Josephine Butler Parks Center

Very disappointing venue. The rooms are very small and not well ventilated. And the service was horrible. The woman who served our dinner was nothing short of surly and when my aunt explained that she had selected the fish, she replied «We’re out of it» and slammed a plate of (inedible) lamb in front of her with no apologies. I would never recommend this place.

Amazing event venue! We had such a great experience working with Mackenzie and staff leading up to and through our October 2015, 150-​person fundraiser event. I think just about all of our guests commented on what a beautiful venue we selected for this year’s gala, and we hope to come back in future years.
The live music and DJ both sounded great. Our colorful up-​lighting made the architecture pop and enhance for amazing photos. JBPC staff was around through duration and always helpful.
Too bad we had a rainy night; we were so looking forward to our plans for the beautiful new South Garden addition, but we still had successful event moving everything indoors!

My husband and I rented the Josephine Butler Parks Center for our September 2015 wedding. For us, the decision was partly sentimental; we got engaged in Meridian Hill Park and we love to go there on weekends. But even taking that into account, the Parks Center would have been our top choice relative to the other venues we looked at. It’s a beautiful space that’s flexible enough to accommodate a ceremony, cocktail hour, reception, and serious dance party; the Parks Center includes rentals like tables and chairs; and as a bonus, having an event in the space supports a host of terrific non-​profits.
Everything that happened after we rented the Parks Center validated our decision to have our wedding there. Makenzie Delmotte, the events coordinator, was wonderful, responding to emails incredibly promptly, being helpful, funny, and generally comforting in the lead-​up to the day itself. The space just shone; we had flowers and candles, but didn’t need to do much else to make things beautiful. The Parks Center staff took great care of our vendors and guests, and the transition between ceremony, cocktails, dinner, and dancing was seamless. Makenzie even left us a lovely note and got my parents their deposit back basically immediately after the wedding. I can’t imagine a nicer place to get married in Washington.

A charming and beautiful venue for a wedding. My daughter had her ceremony (outdoor garden) and reception there. We had about 100 guests and everything worked very well. No need for a lot of decorating. This place is pretty stunning both inside and out on it’s own. Our event manager was extremely helpful and easy to work with (Thanks Makenzie).

The moment we walked into the Josephine Butler Parks Center, my husband and I knew it was where we wanted to get married. The space was the perfect size to hold our 125 guests for the ceremony and reception. The building is so lovely inside and out that we barely had to spend any money on decorations, just some votives and simple flowers for the tables, and candles in the fireplaces (there are fireplaces!). We took full advantage of the house, holding the ceremony in the main ballroom, then moving downstairs for the cocktail hour (while our caterer and the JBPC staff expertly flipped the room), and back upstairs for dinner. We had dancing in the atrium with our DJ on the landing going up to the top floor, and the buffet (and later desserts) in the next room over. The space worked perfectly for us, intimate yet never crowded.
Now that I’ve covered the logistics, let me just rave about the JBPC staff. The event team answered every question I had about the space, setup, logistics, and anything else quickly and professionally, and were happy to let me do walk-​throughs and even peek in when they were setting up for another wedding. Carl, our host, was a delight, and made sure everyone was happy and comfortable all night long. He was especially great helping the fish-​out-​of-​water midwesterners hail cabs at the end of the night. Also, during the cleanup, my brother accidentally left his guitar next to, rather than in, the truck, and we figured it was gone for good. But, by some miracle, the cleaning staff found the guitar the next morning and put it safely in the house until I could pick it up post-​honeymoon.
My husband and I wanted a DC-​centric wedding, and could not have been happier with the JBPC. The icing on the wedding cake is that the fees (insanely reasonable) go to an amazing local nonprofit doing great work in the community.

There’s nothing like a fall evening filled with wonderful family and friends, enjoying each other’s company and dancing the night away. If it wasn’t for the Josephine Butler Parks Center and it’s wonderful staff (Mai and Abbey in particular), my wedding would have not been possible in a DC venue. My wife and I are truly blessed to have experienced a wonderful wedding within such a beautiful, culturally and historically rich venue (just this past November 8^th). The Parks Center has it all. It has nature (Malcolm X/​Meridian Hill Park right across the street), it has an incredible presence that as you walk past the beautiful house, you know you are about to experience something special. The staff was extremely accommodating for our special day and during the planning before it. We toured the venue literally one year before and were able to talk about specific room layouts, possible furniture that can be used, fees, caterers, and other details. During the past year, we toured the space with our caterer and florist on various occasions and met with the staff to finalize the details. Once our reception kicked off, it was seamless. I must admit that we have family and friends with incredible stamina (125 people with a dance floor in the ballroom space), our reception lasted over 7 hours (with cocktail hour beginning at 12pm). During every moment, we were treated with respect and with love, thanks to the wonderful people who help keep the Center active and beautiful. Cheers to everyone who works here and to those who have attended or will have a wedding at this wonderful venue, you will not be disappointed. Salud!!!

Attended a wedding here as best man and pseudo coordinator so saw a lot of how they run their events. I’m a big fan in summary. The money goes to the non profits that inhabit the place so you feel good about that but the staff actually is quite competent. Well setup for weddings of over 150 or so with lots of rooms for various events but still one central feel to the place. Lots of character with the unique Victorian architecture. If it’s nice out opening up the balcony for more space and dancing and hanging out is amazing. Overall a good place for any event.

Beautiful venue and very helpful staff. We recently had our wedding here and it was a fantastic experience. And having our wedding fee go to a group who is making DC a more beautiful and livable place made it all the better.

This is a beautiful mansion, with many original architectural features. You can picture a ballroom full of lovely long dancing dresses here 100 years ago. However having attended a wedding here, I would recommend it for smaller events-​less than 100. With a wedding of 200, the noise level was so LOUD, with the very high ceilings, large windows, and hardwood floors, that one could not hold a conversation, during the cocktail reception downstairs, or the dinner upstairs. Or maybe there are ways to dampen the noise, such as hanging temporary drapes, covering chairs with fabric, renting armchairs and sofas to set around, or laying down rugs. Or if you like a loud environment for your event, enjoy as is. Gorgeous unique facility for sure.

I went here for a wedding and I was pleasantly surprised.
Pros: 1. Economical
2. It was rental to the whole house
3. Management were very helpful
Cons: 1. Very tight ship — event ends at 4 and you already know it by 3
Other than that, I strongly recommend it.

I just got married here and the JBPC is a gem of a place if you want to do your own wedding and save money. The house sparkles and gleams and would cost at least double the price at a more full service venue.
I found the staff responsive and helpful — they really want you to have a good experience — but they work part time and they don’t know how everything works — like the sound system they provide. I don’t want to sound like they don’t know their stuff of aren’t helpful — they really are. But at the same time, they do only work part-​time!
This is fantastic, beautiful place and excellent value for money.

My work has rented out a room at this venue a couple of times, and it’s a fantastic space. The folks who work there are nice and warm, and it’s in a beautiful old building in the middle of Columbia Heights. It’s across the street from a park, and is located in a charming residential neighborhood. It’s been a great spot to work over the last few years.