Category: Press Releases

RELEASE: Cancellation of Arlington’s Columbia Pike Streetcar

Posted on by acustis

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 18, 2014

CONTACT
Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director, Coalition for Smarter Growth
202-675-0016 ext.121
703-599-6437 (mobile)
stewart@smartergrowth.net

ARLINGTON, VA — Coalition for Smarter Growth Executive Director Stewart Schwartz issued the following statement today in response to news that the Arlington County Board has cancelled the Columbia Pike Streetcar:

“The Coalition for Smarter Growth is disappointed by the Arlington Board decision, but far more so by the deeply negative, and frequently inaccurate, campaign against the streetcar. Arlington’s proven smart growth track record had given us confidence in their analysis and ability to create a great transit corridor. The streetcar’s ridership capacity was integral to the plan to use density bonuses to preserve thousands of units of affordable housing.

The most sustainable way to handle growth, manage traffic and fight climate change is through high-capacity transit and transit-oriented development (TOD). Failure to invest in modern high-capacity transit will mean more traffic and less economic development. Therefore, we have to keep fighting for transit projects and funding across the DC region.

Looking ahead, the question is whether the most strident opponents of the streetcar will support continued investment in mixed-use TOD, transit, affordable housing, and bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. The Coalition for Smarter Growth will continue to work with all Arlingtonians and residents across the DC region to advance the smart growth policies and investments that increase transportation choices, expand housing affordability, fight climate change, and clean up our air and water.”

About the Coalition for Smarter Growth
The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Its mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish. Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

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RELEASE: CSG applauds progress in DC’s Inclusionary Zoning program and pushes to strengthen policy

Posted on by acustis

WASHINGTON DC — Coalition for Smarter Growth Policy Director Cheryl Cort issued the following statement today in response to the Gray Administration’s release of the DC inclusionary zoning annual report and the administration’s proposed revisions to the program:

RELEASE: Columbia Pike Streetcar will prevail because it is the key to economic growth

Posted on by acustis

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 5, 2014

CONTACT
Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director, Coalition for Smarter Growth
(703) 599-6437

VIRGINIA — It would be reading too much into Arlington voters’ intentions to ascribe the election of John Vihstadt to a full term on the Arlington Board over Alan Howze primarily to the debate over the Columbia Pike streetcar. Streetcar opponents linked the price tag of the streetcar to general concerns over government spending and the state of the economy. But a hard look at the streetcar and the record of transit and transit-oriented development in the region demonstrates that new transit investments are a critical economic development tool for Northern Virginia. 

A 2013 study for the US calculated that the economic value of transit for a jurisdiction could be up to $1.5 to $1.8 billion.[1] A study this year estimated around 50,000 new jobs created for every $1 billion invested in transit.[2]

In the Washington region, a recent study found that 84% of current office development is within ¼ mile of Metro stops.[3] A 2011 WMATA study noted that the real estate located within ½ mile and ¼ mile of Metrorail stations generated approximately $3.1B and $1.8B in property tax revenues, respectively, for the Washington area in 2010.[4] People and companies have certainly been voting with their feet and flocking to walkable, transit-oriented communities in DC, Arlington, and Alexandria.

In Arlington County, just 11.4 percent of its land area — in its two Metro corridors — generates 50% of its property tax base, producing revenues for the schools, libraries, recreation centers, police, and fire services. In the 1970s, Arlington allocated an extra $100 million and the federal government an extra $200 million to put the Orange Line underground, and in the process the county generated billions of dollars in real estate value, stemmed an economic decline, and created the most vibrant and successful transit-oriented corridors in the nation.

The Streetcar — a joint project of Fairfax and Arlington — promises similar economic benefits and is the lynchpin for the economic revitalization of the Columbia Pike Corridor and Bailey’s Crossroads.  The streetcar is projected to bring between $3.2 and $4.4 billion in real estate investment to the Columbia Pike corridor, as well as attract 6600 new jobs, and an increase of $375-735 million in countywide revenues.

It is also the foundational piece for Arlington’s vision for Columbia Pike: preserving affordable housing is linked to development incentives and revitalization which are linked to modern streetcar and the capacity it provides. Bus ridership has reached near maximum capacity at 17,000 riders per day, and the streetcar is needed to carry more people per hour.

Finally, on a per-mile or per-user basis, the streetcar costs less than other projects. The Beltway HOT lanes, for example, cost $1.4 billion for 14 miles and an estimated 66,000 users per day. Maryland’s ICC cost $2.6 billion for 18 miles and an estimated 30,000 users per day. The streetcar’s upper estimated cost is $261 million — for Arlington’s 5-mile segment with an estimated 26,000 users per day.

So, we are confident that the streetcar will continue to stand up to scrutiny and prove to be the best investment for the Columbia Pike Corridor. We see overall support for walkable, transit-oriented communities as remaining strong, and the results of the transportation referendum in Fairfax County bear this out. Over 71% of voters supported a bond package of which 83% percent went to bicycle and pedestrian investments.

About the Coalition for Smarter Growth
The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Its mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish. Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

 

[1] http://www.citylab.com/work/2013/08/public-transit-worth-way-more-city-you-think/6532/

[2] http://www.apta.com/resources/reportsandpublications/Documents/Economic-Impact-Public-Transportation-Investment-APTA.pdf

[3] http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/every-foot-matters-when-it-comes-to-real-estate-near-metro-researchers-say/2013/12/10/7e042f6a-6120-11e3-bf45-61f69f54fc5f_story.html

[4]http://www.wmata.com/pdfs/planning/WMATA%20Making%20the%20Case%20for%20Transit%20Final%20Report%20Jan-2012.pdf

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PRESS RELEASE: Maryland electoral shocker may not be such a shocker for transit

PRESS RELEASE: Maryland electoral shocker may not be such a shocker for transit

Posted on by acustis

MARYLAND — While much of Maryland’s political watchers may still be reeling over Republican Larry Hogan’s historic upset last night of Democrat Anthony Brown, those grappling for new pieces of conventional wisdom may find themselves surprised on at least one key issue. Despite what many said during the heat of the campaign, long-planned new transit projects like the Purple Line or Baltimore’s Red Line are not dead in the water because of Hogan’s victory. Nor should they be when one looks at the merits of each project as well as Hogan’s key campaign focus – the economy.

RELEASE: Opening of Silver Line prompts public attention to safety issues for pedestrians and bicyclists

Posted on by acustis

FAIRFAX, VA — With the opening of the first phase of the Silver Line, news stories and social media are drawing attention to the unsafe conditions for pedestrians and bicyclists on many of the roadways surrounding the stations. While the number of people parking at the new Silver Line stations is much lower than expected, the number of bicyclists has been surprisingly high, with bike racks at the Wiehle-Reston East station filling up quickly, and cyclists voicing the need for more bike lanes to safely reach the stations.

RELEASE: The Silver Line Will Transform Land Use in Northern Virginia – A Smart Growth Win Bringing Benefits for the Environment, Commuters, and Economy

Posted on by acustis

For Immediate Release: July 24, 2014 

Contact:
Stewart Schwartz, CSG, 703-599-6437 (cell)
Chris Miller, PEC, 540-347-2334
Stella Koch, ANS, 703-628-6983

FAIRFAX, VA — “The opening of the Silver Line on Saturday, July 26, is important for many reasons, but none more important than how it will transform land use in Northern Virginia,” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.  “That transformation will be most prominent in Tysons where a traffic-choked suburban office park with two large malls is planned to become a walkable, urban center with 100,000 residents and 200,000 jobs, but it will also be seen in Reston, Herndon and Loudoun.”

 Fairfax drew from the successful experience of Arlington County when creating the transit-oriented development plan for Tysons.  As a result of Arlington County’s award-winning smart growth planning for their Metro corridors traffic has declined on surrounding arterial streets even as millions of square feet of development and thousands of housing units have been added.  The TOD corridors also generate over 50 percent of Arlington’s tax base on just 11 percent of the county’s land area.

 “Fairfax Chairman Bulova has said that transit-oriented development is the future of Fairfax. In addition, the region as a whole — in the Region Forward plan — has committed to TOD as the most sustainable way to grow,” said Rick Keller, Transportation Vice-Chair for the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club.  “Investing in high-capacity transit like the Silver Line, along with walking and bicycling-friendly transit-oriented development will reduce regional air pollution and the greenhouse gas emissions that are causing increasingly destructive climate change.”

 “Tysons is also a great water-quality story,” said Stella Koch, Northern Virginia Conservation Associate for the Audubon Naturalist Society and member of the Tysons Task Force which negotiated the initial Tysons plan.  “Tysons today is dominated by buildings and parking lots with minimal control of stormwater and that stormwater gouges-out and pollutes area streams and the Potomac River.  We achieved a win-win in Tysons where developers will construct millions of square feet of development while providing levels of stormwater management we’ve never had — controlling the first 1 inch of stormwater, representing 90% of the typical rain events.”

 “We see great benefits for commuters and the opportunity for an economic win-win for Loudoun County and the region,” said Chris Miller, President of the Piedmont Environmental Council.  “The limited east-west commuter roads in Loudoun require investment in high-capacity transit as an effective alternative to sitting in traffic.  Moreover, by meeting the demand to live and work near transit, Fairfax and Loudoun will fuel economic growth while correspondingly allowing for the rural economy to be protected and flourish with new local food production, access to recreation, and protection of our water recharge areas.”

“Our organizations have worked for over 25 years to promote a regional vision of transit and transit-oriented development, so the opening of the first phase of the Silver Line and the accompanying redevelopment at these first five stations represents an important smart growth milestone,” said Schwartz.  “Looking ahead, we will continue to campaign for well-designed mixed-use development at underutilized Metro stations in every jurisdiction and for smart new transit investments in key commercial corridors tied to walkable, mixed-used development.  This is simply the most efficient way to grow and enhance our quality of life, by managing traffic, reducing air and water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, and meeting overwhelming market demand for walkable, transit-accessible neighborhoods.”

Walkable, transit-oriented development is in demand from millenials, downsizing empty nesters, retirees and corporate leaders.  Currently, developers can’t build enough residential units near transit to meet demand leading to affordability challenges.  Meanwhile, 84% of new office development in the pipeline in the DC region is being built within 1/4 mile of a Metro station.

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RELEASE: Dangerous by Design – with 843 pedestrian fatalities in 10 years, still work to do for safe streets in DC region

RELEASE: Dangerous by Design – with 843 pedestrian fatalities in 10 years, still work to do for safe streets in DC region

Posted on by acustis

Washington, D.C. – A new report, Dangerous by Design, released today by the National Complete Streets Coalition, a program of Smart Growth America, provides information on pedestrian fatalities and injuries and ranks every state, metro region and county based upon the degree of danger faced by pedestrians. Comparatively, the Washington, DC region is safer for pedestrians than many other regions in the nation, ranking 35 out of the 51 largest metro areas (with 1 being the most dangerous). At the same time, the report found that 843 pedestrians were killed in the region from 2003 to 2012 — an unacceptable number no matter the DC region’s current ranking – and the dangers for pedestrians along suburban arterial roads is particularly high.

RELEASE: Strong majority of Montgomery voters support county’s plan for a Bus Rapid Transit Network, according to new poll

Posted on by acustis

A poll commissioned by the regional advocacy organization Coalition for Smarter Growth found strong support among Montgomery County voters for investment in a new Bus Rapid Transit network (BRT). After listening to a list of positive and negative perspectives on Montgomery County’s planned BRT network, likely Montgomery voters expressed support for the system by a margin of 71 to 22 percent.

STATEMENT: Coalition for Smarter Growth on new commitments to long-term Metro funding

Posted on by acustis

Coalition for Smarter Growth Executive Director Stewart Schwartz issued the following statement today applauding DC Mayor Vincent Gray, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, and Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe for their announcement today committing $75 million toward Metro’s Momentum plan to significantly improve the Metro system in the coming decades: “The Coalition for Smarter Growth commends the Governors and Mayor for committing an initial $75 million to Metro’s Momentum – funding which will buy more rail cars to support more 8-car trains. While we would have liked to have seen more funding this year, we are pleased to hear of verbal commitments to draft and sign a multiyear agreement to fully fund Momentum. We urge completion of an agreement as soon as possible.”

RELEASE: Another Potomac River Bridge Study?

Posted on by Max Potter

Coalition for Smarter Growth, Piedmont Environmental Council Sierra Club – Virginia Chapter

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FEBRUARY 6, 2014

Contact: Stewart Schwartz, CSG, 703-599-6437 (C)
Chris Miller, PEC, 540-347-2334

Another Potomac River Bridge Study?
Proposed Legislation Could Inject a Hot Potato into Congressional Race

Proposed legislation by Delegates Tom Rust and Randy Minchew threatens to throw a hot potato into the middle of the pending race to succeed Congressman Frank Wolf, igniting a repeat of the neighborhood outcry that followed past bridge proposals. Citing an in-house study quietly initiated by the former Secretary of Transportation Sean Connaughton, the bill (HB1244) would effectively endorse continuation of the Connaughton study and encourage VDOT to recommend a location or locations for new bridges, if needed.

The bill is currently before the House Appropriations Committee which could hear it Friday, February 7th.

The patrons are proposing that the state spend additional staff resources on the study even though the State of Maryland has reiterated its opposition to new bridge crossings in an October 2012 letter to former Secretary Connaughton. Moreover, in 2012, the House Rules committee rejected a similar bill, HJ131, after having confirmed that the State of Maryland remained strongly opposed to new Potomac River bridge crossings.

“Back in 2000 and 2001, after Congressman Wolf funded a federal study of new bridge crossings, the proposed alignments were found to have significant community impacts and generated a firestorm of community opposition,” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. Congressman Wolf had the study discontinued, noting that because of existing land uses a new bridge and connecting highways could not be built without significant impact on neighborhoods in the path.

A subsequent “Origin/Destination Study” study in 2003-2004 by VDOT tracked every license plate crossing the American Legion Bridge and those entering and exiting the Beltway from every entrance/exit between Route 50 in Virginia to Georgia Avenue in Maryland. The results showed that very few vehicles were making the so-called “U-shaped” commute from Reston and beyond to the Rockville/Gaithersburg area and vice versa. The vast majority of commutes needed to use the American Legion Bridge and Beltway or were making strictly radial (in-out) trips.

“Based on past studies, we are convinced that these bridges would waste scarce transportation dollars, have no effect on congestion on the Beltway and other major highways, harm water quality and the historic C&O Canal and open up the Montgomery County Agricultural Reserve and other rural land to development,” said Douglas Stewart, Transportation Chair for the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club. “This region has made a strong commitment to transit and transit-oriented development including investment in the Silver Line and Tysons Corner. Outer Beltways undercut that investment, diverting private development to areas that are far removed from infrastructure and amenities, generating significant new traffic,” said Chris Miller, President of the Piedmont Environmental Council.

In their letter the State of Maryland makes clear that they to not intend to “revisit the years of debate over new crossings of the Potomac River” and instead want to focus on potential improvements to existing crossings including the American Legion Bridge, the Route 301 Henry Nice Bridge and transit on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge. Since 2012, Fairfax County and Montgomery County elected officials and staffs have been discussing how to improve transit in the American Legion Bridge corridor.

“We believe the proposed studies are unnecessary, wasteful and a diversion of time and attention from fixing the American Legion Bridge corridor and other key commuter corridors with multimodal solutions,” said Schwartz. “The region should continue its focus on implementing key transit projects like the Silver Line, Purple Line, Montgomery County Rapid Transit Network, streetcars and mixed-use transit-oriented development. The benefits will be significant in terms of maximizing transit, walking, biking and carpooling and reducing the number and length of vehicle trips region-wide.”

About the Coalition for Smarter Growth

The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington D.C. region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Our mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies needed to make those communities flourish. To learn more, visit the Coalition’s website at www.smartergrowth.net

 

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