Four years ago this week, an eight-page neighborhood guide on Hyattsville, Riverdale Park and College Park was published in Washingtonian’s February 2020 issue, which hit newsstands around the D.C. area.

The Hyattsville Wire was honored to be asked to author the magazine’s first-ever guide to the Route 1 corridor and the spread included our one-on-one interview with College Park tennis star Frances Tiafoe.

Unfortunately, the Covid pandemic hit just weeks after the guide was published, and it didn’t bring the Route 1 corridor the attention it deserved.

But four years later, the guide still holds up. Only Banana Blossom Bistro, Cafe Azul and the pinball room at Mom’s Organic Market have closed, and the previously threatened Marathon Deli managed to survive and return.

The guide is, thankfully, not a time capsule of a bygone era, but more a look at a moment that was interrupted and has since mostly returned. And you can still read the guide online on Washingtonian here.

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Prince George’s County will consider using impact fees to discourage sprawl and encourage more apartments near Metro stations.

At a recent briefing on long-term goals, planners with the county and the Maryland-National Capital Parks and Planning Commission said they will be looking into raising fees on developers when they build farther out in the county and lowering them in areas around transit stations.

That could have a huge impact on the Route 1 corridor, as it would supercharge already strong growth around the West Hyattsville and Hyattsville Crossing Metro stations as well as future Purple Line stations in Riverdale Park and College Park.

According to WTOP, Derick Berlage with the MNCPPC said at the meeting that the shift in impact fees would ensure that builders are helping offset the costs of things like new roads, water and sewer lines needed for sprawling new developments.

“We think there should be a conversation about that, to make sure that development, especially development outside the Beltway is actually paying its appropriate share,” he said.

Any change in impact fees would require county officials to approve it and possibly the state legislature as well.

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Another apartment project is coming along in Hyattsville.

Located at 6400 America Blvd., The Residences at the Six will feature 316 apartments and 2,052 square feet of shops at University Town Center, in an area between the Mall at Prince George’s and the Safeway. 

It is one of the latest apartment buildings to be built within the crucial half-mile of the Hyattsville Crossing Metro station — the farthest distance that most people will walk to a transit stop.

Construction is also underway at The Devon, along Toledo Road on the other end of University Town Center, and other plans have been drawn up for new apartments on the mall property and next to the library.

The Six will also be the first apartment complex in Prince George’s County to be certified Gold under the National Green Building Standard.

At least three-fourths of the units will also be reserved for families earning less than $2,500 a month.

The development is expected to open in the summer of 2024.

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A Route 1 nonprofit is working to make the Anacostia River more bat-friendly to keep the population of mosquitoes, beetles and other insects in check.

The Anacostia Watershed Society has partnered with Bat Conservation International to plant trees and manage gardens that provide habitat for the eight species of insect-eating bats that live along the Route 1 corridor.

The local population of bats has been decimated in recent years due to a fungal disease called white-nose syndrome and a loss of trees they use for roosting due to the emerald ash borer, an invasive species.

In response, the Anacostia Watershed Society held a tree planting event in Colmar Manor in December to plant more native trees that the bats can roost in. It also maintains a bat-friendly garden at its headquarters at 4302 Baltimore Ave. in Bladensburg.

In 2020, D.C. also named the Big Brown Bat the official mammal of the district, after lobbying from a group of Girl Scouts concerned about their reduced numbers.

If you are interested in helping native bats, you can install a bat box in a sunny spot on the side of your house.

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The city of Mount Rainier recently installed new wayfinding signs along Route 1 on Rhode Island Avenue.

The color-coded signs direct people toward local amenities, including the library, restaurants, art studios, and a business/shopping area.

Posted on top of four-foot poles, the four signs designed by Rockville Sign Co. are clearly visible from a passing car or pedestrian.

The current wayfinding trend started as a guerrilla effort in 2012 in Raleigh, N.C., when a grad student posted signs that showed how far it would take to walk or bike to local attractions.

The new signs in Mount Rainier don’t include information on walking or biking, but the effort is a good start to showcasing the area’s amenities, especially to people passing through the Route 1 corridor.

The Rhode Island Avenue Trolley Trail has several red-and-yellow wayfinding signs with maps that direct walkers and bikers to other trails and nearby shops and restaurants.

Hyattsville’s historic district also has some wayfinding signs that direct bikers to trails, parks and shopping areas.

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The history of slavery on the Route 1 corridor is still visible in small ways.

One reminder is a modest marker located at the Bostwick House in Bladensburg, which dates back to 1746 and is one of the area’s most historic mansions rarely seen by the public.

As we honor Martin Luther King Jr., this commemorative sign is an important reminder of how this era of American history can often be forgotten.

The mansion was built by Christopher Lowndes, a wealthy merchant who ran a shipyard, owned a rope-making business — and also invested in ships that carried more than 9,637 enslaved people to America.

Lowndes kept a small number of indentured servants and enslaved people at his property and occasionally posted newspaper advertisements for their return after they escaped, unintentionally adding to one of the most evocative records of slavery that remain.

One such ad, reprinted on the marker, ran on Sept. 13, 1764 in the Maryland Gazette:

Ran away from the Subscriber at Bladensburg; on the first on this Instant September, a Negro Man named Joe, about 35 Years old, of a low Stature, and has a very wide Walk. His breeches are red; but the other Parts of his Dress is not certainly known. He is by Trade a Ship Carpenter or Caulker, and when he lived with some Masters, he was allowed to look for Work in different Rivers. Whoever will bring him to his Master, shall have Twenty Shillings more than the law allows. All Masters of Vessels and Others are desired not to employ or entertain him. He is very artful, and probably may endeavour to pass as a Freeman. Should he be brought any considerable Distance, Satisfaction will be made in Proportion. It will be necessary to tie him securely.

At the time, Maryland law spelled out harsh penalties for enslaved people and those who were found guilty of “enticing” them to escape, who could be fined for the full value of the enslaved person or jailed for a year if unable to pay.

Ship captains were also required to verify the status of all passengers and could be punished if fugitives were found.

Escape attempts were also complicated in Prince George’s County due to the fact that unlike urban areas in other slave states, the area had a smaller population of freemen that they could join.

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Riverdale Park’s Burtons Grill & Bar launched a new brunch menu this Saturday.

Located at 4440 Van Buren St. in the Station at Riverdale Park, the restaurant has expanded its standard menu with new offerings from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Along with standards such as eggs Benedict and chicken and waffles, the menu includes specialty items such as a cast-iron French toast made with challah, short rib hash with hollandaise sauce, a brunch burger with candied bacon and fried egg on a brioche bun and a bag of doughnuts with cinnamon, powdered sugar and a cream cheese dipping sauce.

There are also brunch cocktails, including a mimosa with prosecco and either orange or raspberry and a spiked cold brew made with vanilla vodka, Kahlúa, butterscotch schnapps, Frangelico, cold brew and cream. Both are also available in pitchers that serve four.

Burtons, winner of the Best of Route 1 reader survey for best restaurant for people with food allergies, also offers gluten-free versions of nearly every dish.

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