Welcome to Historic Mount Pleasant!  We are a volunteer-based membership organization Membership is open to everyone, so please join!     "STANDING ROOM ONLY" AT WORKSHOP ON INCREASING THE ENERGY EFFICIENCY OF OLD HOUSES    A capacity audience turned out on Saturday, January 23 at the energy efficiency workshop sponsored by HMP and the D.C. Preservation League.  Attendees learned ways to save money while helping to protect our environment and  preserving the architectural integrity of their homes, all within historic district guidelines.  The speakers were Pascale Maslin, the founder of Energy Efficient Experts, an energy audit firm specializing in reducing energy costs while making environmentalism accessible; and John Sandor, an architectural historian and expert in the repair and replacement of windows in historic buildings.   An article providing further details of the program can be found at http://www.currentnewspapers.com/admin/uploadfiles/NW%20Jan.%2027%201.pdf   And the National Park Service offers more information on weatherizing and improving the energy efficiency of historic buildings at http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/weather/index.html Historic Mount Pleasant plans additional workshops this year on topic of interest.     HMP Awards Gifts to Neighborhood Groups   In late 2009, HMP presented Mt. Pleasant's Rosemount Center with a check for $1,000 toward the cost of installing an historically-appropriate wrought iron fence.   In a letter accompanying the check, HMP President Fay Armstrong wrote:   "Historic Mount Pleasant wishes to take this opportunity to express again its appreciation for the beautiful restoration of the exterior of the property undertaken in conjunction with the complete redesign and modernization of its program spaces. The renovation demonstrates how good design from very different periods and styles can coexist in the same property and ensure the continued full utilization of our historic properties."   In accepting the gift, the Center noted that it was the first of what Rosemount hopes will be more donations to its Center Beautification fund this year.  Rosemount's goal is to raise $10,000, which will cover the cost of the fence as well as "more plants and shrubs for the benefit and continuing beauty of historic Mount Pleasant."   Further demonstrating its commitment to appropriate adaptation of properties in the Historic District, HMP also recently contributed $500 to the Mt. Pleasant Solar Coop's Solar Fair and home tour.  One of the homes on the tour was that of Amy Levin, to whom HMP earlier this year presented a Design Excellence Award in recognition of the renovation of her Ingleside Terrace townhouse.  The property, which incorporates solar technologies, received a Platinum LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

Recent Developments HMP Provides Input Regarding Mt. Pleasant Library HMP, along with other neighborhood organizations and individuals, has been engaged with D.C. Public Libraries (DCPL) regarding the planned renovation/addition to the Mt. Pleasant Branch library. On September 24, HMP President Fay Armstrong testified at the Historic Preservation Review Board's hearing on DCPL's revised proposal--variations on the proposed rear addition and site plan--recently approved by the Commisstion on Fine Arts (CFA). HMP provided comments (CFA_September_10.pdf) to CFA for its September meeting.  HMP also sent comments for the CFA's July, June, and February meetings. On May 13 and May 28, HMP participated in meetings of Councilmember Jim Graham's working group of neighborhood and Ward 1 interests to address concerns regarding the proposed rear addition.  On March 25, HMP Board members joined Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham and other Mt. Pleasant and Ward 1 residents to express concerns about the originally-proposed addition–the “glass cube”-- to the DCPL Board of Trustees.  On February 19, Armstrong outlined HMP's concerns about the original proposal to the CFA.

Historic Mount Pleasant (HMP) provides this website for Mount Pleasant residents and business owners, as well as others, with interesting and practical information about living in our Historic District.  We especially aim to help you navigate the permit process and understand the benefits of living in an historic district.  We encourage you to visit our calendar which lists HMP's activities and other neighborhood events that make this such a great place to live and visit.                                View HMPs  2008 Annual Report     Frequently asked questions about living in a DC Historic District     Email: historicmtp@aol.com Phone: (202) 387-2734 1731 Lamont Street, N.W.; Washington, D.C. 20010

'Images of America:  Mount Pleasant’   Author Mara Cherkasky, a Washington historian and writer, presents photos, maps, and other images to illustrate the fascinating chapters about our neighborhood in her recently published book ‘Images of America:  Mount Pleasant’.  The book is available for $20.00 plus tax at Pfeiffer’s Hardware Store.  You can also reach Mara directly at mcherkasky@verizon.net for a signed copy or purchase online at www.amazon.com.   Below is a short overview of our neighborhood’s history as presented in ‘Images of America:  Mount Pleasant’:       Mount Pleasant -- Samuel P. Brown must have thought this name perfect when he chose it for his country estate on a wooded hill overlooking Washington City. The name also suited the New Englanders who settled in the village Brown founded near 14th Street and Park Road just after the Civil War. About 1903 the once isolated village began its transformation to a fashionable suburb after the city extended 16th Street through Mount Pleasant’s heart, and a new streetcar line linked the area to downtown. Developers constructed elegant apartment buildings and spacious brick rowhouses on block after block, and successful businessmen built stately residences along Park Road.   Change arrived again with the Great Depression and then World War II, as the suburb evolved into an urban, exclusively white, working-class enclave that eventually became majority African American. In addition a Latino presence was evident as early as the 1960s. By the 1980s the neighborhood was known as the heart of D.C.’s Latino and counterculture communities. Today these communities are dispersing, however, in response to a hot real estate market in Washington.         * All Membership rates are a suggested amount.  We'd love to include all neighbors in our membership; so, if you can more easily budget a lower amount, please include that amount with your membership form.

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