(Washington, DC)  Mayor Anthony A. Williams and US Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding pledging the cooperation and support of USDOT to facilitate the construction by the District of a new South Capitol Street/Frederick Douglass Bridge as a project of national and regional significance for this gateway to the nation's capital. 

“This agreement to rebuild the South Capitol Street/Frederick Douglass Bridge with the assistance of the US Department of Transportation is a key part of the multi-jurisdictional multiagency commitment to the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative (AWI),” said Mayor Williams. “It is with special pleasure that I join with Secretary Mineta to commit the District and the USDOT to fulfill our vision for this gateway for the southern approach to the nation's capital.”

Also attending the signing were Senator Jim Jeffords, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, Congressman Steny Hoyer and Councilmember Carol Schwartz; Dan Tangherlini, District Director of Transportation, was the MC. On display at the signing were architectural concept drawings of possible designs for a new pedestrian and environmentally friendly bridge in line with the goals of the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative. 

The signing was at the Pump House at First and Potomac Streets, SE, the home of the Earth Conservation Corps. At the conclusion of the event, Mayor Williams and Secretary Mineta activated a TV camera, with the image available on the Internet, showing an osprey nesting on the bridge. The nest shows how much progress has been made in reducing pollution in the Anacostia.