D.C. Gets More Than 20 Temporary Parking Space Parks

More than 20 parking spaces in the District of Columbia became temporary parks Friday.

Park(ing) Day turns parking spots into green spaces for a day; planners say that too much public space is used for cars, and not enough for public enjoyment.

Participants spread out astroturf, lawn chairs, volleyball nets and whatever else they can think of, and settle in to catch some rays and enjoy the space.

The nonprofit group Casey Trees has a park set up at 17th and K streets NW, where they have seven tree boxes and a game called Ginkgo Plinko, DCist reports.

Some told News4 they were not happy about taking the spaces out of use for the day, while others found it to be OK, just a temporary circumstance, according to transportation reporter Adam Tuss.

Supporters, though, would like to see such installations become permanent.

The annual event was introduced in San Francisco in 2005, where the first mini-park was intact for two hours, the maximum allowed time on the meter.

The concept has since spread to cities across the globe, and has been held in D.C. since 2009. This is the first time it's getting an official stamp, though -- the District Department of Transportation is participating, too.

The locations of the mini-parks include spots by the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation at 1250 U St. NW and the DC Office of Planning at 1100 4th St. SW. Other spots include ones by the bakery Baked & Wired in Georgetown and the National Wildlife Federation at 901 E St. NW.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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