dumb, and don’t think, and overreact) because you have to actually ingest arsenic to be poisoned by it, so unless you’re sitting around there eating fistfuls of dirt, then it’s a non-fucking-issue.
But, alas, our species is rapidly losing its common sense.
May 15, 2008 at 9:38 amsheesh, it was a joke. unless you really think that i would ask marion barry to take care of my civic issues for me. although, who knows, maybe he’ll fight for your rights.
May 15, 2008 at 9:52 amOk, DC Civics lesson #1 - NPS+EPA > ALL YOUR CITY COUNCIL
May 15, 2008 at 10:10 amAgree with Michael. It’s probably perfectly safe for everyone but babies and dogs (both of which probably do eat dirt when presented with the option). But most discriminating dogs hate Dischord, so this shouldn’t be too much of a problem.
May 15, 2008 at 10:12 amFort Reno is not necessarily a Dischord fest! This is such a bummer to the new bands who have been waiting/excited to play Fort Reno. I really hope this gets resolved somehow.
May 15, 2008 at 10:40 amyou should send this to mary cheh, she is the council member for ward 3. because similar poison clean-ups have been undertaken elsewhere in tenleytown, her office might actually have an answer for you about what the deal is for health and safety.
you could also send this letter to jim graham, ward 1 council member (probably your council member?) and chair of the environmental committee.
mayor barry is the council member for ward 8. if you really want to do something provacative you could send him a letter encouraging similar poison studies in his part of the city. because ward 8 is not as affluent as ward 3 or 1, the residents of these neighborhoods could be victims of “environmental injusice” where they are disparatly burdened by the region’s overlooked environmental issues. so in your letter to mayor barry you could say something along these lines to raise the issue of “environmental racism” as complain about all these efforts to protect the laccross players and dog walkers and indie rockers of ward 3.
also you can take your disappointment about this and be reminded that trash is scary. remeber to dispose of hazardous things properly! like recycling dead batteries and broken electronics for instance. you should also think twice about replacing your electronics if they are not actually broken. microprocessers contain arsenic!
May 15, 2008 at 11:02 amPeople, c’mon, Marion is the only man for the job.
May 15, 2008 at 11:19 am@who cares:
I propose a new speech bubble icon for the Comment Bama O’ The Day. yesterday it was only a thought but today, thanks to you, it becomes a full on lobbying effort. And I propose this knowing I could earn myself a couple, or more.
dood, don’t do that. like 4 out of 5 of my bubbles will be hit with the mark of the bama.
May 16, 2008 at 3:31 pm
Or you could contact your own councilmembers. Being the nerd that I am, I was up late last night looking at satellite images of DC for alternative spaces. There’s good potential for the use of Meridian Hill Park, which currently offers special permits for its use as a wedding space ($200/event). The National Parks Service could be encouraged to broker an agreement for use of Meridian Hill Park as an alternative space - It’s metro accessible (Columbia Heights, U-St Cardoza), but there are a few more neighbors, so noise would still be a concern. I would encourage people to contact their appropriate council member, as well as the council member from Ward 3, Mary Cheh, and Jim Graham (Ward 1, where Meridian Hill Park is located). Jim Graham has been a patron of the arts for years. Ask them to consider assisting in working with the National Parks Service to find a new venue for the Fort Reno Concert series.
May 15, 2008 at 9:01 am