by Cesse Ip

If you have been by 5th and Kennedy within the last few weeks, you might have noticed this enormous new structure at the southeast corner.

According to the The Trust for Public Land, the residents of DC have significant access to parks compared to other American cities, but there are only 1.9 playgrounds for every 10,000 people. Additionally, the number of children under the age of 9 has grown by 31% since 2010. The goal of the Playable Art project was to incorporate play into everyday spaces of sidewalks, small parks, and plazas.

This Playable Art structure has been in the works for a long time. Petworth News spoke with Melissa Lindsjo, the co-chair of Uptown Main Street, which is the third generation of the now defunct Kennedy Street Development Association. She recalled that back in 2014, the then Kennedy Street Development Association won the Playable Art DC contest for a future site. They set out surveys and hosted community sessions to get feedback for the future project.

At some point, the DC Office of Planning (DCOP) lost the funding for this project, and it stalled. Then in 2018, the DC Commission on Arts and Humanities (DCAH) was able to secure funding an ArtPlace America grant and implement the Playable Art project again in conjunction with the DC Office of Planning. At this point DCAH and DCOP met with Uptown Main Street to confirm that the 5th and Kennedy site picked back in 2014 was still a viable location.

In 2019, they put out a call for artists, and set up a panel to review the artists and decide on the top five for each site. For the 5th and Kennedy Street location, the panel consisted of a DCAH commissioner, Ms. Lindsjo as a community member, the Uptown Main Street Executive Director, a local artist to bring their expertise, a DCOP representative, and a DDOT representative. In the fall of 2019, there was a community meeting with some of the top artists to gain feedback from the community. The panel then ranked their top three picks, and the DCAH commission voted on the artists for each site.

Once the artist was chosen, the panel provided feedback on the design and they then worked on finalizing it. They reached out to the ANCs to socialize the project and receive community input like the color of the project.

The installation at 5th and Kennedy was originally called The Reading Room and the artist was SPORTS Collaborative. It has two areas for books, and serves as a free little library. Originally there was supposed to be more community engagement with installation, but then… COVID-19.

This part of Kennedy Street is passed by many families, either to catch a bus, ride a capital bike share, shop at the small businesses along the corridor, or by attending one of the nearby childcare centers. Uptown Main Street hopes that this new structure will add an element of art and play along this busy corridor.

Update 10/31: The artwork was covered in graffiti following the death of Karon Hylton after he was chased on his moped by MPD officers for a minor infraction and subsequently hit by an oncoming car. From the comments on the Petworth News Facebook page, support for this art structure did not seem very high prior to Mr. Hylton’s senseless death, as it seemed to perplex neighbors as to why it was installed. Now it serves a new purpose as a protest monument against Mr. Hylton’s death.