Residents of a neighborhood in Northwest D.C. took to the streets Thursday afternoon for an anti-crime walk as city officials made a commitment to address some long-standing safety issues in the area.
Elected officials, police and concerned citizens gathered in Columbia Heights to talk about the violence and how to best address it.
“This year we have more funding than we’ve ever had for these prevention programs here in the District of Columbia, and I’m really glad for that because I think it’s going to make a difference,” Ward 1 Council member Brianne Nadeau said.
A week ago there was a broad daylight shooting at 9 a.m. near the busy Columbia Heights Metro Station. At least two armed men sprayed the area with gunfire, leaving a man wounded. It was the third shooting in a six-day period, including one that killed a man.
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After a walkthrough assessment by community leaders, the District has made a commitment to address a problem many residents were already aware of: A lot of streetlights and floodlights are out, including Columbia Road, 14th Street, Girard Street and around the Harrison recreation field.
It’s expected to take about two weeks to repair or replace the ones on public property.
“I’m hopeful because of the hard work that the community and MPD and other city officials are doing to try to protect us residents,” Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Dottie Love Wade said.
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The uptick in violence has been ongoing. Last November, a man was shot and wounded on board a Green Line train as it pulled into the Columbia Heights Station. A week later at that same station, a gunman fired multiple shots from the platform at a departing train.
D.C. police say they’ve made an arrest in the shooting death of a 33-year-old man who was found in a car near 13th and Irving streets Jan. 10.
