In Ward 7, there is a very dangerous 40ft ravine where one person has died and four others were injured after their cars flipped over into it. The ravine is located on a narrow street on the 3000 Block of V Place, SE just as the street intersects with 30th street It is also located around a sharp curve and hill making it risky for cars to avoid going over into the ravine on this two-way very narrow street. This is a residential street with only a partial sidewalk on one side, and increased traffic resulting from recent expansions and development of nearby homes. Motorists from these homes and many from Maryland often use V Place as a shortcut to streets that connect to downtown DC and Prince George’s County, Maryland. Because of the lack of sidewalks, V Place, SE is an area with insufficient infrastructure to ensure pedestrian safety. It is a safety risk to walk and ride bikes, and it is especially challenging for those who use wheelchairs and have other physical disabilities.

Three years ago, emails were sent to Ward 7 Councilmember Yvette Alexander, former Council Chair and Ward 7 resident Kwame Brown urgently requesting them to install guard rails around the ravine because a car had just fallen into it. Neither responded. The Mayor's office assigned Lateisha Atkins as the point of contact to coordinate this project. Ms. Atkins and Alberta Paul from DDOT have worked very hard to get the city to address the problems associated with this ravine. Despite their efforts and after three years, we have had several promises of start dates and different agencies indicating that they were working on resolving this issue but only a temporary, partial guard rail has been installed. It is my understanding that an inspection of the ravine shows major soil erosion and damage to the roadway and homes due to the ravine collapsing.

We would appreciate any assistance you could provide with this issue. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.