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Parks & Public Spaces

While NoMa is an urban neighborhood at the center of it all, it is also home to plenty of parks and open spaces that allow the community to connect and unwind.

About NoMa Parks

NoMa has seen a significant expansion of its parks and public green spaces in recent years, thanks to the NoMa Parks Foundation (NPF), established by the NoMa BID in 2012 to bring parks and public spaces to this formerly park-deficient neighborhood. NPF received $50 million from the DC government in 2013 to acquire sites, design parks, and build a network of public spaces. This investment yielded showstopper public spaces and welcoming green parks.

Alethia Tanner Park

Between Harry Thomas Way NE & The Metropolitan Branch Trail

Sitting just north of New York Avenue NE in Eckington at 227 Harry Thomas Way NE, this 2.5-acre space features an expansive green lawn, a children’s playground, a dedicated dog park, and other great amenities. This park is maintained and programmed by the NoMa BID, and is part of the DC parks system.

Swampoodle Park

Corner of 3rd & L Streets NE

This 8,000-square-foot parcel — named for the vanished 19th century neighborhood it sits near — includes a fenced dog park, a dedicated children’s play area, and public seating.

Swampoodle Terrace

Corner of 3rd & L Streets NE

Located directly across the street from Swampoodle Park, Swampoodle Terrace offers flexible space for small gatherings and performances, as well as shady spots to rest, read, or relax. A specially designed shipping container serves dual purposes as a food service window/counter as well as storage of equipment.

Mamie “Peanut” Johnson Plaza

Florida-New York Avenue NE Intersection

The reconfiguration of the Florida and New York Avenues NE intersection will create three new public spaces that will weave together neighborhoods including NoMa and Eckington, and improve cross-neighborhood connectivity. The three new public spaces, known as Mamie “Peanut” Johnson Plaza, will include trees, plants, planters, seat-walls, space for monumental public art, and other amenities that will provide accessible, useable, and restful spaces for NoMa neighbors.

Images courtesy of SWA/Balsley.

NoMa Meander

North Capitol Street and First Street NE

The Meander is envisioned as a set of pedestrian-retail promenades between the “superblocks” between North Capitol Street and First Street NE. These large blocks are an artifact of the L’Enfant Plan street grid, which the Meander breaks up through a mid-block alley system. The 2006 NoMa Vision Plan and Development Strategy suggested the inclusion of a midblock alley along this space, in part to relieve pressure to create curb cuts on First Street NE for garage and loading dock access to the buildings that line it.