We are pleased to contribute to the discussion about MoveDC. I have served as a member of the advisory group and participated in different public events related to the MoveDC’s significant public outreach effort. MoveDC is a major milestone for the city. It is built on an extensive and innovative approach to public engagement, and sets a bold vision for our city’s future. We commend DDOT for leading this deliberative process resulting in this far sighted plan. We urge the DC Council to embrace this plan for our future.
Category: Testimony & Letters
Testimony to WMATA Board on Takoma station development
We ask that WMATA approve the proposed changes to the WMATA facilities at the Takoma Metro station and advance the joint development agreement. Having closely followed this issue since 2000, I am gratified that we have come to such a good compromise – addressing all the key issues raised with the previous proposal.
CSG Support for EYA Takoma Metro Station JD Proposal (Docket R14-01)
Please accept these comments on behalf of 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 and investments needed to make those communities flourish.
Testimony on DDOT regarding the Transportation Reorganization Act of 2014 (B20-759)
The Transportation Reorganization Act of 2014 (B20-759) proposes to radically reorganize DDOT by separating out and isolating transportation functions into a set of individual agencies. While the TRA is a provocative conversation starter on how to better integrate transportation functions, improve customer service, and increase capacity to focus on implementation, we worry that the cure is worse than the disease. The kind of segmentation proposed in the TRA creates silos that make coordinated, cost-effective and comprehensive solutions hard to deliver.
Welcome to the Montgomery County Council Candidates Forum
Welcome everyone! Welcome to our Montgomery County Council Candidates Forum! I am Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, one of your hosts this evening. Kelly Blynn, CSG’s Next Generation of Transit Campaign Manager, is here tonight as well, and is familiar to many of you.
Support for Bill 20—707: Land Disposition Transparency Act of 2014
We wish to testify in support of Bill 20-707, the Land Disposition Transparency Act of 2014. We have tracked public land dispositions for several years and applaud the significant public benefits that have been delivered as a result of them. As laudable as many of these public land dispositions are, the process for how a public subsidy is provided to a private development to accomplish public goals is opaque. The process has often left the public wondering if it received the best deal.
Testimony before the Hon. Mary M. Cheh, Chair, Committee on the Environment and Transportation regarding the Performance Oversight Hearing of DDOT
We want to commend the committee and the Mayor for the advances we are making in transportation to ensure that our streets, transit, walk and bicycling facilities help make our city a healthier, safer, more sustainable, and more attractive place to live and work. New services and improvements to offer better access and travel choices such as expanded Capital Bike Share, sped up limited-stop bus service, routine curb extensions in streetscape designs, extensive use of leading pedestrian intervals – demonstrate there is much to commend about the advances we have made in just a few years. Given the tremendous growth our city is experiencing, it’s clear that we cannot accommodate this growth unless we continue to increase the attractiveness of alternatives to driving and car ownership. Our city’s growth and vibrancy cannot be predicated on how many more cars it can jam onto its already congested roads.
Support affordable housing in public lands, B20-594 & Amend bill to shorten affordability terms B20-604
Please accept these comments on behalf of the Coalition for Smarter Growth (CSG). The Coalition for
Smarter Growth is the leading organization working locally in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan 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 and investments needed to make those communities flourish.
Testimony to DC Zoning Commission on McMillan (Parcel 1)
We wish to express our support for the healthcare building on Parcel 1 as part of the adaptive reuse of the McMillan Sand Filtration site. The scale of the medical buildings responds to the scale of the hospitals on the other side of Michigan Avenue, with the highest point closest to the similar height at Children’s Hospital. The healthcare building uses Cell 14 as an acre of open space next to North Capitol Street to buffer its massing from nearby rowhouse neighborhoods.
Testimony to DC Zoning Commission on McMillan PUD
We wish to express our support for the multifamily/retail building, and townhouse elements of this adaptive reuse of the McMillan Sand Filtration Plant. We have tracked the review process at the HPRB for the last year and appreciate the evolution of the designs to today’s proposal.