What are they building at the intersection of Rt. 7 and 28? (Leesburg: apartments, utilities)

[mo4040]

It is the new headquarters for the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation.

[brooklynborndad]

i looked at that on google maps.

Looks like some folks are defying this whole neourbanist walkable grid thingie

Of course they ARE the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation.

Not that the area looks rural

[Caladium]

I guess it depends on your definition of walkable. FWIW, this new building is only a block or so from Dulles Town Center, as well as the ring of office buildings around DTC and 20-30 restaurants. There's a bus stop at DTC, too. I'm not sure that many people would want to walk from the new building to DTC, since walking along Atlantic might not be the most pleasant experience with the traffic zipping by, but if you worked there and wanted to walk over to the mall for lunch, you could. I'm not sure if there are side walks yet, but there's a crossing light, and it isn't a long distance.

[brooklynborndad]

Originally Posted by Caladium

I guess it depends on your definition of walkable. FWIW, this new building is only a block or so from Dulles Town Center, as well as the ring of office buildings around DTC and 20-30 restaurants.

It IS very close to DTC. The layout doesn't seem to leverage that. Thats what I was getting at.


Maybe that cloverleaf on Atlantic and Rte 7 is such a deterrent to walking, that they decided not to bother trying to site the building closer to Atlantic. Looks from the pic like a site closer to Atlantic and Century would make it easier to walk to DTC, but perhaps that land is reserved for other future development, or there is a zoning issue, or they just wanted the visibility on Rte 7. I dont know.

But what I was getting at, is theres a new building so CLOSE to DTC, and yet its layout and arrangement on the site APPEARS to be designed for auto access, and not for access on foot.

I worked for several years in Tysons Corner. I was CLOSE to lots of places to have lunch. Thats the problem (well one of them) with sites like walkscore, that evaluate walkability based only on mileage to activity sites.


By contrast, the residential development between DTC and Rte 7 looks (from the pic) like its well designed for walking access to DTC.

[Caladium]

To each his own, I guess. I really like the way this building and campus were designed, that's one of the reasons I started this thread. If you drive by it, you'll see it's surrounded by lots of trees. The trees probably serve as a sound barrier, and possibly as a security barrier if the building has security issues. Many of the new buildings in Loudoun have security barriers--it's as a primary concern if they want to attract government tenants. It's also healthier for employees to look out at trees--I know I'd rather look at trees than look at traffic on a clover leaf. According to an article in the Wall Street Journal yesterday, greenery and nature are important in helping employes deal with work stress.

I suppose you're right that the walk could be 2 minutes shorter if the building was right along Atlantic. But if I worked there I would probably enjoy the short walk through the trees, and be more likely to walk because of it--it isn't that long of a driveway, and it's rather pretty. And it would certainly be a lot less attractive if the building was right in your face on Atlantic. I think having lots of trees adds a great deal to the beauty (and sound protection) of intersections like that.

Also, realistically, whether the building is right on the road or behind a grove of trees isn't going to change the number of walkers very much. If at all. It's a building next to a very busy clover leaf--that's not just one busy road, that's two really busy roads--and it's just not a spot where many people will want to walk no matter how close the building may be to the street. Quiet side streets are where you find most suburban walkers.

[SallyField]

I've wondered what that building was myself. It looks like a community college or something.

The Loudoun baseball stadium has not started being built yet. I wonder if they promised more than they can possibly deliver, looking at the website. No way they get that done in the timeframe they promise online.

[brooklynborndad]

Originally Posted by Caladium

To each his own, I guess. I really like the way this building and campus were designed, that's one of the reasons I started this thread. If you drive by it, you'll see it's surrounded by lots of trees. The trees probably serve as a sound barrier, and possibly as a security barrier if the building has security issues. Many of the new buildings in Loudoun have security barriers--it's as a primary concern if they want to attract government tenants. It's also healthier for employees to look out at trees--I know I'd rather look at trees than look at traffic on a clover leaf. According to an article in the Wall Street Journal yesterday, greenery and nature are important in helping employes deal with work stress.

I suppose you're right that the walk could be 2 minutes shorter if the building was right along Atlantic. But if I worked there I would probably enjoy the short walk through the trees, and be more likely to walk because of it--it isn't that long of a driveway, and it's rather pretty. And it would certainly be a lot less attractive if the building was right in your face on Atlantic. I think having lots of trees adds a great deal to the beauty (and sound protection) of intersections like that.

Also, realistically, whether the building is right on the road or behind a grove of trees isn't going to change the number of walkers very much. If at all. It's a building next to a very busy clover leaf--that's not just one busy road, that's two really busy roads--and it's just not a spot where many people will want to walk no matter how close the building may be to the street. Quiet side streets are where you find most suburban walkers.

It is of course possible to integrate trees and vegetation with a design more oriented toward the sidewalk. I would move the building close to the street and leave the grove between the building and rte 28 (still quite visible from the building) and I would put a line of lovely street trees along the sidewalk. I agree, the cloverleaf, and the width of these major roads may make that pointless.

also of course, placing the building where a shorter streetside walk would have been possible, would not have prevented someone from making the longer walk along the roadway through the grove.

Im also not sure, given demand for real estate there, how long that grove will continue to exist, at least on the east side of "cooperative way"

We shall see whether suburbanites are willing to walk in major activity centers when the Tysons rebuild is farther along. My impression is that they DO walk alot in Rockville Town Center, Bethesda, and Silver Spring, but thats not NoVa. Arlington (at least the Roslyn-ballston corridor) isnt really suburban, so its walkers in high activity areas arent relevant I suppose.

[brooklynborndad]

Originally Posted by Caladium

I suppose you're right that the walk could be 2 minutes shorter if the building was right along Atlantic.

Im also not thinking ONLY of walking to and from the new building, but walking past it. Buildings set away from the street are generally less encouraging to people walking past compared to well built ones close to the sidewalk,with ground level retail (yes I know retail is problematic for SOME security sensitive office users). But with Rte 28 just west, and itself being a huge barrier to walking, that probably isnt a consideration either.

I suppose a good walking route could be established (if one does not already exist) from the GWU campus to the area across rte 7 from DTC. I suppose the new building we are discussing wouldnt matter much to that, since it would be far across wide Rte 7 anyway. And such a route would ahve to veer around the clover leaf.

[Caladium]

The most recent news I heard about the stadium is it's still going to be built but is behind schedule. I think the plan is to hold games in one of the Loudoun County Regional Parks during the first half of the season and be in the new ballpark for the second half.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by brooklynborndad

It is of course possible to integrate trees and vegetation with a design more oriented toward the sidewalk. I would move the building close to the street and leave the grove between the building and rte 28 (still quite visible from the building) and I would put a line of lovely street trees along the sidewalk. I agree, the cloverleaf, and the width of these major roads may make that pointless.

also of course, placing the building where a shorter streetside walk would have been possible, would not have prevented someone from making the longer walk along the roadway through the grove.

Im also not sure, given demand for real estate there, how long that grove will continue to exist, at least on the east side of "cooperative way"

We shall see whether suburbanites are willing to walk in major activity centers when the Tysons rebuild is farther along. My impression is that they DO walk alot in Rockville Town Center, Bethesda, and Silver Spring, but thats not NoVa. Arlington (at least the Roslyn-ballston corridor) isnt really suburban, so its walkers in high activity areas arent relevant I suppose.

Well I guess everyone has different tastes. Personally, I like the design they chose. I like that it's nestled in the grove of trees--a design that is practical as well as attractive. But everyone has different ideas of what is attractive, I guess.

I do not see what the design of a single building built at a cloverleaf intersection has to do with whether or not people in suburbs walk a lot. Besides, haven't we done that topic to death?