PR 26-0514 Legislature · 26th Council Period (2025-2026)

Friends of Wangari Gardens Grant Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2026

This resolution declares an emergency to allow the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) to transfer $75,000 in allocated funds directly to the nonprofit Friends of Wangari Gardens. The funds will cover the cost of installing a permanent water meter and potable water source at Wangari Gardens, a community garden-park on DDOT-owned property. Currently, the garden relies on an expensive fire hydrant permit (costing $5,525 annually in 2025), depleting its budget. The resolution bypasses standard grant rules that require projects to align with transportation goals, enabling DDOT to fund this water access project directly through the nonprofit.

Issues: ✓ Budget & Taxes

Bill status signed all 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Council Passage

Feb 2026

Signed into Law

Feb 2026

Introduced Jan 30, 2026 Signed Feb 3, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduction → Enrollment · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was converted from a proposed resolution to an enrolled original version with substantive changes to the emergency declaration. The primary change is that the resolution now seeks to amend the Department of Transportation Establishment Act of 2022 to explicitly authorize DDOT to grant funds to Friends of Wangari Gardens for water infrastructure, even though this project doesn't directly support transportation goals. The text also corrected several formatting and typographical errors throughout the document.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded from simply declaring an emergency to explicitly amending existing legislation to authorize the grant, clarifying that the water project at Wangari Gardens qualifies despite not meeting traditional transportation criteria.

REQUIREMENT

Changed the resolution title from 'Friends of Wangari Gardens Grant Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2026' to 'Friends of Wangari Gardens Grant Emergency Amendment Act of 2026' to reflect that it amends existing law rather than just declaring an emergency.

Added specific language in the emergency declaration stating the grant is for 'assessment, design, and installation of a water meter and potable water source directly on the Wangari Gardens property with a spigot for gardeners' free use'.

TECHNICAL

Corrected 'streateries' to 'streets' and 'streatery' to 'streetery' in the description of DDOT's existing grant authority requirements.

Updated street names from abbreviations (Kenyon St. NW, Park Pl. NW, Irving St. NW) to full names (Kenyon Street, NW, Park Place, NW, and Irving Street, NW).

Corrected 'treasure' to 'treasurer' in the description of the Friends of Wangari Gardens financial situation.

Changed the legal citation from D.C. Official Code § 50-921.02(c)(1) to § 50-921.01 et seq. for the Department of Transportation Establishment Act of 2022.

Floor votes · Council Feb 3, 2026

How they voted

13–0

Passed

Total votes 13

Feb 3, 2026

D Democratic11

11 Yea

100% Yea

I Independent2

2 Yea

100% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 3, 2026

Council · Passed

Council Vote: pass (13-0)

council

Jan 30, 2026

Introduced

PR26-0514 Introduced by Councilmember Parker at Office of the Secretary

legislature

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors