Park(ing) Day spaces in Silver Spring, Dupont Circle and Downtown DC all temporarily claimed a few more square feet for parkland in busy parts of our region today.

In front of the Wilson Building in DC, Tommy Wells and David Catania’s space drew groups of children, Councilmember Yvette Alexander, and more.

Photos by Anne Phelps and Tommy Wells.

In Silver Spring, the Montgomery County Planning Department, the DC chapter of the Congress for New Urbanism, the Green Commuter, Pyramid Atlantic, and Growing Soul all created spaces in a row. The planners used one space for a three-dimensional display about complete streets. Two other spaces have become temporary extensions of Veterans’ Plaza, and 3 spaces contain displays on cycling, sustainability, and art.

Photos by Matt Johnson.

In Dupont Circle, Casey Trees set up the Park(ing) Day display with mock trees and some information about the value of the tree canopy in the city.

Photos by Casey Trees.

Finally, Arlington’s Car-Free Diet folks created a video showing one way to use Park(ing) Day space: Arm wrestling.

However it’s used, Park(ing) Day installations show how green space can further improve an urban area. Downtown Silver Spring, for example, is an extremely walkable place, but over 82 acres of ground is devoted to parking.

That’s almost 22% of the land area of the CBD. And that number does not include on-street parking. In comparison, parks, plazas, and privately-owned open spaces make up only 21 acres — a little under 6% of the land area.

Today, public open spaces in downtown Silver Spring, Arlington, Dupont Circle, and Pennsylvania Avenue got a little larger, at least for the day.

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Tagged: complete streets, maryland, montgomery, montgomery county, parking, public spaces, roads, silver spring

David Alpert created Greater Greater Washington in 2008 and was its executive director until 2020. He formerly worked in tech and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco Bay, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He lives with his wife and two children in Dupont Circle.

Matt Johnson has lived in the Washington area since 2007. He has a Master’s in Planning from the University of Maryland and a BS in Public Policy from Georgia Tech. He lives in Dupont Circle. He’s a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners, and is an employee of the Montgomery County Department of Transportation. His views are his own and do not represent those of his employer.