Planning – Page 4 – bikeSpecific

The Bike Estate – Strand Residences in Deanwood Adds 86 Units of Affordable Housing and 38 Bike Parking Spaces

The Stand Residences hopes to revitalize Nannie Helen Burrow Burroughs Avenue
Rendering: The Warrenton Group

The Bike Estate scours local blogs and government websites for information about bike facilities in new, recently opened, or planned residential or commercial buildings. The following is recently-filed development applications with the D.C. Zoning Commission.

According to Urban Turf, the replacement of the Lincoln Heights / Richardson Dwellings communities in Ward 7 will contain an 86-unit mixed-use development near the Strand Theater at 5129 Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue in Deanwood.

The Strand Residences, a long-planned development, includes approximately 17,000 sqft of buildings along Nannie Helen Burroughs and Division Avenues. One six-floor building contains one and two-bedroom units. Plans also call for new ground-floor commercial space and the renovation of the decades-vacant historic Strand Theater, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, adjacent to the project site.

26 Bike parking spaces are along the wall closest to the Theater
Rendering: The Warrenton Group

With regard to bicycling, the project appears to have adopted a more progressive position. Located less than 500 feet from Marvin Gaye Park; the 1.6 mile Watts Branch; Washington Parks and People’s Riverside Center, HD Woodson High School and its Aquatic Center; and the Marvin Gaye Trail; the current plans call for a total of 38 indoor bicycle parking spaces, with 29 for long-term and 5 short-term spaces for residents. The site plan has four indoor short-and-long term spaces for community and retail use.

While the plan suggests that bike parking is secure, it does not provide details on controlled entrances, lighting or other amenities like a repair station. Also, the plan does not appear to include outdoor bike parking or bikeshare. The bicycle parking is located on the ground floor and shares that space with 17 vehicle spaces.

Public Meeting for Chestnut Street Concept Design Study Findings

Impediments
Image: Author

The District Department of Transportation’s (DDOT) will have a public meeting to discuss the Concept Design Study findings for Chestnut Street NW, from Oregon Avenue to Western Avenue. The meeting will be Wednesday, May 10, 2017, at the Chevy Chase Baptist Church, 5671 Western Avenue and from 6:45 pm through 8:15 pm with a brief presentation about the project to start at 7:15 pm.

This could be a great opportunity to add pedestrian and bike infrastructure to the Hawthorne area, which has a walkscore of 19 out of infinity and a bikescore of 35. The Hawthorne bikescore is basically lower than just about every other community in the District. If you can attend, please advocate for walking and biking. However, adding infrastructure in this upper, upper Northwest DC community isn’t easy.

If you feel strongly about adding bike or pedestrian safety infrastructure on this street, you should first read Sarah Stodder’s article from the June 2016 Washingtonian, “Everyone in This DC Neighborhood Is Freaking Out Over Sidewalks“. One of the unique factors of Chestnut Street, and many streets is the Hawthorne community, is that it has no sidewalks. In a disagreement more like the cold war than a “sidewalk war”, the neighborhood is fighting with itself, and with DDOT about fixing what should have been fixed years ago but more recently, to comply with the Vision Zero initiative, District, and federal laws.

According to DDOT, the purpose of this project is to “develop design solutions for a streetscape that targets multimodal, safety and aesthetic improvements along Chestnut Street NW”. With the word “multimodal” in the project description, one would assume that bicycling and walking are included – one could hope.

One of the easier bits of infrastructure to add would be wayfinding signage. DDOT hopes to hear from the public regarding this street, which provides a connector for bicyclists who travel from Rock Creek Park along Wise Road. The street connects with other roads to lead to Bradley Lane in Chevy Chase, Maryland, allowing cyclists to reach Wisconsin Avenue and points west in Montgomery County.

No Sidewalks. No Bike lanes.
Image: Google

This meeting on the Chestnut Street project should also be related to the design and reconstruction of Oregon Avenue NW. As reported by the Washcycle, on May 17 DDOT will also have a public meeting on the rehabilitation of Oregon Avenue from Military Road to Western Avenue. The meeting will be at 5601 Connecticut Avenue NW (Chevy Chase Community Center), but according to the most recent plans, Oregon Avenue plans will probably exclude bicycling facilities. This is doubly disappointing as the National Park Service supports including a trail along this section of road.

Having a safe connection along Oregon Avenue and Chestnut Street is important. If you can make it, you should, as it could be interesting. Let me know how it goes. If I get a hold of some plans, I’ll post them.

NoMa Bicycle Network Workshop Hopes to Connect the City

At least 95 Theses were posted describing the
problems and potential of the NoMa corridor
Image: Author

The NoMa Bicycle Network Study workshop allowed the public to determine how the cyclists (and pedestrians) will cross the NoMa corridor, which includes several major intersections, a railway viaduct, and an interstate freeway. The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) would like public input from now until May 31, 2017 on its interactive website.

As interest in the NoMa section of the District has increased over the last dozen or so years, as has bicycling to and through it. From the installation of the First Street to M Street to the Metropolitan Branch Trail cycle track to the new REI Flagship store, the area has drawn cyclists of all types and abilities.

In its first public workshop focusing exclusively on this corridor, DDOT planners, along with consultants, allowed the public to pitch ideas about what future of cycling should look like based on its pre-existing condition. DDOT presented initial concept board of the corridor showing the current bike infrastructure conditions and comparing it concepts and long-term plans discussed in the MoveDC Bicycle Element and other DDOT plans currently in design or under consideration. This included the long-planned New Jersey Avenue protected bike lanes, a potential New York Avenue trail that extend from the west of Sixth Street NE to infinity and beyond also known as the Arboretum, and an apparent bike / pedestrian bridge over the Center Leg Freeway at L Street.


That blue diagonal line is a “New York Avenue Trail”. Image: Author

While the MoveDC initiative proposed expansive, it did appear to leave a gap in the bicycling network in NoMa. Part of the problem was that few people envisioned that the area would be a destination, a travel corridor and one of the District’s fastest growing neighborhoods. Containing New York Avenue, which sees an average of at least 80,000 vehicles per day, bicycling across this area isn’t great for young families, experienced bicyclists, plant life, or most carbon-based lifeforms.

According to the study website, DDOT’s objectives include developing recommendations for a bicycle network to connect NoMA to Downtown DC, Eckington, Truxton Circle, and the H Street Corridor, with an emphasis on separated facilities. Darren Buck, Bicycle Program Specialist and manager of this project hopes for a “low-stress and direct east-west cycling connection”. BikeSpecific made a nifty interactive map pointing out some of the current connections.

If stickies aren’t your thing, DDOT also has an interactive map that you may use to post your ideas.
Image: Author

DDOT has developed an online map that allows users to input preferred cycling routes through the study area. Site visitors can also help identify existing barriers or locations that limit safe and convenient bicycle mobility across the study area. The map is open to public input from May 1 through May 31, 2017. DDOT would like residents, cyclists, and employees of the NoMa area to participate. DDOT also has a Mobile Interactive Map for those who refuse to be tied to a desk.

DDOT will use this information to identify potential routes for bicycle travel in the NoMa study area. This information will also help identify which roads and intersections may need to be improved for bicyclist and pedestrian safety and how these changes could affect the overall bike network outside the study area.

DCBAC Sees Preliminary Design for the Georgetown Protected Bike Lane

Image: Author

At the May 3 D.C. Bicycle Advisory Council meeting, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) Bicycle Program Manager and the Georgetown Business Improvement District (BID) Transportation Director discussed the Georgetown K and Water Street Corridor Bicycle – Pedestrian Connectivity Enhancements plan and displayed the concept design to BAC members.

As part of the Georgetown 2028 Plan, which hopes to bring more people to Georgetown through improvements to the neighborhood’s infrastructure, the protected lane would create a connection between the Capital Crescent and Rock Creek Parkway trails along the K and Water Street corridor beneath the Whitehurst Freeway. As reported in April, DDOT and the BID met with the Georgetown ANC, which approved the draft concept.

The concept plan shown below and with permission from DDOT, is at 30 percent of full design. It illustrates the general outline of the lanes and contains basic measurements and location of certain structures. The plan identifies how the lanes could interact with vehicle travel lanes, vehicle parking, and pedestrian structures. The plan also shows new bicycle lanes at the foot of Wisconsin Avenue. The lanes provide protection for cyclists climbing this hill and end at the Wisconsin Avenue bridge over the C&O Canal, one of the oldest bridges in the District.

Construction of the lanes could start as early as this year along much of the corridor after Pepco utility work in the area is completed. Temporary work would include the addition of bollards and lane striping. More permanent structures, which could include protective planters and sidewalk modifications, would happen over the next few years.

The plans presented do not show a specific connection to the Capitol Crescent Trail. The National Park Service is currently rehabilitating the Key Bridge, which repairs will not be completed until 2018 or 2019. The BID and DDOT will workThe plans also do not show connections to the Rock Creek Parkway trail, the L or M Street protected bike lanes, or to the K Street ramp that leads to 27th Street as that area lies outside of the project scope. The presenters also discussed potential connections to the Rock Creek Trail that could include changes to the sidewalk or bridges, although they could be funded through some other means.

DDOT Accepting Applications for 2018 Transportation Alternatives Projects

Getting Money from the TAP
Image: Author

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) began accepting applications for the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP), which is a federal program under the 2015 FAST Act through the Federal Highway Administration that provides funding to projects considered “alternative” to traditional highway construction.

Approximately $1.1 million in funding will be available through a District-wide competitive process.

Transportation Alternative projects categories are geared towards bicycle and pedestrian activities, community improvements, environmental mitigation, and recreational trails. The projects must be consistent with the District initiatives like MOVE DC, Sustainable DC, and other plans.

The District’s Delegate to Congress, Elenor Holmes Norton, held a public meeting last October to discuss how TAP funds could be used in the District.

TAP program participants can include local governments, regional transportation authorities, transit agencies, natural resource or public land agencies, school districts, Tribal governments and other appropriate local or regional governmental entities. While non-profits are not eligible to be direct grant recipients of TAP funds they may partner with eligible participants such as a government agency as a co-sponsor.

According to the DDOT website, projects will be reviewed through a competitive process and selected based upon a number of criteria including the project’s expected benefits to the community, feasibility and project readiness, consistency with agency plans and missions, and the sponsor’s demonstrated ability to manage a federal-aid project.

TAP projects may support the following:

Facilities for pedestrians, bicyclists, and other non-motorized forms of transportation
This includes the planning, design, and construction of on-road or off-road facilities. Projects may include sidewalks, bicycle infrastructure, bicycle parking, pedestrian and bicycle signals, traffic calming techniques, lighting and other safety infrastructure, and upgrading facilities for compliance with ADA requirements.
Recreational Trails
Eligible projects include the provision and maintenance of recreational trails for both motorized and non-motorized use. This includes pedestrian uses (hiking, running, wheelchair use), bicycling, in-line skating, skateboarding, equestrian use, off-road motorcycling, or all-terrain vehicle riding. This includes the maintenance and restoration of existing trails, the development of trailside and trailhead facilities, the purchase of construction of maintenance equipment, the construction of new trails, the acquisition of easements, and trail condition assessments.
Safe routes for non-drivers
Eligible cost include the construction, planning, and design of infrastructure-related projects and systems that will provide safe routes for non-drivers, including children, older adults, and individuals with disabilities to access daily needs.
Conversion and use of abandoned railroad corridors for trails
This activity provides for the acquisition of abandoned railway corridors for the development of pedestrian or bicycle trails. Intent must be shown that a pedestrian and bicycle trail will be built within ten years of the acquisition of the corridor. Projects in this category must serve as a mode of transportation and cannot be solely for recreational users.
Community Improvements
This includes vegetation management, environmental mitigation or pollution prevention, streetscape improvements and historic preservation
Safe Routes to School (SRTS)
Eligible projects for SRTS sidewalk improvements, traffic calming, pedestrian and bicycle crossing improvements, on-street bicycle facilities, off-street bicycle and pedestrian facilities, secure bicycle parking facilities, and traffic diversion improvements in the vicinity of schools.

Applications will be accepted starting April 17, 2017, through May 15, 2017. In June 2017, a selection panel will review submitted projects. An official announcement of selected projects will be made in August.

A version of this post originally ran on DDOT’s website.