2800 Block of Davenport Closed For New Sidewalk

by Marlene Berlin

For years, those who walk the 2800 block of Davenport, whether to visit a friend or to hike to Rock Creek Park via Broad Branch, have had to dodge the vehicles that race around the street’s blind curves. But we will soon see a welcome addition – a new sidewalk.

Those motorists who use this street to get to work or go shopping will have to find another route temporarily.

One of the things that makes the street unique is its history. It is believed to have been carved out of a Rock Creek hillside as a Civil War transportation route between forts. What has made it notorious are the way motorists treat the blind curves. As three of its residents wrote in March: “Excessive speeds in all types of weather, and dangerous driving practices such as passing on the blind, narrow curves top the list of grave concerns to the neighbors.”

Residents of this block have tried for many years, on an individual basis, to get the District to install a sidewalk. More recently, though, they found success in banding together and taking their request to Ward 3 Council member Mary Cheh, ANC 3F, DDOT, MPD, and the National Park Service.