Breakfast links: Money in Virginia

by Steven Yates • March 19, 2012 8:36 am

Photo by M.V. Jantzen on Flickr.

They literally have a bridge to sell you: Virginia is selling naming rights for roads and bridges across the state. It hopes to raise $273 million over 20 years, but critics say it distracts from the billions needed for transportation. (Examiner)

Arlington still pays for HOT lanes: Arlington County may lose $100,000 in road maintenance money thanks to its lawsuit opposing HOT lanes along 395. The project was abandoned in February 2011 and the lawsuit was dropped shortly after. (Washington Times)

TOD or FBI eventually in Greenbelt?: hopes to add dense transit oriented development around Greenbelt Metro. But it's been difficult to get anything funded. The FBI also might occupy the space, which would preclude much or any retail. (Rethink College Park)

Contractor defends concrete: The contractor for the delayed Silver Spring Transit Center says the concrete it used is fine, despite Montgomery County's claims to the contrary. The county wants the contractor to pay to redo the work and if the two sides cannot come to an agreement, the matter will likely end up in court. (Examiner)

Church tries to build housing: Plans for a church in Southwest DC to build an 11-story residential building has it's share of opposition. Some neighbors say it doesn't fit the character of the neighborhood and disrupts existing views. One comment points out killing the project will just make rents rise. (DCmud)

Win some, lose some: The Zoning Commission has approved American University's campus plan to the chagrin of some neighbors opposed to the school growing. Not far away, the Safeway mixed use project has deleted a floor in response to neighborhood opposition. (City Paper)

No more garden stores?: The last garden store in the mid-city area has one season left, before the lot becomes condos. (Borderstan) ... Is there any hope garden stores can fit into a growing city, or is their land-intensive use incompatible?

Too much stuff in urban parks?: Do urban parks with lots of amenities forget to include nature? While projects like the High Line can boost real estate values, do they actually serve people? (Salon)

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12 comments

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Steven Yates grew up in Indiana before moving to DC in 2002 to attend college at American University. He currently lives in Southwest DC.

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Gut reaction before reading article,

The highline certainly inspires me and I've been on it about 3 times. The last time I was in NYC we went on it again just because we liked it so much. It's also a great way to walk north/south through the neighborhood without the traffic below. As for "Nature" the best way to experience that is to leave the city. Urban parks are going to be shaped by humans no matter what.

by Canaan on Mar 19, 2012 8:57 am • link • report

Also, I wonder if there has been any practical or academic work on how to price for the externality of lost views. Will people accept being compensated in some way for a lost view? Or is it rent seeking since they were enjoying something through another lot owners inactivity?

by Canaan on Mar 19, 2012 9:07 am • link • report

The description used concerning the Silver Spring Transit is deceptive. The problem was not about the quality of the concrete, it was about the thickness.

by Sand Box John on Mar 19, 2012 9:11 am • link • report

The Salon article hit its when it admits parks and streetcars are meant to attract a nicer class of people. Not that there is anything wrong with that.

In terms of design, the problem is we want somethign unique, but once we get a model it gets endless replicated.

We have two unique parks in Washington -- Rock Creek and the Mall. * Neither are perfect; in the case of the mall it is badly run. But the last thing we need is taking cookie-cutter models and throwing them into DC.

* the canal in georgetown isn't really a park, and it may not be unique, but is a place of real rest and rejunivation. Turning that into a "Canal High line" -- yuck.

by charlie on Mar 19, 2012 9:13 am • link • report

Now that I've read the article, the "dull" parks the article talks about that are celebrated are also surrounded by dynamic neighborhoods with lots of uses. I think DuPont Circle would be a "dull" park by their reckoning or Rittenhouse square in Philadelphia. People would be hanging out there park or no park while places like the highline and millenium park in chicago were marginal spaces at first and you need something unique to get people over there.

by Canaan on Mar 19, 2012 9:20 am • link • report

I'd like to see some garden stores pop up in DC's little known "flower district". Ok, "district" might be an overstatement. I'm referring to the two flower wholesalers on Eckington Place at the north end of NOMA.

Re: Parks
I think Salon is right, it's just a matter of personal preference but imho, the modernist parks have nothing on parks designed by the grandaddy of landscape "starchitects", Frederick Olmsted.

by Falls Church on Mar 19, 2012 9:50 am • link • report

RE: Garden Stores

My experience on the other side of the pond: plant venders are a frequent presence at the street markets, which are usually a daily, once/twice-a-week, or weekend occurrence. Plenty of flowers, herbs, other plans, seeds, soil, tools, etc. Off the top of my head I can't recall seeing any comparison here in DC, though I wouldn't be surprised if one of our farmers' markets already had this.

by Bossi on Mar 19, 2012 10:21 am • link • report

I think I'm going to blow a gasket if the transit center ends up in litigation forever and then largely requires demo/rebuilding.

by jag on Mar 19, 2012 12:02 pm • link • report

Not all "parks" are nature spaces. They are play spaces with a variety of purposes.

Center city park spaces are different from suburban ones.

The point is to have a robust planning framework and parks typology.

While not perfect (it doesn't get into some of my concerns about the types of spaces and public-ness), the Buckhead Collection parks plan is probably the most comprehensive for dense urban areas.

- http://livablebuckhead.com/sustainability/greenspace-2/

It has nine different types of spaces. I argue that indoor spaces need to be planned for just as expansively.

by Richard Layman on Mar 19, 2012 1:50 pm • link • report

The naming rights is the kind of laughable stuff typical of the current version of Republicanism. What happens when it inevitably falls short? What do you do with non-locals who just find the extra detail to be a nuisance.

Buckhead has almost no greenspace in its center and there is a lack of pedestrian integration. The parks mentioned are basically on the periphery. The report isn't particularly helpful and like much of Atlanta has little for DC (or many other places to learn). DC has potentially very good open spaces like Kingman Island and wonderful small spaces like Teddy Roosevelt Island and very accessible parts of Rock Creek Park.

by Rich on Mar 19, 2012 5:49 pm • link • report

Ideally Greenbelt Metro would be a strong "end of the line" and capitalize on its link to BWI and the MARC stop. Instead, it's a miserable place to wait for connecting buses made worse by the parking lot (which generates heat in the summer). The nearby residential area seems fine, but has obvious foreclosures and overstretched rentals. Some thoughts about housing conservation and some limited redevelopment would make the area more attractive. The lot could easily be garaged as part of intensive mixed use. If there is space for FBI S of the station, then it would make sense, otherwise, it would make the place even deader with its security requirements.

by Rich on Mar 19, 2012 5:56 pm • link • report

Yeah its small potatoes what they are talking about in VA with the naming rights. A little over 5 million a year for the first 5 years? Pennies.

by H Street Landlord on Mar 20, 2012 12:46 am • link • report