Weekend links: 10 years later

by Eric Fidler • September 11, 2011 10:14 am

Photo by asterix611 on Flickr.

Lower Manhattan on the rise: A decade after the terror attacks, Lower Manhattan has come back to life. There are now double the number of residents, bringing energy to a financial district that was quiet after work. (Reuters)

Security barriacades proliferated: Since 2001, DC has suffered an explosion of barriers, checkpoints, and paranoia. In a few places, like Pennsylvania Avenue and the Washington Monument grounds, new and more attractive security features replaced ugly bollards installed right after 9/11. (Post)

Pushing driver identified, defended: WMATA has identified the driver who pushed a passenger off the bus. The person who filmed the incident explains the context and calls the driver's action "necessary." (Fox 5)

Snyder drops suit: Dan Snyder has dropped his lawsuit against the Washington City Paper over an unflattering summary of Snyder's many bad behaviors. That article has now "become one of the most-viewed stories ever on City Paper's Web site." (Post)

Parks relieve stress: Underscoring the importance of robust urban parks, a recent study shows that enjoying nature is a good way to relieve stress. Subjects responded better to nature walks than to walks along a city street. (WSJ)

Ride Amtrak the luxury way: For a few thousand bucks a day, you and some friends can have your own private, luxury railcar on your next Amtrak trip. (Post)

Almost-freeway replaces freeway: New Haven is tearing down their stub freeway that cuts up a downtown area, but outdated state standards may force them to design the surface road extra-wide and overly auto-centric. (Mobilizing the Region)

Sadik-Khan's legacy: Lots of road projects: Janette Sadik-Khan has spent the vast, vast bulk of NYC transportation money on facilities that serve drivers, like expensive bridge rehabs and even an asphalt plant to speed projects. Yet many drivers and media outlets think all she does is bike lanes and pedestrian plazas. (New York Observer)

Boston bits: Hubway, Boston's bike sharing system, is exceeding expectations and has few problems. (Mobilizing the Region) ... Governor Deval Patrick has dismantled state Smart Growth functions that were instituted by his predecessor, Mitt Romney.

And...: An ~~1980s~~ 1890s proposal called for a dam on Rock Creek to make a giant lake. (DCist) ... Anacostia is getting a business improvement district. (City Paper) ... The long-vacant building at 7th & H in Chinatown may finally see a renovation. (DCMud) ... Oyez! Alexandria seeks a town crier. (Post)

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Eric Fidler has lived in DC and suburban Maryland his entire life. He likes long walks along the Potomac and considers the L'Enfant Plan an elegant work of art. He also blogs at Left for LeDroit, LeDroit Park's (only) blog of record.

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The Rock Creek Park dam plan was in 1890, not 1980. Big difference...

by Greg on Sep 11, 2011 10:44 am • link • report

@Greg:
You're right. That is a big difference.

I've fixed the date.

by Matt Johnson on Sep 11, 2011 11:00 am • link • report

"Since 2001, DC has suffered an explosion of barriers, checkpoints, and paranoia."

I find it disrespectful to write "paranoia" on a day that many people are mourning the deaths of their loved ones.

This is not the appropriate day for editorializing.

by mch on Sep 11, 2011 1:24 pm • link • report

Interesting about the proposal to dam Rock Creek just north of Georgetown.

I remember seeing another proposal to build a dam at Jones Bridge and create a lake winding around the south side of Kensington, from sometime between 1890 and 1930.

I also remember a much older proposal to just fill in the valley between Foggy Bottom/Dupont Circle and Georgetown, and just continue the urban fabric through there.

by Frank IBC on Sep 11, 2011 3:55 pm • link • report

MCH - Pick up any Sunday paper today and you will see editorials about the legacy of 9/11, including the "paranoia" aspect. There is nothing in this discussion that dishonors the memory of those who died.

by Frank IBC on Sep 11, 2011 3:59 pm • link • report

@ mch: I find it disrespectful to write "paranoia"

I find it disrespectful to complain about free opinions on a day that many people are mourning the ~~deaths~~ murder of their loved ones. Murders committed by a bunch of nutcases that believe that freedom is no good. Nutcases that intended to create paranoia. Hell yeah we should be writing about well-intended but poorly worked-out paranoia.

by Jasper on Sep 11, 2011 8:53 pm • link • report

So when are we supposed to be talking about, on a day that has absolutely no significance? Anyway, those pictures don't really do a good job showing the changes. Most of them seem fairly innocuous and it took me a while to even notice some of the differences. The most stark one was the one at the airport and that is a national issue rather than DC specific.

by canaan on Sep 11, 2011 9:38 pm • link • report

mch@ do you really believe the motivation for the covert operation on Sept. 11, 2001, to fly Commercial passenger jet planes into the WTC, The Pentagon and The US Capitol is hatred of our freedom? Last time I checked we are free to consume/waste all the resources we can. Please don't get carried away with our political or social freedom in the US. Do you know what the Middle Eastern group that carried out the assault, stated as grievances against the US? You might check out the US role in the middle east, just to see if it has any signifigance. That "they hate our freedom thing is ludicrous, take your head out of the sand my friend, is George Bush an authority on the hitory of US involvement in the Middle East. The United States has military bases in their countries, and has supported every bloody dictatorship that the people are throwing off at a terrible cost in lives and injury. Our policies and military aid helps Israel perpetuate the conflict with the palestinians. The illegal settlements and repression of palestinians. Do you know what it is like to live under Martial Law , a "state of emergency" for 40 years? To have no freedom and grinding poverty? Have you been tortured by your govt.? The US support for Saudi Arabia's govt. is a grievance, they are repressive, reactionary, dictatorship of a single family. We are about arming these monsters, and keeping them in power with brutality you cannot understand. As the mass uprising in the region progresses, the US is lucky the new govts have no choice but to have relations with us. Our role has been so dispicable in these countries, do you think Al Queda might have something to say we should hear.Are they simply "evil", is this a strategic analysis? The commemoration of Sept. 11 included almost no reference to the role of US military Aid to the regions dictators as we only think of ourselves as important,, a very racist self centered world view. The devastation of the incident on Sept. 11 2001 was horrible and criminal but there are reasons to be found. Tell me it is better when our missles incinerate innocent civilains in the middle East, in Pakistan,in Afghanistan, when NATO bombs civilians and pleads "it was a mistake" We know those people are only collateral damage, not equal to US citizens, as we ignore the daily reports of our bombing, is it brave to fly a drone into a village. I fwe are so courageopus and such heroes, why not go in with men and women? Fight fair?
We accept a US president who has intelligence fabricated to justify invading Iraq, which was false on the face of it, didn't need arms inspectors to tell us the truth. Mistakes? Racism? Trust me , if Guantanamo had germans, welsh, italians, and french in the cells and torture chambers you and other americans of european heratige would close it in a day.

by D. Wolkoff on Sep 12, 2011 6:24 am • link • report

I always said it would be cool if a smaller dam was placed at the bottom of Rock Creek to just raise the level 5 feet or so. That would allow for recreation such as kayaking and canoeing. The creek was Navigable back in the day and it could be again. Also the dam could be hydro-electric and the water level could be controlled to prevent flooding.

by Johnny on Sep 12, 2011 9:23 am • link • report

@ Johnny: That would allow for recreation such as kayaking and canoeing.

You can do that now on the Potomac and Tidal basic... Are those overused?

by Jasper on Sep 12, 2011 12:33 pm • link • report

Jasper- With all the potential drawbacks and hassles that would be involved with damming the creek, what jumped out at you was that there are other places to canoe? What kind of argument is that anyway? Kayaking through Rock Creek Park would be a much different experience than paddle boating with tourists in the Tidal Basin. It's not as though this would ever happen in the first place but I don't think there would be a shortage of interest in taking to the water if it did.

by Johnny on Sep 12, 2011 1:10 pm • link • report

@ Johnny:Kayaking through Rock Creek Park would be a much different experience than paddle boating with tourists in the Tidal Basin.

Oh, you want your own water for Washingtonians only. Yeah, that's always a good plan. Those pesky outsiders, damn them!

by Jasper on Sep 12, 2011 4:51 pm • link • report

@ Johnny:Kayaking through Rock Creek Park would be a much different experience than paddle boating with tourists in the Tidal Basin.

BTW, what's wrong with kayaking in Great Falls?

by Jasper on Sep 12, 2011 4:51 pm • link • report

@ Johnny:I don't think there would be a shortage of interest in taking to the water if it did.

You have a two rivers, a Tidal Basin, Great Falls and the Chesapeake Bay, and even an ocean within a few hours reach. And you complain about not enough opportunities for water recreation?

by Jasper on Sep 12, 2011 4:53 pm • link • report

The Bush-Ehrlich-O'Malley administrations fast-tracked the $3+ billion Intercounty Connector (ICC) through a bogus environmental review process and onto construction under the equally bogus claim that this 18-mile road was essential to homeland security and emergency response. They did so despite providing no evidence of specific benefits.

In building the ICC, O'Malley has blown billions that could have and should gone to better uses, wiped out hundreds of acres of prime farmland, obliterated the headwater forests of Rock Creek and the Anacostia, cut dozens of communities in half, and seized and destroyed dozens of families' homes. He's laying down another piece of the Outer Beltway so ardently sought by the region's sprawl interests, and built a massive trigger for sprawl, greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution emissions, and oil consumption. The ICC's cumulative impacts -- including induced growth and destruction of additional destruction of farms, forests, wet lands and flood plains -- are predicted to dwarf the highway's horrific direct impacts.

These types of impacts deeply undermine badly needed ecological, social and economic resiliency.

So much for Maryland's "green governor".

Feeling secure yet?

by Greg on Sep 13, 2011 8:54 am • link • report