Economic Summit Takes On Anacostia
In three months as chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, Ben S. Bernanke has learned how his words can affect global markets. Yesterday, he turned his attention closer to home.</br></br>Bernanke gave his take on how to ease poverty in neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River in the District. So did World Bank President Paul D. Wolfowitz, a half-dozen Bush administration officials, and top leaders of several banks and other financial groups. It happened at the Anacostia Economic Summit, an event that aimed to engage some of the nation's financial leaders in discussing how to improve the lot of residents in the District's poorest neighborhoods and similar parts of other big cities.</br></br>Their message: Improve residents' access to banks, financial advice and homeownership, and broader prosperity will ensue.</br></br>Participants did not announce any specific new plans in that area. Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D) said he hoped the event would help more residents of wards 7 and 8 to feel connected to growing prosperity in the city and to improve their financial literacy. An aide to the mayor said that the event helped build connections between small businesses in Ward 8 and growth around the city and that having speakers such as Bernanke and Wolfowitz can signal to the world that Anacostia and surrounding neighborhoods are on the upswing.</br></br>"I'm hopeful that this reinvigorated a community of small local businesses," said Stanley Jackson, deputy mayor for planning and economic development. "They may have felt disconnected when the first wave of billions of dollars of opportunity began to swirl, but this might help them realize there's still an opportunity to play a role."