Talk parking with DDOT's Angelo Rao, Thursday at noon

Parking

Talk parking with DDOT's Angelo Rao, Thursday at noon

by David Alpert • October 12, 2012 10:37 am

Angelo Rao, DDOT's parking manager, has been holding a series of Parking Think Tanks across the District to hear from residents about parking policy. Besides events in Anacostia, Tenleytown, and many other neighborhoods, he has agreed to have one in the virtual neighborhood of the Internet here on Greater Greater Washington.

Photo by thienzieyung on Flickr.

At the in-person Think Tanks, participants could give their own comments and suggestions around parking to an assembled group of DDOT officials. We'll do the same for the online chat. You can put in a general comment or pose a question. Several folks from DDOT will see all of the comments, and Angelo will answer as many questions as he can.

Join us on Thursday, October 18th from 12-1 pm right here on Greater Greater Washington. You can come back to this post, where we will embed the chat, or get there from the home page. In the meantime, if you have comments or questions for Angelo, feel free to leave them in the comments.

Don't forget also to take DDOT's online survey about parking. Plus, there's one more in-person think tank, Saturday, 10/20 from 9-11 am at the Mount Pleasant Library, 3160 16th Street, NW.

The think tanks are just a few of the important events happening in coming weeks. Here are a few more from the Greater Greater Washington calendar:

CSG walking tour of Van Ness (Sat. 10/13, 10 am): The latest in CSG's walking tours takes you to Van Ness, where folks from the Office of Planning, EEK Architects, UDC, and DDOT will talk about how large institutional buildings like UDC and the Intelsat building could better engage with the street.

Hearings on Metrobus changes (10/22 to 10/30, 6 pm): WMATA's latest slate of Metrobus route tweaks and changes will make the A9 into a limited-stop MetroExtra, add Saturday 79 service, split the 2A/2B and 23A/23B, and many more. Public hearings are Mon. 10/22 in Anacostia, Wed. 10/24 in Shirlington, Mon. 10/29 in New Carrollton and Falls Church, and 10/30 in Lamond-Riggs, all with an open house at 6 and then a presentation at 6:30. To speak, sign up by emailing speak@wmata.com; or submit written testimony at writtentestimony@wmata.com.

Advocating for Smart Growth with Ward 3 Vision (Wed. 10/24, 7 pm at the Tenley/Friendship Library): The pro-Smart Growth citizen group Ward 3 Vision is hosting me, former DC planning director Ellen McCarthy, and Cleveland Park activist Jeff Davis to talk about how residents can advocate for more walkable, bikeable, livable, and inclusive neighborhoods.

Norton's parks town hall (Thu. 10/24, 6:30 pm at the Wilson Building): As we discussed yesterday, Congresswoman Norton's 2nd annual town hall with officials from the National Park Service will cover how NPS can best work with neighbors and contribute to a better DC. I'm speaking on the panel alongside NPS Regional Director Steve Whitesell, Rich Bradley of the Downtown BID, Danielle Pierce of Downtown DC Kids, and Catherine Nagel of the City Parks Alliance.

Getting Parking Right with Jeff Tumlin (Mon. 10/29, 5:30-8:30 pm at NCPC): If you haven't gotten your fill of parking talk, CSG is hosting a forum with Jeff Tumlin of Nelson\Nygaard, a consulting firm that is, among other things, a national leader on parking. He has a list of 16 ways parking policies can better match demand and reduce negative consequences.

Are there any events I missed? Post them in the comments or email events@ggwash.org.

4 comments

Tags: Angelo Rao, DC, DDOT, events, live chat, parking

Give DDOT your parking feedback in person and online (Sep 25, 2012)
Visitor parking passes won't go citywide, yet (Sep 4, 2012)
In the real world: Zoning update hearing, citizen planners, Dupont/Logan bike safety, parking, and gentrification (Sep 26, 2012)
On the calendar: Kojo in McLean, Bloomingdale parking, Prince George's development, Anacostia streetcars (Mar 22, 2011)
Talk DC parks with the Park Service on Saturday (Oct 20, 2011)

David Alpert is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Greater Greater Washington and Greater Greater Education. He worked as a Product Manager for Google for six years and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He loves the area which is, in many ways, greater than those others, and wants to see it become even greater.

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I think the current signage at meters is horribly designed and unclear. I think something like:

PAY, 2 Hour limit, 7AM-4PM
NO PARKING 4PM-6PM
PAY, No Limit 6PM-10PM
Free, No Limit, 10PM-7AM

Would be a lot clearer than what DC has posted now.

by dcseain on Oct 12, 2012 11:08 am • link • report

I said as much in the survey too. Current signage is cluttered and unclear, especially about the evening hours if you don't already know how it works.

by dcseain on Oct 12, 2012 11:09 am • link • report

Yeah -- almost anytime I see someone at a parking meter, they're standing there looking incredibly confused.

I would say the same about street parking signs, too. For instance, the new street sweeping sign features an illustration of a street sweeper that takes up about 1/2 the sign. What would be really useful is a prominent, concise statement about when not to park there. Currently, that's in a much smaller font than the picture.

by Gavin on Oct 12, 2012 12:11 pm • link • report

Why is some street parking in Near Southeast (i.e. the Ballpark) not available during games? Instead of banning street parking altogether, shouldn't it simply be restricted to residents during games? I just don't see what purpose is served by eliminating street parking during games. (I'm talking specifically about areas near Third Street SE, L St. SE, K St. SE)

by MJ on Oct 12, 2012 12:45 pm • link • report