The D.C. Council is poised to vote this week on the city’s fiscal 2012 budget. But while elected officials have whined about the lack of money, for nearly a decade they have sat on prime real estate, capable of generating hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes. Reservation 13–a 67-acre property — located at 19th and Independence Ave. SE. near Robert F. Kennedy Stadium and two Metro stations — is a stunning example of government inefficiency. It also testifies to the city’s disregard of vulnerable populations and indifference toward residents to whom commitments were made.
“I’m a little irritated by all of this,” said Francis Campbell, a Ward 6 advisory neighborhood commissioner who represents the community that includes the site. “It’s one of the largest tracts of land. It could have a profound impact on the tax base.”
