An idea that began with a group of parents looking for a place for their kids to play will become a reality.

"Starting this fall (if the permitting process goes smoothly), parking lots north of RFK Stadium are scheduled to be converted to playing fields," reports Bob Coomber.
The story of how the project came to be is remarkable, to say the least. Parents looking for new places for their kids to play soccer came up with an idea to turn the parking lots into soccer fields. "The group of parents decided to call their idea the Capitol Riverside Youth Sports Park, or 'CRYSP,'" according to Coomber. The CRYSP parents got the neighborhood behind it, then their local councilmembers, and then Events DC, the entity that owns the land.
Eventually, the quality of the proposal won out. "The stadium and CRYSP could cohabitate the 190 acres of the RFK site. The city could save money on impervious surface fees by introducing acres of pervious playing fields instead of impervious pavement. Plus, the area is in a floodplain, which means that habitable structures aren’t really an option," according to Coomber.
The designs for the final product have changed some; an international architect eventually joined the team. But, the first item on the list for the future of the site remains playing fields.
FULL STORY: NE DC is turning vacant parking lots into playing fields, thanks to these parents

In Most U.S. Cities, Archaic Laws Limit Roommate Living
Critics argue laws preventing unrelated adults from living in the same home fail to understand the modern American household.

Ten Signs of a Resurgent Downtown
In GeekWire, Chuck Wolfe continues his exploration of a holistic and practical approach to post-pandemic urban center recovery, anchored in local context and community-driven initiatives that promote livability, safety, and sustainability.

Transforming Downtowns Into Functional Neighborhoods
Rather than ‘monofunctional’ business districts or urban playgrounds, American downtown districts could become multipurpose neighborhoods.

Enforcing Housing Discrimination Laws Falls Largely on Tenants, Nonprofits
With few enforcement mechanisms even in cities that have bans on source-of-income discrimination on the books, it’s up to nonprofit lawyers and tenants to sue landlords for retribution.

Utah DOT Plans to Expand Interstate Despite Local Concerns
With more evidence pointing to the futility of expanding freeways, the state could take a creative approach to improving travel times and providing additional transportation options.

An Equity Approach to Lead Pipe Replacement
A former Chicago health commissioner calls on governments to prioritize the most marginalized and historically disinvested communities when distributing funding to replace lead pipes, which have taken the highest toll on the health of disadvantaged c
City of Bellevue
Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission
Code Studio
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Montrose County
Knox County
Wichita-Sedgwick County Metropolitan Area Planning Department
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.