We held our Wedding Reception at LPCC and found it to be the perfect spot for us! We had a cocktail-style reception for about 115 attendees. The main selling points for me were: (1) Its DIY so you can select whichever food and beverage vendors you want (or bring your own), unlike almost any other wedding venue; (2) the space itself is beautiful and was the perfect size & layout for us! I wanted it to feel intimate but not crowded and loved that the bar area is separated by a wall with dual entrances, as is the sunroom (where we put food station and seating for guests who wanted a more quiet area for conversation); (3) you have the whole building to yourself! I'm not a fan of weddings in hotels with random guests walking around and gloomy ballrooms without windows that all seem to look the same, so LPCC was a godsend; (4) you can't beat the price! You can rent for whole or half day & all costs (and rules) are clearly displayed on their website so nothing is hidden, which I really appreciated!; (5) Great location for out-of-town guests as it's about 10min from the airport and lots of hotel options nearby, not to mention free on-street parking!

I wanted a daytime wedding ceremony and reception reminiscent of British town hall weddings or the Great British Bake-off final picnic that would allow for guests of all areas to enjoy themselves with lawn games, dancing, photo booth, and other activities. It needed to have lots of green space, be metro accessible in the DC area, be air conditioned for the reception, have appropriate space to have the ceremony indoors in case of rain, and not cost an arm and a leg. I'm not sure how I found Lyon Park, but I'm so glad we did! The venue is not manned -- it's up to you to do everything from set-up and decorating to cleaning the bathroom at the end of your event -- but it is VERY affordable for the area, bright, clean, cheery, well-located, and well-maintained. The rules and requirements are clear, Cindy (the realtor who manages the Community Center on behalf of the neighborhood) is responsive and accommodating, and the floorplans and layout documents online are very helpful when planning your seating chart.

Here are the downsides: this is a park in a city! There may be some traffic noises, and some curious families there to observe your big moment. Depending on where you want to walk up the aisle, you also won't be hidden from guests. For me, the trade-off of having affordable green space so close to DC was worth it. I didn't notice the cars. I pulled up in an Uber black and walked directly down the aisle. The wildflower garden was flowering and beautiful in August, the big well-established trees lent shade, and the park greenery allowed for some beautiful photos. Our guests LOVED the venue -- with a little planning it held 100 guests, a dj and dance floor, a cake table, a sno-cone station, and buffet line in the main room, and a bar, a caricature artist, a photo booth, appetizer table, and a gifts/guest book table in the sunroom. We had lawn games and the kids had a fabulous time on the swings. (We also got some cute couples photos on the swings.) Overall, the venue was a blank canvas with lots of light that gave us the perfect background for a lovely and joy-filled ceremony and celebration.
(Photos: Michael O. Snyder Photography)

Lyon Park Community Center was an absolutely fantastic venue and we are so glad to have found it. We looked at SO MANY venues in the NOVA/DC area and this was far and away the best one we found in terms of price, aesthetic, facilities, convenience, location and overall feel. It was really absolutely perfect for our needs and had a really lovely feel. There are lots of beautiful venues around, but very few that are this reasonably priced for such a lovely space, especially after the recent renovation. The whole space is very modern and clean.

We had an 85-person wedding and the space was perfectly sized - we had the ceremony in the main room, and then moved our guests into the side porch and outside for a brief cocktail hour while our caterers reset the main space for dinner, then used both spaces for the reception. The kitchen is very modern and had everything our caterers needed, and there is also a small kitchenette space at the other end of the building which we used as a 'base camp'. There is an attic space which we were also able to use, but it was extremely hot up there (although we got married in the middle of July so that's fair enough). The rest of the building was beautifully air conditioned and cool. Parking for guests was convenient with lots of street parking available.

The rental included tables and chairs (although we chose to rent our own chairs). We rented the space for the whole day, and they very kindly allowed us to come in the previous afternoon for setup as there was no other booking (really helpful!).

Because the space is owned and operated by the neighborhood community, they have quite strict rules about clean-up and pack-up - there is a very comprehensive checklist which you need to follow, and everything must be removed from the venue at the end of the evening. This wasn't a problem for us thanks to our caterers and coordinator and some very helpful friends.

This venue was one of the best decisions we made! Highly recommended.