Georgetowners Told to 'Dream Big' for $1 Million Rose Park Renovation

Georgetown residents, including children, will drive the ideas behind renovations for the Rose Park play areas, according to representatives from the Trust for Public Land and landscape architect team, Smith Murray.

"Dream big, but keep your feet on the floor," Kent Whitehead, the director of the Chesapeake Office for TPL, said at a meeting last Thursday.

The $1 million budget includes about $200,000 for the schematic and final design, while the remaining $800,000 will go to the actual improvements.

The project area will focus on land under the jurisdiction of the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation, not on National Park Service land. (There is, however, a dispute between the federal and local government on where that line is drawn.) Generally the renovations will focus on the play area, including the tot lot, playground, basketball and tennis courts.

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Whitehead encouraged Georgetowners to think expansively.

"There's nothing that says that we can't have a master plan that will speak for the next 10 years and maybe, over time, more money will become available," Whitehead explained.

He said residents will ultimately have to be realistic about what elements should happen in the near term and which can wait for a future influx of funds.

Whitehead also suggested leveraging other money to accomplish elements of the design. For instance, the District has funds set aside for landscape projects that help reduce surface run off and manage storm water or that provide other environmentally sustainable features.

Among the ideas the project team offered up to get people thinking were community garden plots, bat houses, additional seating areas, exercise areas and more.

A design charette planned for May 4 from 1 to 5 p.m. will be an interactive day of planning and brainstorming with activities for both adults and children. The team brought a workbook for children and adults to fill out prior to the upcoming design charette in May (see attached PDF).

Construction could begin as soon as the end of August, but given the lengthy nature of the design review process in Georgetown, it will likely start later in the fall. Construction would take two or three months depending on what the design calls for.

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