About CHOTR
The hope was that by providing information about community organizations and meetings that River East (Ward 7 and Ward 8) residents would be inspired to get involved and take a more active role in the success of their community. By sharing an accurate and much more positive depiction of what it is like to live in Ward 8 more people would be encouraged to visit, work and live in Congress Heights. There are a lot of great things in Congress Heights and in Ward 8, and even better things on the horizon; however, there are challenges: the difficulty in receiving basic city services, the limited retail options, the insulated and ineffective leadership. The ugly side of what happens when too many for too long turn a blind eye to curruption and croniysm.
Since its creation, Congress Heights on the Rise has gone from http://www.congressheightsontherise.blogspot.com/ to http://www.congressheightsontherise.com/ . “The Advocate” has become “The Advoc8te.” What was once “East of the River” is now also known as “River East” and what was once only one of two blogs dedicated to life in Wards 7 and 8 has now grown to over 20.
In short, the motivation behind the blog was to provide a face – a community of faces – of people who choose to live and work in Congress Heights. What is Congress Heights? A neighborhood in Ward 8 where people choose to live, love, raise families and standards. A neighborhood of old and new, black and white, gay and straight, middle class and working class, white collar and blue collar. A neighborhood much like any other in the District of Columbia - a work in progress.