From David McAuley. Email him at david[AT]borderstan.com.
Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2B, at its monthly meeting last night, April 10, unanimously supported a request by the Embassy of Indonesia to erect a statue of a Hindu goddess on public space on Massachusetts Avenue NW. It also unanimously called on DC’s Historic Preservation Office (HPO) to improve its operating procedures and communication both with ANCs and with the public.
An edited photo showing how the sculpture will appear in place on Massachusetts Avenue NW. (David McAuley)
Statue of Saraswati on Public Space
The Commission heard a presentation by Heru Subolo, Minister-Counselor for Press and Information Affairs of the Embassy of Indonesia, asking for ANC support for a proposed statue of Saraswati, the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music, arts and science, to be erected on a public space next to the grounds of the Embassy at2020 Massachusetts Avenue NW.
Subolo told the committee that the statue had been approved by the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Foreign Missions. Subolo also said that the planned site for the statue had been moved, at the request of the DC government’s Historic Preservation Office (HPO), from its original planned location at the corner of Massachusetts Avenue and 21st Street (also adjacent to the Embassy), to a location next to the sidewalk further west along Massachusetts.
The location is currently fenced in. Subolo said that the fence would be removed to make the statue accessible to the public.
“I’m really happy to open up a fenced space,” said Kevin O’Connor, ANC commissioner for district 2B-02.
Take off with Natarajan 