The Washington Post, February 21, 2020, Opinion: Barry Farm’s historic landmark designation was pitted against affordable housing
The D.C. Historic Preservation Review Board recently approved a historic landmark nomination for Barry Farm Dwellings, a Ward 8 public housing complex set on land that slopes upward from the Anacostia River and overlooks downtown Washington. The landmarked area — five buildings in a corner of the site — includes the former home of plaintiffs in a 1954 Supreme Court case that desegregated D.C. Public Schools and units that housed leaders in the 1960s national welfare rights movement, most notably Etta Mae Horn.
Though advocates are pleased that after nine months, the board finally agreed to designate a small portion of Barry Farm to serve as “a meaningful commemorative site” for uplifting the history of its former residents, they have spent years pushing for something more than token recognition of this community’s value.
