Abigail Salvatore moved to Washington nearly four years ago to a house in need of some tender loving care. Her porch in particular needed some fixing, but she lacked the proper tools.
Washington, D.C
D.C.'s tool library was hammered by theft. Volunteers hope to fix it up.
But that all changed late last week when 81 tools were stolen during multiple break-ins at the library located at Twin Oaks Community Garden, Salvatore said. The theft dealt a second blow to the library after 40 tools were plundered earlier this month. All told, according to Salvatore, more than 120 tools worth about $10,700 have disappeared. The once-stocked shelves are wiped clean, and two smashed windows have since been boarded up.
The thefts at the tool library reflect how few communities have been spared from the spate and fear of crime in D.C. police said on Thursday that have not made any arrests in the break-ins. Volunteers said the tool library would be shut down for at least one month to recoup the loss.
Volunteers said they are committed to making sure the library lives on.
“We’re here for everybody, especially the ones that need it the most,” said Tony Vitez, another volunteer at the library. “To shut down and not to have something like this would exponentially take things downhill.”
Salvatore added: “I think we have a responsibility to make it work.”
Run by Green Neighbors D.C. in partnership with the Department of Parks and Recreation, roughly 900 Washington-area residents have registered to use the resource since it opened in 2021. The idea is not new to cities in the United States. There are more than 50 similar tool-lending libraries in Chicago, Baltimore, Seattle, Atlanta and Denver. One of the first collections devoted to caulking guns and wrenches opened in Berkeley, Calif., in 1979, The Washington Post previously reported.
In the week since the break-ins, the volunteers said more than $10,000 had been donated to Green Neighbors D.C. Some residents offered to donate tools to replace the ones stolen, Salvatore said. Other residents offered to store whatever tools were left to help prevent another break-in.
Vitez said part of the money will go toward replacing the tools. He said they would also be dedicating money to bolstering security, such as getting lockable cabinets and stronger window grates.
“We’ve learned a lot,” he said. “We’re running out of a very old building with no security, and there are simple things that we can do to just sleep better at night and make sure the resources for the entire community are safe.”
Marshall Daly, another volunteer, said the tool library was going to have to temporarily close regardless of the break-ins. The library, which is housed inside an old youth gardening center dating back to 1965, needs some repairs. Daly pointed to a gaping hole, roughly the size of a fist, in the floorboards of the weathered yellow building. The volunteers said the library is also in the process of finalizing its partnership with the Department of Parks and Recreation, which permits the volunteers to use the space.
Still, the volunteers said they are counting down the days until they can again open the library’s doors.
Daly said he likes the library because it collects the community’s resources into a shared space. Vitez said he liked the environmental benefit associated with sharing tools. Salvatore said its presence makes the community stronger than it was without it.
“We want to make D.C. more resilient. We want to make our community more resilient,” Salvatore said. “And so I think embodying that … in the face of something that could potentially make us decide to shut down is important.”
Washington, D.C
Nonprofit sues the federal government over plans to paint Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool blue
With a blue sky above the Lincoln Memorial, people walk along the reflection pool in Washington, D.C., on June 9, 2023.
Jose Luis Magana/AP
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Jose Luis Magana/AP
A nonprofit is suing the National Park Service, the Department of the Interior and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum over the decision to resurface the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool at Washington D.C.’s National Mall, and to paint the pool’s basin blue.
The suit was filed Monday in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia by The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF), an education and advocacy organization. In the suit, TCLF is asking a federal judge to halt the project, saying that the Trump administration failed to have the project reviewed federally, as is dictated by the National Historic Preservation Act.
President Trump revealed his plans for the pool do-over last month in “American flag blue,” saying that the project would take one week and $2 million, and that it would be completed in time for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence on July 4. A few days later on Truth Social, the president posted a fake image of himself and several of his administration officials in swimsuits, along with an unidentified woman in a gingham bikini, lounging in the water with the Washington National Monument at the rear. (Swimming in the reflecting pool is prohibited by federal law.)
In a YouTube video posted by the White House on April 23, Trump called the pool “filthy dirty” and said it “leaked like a sieve.” In that video, Trump said he was going to call three companies that he has worked with in the past – “all they do is swimming pools” – and say, “Give me a good price.”
The New York Times reported last Friday that the contract for the reflecting pool’s resurfacing was awarded in a $6.9 million no-bid contract to a company called Atlantic Industrial Coatings, which previously has never held any federal contracts.
An employee at the Atlantic Industrial Coatings confirmed in a telephone call on Monday that it has been contracted for this project, but referred all other questions to the Department of the Interior.
The Times reported on Monday that the final cost of the project could be upward of $13 million, per documents it says it has obtained. The Department of the Interior did not confirm the cost of the project, but wrote: “The contract price reflects the effort necessary to expedite the timeline of completing the leak prevention coating project—more people, more materials, more equipment and longer hours ahead of our 250th.”
In an unsigned statement emailed to NPR Monday afternoon, the Interior Department wrote: “The National Park Service chose the best company to expedite the repair of the iconic Reflecting Pool ahead of our 250 celebrations. The choice of American Flag Blue will enhance the visitor experience by making the pool reflect the grand Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument. NPS is also investing in a state-of-the-art ozone nanobubbler filtration system and will now have a dedicated crew who will maintain the grounds’ from wildlife. The Department is proud of the work being carried out by our Park Service to ensure this magical spot can be enjoyed for not only our 250th, but for many generations to come.”
Critics of the project, including TCLF, don’t share that vision – and are taking particular umbrage at the color.
“The reflecting pool should not be viewed in isolation; it is part of the larger ensemble of designed landscapes that comprise the National Mall,” Charles A. Birnbaum, the president and CEO of TCLF, said in a statement emailed to NPR Monday. “The design intent, to create a reflective surface that is subordinate, is fundamental to the solemn and hallowed visual and spatial connection between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. A blue-tinted basin is more appropriate to a resort or theme park.”
The National Park Service regularly cleans out algae, goose droppings and other detritus from the reflecting pool. The last major renovation of the reflecting pool, which included the installation of a new circulation and filtration system, took place during the Obama administration at a reported cost of $34 million.
Before founding TCLF in 2008, Birnbaum served for 15 years as the coordinator of the Historic Landscape Initiative for the National Park Service.
TCLF has another open lawsuit against the federal administration: it is one of eight cultural and architecture groups currently suing President Trump and the Kennedy Center board over the planned renovations of the complex, which are planned to start in July.
The memorial service will be held at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial at 1 p.m.
WASHINGTON D.C. – A brave K-9 hero from the region will be honored at the Annual National Police K9 Memorial Service on Monday afternoon.
K-9 Knox died in the line of duty last year after he was accidentally hit by a police vehicle while pursuing a suspect involved in a stolen vehicle incident. He was a 3-year-old German shepherd and had served as a narcotics detection and patrol apprehension K-9 for the Roanoke Police Department since May 2023.
The memorial service will include a wreath-laying ceremony and will be held at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C., at 1 p.m. The event will open with a musical performance by Frank Ray, and the guest speaker will be Deputy Jared Hahn of the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit.
The San Antonio Police Department Blue Line Choir will sing the national anthem, and the Emerald Society Pipes & Drums band will also perform.
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4 things to know about the weather:
- Shower chance Monday morning
- Cooler Monday
- Midweek rain chance
- Warmer end to the week
Showers continue to move west with a cold front tonight. There will be a break in the rain overnight, but showers return for the start of the day on Monday. Monday afternoon will be dry, but noticeably cooler.
Sunshine returns Tuesday, but the break in the rain will be short-lived with rain chances on Wednesday
Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to check the weather radar on the go.
QuickCast
TONIGHT:
Showers early
Mostly cloudy
Wind: N 5-10 mph
LOW: Low 50s
MONDAY:
Morning shower chance
Wind: N 5-10 mph
HIGH: Upper 60s
TUESDAY:
Sunny
Wind: N 5-10 mph
HIGH: Near 70°
WEDNESDAY:
Shower chance
Wind: S 5-10 mph
Gusts at 20 mph
HIGH: Low 70s
SUNRISE: 5:59 a.m. SUNSET: 8:10 p.m.
AVERAGE HIGH: 75° AVERAGE LOW: 56°
Stay with Storm Team4 for the latest forecast. Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to get severe weather alerts on your phone.
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