Uploaded to flickr.com by origamidon.
This past weekend the DC Preservation League announced its 2010 list of the most endangered historic places in Washington. One Capitol Hill structure made the short list this year: Anne Archbold Hall on the grounds of the former DC General Hospital. (Note to the DCPL: this property is in Southeast DC, not Northeast as listed in your announcement.)
Built in 1931, the structure was originally called the Nurses’ Residence and was renamed in 1952 for Anne Archbold, a local philanthropist and advocate for the hospital’s nurses. The building was listed in the DC inventory of Historic Sites in 2006 as it is the last standing example of Colonial Revival structures on the hospital grounds. The Hall was previously listed on the DCPL’s 2002 and 2003 Most Endangered Places lists. It was to be the centerpiece of the redevelopment of the site, referred to as Reservation 13, but when plans were put on hold renovations to the structure were as well. The building is currently vacant and suffers from, “deferred maintenance and water damage.”
The master plan documents for Reservation 13 were created in 2002 and are still available on the DC Office of Planning website. The 2002 plan makes no mention whatsoever of Anne Archbold Hall, and even goes so far as to say there are no buildings of historic character worth saving on the site. Obviously the Capitol Hill Restoration Society and the DCPL disagreed. The building was at least acknowledged in 2007 when the City again put out a call for proposals for the development of the site, though it’s historic designation was listed as an “obstacle” to potential developers (alongside environmental remediation from the hospital and the site’s proximity to the DC Jail) instead of an opportunity.
Hopefully, the historic character of this “obstacle” can be restored and the building can be a meaningful part of whatever redevelopment is in store for this site. Programming the large waterfront parcel with a mix of residential and retail uses may bring new life to this edge of the Hill.