Ward 6 In Profile

A Future Dependent on the Past

By Linda Wheeler
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, July 2, 1998; Page J01
This is the eighth in a series of ward profiles.

Dick Wolf, who has lived there long enough to get a handle on the issue, says Ward 6 has "an image problem."

"It is difficult to define," explains Wolf, a retired lawyer who lives on Capitol Hill and now devotes his time to community projects.

Ward 6: A Statistical Profile The ward straddles the Anacostia River and its more than 2,400 acres include parts of the city's Northeast, Northwest and Southeast quadrants. Two neighborhoods, Old Anacostia and Capitol Hill, have been in existence since early in the 19th century. The ward includes Union Station, the gateway to the city for people arriving in Washington by rail. Population • Estimated 1997 population: 58,761 • Population lost since 1990: 19% Population breakdown Black:  40,560 (69%) White:  15,540 (26%) Hispanic:  1,703 (3%) Asian:  729 (1%) American Indian:  129 Supermarkets: 2 Median household income (1997) Ward 6:  $43,700 Citywide:  $39,792 Age Under 18:  19% 18 to 64:  70% 65 or older:  11% Political affiliation Democrats:  34,980 Independents:  5,247 Republicans:  2,853 Children • In the ward, 43 percent of the households with children in 1990 were married-couple households. • Citywide, 47 percent of the households with children in 1990 were married-couple households. Government employment • In the ward, 37 percent of employed residents in 1990 held government jobs. • Citywide, 32 percent of employed residents held government jobs. Private school attendance • In the ward, 12 percent of children attended private school in 1990. • Citywide, 16 percent of children attended private school in 1990. College attendance • In the ward, 48 percent of the adult residents had attended college. • Citywide, 52 percent of adult residents had attended college. Rental housing • In the ward, 50 percent of housing units were rental units. • Citywide, 54 percent of the housing units were rental units in 1990. 1994 Mayoral Election • Primary election voter turnout:  Ward 6: 46%  Citywide: 49% • General election turnout:  Ward 6: 48%  Citywide: 51% Primary vote by candidate, Ward 6: • Marion Barry (D): 9,396 • John Ray (D): 6,208 • Sharon Pratt Kelly (D): 1,777 General election vote by candidate, Ward 6: • Marion Barry (D): 13,778 • Carol Schwartz (R): 8,320 SOURCES: 1990 Census, Claritas, D.C. Office of Planning

The reason for that difficulty is relatively simple: It is a creation of political forces and changing census figures rather than a natural sense of community. It is a combination of three disparate neighborhoods, each with a distinctive personality nurtured by different histories.

To begin with, the ward is neatly sliced in two by the Anacostia River, separating the communities. The ward lies south of Florida Avenue and Benning Road and east of the Capitol, except for a small chunk of Northwest Washington near Union Station.

The residential swath of the ward encompasses Capitol Hill and an east-of-the-river section of far Southeast that includes the neighborhoods of Old Anacostia, Fairlawn and Woodlawn.

Both the Northwest section and the east-of-the-river section look like a mapmaker's afterthought. "We are . . . just hanging off the edge; we are on the periphery," said Diane Dale, whose family traces its roots back five generations in Old Anacostia.

The northwestern section of the ward behind and around Union Station was called Swampoodle when Irish and Italian immigrants lived there, but virtually all evidence of that era was erased by the current canyon of modern office buildings.

Perhaps the last remaining link to the area's immigrant history is the 83-year-old Holy Rosary Church at Third and E streets NW, which was built by Italians whose descendants long ago moved to the suburbs.

Its priest, the Rev. Charles Zanoni, said he was unaware the church was in Ward 6.

"There are no residents here," he said.

To paint a portrait of Capitol Hill with broad brush strokes is to reflect an area that is racially mixed, prosperous, politically active and community-involved. On its eastern side, the residents are almost all black, unemployment is high and people struggle to maintain the pleasant neighborhoods that lie behind decaying commercial corridors.

Although people throughout the ward agree crime is a problem and more jobs must be created, in Capitol Hill there is a particular issue often raised: maintaining the integrity of the historically significant district.

Resident historian Ruth Ann Overbeck said the battle to preserve and restore the 8,000 historic buildings in the area is exhausting. But she says it's worthwhile because "historic identity is the identity of Capitol Hill."

"These historic districts are important because they give people a sense of place, a sense of history," she said. "They offer a people scale in a city of monuments. We are a focus and an anchor in the nation's capital."

The historic district is also an economic engine, said Patrick Lally, a lobbyist for New York City who lives on Capitol Hill.

"Historic preservation is good business," he said. "People flock to places that have charm. There are big-time bucks to be made."

Eastern Market, which dates from the 19th century and is the last continually operating fresh food market in the city, draws people to Capitol Hill. Inside are fresh meats, poultry and fish. Outside, on weekends, craftspeople and artists display their wares.

When Paola Cuiati moved to Capitol Hill two years ago, she said she bought furniture and carpets at the market. On a recent Saturday, she bought peaches, bread and sandwich meat.

"This is very convenient," she said. "I don't have a car. I do all my shopping here."

Although the image of Capitol Hill may be a polished historic neighborhood with upscale restaurants and interesting shops, some merchants and their customers still embrace a slice of the neighborhood with rougher edges.

Mickey Pultz decided to sell her longtime bar business on Pennsylvania Avenue as the street was transformed from mom-and-pop stores into businesses that cater to credit card customers.

Wood carver Namory Keita carves wood at the outdoors crafts section of Eastern Market on Capitol Hill. (Tom Allen/TWP)

Now she operates Mickey's Patio on Eighth Street SE, with its three pool tables and one dart board. Credit cards? No. Mickey deals strictly in cash. She sells oversized hamburgers for $6 and does a lively happy hour with $1 draft beers.

Like many other small business owners on the Hill, she hopes the expansion of the nearby Washington Navy Yard and the construction of the Southeast Federal Center will bring her new customers. After 40 years in the bar business, Pultz said, her type of bar probably won't last much longer on the Hill.

"There are few real neighborhood bars left," she said. "We're kind of out of style."

Each day, Moyston Williams looks across the street from his store in Old Anacostia at a huge salmon and green city sign. It proclaims part of the area east of the river as a historic district, but most of the surrounding buildings still are boarded up or vacant.