A forest in the heart of our neighborhood
Fort Stevens Park · Van Buren Street NW · Washington, D.C.
A forest in the heart of our neighborhood
Fort Stevens Park · Van Buren Street NW · Washington, D.C.
Protecting Our Forest Together
About
Tucked inside Fort Stevens Park, the Fort Stevens Forest Patch is a two-acre, mature urban forest of 157 trees (including 9 Heritage Trees (100+ in circumference). This quiet corner of our neighborhood is doing extraordinary work — filtering the air we breathe, soaking up stormwater before it floods our streets, and storing carbon that took nearly a century to accumulate.
It may not be the most visited part of the park, but it is among the most valuable.
A Threat to the Forest
DC International School is planning a new sports facility on Fort Stevens Park, and the proposed site includes the forested area of the park.
DCI's initial community outreach, on February 25, consisted of flyers left at some neighboring homes — many households were not reached. The flyers contained little detail about the proposal and did not mention that the project would require removing trees. We believe the community deserves a fuller picture, and we are asking for a more transparent process going forward.
We are also concerned about plans that promise to remove only some trees and replant others. Planting young trees does not replace what a mature forest provides — this one took nearly 100 years to grow.
We are not against DCI expanding. We are asking DCI and the DC Department of Parks and Recreation to treat this forest as worth protecting, to seriously explore every alternative, and to engage the community openly before any decisions are made.
What This Forest Does for Us
Every year, the trees of the Fort Stevens Forest Patch:
- Filter 118 pounds of air pollution from the atmosphere
- Absorb more than 33,000 gallons of stormwater that would otherwise overwhelm streets and storm drains
- Pull 2.31 tons of carbon out of the air annually
- Hold 55 tons of stored carbon — accumulated over the better part of a century
That stored carbon deserves special attention. It is not a renewable resource. It cannot be replanted into existence. It took this forest nearly 100 years to build, and it would take another 100 to recover if it were lost.
75 Protected Trees in a Forest of 157
We've counted: There are 157 trees on this site, including:
- 9 Heritage Trees (100+ inches in circumference - ILLEGAL to cut down)
- 66 Special Trees (44-99 inches in circumference - $55/inch to cut down)
- 32 recently planted, young trees
- 50 other healthy trees
Together, these trees represent an irreplaceable natural asset — and a serious legal and financial obligation for any developer.
The Fort Stevens Forest Patch Stewards
The Fort Stevens Forest Patch Stewards are a group of neighbors devoted to caring for this forest. Through regular trash cleanups, removal of invasive plant species, and the promotion of assisted natural regeneration — helping native trees reseed and grow on their own terms — we work to keep this forest healthy and thriving for everyone who lives near it, walks through it, or simply benefits from its presence.
Some of us are also DC International School parents. We want DCI to thrive. We believe a school that serves this community should also respect it — and that includes the public green spaces that make this neighborhood what it is.
Get Involved
You can join us for a cleanup. You can learn to identify and remove invasive plants. And right now, one of the most important things you can do is sign our petition — to tell DCI, DPR, and our elected officials that this community expects a genuine voice in the future of this forest .