The 700 block of Brandywine Street, SE, was comprised of seven fifteen-unit apartment buildings. Many of the apartments were vacant and the majority of the remaining tenants lived in deplorable housing conditions. These buildings were plagued by drug trafficking, prostitution and violent crime. Drug runners used the wall outside the building to stash drugs and guns and drug addicts used the vacant apartments to smoke their drugs and conduct sexual acts in exchange for more drugs or money.

The problem was brought to the attention of the United States Attorney’s Office in the fall of 2004. Members of the Metropolitan Police Department, Office of the Attorney General, Neighborhood Services Core Team and the Washington Highlands Alliance had been meeting with apartment owners on Brandywine Street since June 2004 in an attempt to clean up the block. The group invited the United States Attorney’s Office to the meeting when they became extremely frustrated with the lack of cooperation from the owner of the 700 block of Brandywine Street, SE. The owner had made little to no effort to clean up his properties or abate the drug nuisance.

The United States Attorney’s Office worked with Community Family Life Services, Inc. (CFLS), a non profit agency that receives funding from HUD to provide shelter for homeless families. CFLS housed several families from these apartment buildings and the USAO, with the assistance of HUD, got these families moved to cleaner and safer housing. The USAO met with the owner of the property and made a request that the owner fix the numerous housing code violations, hire security and abate the drug nuisance. This meeting led to the owner selling the properties.

In August 2005, the properties were sold to Community Vision Consultants. The new owner has started renovating the properties into affordable housing condominiums (with a rent to own option). The new owners are working closely with neighbors to develop a stronger sense of community, including providing security, establishing educational programs for tenants and building a playground for the children. In late July 2005, the new owners partnered with MPD, USAO and fellow neighbors to host a Brandywine Street Block Party. This block party celebrated the new and exciting changes coming to the neighborhood now that the drug problem has been abated.