Content categorized as News

Aldo Richardson, homeless veteran, moves into PEP-V hotel with hope for permanent supportive housing

The CARE pilot program closes four of the largest encampments in D.C. The program offers housing for one year to those who made the by-name list. Those not on the list were forced to relocate. Aldo Richardson was one of the many who needed to relocate to New Jersey and O Street park encampment in hopes of qualifying for housing.

Metro derailment brings transit equity issues to light

Each morning before heading to a public charter school in southeast Washington, one teacher must decide if she’s going to pay for an Uber, which… Read more »

Homeless Truxton Circle residents brace for early December eviction amid pleas to halt encampment clearings

Meet some of the people living at Allen Park in Truxton Circle who will either be displaced by the upcoming Dec. 2 clearing or placed into housing accommodations through the city’s new encampment pilot program.

Howard University #BlackburnTakeover occupation is about more than just housing

Students, alumni and faculty are calling for the university to cancel its housing contract with Corvias, but the student occupation of Blackburn University Center is about more than housing conditions.

As DC lapses on porta pottie contract, public restroom pilot programs inch forward

A public restroom pilot program plans to address the longstanding problem of access to public restrooms. An anticipated report by the work group consisting of nine government agencies is planned to release a report sometime this month.

Changes are coming to local fresh food initiative Produce Plus

After working with the nonprofit D.C. Greens for seven years, the D.C. Department of Health is contracting with a new administrator for the city’s Produce… Read more »

DC’s pandemic housing assistance program stops accepting applications this week

Applications for rent and utility assistance close this Wednesday but many Washingtonians are fighting to keep the program open, saying evictions and contributing to homelessness is not humanitarian.

DC programs connect job seekers and employers during national hiring struggles

Employers nationwide in service and low-skilled industries have struggled to find willing workers for many reasons, including remaining fear of COVID-19. Job seekers have struggled to keep up with skill requirements and balance family care needs. Local D.C. programs are working hard to bridge the gap between the two by placing applicants into reliable jobs.

NPS closes second park on Capitol Hill, once again pushing out encampment residents

The National Park Service closed a second triangle park near Union Station on Oct. 15. Ten people who had been living in the park at Massachusetts Avenue and 3rd Street NE had only 14 days to find a new place to live.

Meet the neighborhood commissioners of Foggy Bottom who advocate for people experiencing homelessness

Meet Yannik Omictin and Evelyn Hudson, two ANC commissioners in Foggy Bottom, who have used their elected office to advocate for the rights of their constituents experiencing homelessness.

A new accessible medical center opens in Ward 8, DC

The Michelle Obama Southeast Center of Bread for the City, a federally funded community health center, opened recently at 1700 Good Hope Road SE to provide greater access to low-barrier healthcare services for residents in Wards 7 and 8.

FAQ: How to apply for housing in DC and what to expect

How does a homeless person in Washington, D.C. find housing? Here’s what you should know about a house application & process for finding housing.

“Black lives are going to hell,” says resident flipping off DC’s Mayor

D.C. opened a renovated Franklin Park in September. An unhoused resident pushed out of a nearby encampment interrupted the ceremony & was quickly whisked away.

DC government removes tents, injures one resident, houses others, and deploys concrete barriers to enforce a ‘pedestrian passageway’

An encampment eviction was suspended for less than a day after a District worker used a small front loader to push over a tent with an individual still inside. District officials maintain the worker didn’t know someone was inside, but it raises the question: How could this happen in the first place?

As classes start, air conditioning and filters fail in DC public schools

Schools in all wards were without proper ventilation systems. Parents took matters into their own hands, providing different services to alleviate worries about spreading COVID-19.

DC is moving some encampment residents into housing. What about those not “on the list?”

D.C. officials are moving some residents into housing from three large encampments, but others may be kicked out. Where will they go?

Judge rules DC is not at fault for funding construction of affordable housing that fell apart soon after it was built

A group of homeowners filed a lawsuit against the city and a developer in January, claiming major oversights with the construction of homes that fell apart once they were sold. The homes were financed through a special fund administered by the city to provide affordable housing to low-income, first-time homeowners. But a District judge ruled in late August that the city is not responsible even after helping fund the construction of homes that were faulty. With the developer having declared bankruptcy, it’s unclear what the future of the case will be.

Local food programs met food needs through the COVID-19 pandemic

Pandemic-related food assistance programs replaced with an increase in spending from USDA. Beneficiaries and local programs talked about how the programs helped advertise buying from local farmers.

DC Medicaid patients wait on MedStar contract resolution

If a deal isn’t reached by Sept. 30, 250,000 low-income residents may not have the same access to doctors within the large MedStar care provider network.

A nonprofit and a group of realtors teamed up to help low-income DMV residents buy homes

A local realtor association and a nonprofit recently cemented a three-year partnership to support low-income residents in the D.C. metro region seeking to own their own homes.