Title: Campus Plan Agreement Reached Between GU, Community, D.C. Government
Georgetown University, community leaders and District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray announced a historic agreement today on the university’s Campus Plan, as well as a new partnership to align the future goals of the university and the District of Columbia.
Georgetown President John J. DeGioia joined Gray, Advisory Neighborhood Commission chair Ron Lewis, District of Columbia council member Jack Evans and other university and community members for the announcement at the corner of 36th and P streets NW near campus this afternoon.
“What we celebrate today is opportunity,” DeGioia said, thanking the mayor and Lewis for their contributions to the agreement, “an opportunity to reset our relationship with our neighbors, an opportunity to align our interests as a university community even more closely with this vibrant and growing city and the opportunity to fulfill our responsibility to be good neighbors and disproportionate contributors to the future success of the District of Columbia.”
Cooperative Spirit
The university president and Lewis announced the formation of the Georgetown Community Partnership, which will provide a forum for collaborative and productive discussions involving the university and the community.
“We have found a way – the university and community together – that offers a new cooperative spirit and offers real results on issues that have divided us for years,” Lewis said.
Georgetown is a partner with the District of Columbia, noted DeGioia. “This is one city, not two,” he said.
Lewis thanked DeGioia and other Georgetown leaders for their cooperation during negotiations on the plan, and Gray thanked the university leadership, community leaders and negotiators for reaching the agreement.
Golden Age
The mayor said the agreement was a good exercise in working together toward a common goal.
“It was a very constructive, deliberative process, where people recognize why they were at the table but they also recognize it was important to find a solution that served the best interest of everybody,” he says.
Evans, a resident of the Georgetown neighborhood, believes the future for the university and community is bright.
“People wax nostalgic about the past days of Georgetown,” he said. “I will say this – this is the golden age of Georgetown. This place has never looked better.”