Breakfast links: Good Republican, Bad Democrat

by Erik Weber • January 19, 2011 8:34 am

Photo by M.V. Jantzen on Flickr.

Mara is in the race: Patrick Mara announced his candidacy for the DC Council at-large special election. Mara, a Republican, strongly supports transit and bicycling. He will face recently appointed Sekou Biddle, among other candidates, in the April 26 election.

Congressman wants to widen BW Parkway: Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD) asked FHWA to study widening the BW Parkway, to the surprise and chagrin of regional officials. Greenbelt strongly opposes the idea, saying there are better ways to deal with BRAC traffic at Fort Meade. (AW, Examiner)

Secure bike cage coming to College Park: WMATA will apparently pilot a secure bike parking area at the College Park metro station and wants riders to weigh in on the best way to grant users access. (PlanItMetro)

15-year-old pedestrian killed in PG: A 15-year-old boy was struck and killed by a driver in an SUV on Landover Road less than a mile from the Landover Metro station. The boy was in a crosswalk but was crossing against the light. (WUSA)

New Glenmont garage underway: Officials broke ground recently on a massive new parking garage at Glenmont metro station. The county is hoping the garage will encourage suburbanites to take Metro to work, spending more than $20,000 per space in the process. (WAMU)

Metro improvements delayed in MoCo: The Silver Spring Transit Center will not be complete until December of this year due to various construction delays. Bethesda's second Metro entrance may have to wait until the Purple Line makes its way through town. (TBD)

Keeping Columbia Pike affordable: The Arlington County board, under the leadership of Chris Zimmerman, will spend the next year examining the best ways to maintain affordable housing options along Columbia Pike. (TBD)

McDonnell proposes teacher performance pay: Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell is proposing a performance incentive pay program for teachers at some of the state's schools, modeled after an incentive program for state employees. (WUSA)

And...: At least one branch of the Federal government has declined to meddle in DC's affairs. (WAMU) ... BikeWalk Alexandria is reorganizing to become the Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee. (Froggie's Blog) ... Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg wrote a thesis on the impact of new stadium developments on neighborhoods, focusing on Nationals Park. (Post)

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28 comments

Tags: affordable housing, Alexandria, Arlington, Bethesda, bike parking, Bob McDonnell, BW Parkway, Columbia Pike, DC, DC Council, Dutch Ruppersberger, education, Glenmont, Greenbelt, links, Maryland, Metro, Metro parking, Montgomery, Nationals ballpark, Patrick Mara, pedestrian safety, politics, Prince George's, Purple Line, roads, same-sex marriage, Silver Spring, Virginia, WMATA

Erik Weber has been living car-free in the District since 2009. Hailing from the home of the nation's first Urban Growth Boundary, Erik has been interested in transit since spending summers in Germany as a kid where he rode as many buses, trains and streetcars as he could find. Views expressed here are Erik's alone.

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So did the people who made all the decisions on BRAC engage the public or the affected jurisdictions at all? My guess is that in their typical arrogance, they felt they knew what was best for everyone, and now we get to live with the mess that they've created.

by Ron on Jan 19, 2011 8:47 am

This is not good for the State Board of Education. It lost one member (Sekou Biddle) to the DCDSC appointment to the Council. Another member (William Lockridge) sadly passed away last week. Now a third member decided (Patrick Mara) that 17 days was long enough and it's time to seek higher office.

If Mara and Biddle lose the at-large Council race to one of the other 13 declared candidates, does Mara stay on and Biddle stays off the SBOE?

Is the SBOE a big joke? This isn't the first time that new members have bailed right after the election. Robert Bobb resigned right after being elected Board chair in 2007 because the school reform act stripped the Board of any real power.

by Ward 1 Guy on Jan 19, 2011 9:01 am

Ward 1 Guy, I think you just answered your own question.

by Alex B. on Jan 19, 2011 9:02 am

Ron,

"The BRAC Commission will seek extensive public input through a series of regional hearings, installation site visits by Commissioners and staff, and individual meetings. The Commissioners are deeply mindful of the human impact of the DoD installation recommendations, and have pledged to ensure that a full review of the facts, and consideration of community and related interests will be made prior to making their final recommendations to President Bush."
http://www.brac.gov/About.html

They said they did, but I doubt it made any difference.

by RJ on Jan 19, 2011 9:09 am

@ BW Parkway

I think we all know widening the BW parkway is a mistake, though I always found it interesting that many of the original bridges along the parkway were built to handle a 3rd lane, almost as if it was planned for in original constrution. However all over the newer interchange bridges, like MD 197 and 100, were not built for the 3rd lane.

by Matt R on Jan 19, 2011 9:12 am

Though one could make an argument for widening the BW Pkwy up to Route 197/Laurel (beyond that to the Baltimore Beltway is a bit of a stretch), I don't see NPS buying off on it. They complain as it is about the GW Pkwy being used as a "commuter route".

Improving MARC service would help some, but I don't think it'll be enough either.

by Froggie on Jan 19, 2011 9:24 am

How to keep it affordable, build it bigger, build it as condos, and put a permanent cap on rent increases.

by Redline SOS on Jan 19, 2011 9:25 am

@ Froggie: They complain as it is about the GW Pkwy being used as a "commuter route".

Note to NPS: Welcome to reality. Stop complaining about it. You run two commuter rounds in the DC area. The GW and BWI parkways.

by Jasper on Jan 19, 2011 10:37 am

Yes, SBOE is a joke, but the guy has a lot of cojones to start job hunting after two weeks and zero Board meetings.

by Ward 1 Guy on Jan 19, 2011 10:40 am

I don't want an 'affordable' city for everyone. I want a city that allows anyone with an idea to be able to start a business and anyone who wants to work, to have a chance to compete fairly with someone who has a job.

There are plenty of affordable options in many lovely cities that include /*bonus*/ voting rights.

by Gargoyle on Jan 19, 2011 10:43 am

@Jasper:
And three if you count Rock Creek Parkway.

Re: Mara/election
Looks like there is a fair number of good candidates throwing their hat in the ring for the seat, particularly if Gabe Klein wants in.

Re: Strasburg
I think it's cool he chose a local topic for his thesis (I also think it's cool he went back to school at wrote a thesis). According to the article, he even did research on the history of the Anacostia waterfront. So if I ever have the chance to meet him, we can talk about baseball and development issues.

by Steven Yates on Jan 19, 2011 11:02 am

+Suitland Pkwy & Clara Barton Pkwy

by Bossi on Jan 19, 2011 11:04 am

BW Parkway
It's a total mess. Montgomery County has I-95 and Rt. 29, both of which are bigger than the BW parkway. A lot of people live in Hanover, Odenton, Savage, Elkridge, etc. and our only option is the parkway. The Marc train is not reliable, runs too infrequently, and has stops that are not close to much (ex. BWI airport). On top of that, you still have to transfer to the metro when you get to the city, making it take longer than driving and more expensive than parking.
I'm not a freeway fan but there's not really another option at this point. A third lane on the parkway would do more for the region than the ICC at a fraction of the cost. It takes me about an hour and a half to go from Hanover to DC (about 25 miles). Two years ago, it was less than an hour. I've moved around the region and seen various commuting routes and the BW Parkway is without a doubt the worst.

by Pat on Jan 19, 2011 11:52 am

@ Steven Yates, bossi: Correct. Me and my narrow-minded NoVa view...

@ Pat: the BW Parkway is without a doubt the worst.

I am not sure it's possible to determine whether the BW parkway, or I-66, or I-395, or the GW parkway or any other road is the worst. They're all pretty terrible.

by Jasper on Jan 19, 2011 3:10 pm

@Ron So did the people who made all the decisions on BRAC engage the public or the affected jurisdictions at all?

They listened to the public then promptly ignored everything the public had to say.

BRAC-133 advisory group meeting tonight @ Beatly Library @ 7.

by ChrisB on Jan 19, 2011 5:46 pm

@Pat
Why not live closer to DC if your commute is so bad?

by Matt R on Jan 19, 2011 6:55 pm

@Pat-

What part of the BW Pkwy? I've got the portion between 32 & the Beltway down to a science... literally: I've got spreadsheets & an OCD for quantifying almost everything I do. Back when I was living in Laurel, I managed to cut my commute down by 20% once I figured out what lanes work best & where/when to change :)

by Bossi on Jan 19, 2011 6:59 pm

Strasburg for GGW contributor!
or, host of the next GGW happy hour.

by sb on Jan 19, 2011 10:37 pm

Steve: unlike BW Pkwy, GW Pkwy, and some of the other mentioned parkways, NPS does not have jurisdiction over I-66.

by Froggie on Jan 19, 2011 11:26 pm

Note: I have removed several comments by "steve", who was banned from Greater Greater Washington for repeated violations of our comment policy, despite several warnings.

by Matt Johnson on Jan 19, 2011 11:29 pm

Widening the BW Parkway seems worthy of study. It's a major commuter artery, it's sort of silly to keep pretending it's a park.

by David desJardins on Jan 20, 2011 2:41 am

@Matt R
Well for one, my wife works up in Maryland. For two, my family lives out there and they watch our little ones while we're at work. For three, the schools are bad in PG County. For four, I appreciate a larger space to live and a yard given that we have a few kids. For five, we have made friends and so have our children here and don't want to uproot ourselves. I guess my point is, not everyone can live in an urban setting. Your immediate reaction is typical of GGW and although I know you didn't mean anything by it, you see my frustration when I sense criticism of "suburbanites."
@Bossi
It's the part between 100 and 32 that has gotten a lot worse in the last year or two (I presume due to BRAC). It used to be smooth sailing; now it's the worst part. From there on, if you go early enough (before 7a) it's fine. After that, it's hit or miss, sometimes fine, other times pretty bad. And once you get to NY Ave, it's a mess again.

by Pat on Jan 20, 2011 8:24 am

I live in a moco suburab near shady grove metro so my price point is simular to yours in hanover MD, perhaps a little higher.

My point is where does it end. Do we add lanes to every road in the region? Does that really help? 95 has found lanes and is a mess, 270 has 6 and is a mess.

by Matt R on Jan 20, 2011 8:46 am

Widening some of the BW Parkway with a redesignation as I-95, was the mid 1970s official proposal (with the NYAIF)

http://wwwtripwithinthebeltway.blogspot.com/2007/01/i-95-baltimore-washington-parkway_18.html

http://wwwtripwithinthebeltway.blogspot.com/2007/01/bicentennial-i-95.html

by Douglas Willinger on Jan 20, 2011 2:21 pm

@Matt Johnson

What violations and what warnings do you speak of?

by Steve on Jan 20, 2011 10:30 pm

@Steve:
I am referring to the warning linked below. At the time you were going by the name "chris".
http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/7964/ask-ggw-the-glebe-road-curve/#comment-75962

by Matt Johnson on Jan 20, 2011 11:14 pm

@Matt J

I am not chris, so you need to back off on trying to control what my observations are on this subject. Just because you do not agree with my commentating does not give you the right to deny my right to freedom of commentary especially when it does not directly insults a specific individual(s). You are way out of line for accusing me of the non-sense that you are making........

by Steve on Jan 25, 2011 1:04 am

There is no "right to freedom of commentary" on this site. It's a private website and the operators can allow or disallow whatever they like.

by David desJardins on Jan 25, 2011 1:16 am