PRESS ALERT AUG. 23. 2019 – Muriel Bowser defies Court Ruling on McMillan Park; Developers Rushing in Demolition Machines

Muriel Bowser defies Court Ruling on McMillan Park; Developers Rushing in Demolition Machines

Washington, DC – On Friday August 16, 2019, the Mayor's DC Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) issued a demolition permit for the historic waterworks at McMillan Park according to a recent filing at the DC Court of Appeals. Friends of McMillan Park published notice to supporters this week that they have asked the Court to stop the demolition, a motion awaiting to be decided.

"I just saw big machines suddenly roll in," said Paul Cerruti, longstanding Bloomingdale resident and tour guide of the landmarked McMillan Park site. "They are starting to destroy history we won't be able to get back."  Cerruti has been archiving the history of McMillan Park on his Twitter account:
https://twitter.com/pauljcerruti 

Recent photos show serious movement on the site with large machines rolling about the protected sand silos and water regulator houses. See Photos Online.  https://tinyurl.com/mcmillan-demo-photos

Mayor Bowser, whose financial supporters include the developers seeking to build on the McMillan Park, has been pushing this project since she was elected. Without giving notice or explanation, Bowser’s agencies are moving quickly now to ignore a recent DC Court of Appeals judgment that says demolition cannot begin until all "obstacles" are out of the way and that construction of the proposed McMillan Town Center is fully financed and permitted. 

"Thus, as long as legal obstacles to the completion of the entire project remain, demolition of historic structures on the Filtration Complex will not be consistent with the purposes of the Historic Preservation Act. One remaining legal obstacle is the on-going appeal of the Zoning Commission’s approval of the PUD application for the project. Until that appeal and any other obstacles to the applicants’ ability to complete the project are resolved, the applicants may not commence demolition.”  Page 52.

https://www.dccourts.gov/sites/default/files/2019-05/18-AA-357.pdf

DC for Reasonable Development, co-convener of the Save McMillan Action Coalition and co-plaintiff seeking adaptive re-use and reopening of the green plains and waterworks to the public, still has members with live appeals before the Court. https://efile.dcappeals.gov/public/caseView.do?csIID=62000

DC4RD's Save McMillan Action Coalition has called for an emergency gathering at a meeting on Tuesday, August 27, 2019. For more information contact Grace at (202) 656-3012‬‬‬ or smac.dc@gmail.com. Visit fb.me/SaveMcMillan