A public meeting has been scheduled for the Columbia Pike Multimodal Project.  Come one, come all to review, evaluate and provide feedback on the County's plans for 3.5 miles of Columbia Pike from South Jefferson Street to South Joyce Street. Highlights include: Wider sidewalks Additional Left-hand turn lanes Improved bus stops Bike accommodations and facilities Additional landscaping and greenery Undergrounding of overhead utilities The meeting will be held at the Walter Reed Community Center at 2909 S 16th St on Monday, March 26th...

Last night was another meeting of the Columbia Pike Implementation Team, the small stakeholder team that has been giving feedback as the Columbia Pike Multimodal Street Improvements Project works its way toward completion.  For those who are just now hearing about this, here's the scoop. Background The County is looking to rebuild Columbia Pike and in doing so, make it as much a "Complete Street" as possible - that is, a street that balances the needs of drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians.  Previously, there had been a group called the "Columbia Pike Street Space Task Force" which created a set of recommendations for...

There are a few upcoming Community Meetings I'd like to highlight: VDOT Presentation on the Columbia Pike / Washington Blvd Interchange Tonight, Tuesday September 20th 7:30pm, Trinity Episcopal Church The Penrose Neighborhood Association is having VDOT out to speak about the upcoming project to completely rebuild the bridge and interchange between Washington Blvd and Columbia Pike which will include a new bridge over Columbia Pike, along with intersection updates, additional turn lanes, merge lanes, ramp realignments, improved pedestrian and bike facilities and more. Carlin Springs Bridge Project Meeting Monday, September 26th 7:00pm, Barrett Elementary School County staff will present several design concepts and solicit public input...

Saturday was the heart of the Pike Neighborhoods Plan Charrette: the Community Hands-on Design Session.  I was impressed by the number of folks willing to be up and around at 9am on a Saturday ready to do 5 1/2 hours of urban planning.  As we arrived, we signed in and were split up to different tables by Civic Association.  Each table was focused on a portion of the Pike that included their Civic Association.  Since I'm a Penrose resident, I was at a table for the eastern end of the Pike - our area covered from approximately Glebe Rd to...

Tonight was the kick-off meeting for the Pike Neighborhoods Plan Charette.  You may be wondering "What is the Pike Neighborhoods Plan?" or "What's a Charette?" or "What did I miss if I wasn't there?!"  Read on to find out. What is the Pike Neighborhoods Plan? You may be familiar with the work being done to revitalize Columbia Pike, or you may not.  There is a lot of history that provides important context: the Columbia Pike Initiative, the Columbia Pike Revitalization Plan, the Form Based Code, the Street Space Plan, the Multimodal Project, the Pike Transit Initiative.  The opportunity before us all right...