Over the weekend, Mayor Muriel Bowser participated in the groundbreaking of the Stead Park Recreation Center. Originally built in 1953 in the Dupont Circle neighborhood, Stead Park was an explicitly integrated facility. It’s been a neighborhood staple for decades, providing places to hang out, exercise and gather at events like summer movie nights.
The groundbreaking took place on Saturday, June 18, where modernization efforts were center-stage. Now the first Net-Zero Energy Ready Recreation Center in the District, the center shows residents, tourists and governments how sustainable these facilities can really be. Powered in part by a solar canopy, new additions include improved indoor recreational spaces, updated playgrounds and outdoor spaces, and better lighting.
Stead Park Recreation Center Groundbreaking on June 18, 2022. Photograph by Clarissa Villondo / Karlin Villondo Photography.
The new Stead Park Recreation Center was funded by Bowser’s $15.4 million project to expand and upgrade the District’s outdoor green spaces, as well as from a donation by the Friends of Stead Park. Built to honor architect Robert Stead’s late wife Mary Force Stead, her wish was for Washington’s children to always have spaces to play. The new Stead Recreation Center modernizes that wish—providing a holistic approach to sustainable recreation. Photos by: Clarissa Villondo // Karlin Villondo Photography.
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Mayor Bowser and others at the groundbreaking for the Stead Park Recreation Center Saturday, June 18, 2022. Photo by Clarissa Villondo.
