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About Us

The Dupont Circle Business Improvement District (BID) is a nonprofit formed in 2018 to elevate this iconic neighborhood with public space management, strategic marketing, and economic development initiatives. 

Our Boundaries

The Dupont Circle BID covers approximately 22 blocks in the commercial district, including Dupont Circle, P Street NW, Massachusetts Avenue, and Connecticut Avenue from the Circle to California Street NW. The BID’s services are funded by a self-imposed assessment on commercial property owners within the BID’s boundaries. To download the Dupont Circle BID Boundary map, click here.

Clean Team and Landscaping

The BID’s dedicated Clean Team enhances our public spaces through services such as daily street cleaning, snow/ice removal, leaf pick-up, power washing, rodent abatement, and graffiti mitigation. Five-team members work from 7:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. seven days a week, except on national and city holidays.

In 2023, the BID hired its first dedicated landscaper to weed tree boxes, medians, and five parks around the neighborhood. In time, the BID aims to expand this program as we continue to beautify Dupont Circle.

Impact:

  • 1,600 pounds of trash removed daily
  • 30 graffiti tags and stickers removed on average each month
  • 200+ tree boxes weeded
  • 1500 flowers planted each season
  • Five parks maintained
  • 22 blocks swept seven days a week

Safety Ambassadors & Public Safety

Eric Brocksmith is the BID’s full-time safety ambassador. Mr. Brocksmith works 3:00-11:00 p.m. each Monday through Friday. The role of the BID’s safety ambassador is to engage with community stakeholders such as retailers, restaurants, and service businesses as well as visitors and residents. Safety ambassador foot patrols provide a visible presence across Dupont Circle during periods of heavy pedestrian traffic, encouraging a safer community.

The BID continues to partner with MPD Second District leadership, Dupont Circle stakeholders, and civic leadership to share information, access resources, and advocate for a safer community. In FY23, the BID relaunched its Public Safety Committee. Comprised of commercial building property owners and tenants, the committee meets every other month, usually at Mission at 2:00 p.m. to facilitate conversations regarding public safety with MPD, building trust, and identifying resources for local businesses.

Homeless Outreach & Community Impact

In an effort to reduce homelessness in the community, the Dupont Circle BID has partnered with the h3 Project since 2021. The h3 Project is a 501(c)(3) crisis intervention group and homeless service provider that assists our unhoused residents, reconnecting them to the world and providing them with wrap-around services, including assisting individuals with acquiring birth certificates, identification documents, employment assistance, healthcare benefits, temporary and permanent housing, reunification with families, and personal hygiene supplies. The h3 Project team members are boots on the ground six days a week and are often seen engaging with the unhoused in Dupont Circle.

Infrastructure & Placemaking

Streetscape

The District Department of Transportation will be investing $37 million in a new, multi-modal streetscape project along Connecticut Avenue from Dupont Circle Park to California Street, NW. DDOT will deck over the Connecticut Avenue underpass to create the Dupont Plaza, a multi-use public space between Dupont Circle and Q Street, NW. The Plaza will provide a flexible public space for everyday enjoyment as well as special events, such as markets, festivals, and other cultural events. The Streetscape project will address the sidewalks and roads from the building line to building line along the Connecticut Avenue corridor. The project will beautify the corridor with new streetlights, sidewalks, tree boxes, bike lanes, and new sustainable stormwater management features. This project will be transformative for the community, creating an inviting environment for local businesses and facilitating new economic opportunities, as well as improving the quality of life for residents and visitors.

In preparation for the development of the Dupont Plaza and Streetscape project, the Dupont Circle BID made several advances in FY2023 including:

  • Hired Gehl Studio, a networked urban design and research consultancy, to develop a programming framework for the Dupont Plaza.
  • Facilitated a Design Charrette to solicit community input on public art and hardscaping in the new public space.
  • Advocated for city funding to support retail businesses during the construction phase, delivering $1,090,000 in grants to retailers.

Dupont Circle Fountain

The Dupont Circle Fountain was activated again.  Images of the working fountain were shared across the internet by excited community members. We look forward to welcoming back the ducks that nest in Dupont Circle every spring!

Adirondack Chairs

In FY23, the BID purchased white Adirondack chairs through funding provided by the DC Office of Planning Streets for People Grant. Eighty white moveable chairs were placed in the two-acre Dupont Circle park. The public response has been overwhelmingly positive. Strolling through the park, it’s common to see community members chatting in pairs, soaking up the sun, or seeking refuge from the heat under a tree.

Planters

As an important component of the BID’s beautification efforts, the BID Clean Team planted seasonal flowers in the neighborhood’s signature blue planters during the spring and fall seasons. The BID hopes to expand the landscaping program as we rehab McClellan Park and other green spaces across Dupont Circle.

McClellan Park

Our park to the north, McClellan Park, was weeded thoroughly, and the National Park Service is replanting this triangle park in 2024. This tiny green space holds one of the most spectacular monuments to Civil War General George McClellan, dedicated in 1907. The equestrian statue has an amazing view down Connecticut Avenue towards the White House. In time, this park will become a polished emerald that it once was.

Holiday Décor

In FY23, the BID was able to purchase new holiday decor with funding provided by the Streets for People Grant. Connecticut Avenue, P Street, and Dupont Circle Park streetlights were wrapped with green garlands and red bows for the holiday season, bringing the holiday spirit to the Dupont retail corridor. Some 70 poles were wrapped with garlands, and each year, we add a little more.  In more recent years, four large Christmas trees were located around the neighborhood for all to enjoy!

Events and Activations

Music in the Circle

The BID brings live music to Dupont Circle most Saturdays from Spring through Fall. Ranging from small to large scale events, the free concerts featured a DJ to warm-up the crowd before the annual Pride Parade, the Foggy Bottom Whomp-Stompers band accompanied by swing dance instructors, a disco cover band called the Moonlighters, the German band Lost Lederhosen to celebrate Oktoberfest, and roving Dickinsonian-dressed Christmas carolers during the holidays. The highlight of the year was the Fall Fest Blue Grass Jamboree which featured a band, Halloween costume contest, and painting pumpkins.

First Friday Dupont: ArtWalk

First Friday’s ArtWalk continues to attract a diverse crowd of fine-art lovers from around the region. The monthly event takes place on the first Friday of each month and includes the participation of ten to 15 art galleries, museums, embassies, nonprofits, and commercial businesses.

Friday Yoga

The BID continued its partnership with Dupont studio Yoga District to bring free yoga to Q Street Park, a small National Park at the corners of Q Street and 20th Street, NW. This weekly program occurs every Friday from March through November from 7-7:50 a.m., attracting as many as 20 diehard yoga fans each week. Yogis of all experience levels are welcome to participate.

Marketing and Communications

Promoting the Dupont Circle BID neighborhood continued to be a priority for restaurant openings, activations, ArtWalk Dupont, and BID-sponsored events. The primary goal of the BID’s marketing strategy is to highlight local attractions, businesses, public spaces, events, initiatives, and to promote the neighborhood as both a local and international destination.