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  Community Clips Smart Growth News for the Washington, DC Region July 20, 2006 In this issue:
From the Executive Director VDOT predicts traffic gridlock on roads in Loudoun, Prince William and Fairfax Counties if Loudoun approves developer proposals to add 28,000 houses on top of 37,000 already approved to be built. The development would add up to 300,000 car trips per day, and some intersections, including those downstream in Fairfax, would experience over 6 hours of stop-and-go traffic per day. Significantly, these predictions take into account all proposed improvements in the regional long-range plan, including improvements to Route 50. The VDOT study under new
Traffic Impact Study legislation is a great example of the need to do
thorough analysis of the transportation impacts of land use decisions.
Changing land uses and community designs to better link homes to jobs
and services while reducing traffic, shortening car trips and increasing
walking, bicycling and transit use are essential to addressing our traffic
problems. The findings garnered swift reaction from editorial writers
(from the Washington
Post and the Roanoke
Times) and from bloggers.
Governor Kaine and legislators from both parties deserve praise for
enacting legislation that will help us make better decisions about where
and how we grow. Montgomery County Farm Tour and Harvest Sale (July 22-23) Farming: it’s closer than you think. Barely 40 minutes outside of the city and next door to suburban neighborhoods in Montgomery County, many still work the land for a living, and this weekend they are opening up their farms to you. Montgomery County’s Agricultural Reserve has made it possible for area residents to have nearby access to farming and rural recreational activities in a truly scenic environment. The fun activities are endless: take tours of orchards, vineyards and dairy farms; peruse the fresh fruit, vegetables and flowers for sale; and bring your children to pet the farm animals and take hay rides. Want more information? Click here or call 301-590-2823. Walking Tour of Belmont Bay, A New Village on the Occoquan (July 29) Want to learn about designing a walkable village or town? Belmont Bay is a “new urbanist” development on the banks of the Occoquan River in Prince William County near the Woodbridge VRE station. As part of their Walking Tour series, the Congress for the New Urbanism’s DC Chapter will guide you through Belmont Bay with developer Jim Epstein. You’ll have the opportunity to learn about how it was conceived and how it has fared in the marketplace, and to look critically at what works and what doesn’t in the development. Balancing the location with environmental protection, access to commuter rail and street design are issues that are likely to be discussed. The tour is on Saturday, July 29, from 10 am – 12:30 pm and costs $10. Click here for details. The Purple Line: Derailed by the ICC “The
Ehrlich administration has been stringing [the Purple Line] out for
all it’s worth. It is leading a prolonged attempt to obfuscate,
alter, study and delay the project…All money available is going
to the intercounty connector and, indeed, even future federal money
has been bonded for that project.” This was the stinging
critique of Robert J. Smith in the Washington
Post. Smith had been Governor Ehrlich’s appointee to the Metro
Board, and has confirmed what many have long suspected: the popular
Purple rail line will not be built because of spending for the InterCounty
Connector. Many other local road and intersection projects will be delayed
as well. Yet, the $3 billion ICC has been shown not to reduce traffic
on I-95, I-270, the Beltway or most local roads. See an extended critique
of ICC costs in our Op/Ed
in the Baltimore Sun. Summer Beach Read: Choosing Our Community’s Future We all want to be involved
in planning carefully where and how our communities grow. But how can
you become involved and make sure your neighborhood changes for the
better? Smart Growth America is glad you asked. It recently published
Choosing
Our Community’s Future, a handy guidebook that emphasizes
involving citizens in the design of their communities. It discusses
good processes and the benefits of fighting for quality and convenient
housing, recreation and transportation options for all citizens. DC Mayoral Candidates Speak in Favor of Affordable Housing With
housing costs at an all-time high, Washington, D.C. residents are finding
it more difficult to find homes within their budget. The city’s
mayoral candidates got a chance to voice their opinions on this crucial
issue at a June 28 forum hosted by the DC Affordable Housing Alliance.
Over 200 citizens attended the forum and asked the candidates tough
questions on funding housing trust funds, preserving the downtown Franklin
Homeless Shelter and inclusionary zoning (which requires affordable
units within new developments.) All five candidates made commitments
to providing the full range of housing choices and promised to keep
the Franklin Shelter open until a replacement is built. “It’s
the kind of forum I’d like to see more frequently, not just in
an election year,” said Linda Leaks, project director of Empower
DC and a co-moderator for the forum. “It’s important to
have a dialogue about how they’ll use their power to help residents
of all income levels.” Click
here for more information. A More Bike-Friendly DC We’ve
all seen it: bikes chained to trees, fire hydrants and street signs.
Images like these are daily reminders that DC needs more bike racks.
But recently, the DC Department of Transportation (DDOT), Washington
Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) and Adams Morgan Main Street partnered
to install 35 new bike racks in Adams Morgan. The racks will make it
more convenient to bicycle to, from and around Adams Morgan for residents,
commuters and tourists alike. This is just one of many initiatives in
the works to improve bicycling in DC. Led by WABA and DDOT’s Pedestrian
and Bicyclist Coordinator, the city is pursuing other initiatives, including
adding more bicycle lanes to city streets and installing the first “bike
station” at Union Station. Learn more about the bike station in
a future Newsclips. Upcoming Events
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