Dear Ward 5 neighbors,  We kicked off the holiday season this week with our annual Ward 5 Holiday Turkey Giveaway, and it was nothing short of amazing. I am deeply grateful for our District agency partners—the Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) and DC Housing Authority (DCHA)—as well as the generosity of our faith community…

Yesterday, I sent a letter to WMATA detailing some concerns with their final 2025 Better Bus Network. While this network has received preliminary approval from WMATA's Board of Directors and entails several wins for Ward 5 neighbors, I am hoping we can mitigate a few remaining areas of concern. You can read the full letter…

Dear Ward 5 neighbors,  Next Wednesday, my office will distribute turkeys across Ward 5 for our Holiday Turkey Giveaway! I'm grateful for the generous faith communities who are partnering with us this year to make this distribution possible. Thank you to Greater Mount Calvary Church, Grace Mosaic, Union Wesley A.M.E. Zion Church, and New Samaritan Baptist Church for joining us…

Dear Ward 5 neighbors,  It has been a long week as we moved through the 2024 General Election. Neighbors are feeling a range of emotions, and the impacts to the District of Columbia are still coming into view.  On the local level, I want to express my warm appreciation for the many Ward 5 Advisory…

Dear Ward 5 neighbors, When I write to you at this time next week, it is likely we will know who the next President of the United States will be. In this critically important national election, along with the many local races and ballot measures, I hope you will make your voice heard. Remember, you can…

Dear Ward 5 neighbors,  Before we dive into this week's newsletter, I want to share that we've heard from several neighbors and businesses about major power outages in Ward 5 this evening. My team is in touch with Pepco, and we've heard there are two primary outages - one in the Eckington area affecting appoximately 175 customers, and another…

Dear Ward 5 neighbors,  This week has been full of opportunities to remember that we are stronger when we tackle challenges together. From public safety, to food insecurity, to the work of the new Subcommittee on Libraries and Youth Affairs, we are coming together to build the healthy communities we deserve.  In August, neighbors in Woodridge…

On Wednesday, October 16, 2024 at 3:00 p.m., Councilmember Parker hosted the Ward 5 Monthly Public Safety Call. There was a robust discussion across agencies about school safety, as we welcomed guests from the Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice's Safe Passage Program, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT's) Safe Routes to School initiative,…

Dear Ward 5 neighbors,  Do you know where your food comes from? In our modern era, we have become increasingly disconnected from the farms, people, and systems that help put food on our tables. The pandemic revealed how fragile our food system is, and how important it is to have more food grown here regionally. What's more,…

Dear Ward 5 neighbors,  "Bad libraries build collections, good libraries build services, great libraries build communities." - R. David Lankes (Director of the School of Library and Information Science at the University of South Carolina)  If you've been to one of DC Public Library's neighborhood locations or the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library,…