Earlier this week, I presented my budget, Grow DC. I’m grateful that after weeks of meticulous efforts working on the FY25 budget, we were able to blunt what could have been catastrophic cuts to our summer programs and services. We were able to address the Continuing Resolution gap as well as current year spending pressures with no furloughs or layoffs, no facility closures, a fully funded public safety and public education ecosystem, and no changes to summer programming.

We are also putting forward a strong, balanced FY26 budget. This budget is our Growth Agenda; it is sound, and it is built for the District’s future. We rightsized programs that were growing beyond what our shrinking revenues could keep up with. But we also put together a package of investments and policies that will create new jobs for DC residents and new revenues to fund the programs and services that make us the best city in the world.

The Growth Agenda recognizes that our economy is shifting and we must shift with it. In putting it together, we were guided by these questions: 

• How does this expenditure keep people and families in DC or attract new residents?
• How does this expenditure allow us to create new economic activity to fund city services and programs? 
• How does this expenditure allow us to attract new businesses and create new jobs for DC residents?

You have heard me say it before: 2024 was our comeback year. We had the fastest growing population of any state in the country. We drove down violent crime to its lowest levels in three decades. We welcomed a record 27 million visitors to our city. DCPS was the fastest improving urban school district in the nation. And our parks have remained the number one park system in the country for five consecutive years.

Now, our challenge is to change the trajectory of the DOGE economy. We can’t control all the challenges that have come our way, but we are leaders in DC and we can be smart and strategic, we can stay guided by our values, and we can control our own destiny. And that’s what the Growth Agenda will allow us to do.

Learn more about the Growth Agenda at budget.dc.gov. 

Start the weekend off right by joining the Department of Parks and Recreation Hike Club for an easy, four-mile guided hike on the Anacostia River Trail—the first of the season! Meet up at the Anacostia Recreation Center and then enjoy some of the best views of the river DC has to offer. The hike is designed for all fitness levels and all kinds of walkers, and children and dogs are welcome too! Be sure to check out the full schedule of hikes happening monthly through September.

• When: Saturday, May 31 at 10:00 a.m.
• Where: Anacostia Recreation Center, 1800 Anacostia Drive SE
• Learn more and RSVP here 

Following a successful three-day Holiday Hype at Banneker Recreation Center last weekend, the summer series of Late Night Hype will start its tour around the city next Friday.

The DC Department of Parks and Recreation and the Metropolitan Police Department are putting on another round of this epic nighttime carnival-style event, featuring music, food, video games, sports activities, and more. June 6 is also National Gun Violence Awareness Day, so wear orange and head over to Ridge Road Recreation Center for a great time with family, friends, and community!

• When: Friday, June 6 at 7:00 p.m.
• Where: Ridge Road Recreation Center, 830 Ridge Road SE
• Register here