Beginning on Earth Day, Apr. 22, the DowntownDC Business Improvement District (BID) will be rolling out red tables and chairs with umbrellas in Herald Square and Franklin Park for the public to enjoy.
Sit and catch up with friends, eat lunch, chat with coworkers or just take a break this spring and summer each weekday (weather-permitting) this spring and summer in Herald Square, located at the intersection of New York Avenue and 13th Street, and surrounding the fountain in Franklin Park, located at 13th and I streets.
The street furniture will be rolled out on Earth Day along with picnic blankets in the park at lunch time in Franklin Park. The BID will be activating both spaces during Earth Day to encourage Downtown workers, visitors and residents to enjoy these two outdoor areas.
Herald Square is home to the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, Inter-American Development Bank, National Museum of Women in the Arts and the former Washington Times-Herald newspaper headquarters.
The newspaper was created by Eleanor “Cissy” Patterson of the Medill-McCormick-Patterson family, who purchased the two papers from William Randolph Hearst in 1939 and merged them. The paper was like no other of its time, running 10 editions a day.
The National Park Service’s Franklin Park has a long history in the District. It is located in the heart of DowntownDC and is served by Metrorail, Metrobus and the DC Circulator amid a thriving commercial district and a growing residential population. At lunchtime, the park is lined with food trucks, making the lunctime picnic blankets and tables and chairs a perfect place to enjoy your midday meal.
The DowntownDC Business Improvement District is actively working with the National Park Service and the D.C. government to renovate Franklin Park, make repairs, and turn it into an active, flexible park.
[For more information on the Franklin Park redevelopment effort, visit the BID’s Franklin Park webpage.]