The L’Enfant Trust Revolving Fund Program Breaks Ground on First
Renovation Projects
WASHINGTON, Dec. 10, 2013 – Construction crews have begun work to stabilize and rehabilitate two blighted,
vacant buildings in the Anacostia Historic District located at 1347 Maple View Place, SE and 2010 14th Street, SE.
The properties, one a former haven for illicit activity and the other nearly lost to demolition by neglect, are finding new
life through the recently launched Historic Preservation Revolving Fund Program (Revolving Fund Program) of The
L’Enfant Trust a Washington, D.C. based non-profit.
The two buildings, located on Maple View Place and 14th Street SE, are both neighbors of the Frederick Douglass
National Historic Site in the Anacostia Historic District.
Operating at the intersection of economic revitalization and historic preservation, the Revolving Fund Program works
to acquire, rehabilitate, protect by conservation easement, and resell distressed, historic properties. The first of its
kind in the Washington, D.C. area, the Revolving Fund Program is modeled after similar successful non-profit
programs in markets across the United States.
“Our goal is to take-on historic rehabilitations that would be not be economically feasible for an owner or a for-profit
developer because the rehabilitation costs would exceed fair market value,” said Carol Goldman, President, The
L’Enfant Trust. "We have access to funding opportunities not available to for-profits developers, and our work will
support the current efforts of residents, community organizations, for-profit and non-profit developers, and the city to
save the irreplaceable fabric of historic neighborhoods in our nation’s capital.”
The Trust has committed its own organizational funds to acquire and rehabilitate these two buildings. Proceeds from
the sale of the two redeveloped structures, which share proximity to transit and major employment centers, will be
revolved back into the program to help fund subsequent rehabilitation efforts. The estimated funding gap between the
rehabilitation and the resale costs for the two properties combined is approximately $400,000.
The L’Enfant Trust received a $50,000 grant from The 1772 Foundation to launch the Revolving Fund Program.
Leading the new Revolving Fund Program is Sara K. Hayden, a LEED Green Associate who previously focused on
historic preservation and sustainable development in her law practice in San Francisco.
The L’Enfant Trust, founded in 1978, currently protects 1,132 historic buildings in the Washington, D.C. region
through conservation easements – a form of voluntary preservation whereby property owners accede certain rights to
alter their historic properties, in return for a tax deduction that recognizes their “gifts to the street.” The Revolving
Fund Program now extends the Trust’s work into new neighborhoods such as Anacostia, using a proactive approach
to preserving endangered historic structures.
About The L'Enfant Trust
The L’Enfant Trust is a 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1978 to preserve and protect Washington, DC’s historic
neighborhoods and streetscapes. The Trust has a range of historic preservation programs, including education and
outreach activities. The Trust’s main programs are its nationally recognized conservation easement program, and its
new Historic Preservation Revolving Fund Program through which the Trust acquires and rehabilitates distressed
historic buildings where such rehabilitation will have a positive impact on community revitalization.
CONTACTS:
Carol B. Goldman
President
The L’Enfant Trust
202-483-4880
Mittie Rooney
Axiom Communications Group
Mrooney@axcomgroup.com
301-229-1618 – office
301-602-8709 - cell