Langley Park, Maryland

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Langley Park, Maryland
settlement_type = CDP
nickname = Takoma-Langley Crossroads
motto =

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mapsize = 250x200px
map_caption = Location of Langley Park, Maryland

http://www.mncppc.org/Takoma_Langley_Crossroads/Presentations/May_21_Maps.pdf Map of Takoma-Langley Crossroads]
mapsize1 =
map_caption1 =

subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = Maryland
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Prince George's
government_footnotes =
government_type =
leader_title = Prince George's County Council Member
leader_name = Will Campos
leader_title1 = Director, Action Langley Park
leader_name1 = Bill Hanna
established_title =
established_date =

unit_pref = Imperial
area_footnotes =

area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 2.1
area_land_km2 = 2.1
area_water_km2 = 0.0
area_total_sq_mi = 0.8
area_land_sq_mi = 0.8
area_water_sq_mi = 0.0

population_as_of = 2000
population_footnotes =
population_total = 16214
population_density_km2 = 7598.0
population_density_sq_mi = 19678.9

timezone = Eastern (EST)
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 46
elevation_ft = 151
latd = 38 |latm = 59 |lats = 39 |latNS = N
longd = 76 |longm = 58 |longs = 54 |longEW = W

postal_code_type = ZIP codes
postal_code = 20783, 20787
area_code = 301
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 24-45525
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 0597659
website =
footnotes =

Langley Park is a census-designated place (CDP) in the Washington, D.C. metro area. It is located inside the Capital Beltway, on the northwest edge of Prince George's County, Maryland, bordering Montgomery County, Maryland.

The "International Corridor," a commercial zone along University Boulevard at the southern end of Langley Park, is close to the University of Maryland, College Park, Silver Spring, Takoma Park, and is a part of Hyattsville. It is included in the Prince George's County Enterprise Zone. Many of the shops and restaurants along the International Corridor represent the community's multiethnic heritages, from Central America, West Africa, Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and many other parts of the world).

Two transit station locations in the proposed Purple Line are being planned to serve Langley Park. One is at the Montgomery/Prince George's county line, at New Hampshire Avenue and University Boulevard ("Takoma/Langley Crossroads"), recently named the most dangerous intersection in Maryland for pedestrians. The danger is due to crossings of these six-lane routes mid-block at curbside bus stops.

The other is at Riggs Road and University Boulevard. The current bus system issues more transfers at these two intersections than at any other Prince George's County location not yet served by a Metro station.

The multi-cultural diversity of the International Corridor area has attracted the attention of the State of Maryland, the University of Maryland, the Washington Metropolitan Council of Governments (COG), Maryland-National Capital Parks and Planning (M-NCPPC), Prince George's and Montgomery Counties, and national think tanks such as the Brookings Institution. Community assets identified by these and other stakeholders include a large concentration or clustering of international restaurants, grocery stores, nightclubs, retail stores, and micro-enterprises, all of which help to define the unique character of the neighborhood. Additionally, a number of community groups have formed to represent a broad range of community interests. Many of these community groups focus on the unique social issues of the area, particularly as they relate to the stock of rental housing, youth, health, immigration, jobs, pedestrian and bicycle safety, transit, business development, and community economic development.

History

"Langley Park" references the estate established in 1923, by the McCormick-Goodhart family in the Chillum District of Prince George's County, Maryland. The name McCormick-Goodhart represented the linking of one of Chicago's oldest families, that of Cyrus McCormick, with that of British barrister Frederick E. McCormick-Goodhart. Frederick's wife Henrietta (Nettie) was the daughter of Leander J. McCormick, a brother of Cyrus. ["Sues for Loss of Love of M'cormick-Goodhart," The Washington Post, Apr 28, 1925, p. 8.] They named the 540 acre estate Langley Park after the Goodhart's ancestral home in Kent, England. In 1924, they erected an 18,000 square foot, 28-room Georgian Revival mansion, designed by architect George Oakley Totten, Jr., at a cost of $100,000. It remains a community landmark at 8151 15th Ave. [ [http://www.mncppc.org/county/Illustrated_Inventory906/21_73.pdf Maryland National Capital Parks and Planning Commission, "Inventory of Historic Sites" (Prince George's County), Entry 65-007, p. 36 (retrieved Sep 7, 2008)] .] Current plans are for the mansion to be redeveloped as a multicultural service center operated by CASA of Maryland; a $31 million project scheduled to open in 2009. [ [http://www.gazette.net/stories/101007/montnew55647_32358.shtml "Langley Park project highlights immigrant issues," by C. Benjamin Ford, "The Gazette.net," Oct. 10, 2007 (accessed Sep 7, 2008)] .] This property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 29, 2008. [ [http://www.nps.gov/nr/feature/weekly_features/LangleyPark.pdf National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places, Registration Form for Langley Park (PG#65-7) (retrieved Sep 7, 2008)] .]

During the late 1930's-early 1940's, Leander McCormick-Goodhart, son of Frederick and Nettie, served as personal assistant to Ambassador Lord Lothian and supervisor of American Relief to Great Britain through the British embassy. [Obituary of Leander McCormick-Goodhart, "The Washington Post, Times Herald", Dec 18, 1965, p. E4.] As a result, the Langley Park estate became a regular site of social activities related to the British embassy including hosting the regular games of the Washington Cricket Club and, in June 1941, a British Relief Country Fair. ["Local Cricketers Play Ripping Game But Lose, 106-59," "The Washington Post", May 24, 1939, p. 20.] ["British Relief Country Fair," "The Washington Post", May 18, 1941, p. SC9.]

Residential Development

The estate was first subdivided during and immediately after World War II, and was developed as a planned community by Pierre Ghent & Associates of Washington, D.C. The last major section would be developed in 1963. Because of the wartime and immediate postwar demand for housing, the 540-acre estate was quickly developed for low-rise apartment homes, semi-detached, and single family homes. Starting in 1949, a 1,542 garden apartment complex, Langley Park Apartments, now located along 14th Avenue, was built to house the exploding postwar population. ["4000 Apartment Units Planned," "The Washington Post", Feb 6, 1949, p. R4.] That same year, M.T. Broyhill and Sons started building on a 200 acre tract for 600 single family homes to be priced at around $10,000. These homes now lie north of Merrimac Drive. Both the apartments and homes were completed and occupied by June 1951. ["Two Virginia Builders Plan 1850 Homes in 1950," "The Washington Post", Jan 8, 1950, p. R1.] In 1951, plans were unveiled for 500 additional multi-family rental dwellings and a 15-acre, $4 million shopping center. ["Shopping Center, Homes Will be Next Projects," "The Washington Post", Apr 22, 1951, p. R1.]

In 1963, the last major segment of the Langley Park estate opened for development. It was a 25-acre parcel located directly around the manor house. It had been acquired in 1947, from the McCormick-Goodhart family by the Eudist Order for use as a seminary. The property was acquired for $900,000 by developers, who built the 400-unit Willowbrook Apartments on the site and opened them the following year. ["McCormick-Goodhart Tract Sold for Apartment Complex," "The Washington Post, Times Herald", Aug 17, 1963, p. E10.] ["Developers Relax at Willowbrook," "The Washington Post, Times Herald", Aug 8, 1964, p. C9.] The mansion then operated until the early-1990's as Willowbrook Montessori School.

The Langley Park Elementary School, now known as Langley Park-McCormick School, opened in 1950, at 15th Avenue and Merrimac Drive. ["Work on Langley Park School Moves Ahead," "The Washington Post", Jan 26, 1950, p. B1.] In 1988, Leander McCormick-Goodhart, real estate developer and descendent of the estate owners, sent the school a $10,000 donation after receiving an invitation to attend a school event. ["Langley Park School's Invitation Gets RSVP in the Form of $10,000," "The Washington Post", Jan 21, 1988, p. MD1.] That same year, 60 percent of the school population of 610 students was foreign born from 45 different countries and spoke 27 languages. ["Langley Park School Bridges Cultures," "The Washington Post", Sep 22, 1988, p. MD21.]

Commercial Development

Langley Park is probably best known as a center of commercial activity in northwestern Prince George's County. At each corner of the New Hampshire Avenue / University Boulevard intersection is a large strip shopping center. Three of them are now known as Langley Park Plaza (northeast corner); Langley Park Shopping Center (northwest corner); and Hampshire-Langley Shopping Center (southwest corner). The area is generally known as the Takoma/Langley Crossroads shopping area. It continues east along University Boulevard to the intersection at Riggs Road to encompass the International Mall, and other smaller strip shopping centers in an area designated as the "International Corridor."

*Langley Park Plaza is the largest of the four centers. It was once the second largest strip mall in Maryland. Plans were originally announced in 1951. for development of the 15-acre site to include 40 stores and a six to eight story office building. The site remained undeveloped until 1954, when the Washington D.C.-based department store Lansburgh's announced plans to open a 3-story, 126,750 square foot, $2 million store. It was the first major department store opened in Prince George's county. ["Lansburgh's Soon to Build a New Store," "The Washington Post, Times Herald", Nov 21, 1954, p. M1.] Through the demise of the Lansburgh's chain in 1973, it would remain its most profitable store. At the store's opening in October 1955, in addition to substantial displays and a payroll of 350, it contained the "Hampshire Room" - a lunchonette seating 90 and a community room to hold about 200. ["Lansburgh's New Store Opens," "The Washington Post, Times Herald", Oct 18, 1955, p. 17.] ["Lansburgh's Prince George's County's First Department Store," "The Washington Post, Times Herald", Oct 23, 1955, p. L1.] The remainder of the Plaza opened shortly thereafter and included a Giant Food store and People's Drug store. After Lansburgh's closing in 1973, it was occupied by E.J. Korvette, followed by K-Mart (opened September 1981), and most recently by Toys "Я" Us. The Giant Food store closed in about 1994, and is now occupied by a local Latino grocery store. In recent years, the plaza has become a new tourist destination for many recent immigrants, especially to those from Central America. The attraction is a fountain, nestled in a section of the mall, where recent immigrants take photos in front of the fountain to show their families and friends at home that they have arrived to the United States. ["Immigrants Give Md. Fountain a Global Reach," by Allison Klein, "The Washington Post", May 22, 2006.] [ [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/06/09/ST2008060900748.html "A Stream From Ipala," by David Montgomery, "The Washington Post", Jun 9, 2008 p. C1 (retrieved Sep 6, 2008)] .] The center continues in the hands of a descendent of the original Langley Park estate owner, Leander McCormick-Goodhart.

*Development of the Hampshire-Langley Shopping Center was first announced in August 1959. The 25 store center was built on the 10-acre site for $3 million, and developed by Giant Food Properties, Inc. ["Capital Commerce: Area to Get Two More Shop Centers," "The Washington Post, Times Herald", Aug 16, 1959, p. C9.] When opened in February-March 1960, it included a 19,000 square foot Safeway supermarket and Kress (later McCrory's) variety store, the first in the Washington, D.C. area. ["New Safeway to Open," "The Washington Post, Times Herald", Feb 25, 1960, p. B7.] ["A New Name in D.C. Area," "The Washington Post, Times Herald", Mar 15, 1960, p. A20.] The Safeway store expanded in the early 1980's. The 131,700 square foot grocery anchored center is currently managed by Saul Centers, Inc., of Bethesda, Maryland. [ [http://www.saulcenters.com/properties-metro/md/hampshire/index.htm Saul Centers - Hampshire-Langley (retrieved Sep 6, 2008)] .]

*The Langley Park Shopping Center is a 135,000 square foot shopping center currently anchored by a Rite Aid drug store. The center opened in August 1951, when a Food Fair super market opened; it was later converted to an Acme, then Grand Union. This center was home to a Dart Drug, Hot Shoppes, and the 1,000 seat Langley Theater, which opened in March 1952. Later converted to a multi-screen theater, it closed in the early-1990's when the owner K/B Theaters went out of business. [ [http://cinematreasures.org/theater/5770/ Cinema Treasures website, Langley Theater, Langley Park, Md (retrieved Sep 6, 2008)] .] It is home to the landmark "Woodlands" Indian restaurant. The Takoma/Langley Crossroads project calls for the parking lot of this center to be the site of the transit center.

*The southeast corner of the New Hampshire Avenue / University Boulevard intersection consists of a set of two small strip shopping centers with a 7-Eleven convenience store in between. These centers were the first shopping destination at Langley Park. A longtime business in the University Boulevard side was Weile's Creations, a noted ice cream parlor in business from 1938 to the early 1980's. ["Obituary of Eric I. Weile," "The Washington Post", May 28, 1980.] For some decades, the noted Indian restaurant "Udupi Place" has been located at the University Boulevard center.

Demographic Changes

In 1955, Langley Park was "the fastest growing trade area in Metropolitan Washington" with 200,000 people located within a 3-mile radius. Affordable housing attracted a community consisting mostly consisted of young couples with families. In the following decades, Langley Park became a middle-class enclave of predominantly white, Jewish residents. ["Langley Park: Coping With Change," by Gwen Ifill, "The Washington Post", Aug 26, 1984, p. 35.]

During the 1970s, after desegregation, increasing numbers of African Americans moved into the community. Although some established families remained, the white population declined due to white flight to the outer suburbs. In 1970, the first language of 6.1 percent was Spanish; by 1980 that number climbed to 13.4 percent. ["Langley Park Bridging Age and Language Gaps," by Keith Harriston, "The Washington Post", Nov 14, 1987, p. E1.] During the 1980s, Hispanic and Caribbean immigrants from countries such as El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala, Jamaica and the West Indies lead a new wave of migration into the community. In addition, Asian and African immigrants from places like Vietnam, India, Ethiopia and Nigeria settled into the area. It proved to be an attractive locale for immigrants due to the availability of affordable housing that could also accommodate families. The integration of these new groups into Langley Park reflected a larger trend of increased migration to the Greater Washington during the 1980s and 1990s. By 1990, the area was 40 percent Hispanic.

At the same time, the area suffered through a period of physical decline and increases in crime. During the 1980s, the community struggled with blighted residential and commercial areas. The apartment complexes experienced substantial turnover in occupancy. Residents in the 14th Avenue and Kanawha Street area in particular were subjected to "open air drug markets" and other criminal activity. Long time residents and the new immigrant communities were both victims of crime. Some homeowners organized to address neighborhood concerns about rising crime. For the 1988-89 school year, bus service for children who lived in walking distance to school was implemented to ensure their safety. Police also increased their presence in the community. Apartment complexes, under new management, initiated safety measures to discourage drug activity such as installing new lighting, security doors and maintaining general upkeep of their properties. At the same time, police in Prince George’s County conducted multiple raids in an effort to shut down drug activity in the county. By 1991, officials were taking note of an increase in illegal immigrants from Central America and day laborers were beginning to become a common sight on area streets. ["Hispanice Carve Niche in P.G.," by Jim Naughton, "The Washington Post", Aug 19, 1991, p. A1.]

Geography

Langley Park is located at coor dms|38|59|39|N|76|58|54|W|city (38.994060, -76.981759)GR|1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the place has a total area of 0.8 square miles (2.1 km²), all of it land.

The International Corridor or the Takoma/Langley Crossroads area is located at the intersection of University Boulevard (Maryland Route 193) and New Hampshire Avenue (Maryland Route 650), within proximity to the University of Maryland, College Park and the revitalized core of the Silver Spring Central Business District. The Crossroads area encompasses Prince George’s County, Montgomery County and The City of Takoma Park, which is located entirely within Montgomery County. The unincorporated community known as Langley Park, in the city of Hyattsville is within Prince George’s County.

Demographics

The racial and ethnic composition of the community has changed considerably as development patterns have evolved in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area. Today, approximately 23,000 people live in proximity to the Takoma/Langley Crossroads, including immigrants from an estimated 120 different countries, turning the area into one of the region’s most distinctive and broadly representative international communities. Hispanics with origins in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, other Central American countries, and South America now comprise one of the largest ethnic groups in the area. Other significant immigrant groups include West Africans, Chinese, Vietnamese, Koreans, Indians, and Caribbean nationalities.

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 16,214 people, 4,592 households, and 3,342 families residing in the area. The population density was 19,678.8 people per square mile (7,634.5/km²). There were 4,716 housing units at an average density of 5,723.8/sq mi (2,220.6/km²). The racial makeup of the community was:

*41.68% White
*26.46% African American
*21.43% from other races
*5.96% from two or more races
*3.39% Asian
*0.89% Native American
*0.19% Pacific Islander
*63.49% Hispanic or Latino of any race (note that this includes a combination of Hispanics from all different parts of Latin America)

There were 4,592 households out of which 43.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.3% were married couples living together, 18.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.2% were non-families. 16.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.51 and the average family size was 3.70.

In the community the population was spread out with 27.4% under the age of 18, 16.1% from 18 to 24, 40.3% from 25 to 44, 12.9% from 45 to 64, and 3.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females there were 126.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 132.8 males.

The median income for a household in the community was $37,939, and the median income for a family was $36,018. Males had a median income of $22,356 versus $21,931 for females. The per capita income for the community was $12,733. About 11.3% of families and 16.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.4% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over.

In 2000, 21.48% of Langley Park residents identified as being of Salvadoran heritage. This was the largest percentage of Salvadoran Americans of any place in the United States. [http://epodunk.com/ancestry/Salvadoran.html]

References

External links

* [http://earthops.net/klaatu/immigration/crossroads2.html Maryland's International Corridor]
* [http://www.langleypark.org/langleypark.html Action Langley Park]
* [http://www.mncppc.org/Takoma_Langley_Crossroads/ M-NCPPC Takoma / Langley Crossroads Project (retrieved Sep 6, 2008)]