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About DCCA

The Dupont Circle Citizens Association (DCCA) brings neighbors together to enjoy and improve the quality of life in our diverse urban neighborhood.

The greater Dupont Circle neighborhood is a lively mix of homes, embassies, restaurants, shops, and galleries —and one of the city’s most architecturally significant neighborhoods.

These qualities are no accident. The unparalleled quality of living the neighborhood provides is the result of countless volunteer activities carried out by generations of Dupont Circle Citizens Association members.

DCCA is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting interests of the residents of our neighborhoods.

DCCA strives to:

  • Create a sense of community and inform residents through communications and events.
  • Maintain the safety of our neighborhood.
  • Promote diversity in both the businesses and people of Dupont Circle.
  • Enhance the beauty of the neighborhood and keep our streets and alleys clean.
  • Ensure preservation of the neighborhood’s historic character.

Keep it Clean. The cleanliness of our sidewalks, streets, and alleys is the clearest indication of how much we care about our community. DCCA’s Environment Committee works with city solid waste inspectors to target the worst areas that breed rats and other health problems. The most visible DCCA effort has been Scoop, an educational program which urges dog owners to clean up after their pets in public space.

Keep it Diverse. One of Dupont Circle’s great strengths is its cultural, economic, ethnic, sexual, and commercial diversity. Over the years, DCCA has supported a number of efforts to protect that broad diversity, ranging from tenants’ rights legislation and elimination of sexually repressive D.C. laws to moratoriums on alcoholic beverage licenses in order to protect neighborhood businesses from displacement.

In addition, monetary grants have been given to the Whitman-Walker Clinic, Green Door, Dupont Circle Freshfarm Market, Ross Elementary School, Food and Friends, Hospice of DC, The Woman’s Collective and many more local organizations.

Keep it Green. Dupont Circle has been a neighborhood of trees for more than a century and DCCA spearheads the effort to keep it that way. DCCA’s matching-fund tree-planting program has enabled residents to plant dozens of trees in public spaces. DCCA also has an active program which encourages residents to protect trees through the use of tree boxes designed with safe and historically compatible fencing.

Keep it Historic. Dupont Circle is one of the most architecturally significant neighborhoods in this historic city. It is home to major examples of architectural styles and trends ranging from elegant mansions of the wealthy to homes of the middle and working-classes. DCCA helped protect this heritage by working for historic district designation for much of the neighborhood in the 1960s.

House tours showcasing the architectural diversity of the neighborhood and the creativity of its residents have been held annually, since 1968. More than just a fundraiser, the DCCA House Tour celebrates our unique neighborhood within a city Dupont Circle lifestyle.

In 1990, Connecticut Avenue was a string of crumbling sidewalks, potholes, and broken lights. With other neighborhood groups, DCCA secured funds for repairs including historic railings and lampposts.

Keep it Neighborly. DCCA provides a community meeting place for you and your neighbors to exchange information and learn about your community. Each year, DCCA hosts a reception for new members to meet their neighbors and community leaders. In addition, DCCA works cooperatively with neighboring civic associations in Foggy Bottom and Logan Circle on issues of mutual interest. DCCA’s monthly meetings provide a continuing forum to discuss mutual problems, and a vehicle for accomplishing needed change.

Keep it Residential. Strong and healthy residential neighborhoods are the major reasons for Dupont Circle’s attractiveness. Throughout its history, DCCA has helped protect the residential character of our neighborhood.

Keep it Safe. The safety of our residents is a major concern of DCCA. When problems arise in specific areas of Dupont Circle, DCCA works with citizen patrols and has provided funding for their communications equipment. Metropolitan police officers report at each public DCCA meeting and learn from DCCA members about their concerns. DCCA raised over $100,000 to restore and convert the historic comfort station just west of Dupont Circle into a community resource center.

Download DCCA’s Bylaws (pdf file) »

What is Dupont Circle?

Dupont Circle is an in-town, urban neighborhood, first settled 125 years ago, which contains major residential areas and the businesses that serve them, foreign embassies, renowned museums and institutions, national and local historic buildings, as well as 14,000 of the friendliest and most interesting people in Washington! DCCA’s boundaries are roughly 15th Street on the east (except between U and S, where we extend to 14th St.), K Street on the south, Rock Creek Park on the west, and Florida Avenue/S Street on the north.

Dupont Circle is at the geographic and social center of our city. Originally called Pacific Circle and located at what was then the western boundary of the city, it was renamed in 1884 for Admiral Samuel F. DuPont of Civil War fame. The fountain, designed by Daniel Chester French and erected in 1921, is a memorial to the U.S. Navy. The sculpted figures on the fountain represent the sea, wind, and stars.

See map of neighborhood

Did you know?

In the 1930s, DCCA helped transform the “wilds of Rock Creek” Park south of P Street into a family playground with ball fields, tennis courts, and a public pool and was instrumental in establishment of a system of playgrounds for the District.