Washington Post: Poplar Point is not the place to put the FBI headquarters

Image: Washington Post

From the Washington Post:

I’m all for keeping the FBI headquarters in D.C. But Jack Evans was wrong to suggest in his Nov. 6 Local Opinions essay, “The FBI headquarters belongs in D.C.,” Poplar Point as a possible location.

Poplar Point is an approximately 100-acre parcel of land on the east side of the Anacostia River managed by the National Park Service as part of Anacostia Park. A federal law was passed nearly 16 years ago to transfer the land to D.C. as soon as the interior secretary approved a land-use plan with no fewer than 70 acres set aside for permanent park use. The land-use plan has never been completed because the Navy and the Architect of the Capitol left toxic messes when they used the land decades ago. Development of a cleanup plan has been moving at a frozen snail’s pace since 2008.

The Navy and the Architect of the Capitol need to clean up their mess, and Poplar Point needs to be transferred to D.C. for the benefit of D.C. residents, particularly those east of the Anacostia River. The FBI needs to look elsewhere.

I am a Ward 8 resident who has been attending community meetings on Poplar Point for the past 30 years. It is critical that residents of Ward 8 have a voice in this matter.

Brenda Lee Richardson, Citizens Poplar Point Working Group