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September 30, 2008
Sidewalk Hearing Update. Comments (11)
Vienna Residents Split on Need for More Sidewalks
by BRIAN TROMPETER, Staff Writer
(Created: Tuesday, September 30, 2008 7:42 AM EDT)
Sidewalks are great, in theory, but the proverbial shoe leather meets the concrete when it comes time to build them in one's own neighborhood.
The Vienna Sidewalk Task Force on Sept. 22 presented the Vienna Town Council with a prioritized list of 50 projects designed to improve pedestrian access and safety.
Town officials estimated the bill for all the projects would be just over $16 million. Sidewalks would cost about $185 per linear foot - up 50 percent since the task force reported to the Town Council in March 2007.
The sidewalks would cost $340 per linear foot if curb and gutter were included and a whopping $738 per foot if drainage and street improvements are added to all of the above, town officials said.
Several residents who attended the meeting said sidewalks and other improvements were not appropriate for their neighborhoods.
Most of the opposition arose from residents on Windover and Moore avenues.
by BRIAN TROMPETER, Staff Writer
(Created: Tuesday, September 30, 2008 7:42 AM EDT)
Sidewalks are great, in theory, but the proverbial shoe leather meets the concrete when it comes time to build them in one's own neighborhood.
The Vienna Sidewalk Task Force on Sept. 22 presented the Vienna Town Council with a prioritized list of 50 projects designed to improve pedestrian access and safety.
Town officials estimated the bill for all the projects would be just over $16 million. Sidewalks would cost about $185 per linear foot - up 50 percent since the task force reported to the Town Council in March 2007.
The sidewalks would cost $340 per linear foot if curb and gutter were included and a whopping $738 per foot if drainage and street improvements are added to all of the above, town officials said.
Several residents who attended the meeting said sidewalks and other improvements were not appropriate for their neighborhoods.
Most of the opposition arose from residents on Windover and Moore avenues.
September 01, 2008
The Big False Hope: Sidewalk Priority Hearing Comments (1)
This sham will take place in September. HistoricVienna.com highly doubts NW Vienna will ever get decent sidewalks:
At its September 22 meeting, the Town Council will hold a public hearing on a pro-posed list of sidewalk construction priorities. The meeting will begin at 8 p.m. in the Council Chamber at Town Hall, and all interested citizens are encouraged to attend.
In 2006 the Vienna Sidewalk Committee, composed of representatives from the Town’s Planning and Transportation Safety Commissions, conducted a survey to get citi-zen input on the need for additional pedestrian facilities. Based on the responses to that survey, the committee prioritized projects into four groups to recommend to the Town Council, giving top priority to areas without any sidewalks followed by areas with side-walks already on one side of the street. Other criteria included providing walking routes to schools, bus stops and shopping, and infill where sidewalks are not continuous.
The proposed sidewalks in Priority Group 1 are listed below. For a complete list of all four priority groups, go to www.viennava.gov or call the Public Works Department at 703-255-6381.
PROPOSED SIDEWALKS – PRIORITY GROUP 1
• McHenry Street, S.E., from Park to Fardale Streets (This project has been completed.)
• Windover Avenue, N.W., from Lawyers Road to Nutley Street
• Plum Street, S.W., from Cottage Street to Harmony Drive
• Park Street, N.E., from Church Street to Hilltop Road
• Moore Avenue, S.E., from Park Street to Ninovan Road
• Lewis Street, N.W., from Orchard Street to Windover Avenue
• Orchard Street, N.W., from Lewis Street to Windover Avenue
• Harmony Drive, S.W., from Cottage Street to the swim club
• Lawyers Road, N.W., from Blair Court to Abbottsford Drive
• West Street, N.W., from Lewis Street to Windover Avenue
• Dogwood Street, S.W., from Cottage to Center Streets
• East Street, S.E., from Maple Avenue to Echols Street
• East Street, N.E., from Maple Avenue to Church Street
• Talahi Road, S.E., from Park Street to Ninovan Road
• Nutley Street, N.W., from Maple Avenue to Knoll Street
June 23, 2008
Again, It All Comes Back to Sidewalks. Comments (2)
School budgets are not looking good but factor in the rising cost of fuel, some local districts (like Montgomery County) are going to, gasp, ask kids to walk to school from even further distances away.
Is Fairfax County going to announce the same thing? Quite frankly, nearly every single child in the Town of Vienna could/should walk to school. Problem is that if you live in many areas of Vienna, you cannot even walk to school three blocks away because there are ZERO sidewalks (NW and NE Vienna springs to mind).
From the Washington Post:
Fuel Costs May Force Some Kids To Walk Montgomery Weighs Altering School Bus RulesBy Daniel de Vise
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 23, 2008; A01Here's how rising fuel prices affect an organization with a fleet of 1,273 school buses: The Montgomery County school board today will consider giving Superintendent Jerry D. Weast emergency powers to make students walk farther to school, if need be, in the coming academic year.
The school system's diesel costs have more than doubled in four years, from $3.6 million in fiscal 2005 to a projected $7.9 million for fiscal 2009, which begins next month. It's a hardship shared by the Fairfax County school system, with more than 1,500 buses; the Prince George's County system, with 1,285 buses; and other area systems that transport tens of thousands of students daily and are paying more for fuel than the average parent at an Exxon pump on Rockville Pike.
"The last purchase we made was $4.40 a gallon," said John Matthews, Montgomery schools transportation director. A one-penny rise in price costs the school system $33,000 a year.
June 20, 2008
Vienna Politicians are Big Fat Liars, Case Study No. 2,456: Sidewalks Comments (8)
In March 2007, the below list was published by the Town stating their "sidewalk priorities." One year later, priority number one was completed - the smallest strip of walkway. Has any other piece of sidewalk been built?
The price of gas is $4 and rising. Getting out of our cars and walking to Town is no longer just a whimsical thought - it is a necessity. Town residents must DEMAND safe and plentiful sidewalks in our town. These fifteen priority spots are just some blatant missing pieces in the bizarro Vienna sidewalk puzzle. Everywhere you look, sidewalks disappear so you forced to hop back and forth on streets. We all know this is hard enough for an able body person but what if you have a stroller, a disability, etc.? The Town must stand up and do their jobs.
Do not set priorities if you never, ever have an intention of fulfilling them. Was the list just a feel good measure and the act of creating it was actually an end unto itself?
* A 150-foot-long section of McHenry Street, S.E., between Park and Fardale streets.
* A 2,805-foot area along Windover Ave., N.W., between Lawyers Road and Nutley Street.
* A 1,660-foot section of Plum Street, S.W., between Cottage Street and Harmony Drive.
* A 1,025-foot area along Park Street, N.E., between Church Street and Hilltop Road.
* A 640-foot stretch of Moore Avenue, S.E., between Park Street and Ninovan Road.
* A 1,024-foot section of Lewis Street, N.W., between Orchard Street and Windover Avenue.
* A 625-foot area along Orchard Street, N.W., between Lewis Street and Windover Avenue.
* An 810-foot section of Harmony Drive, S.W., between Cottage Street and the neighborhood's pool and park.
* A 505-foot area along Lawyers Road, N.W., between Blair Court and Abbottsford Road.
* A 750-foot section of West Street, N.W., between Lewis Street and Windover Avenue.
* A 715-foot stretch along Dogwood Street, S.W., between Cottage and Center streets.
* A 1,600-foot area along East Street, S.E., between Maple Avenue and Echols Street.
* A 160-foot stretch of East Street, N.E., between Maple Avenue and Church Street.
* A 300-foot section along Talahi Road, S.E., between Park Street and Ninovan Road.
* A 510-foot area along Nutley Street, N.W., between Maple Avenue and Knoll Street.
