WASHINGTON — D.C. icon Ben’s Chili Bowl is celebrating its 60th anniversary Wednesday, and the celebration (scheduled for 11 a.m.–3 p.m.) will close streets and impact parking in the U Street corridor.
The westbound lanes of U Street will be closed between 11th and 13th streets Northwest from 5 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
That same stretch will be totally closed from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. In addition, no parking will be allowed on this stretch of U from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. (If you’re parked in the area, you’ll be ticketed and towed.)
D.C. police warn that drivers and commuters in the area could see significant delays due to congestion.
They suggest drivers find alternate routes and to be cautious of pedestrian traffic.
Read WTOP’s special series: DC Uprising: Voices from the 1968 riots
- From Black Broadway to Black Power: How Ben’s Chili Bowl survived the 1968 riots to become a DC landmark
- ‘Everything was on fire’ — remembering the DC riots 50 years later
- DC Uprising: An oral history of the 1968 riots
- Under fire: Retired police, firefighters remember 1968 DC riot flashpoints
- DC Uprising: A timeline of the 1968 riots
- ‘The mayor saw it with his own eyes:’ Reporter chronicles 1968 chaos of DC riots
- DC Uprising: After the riots, an activist on trial
- 50 years after the riots: Shattered lives and unanswered questions
- This DC church survived the 1968 riots. Then came the wrecking ball. Finally, rebirth
- Then & Now: Powerful images show 1968 riot damage and rebuilt DC neighborhoods
- How WTOP, Federal News Radio reporters covered the DC riots