If you haven’t gotten a chance to pick up the most recent City Paper, be sure to take a peek at “Lost in Space,” a look by David Morton (with photos by Darrow Montgomery) of some of the city’s awkward, neglected and forgotten public spaces. One of the spaces featured is Champlain Street where it evaporates inside the Marie Reed Community Center, just a hop, skip and a jump from the City Paper’s offices just up the street.
The CP says that this space was intended to be used as an outdoor amphitheatre, but it never really became the public space originally envisioned. Additionally, the concrete chess tables are neglected. (We took this photo last night, and as you can see, the future of communal chess playing is not looking too hot when you consider that the process of parking cars on Champlain Street has routinely badgered the space.)
So be sure to pick up a print copy or view the series online before the City Paper puts it in the pay-per-view archives. Other exotic locales include Techworld near Mount Vernon Square, Washington and Barney circles, Fort Lincoln New Town and the MLK Library.
