The National Park Service is objecting to the location of the Potomac Yard Metro station (Arlington: apartment, condo)

[roninsedge]

I have had family live on Arlington Terrace my whole life. In 39 years their houses didn't flood until the construction started for the I-95 improvements. I believe the last time prior to 2006 that either of their houses flooded was 1975 because of Eloise.

Back on topic: What do you mean by activate the area Deeman804? It is only a mile and a half walk using google maps between Potomac Yards shopping center and Braddock Road, which uses a rather circuitous route. If you could add in a direct trail for non-automobile use, that would be a cheaper option and encourage less use of automobiles in an already traffic congested area. As for the rest of Del Ray, they have a pretty good selection of bus routes all through that area already. They just need to add in more running of those routes. My main concern with any development in the area is adding more automobile traffic in an area that is already overused by cross-town traffic.

[Cmusic29]

I can think of tons of other places that need a metro stop over this place. Ran by it once. Can not remember the exact area...by some stores, some path near Potomac Ave maybe. Nothing special. Not sure what a metro stop would serve in that area when you have two perfectly good ones just south of the proposed one.

[ACWhite]

Originally Posted by Cmusic29

I can think of tons of other places that need a metro stop over this place. Ran by it once. Can not remember the exact area...by some stores, some path near Potomac Ave maybe. Nothing special. Not sure what a metro stop would serve in that area when you have two perfectly good ones just south of the proposed one.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but neither of those metro stops is within a mile of the planned stop, nor is the Crystal City stop to the north. Realtors tell me that if a metro stop is more than .7 of a mile away from a property, they don't consider it "walking distance" to the metro. I think the point is two-fold: to make it easier for people without cars to shop at the mall and to make the nearby residences (some yet to be built) more metro-accessible, i.e., to reduce the car traffic in that area.

Per Mapquest, Braddock Rd metro stop is ~1.5 miles away and King St. and Crystal City metro stops are ~2.5 miles. from Target, the southernmost store in that mall. That's a long hike, especially if you have packages. I doubt that very many people walk to the mall from either of those stops (and no one is going to go into the airport and walk from there).

[tysonsengineer]

Originally Posted by Cmusic29

I can think of tons of other places that need a metro stop over this place. Ran by it once. Can not remember the exact area...by some stores, some path near Potomac Ave maybe. Nothing special. Not sure what a metro stop would serve in that area when you have two perfectly good ones just south of the proposed one.

Just south? Its like 2 miles south. Thats not "just south" by urban standards. And the one north is National Airport. Thats not really walkable, bikeable, or frankly even that great of a bus capable solution.

I think officials should go after more funds coming from private sources, but based on the plans at Potomac Station and the current residents there is atleast as much of a need here as there is at Van Dorn or other existing stations that are well used.

[Cmusic29]

Originally Posted by tysonsengineer

Just south? Its like 2 miles south. Thats not "just south" by urban standards. And the one north is National Airport. Thats not really walkable, bikeable, or frankly even that great of a bus capable solution.

I think officials should go after more funds coming from private sources, but based on the plans at Potomac Station and the current residents there is atleast as much of a need here as there is at Van Dorn or other existing stations that are well used.

I guess to me, distances I consider short are long to others. because I walk a lot. I mean, I always wonder why there are so many stops in DC for the metrobus but I guess people in the states do not like to walk. But when I go on the 30 buses or N buses, they have stops every 1-2 blocks and I always wonder why that can't be at least every 3-4 blocks, at the least. But I guess I am an outlier, so I get your point.

[gomason]

The bottom line is that the city wants to develop millions and millions of square feet of development ala Crystal City and you can't do that with the closest metro station 1.5 miles away and an express Route 1 bus.

And obviously the NPS is stupid.

[pcity]

Originally Posted by Cmusic29

I can think of tons of other places that need a metro stop over this place. Ran by it once. Can not remember the exact area...by some stores, some path near Potomac Ave maybe. Nothing special. Not sure what a metro stop would serve in that area when you have two perfectly good ones just south of the proposed one.

The stores would be completely redeveloped if they can put a Metro stop in there.

The whole plan is to increase transit-oriented development, and a Metro stop will be much more effective for that than a streetcar or bus line.

[NC211]

Originally Posted by gomason

The bottom line is that the city wants to develop millions and millions of square feet of development ala Crystal City and you can't do that with the closest metro station 1.5 miles away and an express Route 1 bus.

And obviously the NPS is stupid.

Exactly, with much of it being residential usage (apartments and condos). The NPS isn't stupid, if they can line their pockets with an extra million or two from the developers who need this station to make their developments work like they've bet on. Without the station, it's a problem for several of them. It all comes down to money.

[Carlingtonian]

I for one will be a little sad when Potomac Yard gets converted to some shabbier version of Clarendon, because I like having a few big-box stores with ample parking a short drive away. Fortunately, we still have Seven Corners and Baileys Crossroads nearby. There is no way I'm going to wait 20 minutes on the platform for a train (each way!) on a weekend--especially not when I have 40 lbs. of canned dog food to take home. Or a 65-lb. elderly dog to take home from the vet.

We live a healthy but doable walk (or short bus ride) to two Metro stations but avoid the areas around them like the plague, because parking is scarce (with the exception on one store at Clarendon that actually has free garage parking for its customers), and public transit quickly loses its luster when the weather gets very hot, very cold, or very rainy--or when you have stuff to carry, or when you don't want what would otherwise be a 20-minute errand to take an hour and a half.

I think more people than will admit share this viewpoint, especially as they get older and realize you can't take a load from Home Depot on the Orange Line.

I know the future PoYa station is a done deal, though. Money talks, and around here, the developers always win.

[tysonsengineer]

Originally Posted by Carlingtonian

I for one will be a little sad when Potomac Yard gets converted to some shabbier version of Clarendon, because I like having a few big-box stores with ample parking a short drive away. Fortunately, we still have Seven Corners and Baileys Crossroads nearby. There is no way I'm going to wait 20 minutes to take Metro on a weekend--especially not when I have 40 lbs. of canned dog food to take home. Or a 65-lb. elderly dog to take home from the vet.

We live a healthy but doable walk (or short bus ride) to two Metro stations but avoid the areas around them like the plague, because parking is scarce (with the exception on one store at Clarendon that actually has free garage parking for its customers), and public transit quickly loses its luster when the weather gets very hot, very cold, or very rainy--or when you have stuff to carry, or when you don't want what would otherwise be a 20-minute errand to take an hour and a half.

I think more people than will admit share this viewpoint, especially as they get older and realize you can't take a load from Home Depot on the Orange Line.

I know the future PoYa station is a done deal, though. Money talks, and around here, the developers always win.

Big box store parking and urban settings don't have to compete. Its called structured parking, and its not a big deal when properly planned, see Mosaic where the target has more than enough parking without any friction, see Columbia Heights where the parking is ample for the target to the point that they have too much parking compared to what they originally anticipated being necessary.

Cheap big boxes might not be willing to pay for structured parking I suppose, but then again they don't want to see their business disappear either. It doesn't have to be like the Costco in Pentagon City, that place was just badly designed.

I find it strange to think why you live in Arlington. You hate everything about it based on how much you complain. You clearly have made shovel loads of money by owning there, thanks to the very decisions and things you hate about the planners who created that situation for you. Sell, go live in your suburban utopia as a rich retired person.

I mean I get the idea of this is my neighborhood and I don't want to move, but, wailing at the moon a bit don't you think? Time goes on, you can never bring back some way way back, and most of the time the champagne lit images you hold about the past aren't clear pictures of all the problems from back then also. I can't imagine any one could seriously want Arlington of today to somehow return back to the Arlington of 1965... crime, terrible sprawl, run down stores dying on the vine, crappy paying jobs, terrible schools.

No offense meant, just really curious as to why you stay if its not your type of lifestyle.