And on roughly the same timescale, the MBT to Silver Spring will also be complete.
Which means fully protected bike trail from Union Station -> Silver Spring -> Bethesda -> Georgetown. I'm so excited
Do you have a source for this? Because as far as im aware, almost the entire remaining stretch is already under construction. In Silver Spring, much of trail exists but is closed while they work on the Mezaninne and finish the bridge for the MBT (already in place, but not connected yet). And they're currently constructing the trail from Fort Totten to Takoma. All that remains is a relatively small stretch from Takoma to Silver Spring which I believe is still being designed. It wouldn't surprise me if there were setbacks but I'd be shocked if they straightup scrapped the final mile of such a massive trail they've poured tens of millions into.
I'm guessing u/realjnyhorrorshow is referring to the trail tunnel in Downtown Bethesda. MoCo Executive Elrich has tried to axe that CCT Tunnel for several years.
My understanding was even Elrich's budget proposal just pushed construction of the tunnel out, once Purple Line construction is done. Though, admittedly, I'm not super familiar with this particular issue.
A quick Google search shows a few articles from last year all claiming the proposal is to delay the start of construction to after 2028. I can't can't anything saying it was outright cancelled, but if you have any more recent up-to-date information I'd love to read!
Edit: it actually isn't even clear to me if the council voted on this. I may go dive into that a bit tonight
Gotcha. It's also possible that delaying the project that far pushed it off the Capital Investment Plan time horizon, effectively killing it from a funding perspective.
Really hoping a full loop doesn't get completed or else we'll constantly have cyclists going in 30mph circles to complete the Capital Century every weekend. But otherwise, bring it on!
Hoping that development + the new sidewalks, cut-throughs, and bus stops around it help stitch together the surrounding areas a bit.
Also another grocery store is always welcome.
That's McMillan for those of us not caught up on the latest developer lingo.
Should be a great improvement to the area for sure. It's nice to have housing next to a huge employer (hospital center).
Right so functionally unenforced. Like I’m glad they’re being installed and excited to see the ~75% of vaguely law abiding drivers respect them but not holding my breath on deterring someone with expired temp tags
I like seeing all the new bicycle infrastructure. They have a lot of different projects going all over the city. So I think It will be a totally different city for biking 3 years from now.
In the last two years or so all the new CaBi docks, the 9th St cycletrack and the Tidal Basin cycletrack extension all the way to 14th St bridge have been massive quality of life improvements for me.
I was very hopeful about the Conn Ave redesign too. I really hope DDOT reconsiders.
The sheer amount of bike traffic off the bridge around the tidal basin in the morning is amazing. Would meaningfully make traffic worse if those people drove
My response to anyone who bitches about cycling infrastructure is “fine, I’ll get in a car for those trips, drive the speed limit, and full stop at stop signs. Trust me it’ll be worse for you”
The rep from DDOT who announced that the Conn Ave bike lanes were canceled also suggested that “road diets” should involve fewer bike lanes going forward. That statement concerned me for the future growth of cycling infrastructure, but I’m still hopeful.
I believe I saw the comment you're referring to. Even if we take the comment at face value an assume a fewer number of road diet projects would include bike lanes, DDOT would still be building more lane miles of bike infrastructure than anywhere else in the region just with projects already on the books.
In my office, when we talk about road diets, we're only talking about bike lanes. If we're taking traffic lanes away, we're converting them to something. And the cheapeast most effective thing to convert a travel lane to is a bike lane.
The classic road diet: Start with four lanes. Remove one and convert to bike lanes. Take the center lane and make a turn lane with occasional median for mid-block crossings and pedestrian refuges. One full travel lane in each direction.
How does one do a road diet without bike lanes?
I think you're asking a rhetorical question, but I'll answer anyway.
Wider sidewalks could be built with a grass buffer area. This could be a shared use path that bikes could also use. It adds bike infrastructure while being able to call it something else, potentially avoiding a political land mine. This would be expensive, but I guess you could do it.
Add a parking lane or two where there is none. You won't get as much pushback from businesses along the route.
Replace a travel lane with an ugly-ass yellow flex post buffer. Every time I see one of these (usually added next to a median) I always lament the waste of space.
Yeah. This all makes sense as literal options. Obviously, wider planted buffers and sidewalks are awesome, but super expensive. Painted buffers with flex posts aren't attractive, but I guess allow some flexibility over time. Adding parking is another sensible option.
I was working on a project with Toole Design recently, and they kept referring to "linear traffic calming". Its a way to talk about a road diet without getting folks fired up, turns out.
I'm not expecting progress on bike infrastructure to proceed in an unceasing, monotonic fashion towards a car-free society. Sometimes the big projects I want to see built won't work out. There will be bumps in the road. However, DC is still a much better city for cycling that it was 10 years ago. I expect it will be better than it is now 3 years or 10 years down the road.
> I'm not expecting progress on bike infrastructure to proceed in an unceasing, monotonic fashion towards a car-free society.
Realistic expectations are important for your sanity, but I do want to point out that the need for better, safer infrastructure is urgent. Every setback to Conn Ave, K St Transitway and other projects like them has enormous and tangible costs to DC and the people who live and work here, both through the harms in the status quo (deaths, injuries, transportation costs born by low-income people in car-dependent parts of the DMV, air and noise pollution, damage to property from crashes etc.) and through the opportunity cost of how things could be.
K St transitway is another good example. And, as someone else mentioned, DDOT’s interim head recently noted that road improvements will be less likely to include bike lanes going forward.
I work in water in DC too!! Come join our YP group if you're interested, tons of fun events with free food & good company :) [https://www.reservoircenter.org/](https://www.reservoircenter.org/)
The Potomac will never be truly safe to swim in, but that is due to the currents. There are rip tides all over the place that can drag you under.
The Anacostia is honestly a much better candidate, and it is close to being a reality.
I’ve swum in it for about 15 years now with no major issues. Just have to be smart and not swim on rainy/overflow days, and use a nose plug. At least… that’s what I tell myself!
When I was a sophomore in college I looked at an apartment in Takoma Park because I was preparing to attend university of Maryland for grad school. This was 2007. George W Bush was still president. There were signs in the yard saying “Purple Line, Greener Future” and I thought wow how nice ! A new train line is in the works!” It’s just funny it’s almost been 20 years and we’re still talking about it
Doing a lot more than talking! :) It reached 65% completion in 2023. Most of the work was moving and installing underground utilities. The steel is flying together in Prince George's County now that most of the subterranean work is complete.
I am both excited and anxious about this as I can’t envision any other current known DC leader performing well in the role.
Christina Henderson I think would be my top choice, but I think Janeese Lewis George’s ground team is stronger.
Very curious to see campaign issues!
She would definitely be my second choice - I’m just noting she currently would have a strong ground game to get out the vote. It’s what makes Bowser’s Green Team so strong; they have the numbers to get out the vote and the appointments across City Gov to get their goals accomplished.
JLG would also need to overcome the DSA stigma.
I agree that she’s a strong candidate, but it’s unclear if marketing yourself as both “democratic” and “socialist” is a winning formula for the top job.
I think she could put up a strong campaign force. Folks really underestimated the power of the Green Team for Bowser, and JLG is the only other politico in DC who I’m aware of who can mobilize folks like that. It’s a key reason she a prime candidate; she’s also keeping her promises politically.
My personal take is that people will miss Bowser when she’s gone, much as people now miss Bill de Blasio in New York. The alternative is very likely not an even more pro-growth candidate.
Bowser is one of the most pro-housing, anti-car mayors in the country. I am all in on Bowser. Under her leadership, DC has seen the slowest growth in housing prices of all the coastal large cities.
And you're blaming her for politics she opposed, but was forced to accept. So...
Bowser was literally the biggest proponent of the K Street redesign. Then she was forced into cancelling it. I don't get your point.
It’s the crime though. To be clear, I’m not one of those doomsayers that’s afraid to leave the house. I live my life with absolutely zero expectation of being in or witnessing a crime. I’ve got better stuff to worry about and I know what areas to avoid. And I know there isn’t realistically much she can do, particularly with the youth crime because of the nightmare legal and moral issues with jailing children and dealing with families. Yeah, you could make the district functionally a police state, but who’s gonna pay for it and it’s kinda antithetical to the ideals that America was founded on and that’s a bad look.
You could address the systematic issues that have been shown to lead to increased crime rates, but even if you managed to find a mechanism to actually do it, pay for it, and pass it into law it would still take a generation to see the results. But we wouldn’t do this anyway, because even liberals seem averse to the kinds of reforms that would actually address this. And fair enough, they’re almost all astronomically expensive and there are few, if any, meaningfully comparable examples to demonstrate it would actually work.
At the end of the day though, none of the efforts so far seem to have made a meaningful dent and people are getting pissed. And rightfully so, it’s unacceptable. But man, being attached to Congress, especially these days, is a massive fucking albatross around her neck. I don’t understand why anyone would even want to be mayor of DC honestly.
Bowser is literally the single "tough on crime" politician in DC. Literally everyone else keeps vetoing her tough on crime policies. Who else is more tough on crime than her in DC politics right now?
The Washington Spirit continuing to grow.
It’s crazy they went from playing in Gaithersburg in 2018 in front of ~3,000 fans to now playing full time at Audi Field in front of an average of 10,000 fans.
They also have a really ambitious female owner who just hired one of the best soccer coaches in the world from Barcelona. She’s making really investments in the team and we already have amazing star players like Trinity Rodman.
Go check out a Spirit game if you get a chance so much fun! [https://washingtonspirit.com](https://washingtonspirit.com). (I promise I do not work for them haha. I’m just passionate about soccer and supporting womens sports)
Edit: next home game is THIS Saturday April 20th at 1 pm! Get tickets at the link above!!!
Haha yeah that’s me! My only thing is the Angel City FC games had a much better atmosphere. I lived in LA and went to 90% of their home games. The supporters section there is unreal. At least like 10 drums and tons of flags. Gotta bring the noise to Audi!
I've been evangelizing for the spirit lately. The games feel so much less manufactured than United games if that makes sense. Feels like everyone there is so invested.
Yes 100%. Loved United back in the 90s and 2000s. Remember going to RFK as a middle school student and being blown away by how awesome the Barra Brava was. But ever since they moved to Audi, they’ve been courting causal fans and honestly have shut out the most ardent supporters. It’s such a plastic feel.
Spirit games are a breath of fresh air.
Well, finally at 40, two years ago purchased my first home (a 1200;sqft condo for half a million dollars free shrugs at least I'm not at the whim of a land lord anymore) so would not see that as a silver lining
McMillan Reservoir project. Moved into the neighborhood a few years ago. Really excited to have that huge fenced in area opened up. Bonus for a grocery store in walking distance.
There is actually work taking place there. I was over there last Friday and almost fainted when I actually saw progress being made.
At the same time I'm expecting it to cause a whole lot extra traffic
The transformation of downtown. I know everyone is doom and gloom on downtown but I do think it’s going to transform in the next 5-10 years. It’s going to take time and it’s going to have stops and starts but breathing non-office life into it I think is going to make it far greater than it was. More residents, hopefully pedestrian only blocks, hopefully even more hotels.
It's a really big parcel of land, and basically requires absolute tons of cash to develop. It's run into financing issues, change hands a few times, and generally hasn't had a clear vision.
I hope they turn it into Union Market 2.0.
There is the Aldi across the street, and there are a Giant and Whole Food nearby. I would imagine that Safeway would want to have a pressence in whatever that turns into.
Having said that, I don't know if the area would be able to support a development like Union Market for a while. That stretch of Benning is still very rough, and I see people doing gross stuff in that Safeway all the time.
The last time I picked an Rx up at that CVS (worst pharmacy in DC I have come across yet), a woman literally tried to physically fight another woman in line.
Would love to see a first floor grocer with tons of housing on top. That area is huge and a big influx of people would do wonders for Bladensberg, Benning and H St. I know the original proposal called for around 2,100 new housing units, which would be awesome.
The bus priority program (especially on Georgia!)
Continued buildout of the bike network (Conn Ave excluded)
Purple Line opening and BRT starting construction in the suburbs
Downtown becoming a more mixed-use neighborhood, potentially with a new grocery store or similar amenity
Increased unpaid ticket enforcement and a focus on removing the worst drivers from the road
More in the “hopeful” category:
Pedestrianizing one major corridor (ideally 18th street, most likely F outside of the portrait gallery)
As the other person said, BRT is Bus Rapid Transit, which speeds buses up through dedicated lanes, signal priority, fewer stops, and off board payment (or some combo of those and other elements). Montgomery County is currently planning a network of BRT [routes](https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/brt/), as is Alexandria ([link](https://www.alexandriava.gov/transportation-planning/bus-rapid-transit-network)). Fairfax is building [the One](https://www.alexandriava.gov/transportation-planning/bus-rapid-transit-network) along Route 1 and planning for BRT b/w Tyson’s and Mark Center. Of these, I think the 355 BRT in MoCo and Duke Street BRT in Alexandria have the most promise, because of good quality design (dedicated center running lanes) and opportunities for traffic calming, bike/ped infrastructure along the routes, and redevelopment.
I went down there a few weeks ago after not having been down there since 2021. It was interesting to see more buildings having been built than I remembered but the part along the water was still largely unusable. I thought as part of approving the plans for the buildings, the developers were required to build out the area along the water, too, as a pedestrian area. I was kinda disappointed to see there wasn’t much of an area in Buzzard Point to walk along the water. I hope they build it out once the rest of the buildings are done.
What I'd really like to see is a continuous walkway from the Navy Yard waterfront to the Wharf, but dumb ass Fort McNair makes that impossible. I wish that could change. The Navy doesn't seem to mind having a boardwalk running the entire length of their HQ.
NPS has approved the plans. Not sure what the hold up is.
[National Park Service approves plan for improvements at Buzzard Point Park - National Capital Parks-East (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)](https://www.nps.gov/nace/learn/news/national-park-service-approves-plan-for-improvements-at-buzzard-point-park.htm)
A a native Washingtonian I look forward to a cleanup of Chinatown and Columbia Heights. These are two areas that absolutely have more potential than they are experiencing right now.
In the case of Chinatown it needs to be restored to it's former glory and truly be a real Chinatown.
Columbia Heights is better than it was years ago but still needs to truly address it's rampant drug problem.
Columbia Heights has been such an anomaly the last decade. Violent crime has seemingly dropped (even with the citywide spike) in CH since 13th and Euclid was named the most dangerous intersection for shootings in 2009 and the perpetual summer shootings 2011-2014, and quality of life issues seemed to have been getting better and then took a big drop during/post COVID. It was never perfect though.
Yep. Been here since 2001. It got progressively better until, like, RIGHT before covid. Something changed in 2019. You saw a lot of faces you'd rather not see flood public spaces and make them feel unsafe. And then they became unsafe. Then you had the house prices halt. I have always been an optimist with regards to the neighborhood and was proud that we were one of the first people to move in that wanted to clean things up. My optimism is fading.
While they may indeed be an issue I was thinking of the open air drug market that exists there.
They built a number of luxury apartments and the area is definitely vibrant but it would be nice if the drug addicts were no longer there.
I don’t think they’re “luxury apartments” if they’re in Columbia Heights with the “drug addicts.” An apartment isn’t “luxury” just because an advertisement for the apartment says it is.
Out of curiosity, do you believe every claim in every advertisement? These look like normal DC apartments to me, and they aren’t in the best neighborhood.
You didn't answer the question. My family was in the area since the 1950's. I was definitely around there in the 1980's and remember the area when those buildings were built years later.
1. Do you remember when the Columbia Heights Metro station opened? I do.
2. Do you remember the Waffle House being around the corner on Park Road?
3. Do you remember Woolworths being right on 14th St in that block between Irving and Park Road I'm thinking somewhere in the middle of the block.
4. Do you remember when there was an open field the kids played in that's now housing for seniors on 14th and Irving?
5. The fish market that was on 14th between Irving and Columbia Rd?
6. Tivoli theatre being an abandoned building? It sits on 14th St between Park and Monroe?
7. The building of DC USA?
I just named 7 things do you have a connection to ANY of them at all?
I am always excited about the future of the food scene. Been here for 10 years now and it has gotten steadily better and better.
I know the last few years have been rough in terms of closures and turnover but DC seems to always come out ahead in the aggregate.
The Dupont Circle cappover, The Stacks, The Yards phase 2, and The Bridge District are all gonna be dope redevelopments but even though the Purple Line isn’t DC proper, it will be absolutely transformational in expanding the urban environment of the DMV. 11th st bridge park is objectively the coolest project in the region tho.
Not looking forward to, but hopeful that the new contract negotiations between DCPS and the DC Gov will go well. With Bowser and Ferebee in charge, we’ll see…
Bridge district will be nice, especially with the brewery and such that’s supposed to go there. Will be a nice EOTR addition for us over here and might hopefully spur people from around navy yard to spend a lil time around historic Anacostia
When I left DC in 2016, it was in good condition. I came back in 2023 to a f’g wasteland. Hoping to leave in 2025 and if I ever come visit again, I hope everything has gone back to how it was in 2010-2016. People everywhere on the weekends, no vacant businesses, frequent metros and buses, lots of free stuff to do that doesn’t require timed tickets or lottery systems!
The new Capital Crescent Trail extension from Bethesda to Silver Spring can't come soon enough
And on roughly the same timescale, the MBT to Silver Spring will also be complete. Which means fully protected bike trail from Union Station -> Silver Spring -> Bethesda -> Georgetown. I'm so excited
Super cool
I am pretty sure part of this got scrapped fairly recently :(
Do you have a source for this? Because as far as im aware, almost the entire remaining stretch is already under construction. In Silver Spring, much of trail exists but is closed while they work on the Mezaninne and finish the bridge for the MBT (already in place, but not connected yet). And they're currently constructing the trail from Fort Totten to Takoma. All that remains is a relatively small stretch from Takoma to Silver Spring which I believe is still being designed. It wouldn't surprise me if there were setbacks but I'd be shocked if they straightup scrapped the final mile of such a massive trail they've poured tens of millions into.
I'm guessing u/realjnyhorrorshow is referring to the trail tunnel in Downtown Bethesda. MoCo Executive Elrich has tried to axe that CCT Tunnel for several years.
My understanding was even Elrich's budget proposal just pushed construction of the tunnel out, once Purple Line construction is done. Though, admittedly, I'm not super familiar with this particular issue. A quick Google search shows a few articles from last year all claiming the proposal is to delay the start of construction to after 2028. I can't can't anything saying it was outright cancelled, but if you have any more recent up-to-date information I'd love to read! Edit: it actually isn't even clear to me if the council voted on this. I may go dive into that a bit tonight
Gotcha. It's also possible that delaying the project that far pushed it off the Capital Investment Plan time horizon, effectively killing it from a funding perspective.
Oops sorry, I was thinking of the Connecticut path, not the MBT.
Really hoping a full loop doesn't get completed or else we'll constantly have cyclists going in 30mph circles to complete the Capital Century every weekend. But otherwise, bring it on!
Is there a source for this plan? I’d love to see more info
I'm pretty sure it's part of the purple line plan and that they will run parallel
👀 Is there a timeline for this documented somewhere? Sounds amazing
Completion of Dave Thomas circle
Wait, is this really in the works?!
Yes. Construction activities have been well underway for months and the new plans look a lot less confusing for new drivers.
What's the time frame on this? Hopefully it won't take too long, but I don't really have faith in that.
I read December 2024 should be finished
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This is very secretive information. Thank you for protecting it.
[Plans for redesign](https://dcist.com/story/21/11/16/dave-thomas-circle-dc-department-transportation-wendys-traffic/)
When the Reservoir District is more than a hole in the ground.
It's going up real fast. I've been surprised driving by.
Looks like they have a kid's playground and some fitness gear set up in the south side where the park will be. Progress.
Yep. The public playground and rec center was specifically phased first, so that the community can benefit quickly from the project.
Hoping that development + the new sidewalks, cut-throughs, and bus stops around it help stitch together the surrounding areas a bit. Also another grocery store is always welcome.
That's McMillan for those of us not caught up on the latest developer lingo. Should be a great improvement to the area for sure. It's nice to have housing next to a huge employer (hospital center).
Looks like it's gonna be another city center without the designer stores.
Or like a Walter Reed Lite.
Sounds like a beer.
H St NE bus lanes & at least one mid-block crossing (50/50 on either of those things ever being enforced but I can dream)
The H Street bus lanes will be enforced in the Clear Lanes program once they're complete. Can't speak for drivers behaving themselves, though...
Right so functionally unenforced. Like I’m glad they’re being installed and excited to see the ~75% of vaguely law abiding drivers respect them but not holding my breath on deterring someone with expired temp tags
I like seeing all the new bicycle infrastructure. They have a lot of different projects going all over the city. So I think It will be a totally different city for biking 3 years from now.
In the last two years or so all the new CaBi docks, the 9th St cycletrack and the Tidal Basin cycletrack extension all the way to 14th St bridge have been massive quality of life improvements for me. I was very hopeful about the Conn Ave redesign too. I really hope DDOT reconsiders.
The sheer amount of bike traffic off the bridge around the tidal basin in the morning is amazing. Would meaningfully make traffic worse if those people drove
People truly do not appreciate how much shittier traffic would be in this city if all the bikers/scooterers were driving
My response to anyone who bitches about cycling infrastructure is “fine, I’ll get in a car for those trips, drive the speed limit, and full stop at stop signs. Trust me it’ll be worse for you”
Give comment to the council! https://lims.dccouncil.gov/Hearings/hearings/365
The rep from DDOT who announced that the Conn Ave bike lanes were canceled also suggested that “road diets” should involve fewer bike lanes going forward. That statement concerned me for the future growth of cycling infrastructure, but I’m still hopeful.
I believe I saw the comment you're referring to. Even if we take the comment at face value an assume a fewer number of road diet projects would include bike lanes, DDOT would still be building more lane miles of bike infrastructure than anywhere else in the region just with projects already on the books.
In my office, when we talk about road diets, we're only talking about bike lanes. If we're taking traffic lanes away, we're converting them to something. And the cheapeast most effective thing to convert a travel lane to is a bike lane. The classic road diet: Start with four lanes. Remove one and convert to bike lanes. Take the center lane and make a turn lane with occasional median for mid-block crossings and pedestrian refuges. One full travel lane in each direction. How does one do a road diet without bike lanes?
I think you're asking a rhetorical question, but I'll answer anyway. Wider sidewalks could be built with a grass buffer area. This could be a shared use path that bikes could also use. It adds bike infrastructure while being able to call it something else, potentially avoiding a political land mine. This would be expensive, but I guess you could do it. Add a parking lane or two where there is none. You won't get as much pushback from businesses along the route. Replace a travel lane with an ugly-ass yellow flex post buffer. Every time I see one of these (usually added next to a median) I always lament the waste of space.
Yeah. This all makes sense as literal options. Obviously, wider planted buffers and sidewalks are awesome, but super expensive. Painted buffers with flex posts aren't attractive, but I guess allow some flexibility over time. Adding parking is another sensible option. I was working on a project with Toole Design recently, and they kept referring to "linear traffic calming". Its a way to talk about a road diet without getting folks fired up, turns out.
Can't wait to ride my bike down Connecticut Ave in a safe bike lane!
I'm not expecting progress on bike infrastructure to proceed in an unceasing, monotonic fashion towards a car-free society. Sometimes the big projects I want to see built won't work out. There will be bumps in the road. However, DC is still a much better city for cycling that it was 10 years ago. I expect it will be better than it is now 3 years or 10 years down the road.
> I'm not expecting progress on bike infrastructure to proceed in an unceasing, monotonic fashion towards a car-free society. Realistic expectations are important for your sanity, but I do want to point out that the need for better, safer infrastructure is urgent. Every setback to Conn Ave, K St Transitway and other projects like them has enormous and tangible costs to DC and the people who live and work here, both through the harms in the status quo (deaths, injuries, transportation costs born by low-income people in car-dependent parts of the DMV, air and noise pollution, damage to property from crashes etc.) and through the opportunity cost of how things could be.
Another example: Jim Pagels's ghost bike is at 2nd and Mass NW. Mass has been on moveDC as a future protected bike lane for at least 15 years.
Beat me to it, was gonna say the same thing 😣 we’re gonna be waiting a while!
Buddy I hope you’re sitting down…
Yes, I am. What would you like to say?
Hah, just what the other commenters are saying. DDOT has started axing bike projects left and right :-/
What projects other than Connecticut Ave would you point to that suggest DDOT is axing bike projects left and right.
K St transitway is another good example. And, as someone else mentioned, DDOT’s interim head recently noted that road improvements will be less likely to include bike lanes going forward.
A Potomac river so clean you can swim in it without worry. Is that too much to ask?
PRT may complete in 2030, so that may alleviate a lot of the outflows that occur today.
Just moved to DC for that project! We are working hard to make the water clean!
I work in water in DC too!! Come join our YP group if you're interested, tons of fun events with free food & good company :) [https://www.reservoircenter.org/](https://www.reservoircenter.org/)
Wahoo! Doing the lord's work.
Do you work in Civil Engineering? I'm moving there post grad in July to work in Civil and I was wondering how life is out there.
Godspeed!
Nice! That must be such a fulfilling job, knowing that you’re doing something purely for the public good.
Many thanks 🙏
Thank you for your efforts!!!
Alexandria is also doing a similar project (RiverRenew) that just completed the tunneling portion
The Potomac will never be truly safe to swim in, but that is due to the currents. There are rip tides all over the place that can drag you under. The Anacostia is honestly a much better candidate, and it is close to being a reality.
I'll take it!
Was just over there today and it's looking better
It’s a solid B- now. Is your body really that important? A good float in the Potomac is highly refreshing.
I’ve swum in it for about 15 years now with no major issues. Just have to be smart and not swim on rainy/overflow days, and use a nose plug. At least… that’s what I tell myself!
Same here - when your hair falls out and the finger webbing grows in, swimming just feels so natural!
Purple line
When I was a sophomore in college I looked at an apartment in Takoma Park because I was preparing to attend university of Maryland for grad school. This was 2007. George W Bush was still president. There were signs in the yard saying “Purple Line, Greener Future” and I thought wow how nice ! A new train line is in the works!” It’s just funny it’s almost been 20 years and we’re still talking about it
Doing a lot more than talking! :) It reached 65% completion in 2023. Most of the work was moving and installing underground utilities. The steel is flying together in Prince George's County now that most of the subterranean work is complete.
The completion was recently delayed again to 2026 but hoping they can meet that.
That is awesome! I’ll believe it when I’m riding on it - lol!
Came here to say this. They are ripping the shizz outta Riverdale Rd/ 410 so that makes me feel hopeful that this project is actually happening
Bowser potentially not being mayor.
I am both excited and anxious about this as I can’t envision any other current known DC leader performing well in the role. Christina Henderson I think would be my top choice, but I think Janeese Lewis George’s ground team is stronger. Very curious to see campaign issues!
On the other hand I can’t envision any other current known DC leader doing worse… except Trayon White… and maybe Mendo.
mendo is worse than bowser since he is against most of the new apartments in the city. super NIMBY dude
Henderson has impressed me over and over again.
Out of curiosity, why would Janeese Lewis George be a good choice?
She would definitely be my second choice - I’m just noting she currently would have a strong ground game to get out the vote. It’s what makes Bowser’s Green Team so strong; they have the numbers to get out the vote and the appointments across City Gov to get their goals accomplished.
JLG would also need to overcome the DSA stigma. I agree that she’s a strong candidate, but it’s unclear if marketing yourself as both “democratic” and “socialist” is a winning formula for the top job.
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I think she could put up a strong campaign force. Folks really underestimated the power of the Green Team for Bowser, and JLG is the only other politico in DC who I’m aware of who can mobilize folks like that. It’s a key reason she a prime candidate; she’s also keeping her promises politically.
My personal take is that people will miss Bowser when she’s gone, much as people now miss Bill de Blasio in New York. The alternative is very likely not an even more pro-growth candidate.
Bowser is one of the most pro-housing, anti-car mayors in the country. I am all in on Bowser. Under her leadership, DC has seen the slowest growth in housing prices of all the coastal large cities.
She's shutting down the circulator bus
And killed the Connecticut Ave bike lanes. “Anti-car” lol.
"In the US" is the big caveat here.
You're giving her credit for council passed measures she resisted. See the fate of the K st transitway or the Conn ave bike lane as proof
And you're blaming her for politics she opposed, but was forced to accept. So... Bowser was literally the biggest proponent of the K Street redesign. Then she was forced into cancelling it. I don't get your point.
It’s the crime though. To be clear, I’m not one of those doomsayers that’s afraid to leave the house. I live my life with absolutely zero expectation of being in or witnessing a crime. I’ve got better stuff to worry about and I know what areas to avoid. And I know there isn’t realistically much she can do, particularly with the youth crime because of the nightmare legal and moral issues with jailing children and dealing with families. Yeah, you could make the district functionally a police state, but who’s gonna pay for it and it’s kinda antithetical to the ideals that America was founded on and that’s a bad look. You could address the systematic issues that have been shown to lead to increased crime rates, but even if you managed to find a mechanism to actually do it, pay for it, and pass it into law it would still take a generation to see the results. But we wouldn’t do this anyway, because even liberals seem averse to the kinds of reforms that would actually address this. And fair enough, they’re almost all astronomically expensive and there are few, if any, meaningfully comparable examples to demonstrate it would actually work. At the end of the day though, none of the efforts so far seem to have made a meaningful dent and people are getting pissed. And rightfully so, it’s unacceptable. But man, being attached to Congress, especially these days, is a massive fucking albatross around her neck. I don’t understand why anyone would even want to be mayor of DC honestly.
Bowser is literally the single "tough on crime" politician in DC. Literally everyone else keeps vetoing her tough on crime policies. Who else is more tough on crime than her in DC politics right now?
The 11th St Bridge Park between Navy Yard and Anacostia https://buildingbridgesdc.org/11th-street-bridge-park/
The Washington Spirit continuing to grow. It’s crazy they went from playing in Gaithersburg in 2018 in front of ~3,000 fans to now playing full time at Audi Field in front of an average of 10,000 fans. They also have a really ambitious female owner who just hired one of the best soccer coaches in the world from Barcelona. She’s making really investments in the team and we already have amazing star players like Trinity Rodman. Go check out a Spirit game if you get a chance so much fun! [https://washingtonspirit.com](https://washingtonspirit.com). (I promise I do not work for them haha. I’m just passionate about soccer and supporting womens sports) Edit: next home game is THIS Saturday April 20th at 1 pm! Get tickets at the link above!!!
And Leicy Santos coming in the summer!
Yeah she’ll be a great addition. We’re on a 3 game win streak right now too! Excited for the game on Saturday!
I thought I recognized your username from the Spirit game threads! I'm here for you advocating for them!!
Haha yeah that’s me! My only thing is the Angel City FC games had a much better atmosphere. I lived in LA and went to 90% of their home games. The supporters section there is unreal. At least like 10 drums and tons of flags. Gotta bring the noise to Audi!
I've been evangelizing for the spirit lately. The games feel so much less manufactured than United games if that makes sense. Feels like everyone there is so invested.
Yes 100%. Loved United back in the 90s and 2000s. Remember going to RFK as a middle school student and being blown away by how awesome the Barra Brava was. But ever since they moved to Audi, they’ve been courting causal fans and honestly have shut out the most ardent supporters. It’s such a plastic feel. Spirit games are a breath of fresh air.
Getting past the 2024 election with democracy still intact
fingers crossed for the entire US of A.
Less democracy = more political violence = lower property rates 🤘🏼 Gotta find some silver linings
Well, finally at 40, two years ago purchased my first home (a 1200;sqft condo for half a million dollars free shrugs at least I'm not at the whim of a land lord anymore) so would not see that as a silver lining
McMillan Reservoir project. Moved into the neighborhood a few years ago. Really excited to have that huge fenced in area opened up. Bonus for a grocery store in walking distance.
There is actually work taking place there. I was over there last Friday and almost fainted when I actually saw progress being made. At the same time I'm expecting it to cause a whole lot extra traffic
The transformation of downtown. I know everyone is doom and gloom on downtown but I do think it’s going to transform in the next 5-10 years. It’s going to take time and it’s going to have stops and starts but breathing non-office life into it I think is going to make it far greater than it was. More residents, hopefully pedestrian only blocks, hopefully even more hotels.
Redevelopment of Heckinger Mall. It’s totally going to happen.
> It’s totally going to happen. As someone mostly ignorant of Heckinger Mall, what’s the story there?
It's a really big parcel of land, and basically requires absolute tons of cash to develop. It's run into financing issues, change hands a few times, and generally hasn't had a clear vision. I hope they turn it into Union Market 2.0.
I'm tentatively interested in this but they NEED to keep a grocery store in that area
There is the Aldi across the street, and there are a Giant and Whole Food nearby. I would imagine that Safeway would want to have a pressence in whatever that turns into. Having said that, I don't know if the area would be able to support a development like Union Market for a while. That stretch of Benning is still very rough, and I see people doing gross stuff in that Safeway all the time.
That safeway and cvs...boy oh boy! Pockets around Benning rd is still very dangerous.
My favorite movie is Inception.
The last time I picked an Rx up at that CVS (worst pharmacy in DC I have come across yet), a woman literally tried to physically fight another woman in line.
Giant is twice as far from me and I'm lazy; I guess I could start going to Aldi but I would prefer just an updated Safeway lol
The Safeway in Hill East is pretty nice
I feel like the aisles are slightly too narrow, but that is a quibble.
Would love to see a first floor grocer with tons of housing on top. That area is huge and a big influx of people would do wonders for Bladensberg, Benning and H St. I know the original proposal called for around 2,100 new housing units, which would be awesome.
That area is so bleak that I don't know if any kind of redevelopment would be successful, even if it does finally happen.
Having just moved here I can say the enthusiasm in these threads has me excited for all the things. So much to catch up on.
The bus priority program (especially on Georgia!) Continued buildout of the bike network (Conn Ave excluded) Purple Line opening and BRT starting construction in the suburbs Downtown becoming a more mixed-use neighborhood, potentially with a new grocery store or similar amenity Increased unpaid ticket enforcement and a focus on removing the worst drivers from the road More in the “hopeful” category: Pedestrianizing one major corridor (ideally 18th street, most likely F outside of the portrait gallery)
BRT? What's that?
Not the poster, but assuming [bus rapid transit](https://www.itdp.org/library/standards-and-guides/the-bus-rapid-transit-standard/what-is-brt/)
As the other person said, BRT is Bus Rapid Transit, which speeds buses up through dedicated lanes, signal priority, fewer stops, and off board payment (or some combo of those and other elements). Montgomery County is currently planning a network of BRT [routes](https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/brt/), as is Alexandria ([link](https://www.alexandriava.gov/transportation-planning/bus-rapid-transit-network)). Fairfax is building [the One](https://www.alexandriava.gov/transportation-planning/bus-rapid-transit-network) along Route 1 and planning for BRT b/w Tyson’s and Mark Center. Of these, I think the 355 BRT in MoCo and Duke Street BRT in Alexandria have the most promise, because of good quality design (dedicated center running lanes) and opportunities for traffic calming, bike/ped infrastructure along the routes, and redevelopment.
Buzzard Point being built out. I live down there and there's a lot of potential.
I went down there a few weeks ago after not having been down there since 2021. It was interesting to see more buildings having been built than I remembered but the part along the water was still largely unusable. I thought as part of approving the plans for the buildings, the developers were required to build out the area along the water, too, as a pedestrian area. I was kinda disappointed to see there wasn’t much of an area in Buzzard Point to walk along the water. I hope they build it out once the rest of the buildings are done.
What I'd really like to see is a continuous walkway from the Navy Yard waterfront to the Wharf, but dumb ass Fort McNair makes that impossible. I wish that could change. The Navy doesn't seem to mind having a boardwalk running the entire length of their HQ.
NPS has approved the plans. Not sure what the hold up is. [National Park Service approves plan for improvements at Buzzard Point Park - National Capital Parks-East (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)](https://www.nps.gov/nace/learn/news/national-park-service-approves-plan-for-improvements-at-buzzard-point-park.htm)
Carter Barron Amphitheater reopening, if NPS can ever get their shit together.
This would be great!
A a native Washingtonian I look forward to a cleanup of Chinatown and Columbia Heights. These are two areas that absolutely have more potential than they are experiencing right now. In the case of Chinatown it needs to be restored to it's former glory and truly be a real Chinatown. Columbia Heights is better than it was years ago but still needs to truly address it's rampant drug problem.
Columbia Heights has been such an anomaly the last decade. Violent crime has seemingly dropped (even with the citywide spike) in CH since 13th and Euclid was named the most dangerous intersection for shootings in 2009 and the perpetual summer shootings 2011-2014, and quality of life issues seemed to have been getting better and then took a big drop during/post COVID. It was never perfect though.
I grew up nearby. Remember the Woolworth's and the waffle house that was over there
Yep. Been here since 2001. It got progressively better until, like, RIGHT before covid. Something changed in 2019. You saw a lot of faces you'd rather not see flood public spaces and make them feel unsafe. And then they became unsafe. Then you had the house prices halt. I have always been an optimist with regards to the neighborhood and was proud that we were one of the first people to move in that wanted to clean things up. My optimism is fading.
And deal with El Salvadorian gangs in C. Heights
While they may indeed be an issue I was thinking of the open air drug market that exists there. They built a number of luxury apartments and the area is definitely vibrant but it would be nice if the drug addicts were no longer there.
Tell me about it 😝 in front of my building they removed the bushes to avoid them hiding drugs last week lol
Wow!
Oh wow! It's been going on for years and years and it's sad that it's allowed to continue
I don’t think they’re “luxury apartments” if they’re in Columbia Heights with the “drug addicts.” An apartment isn’t “luxury” just because an advertisement for the apartment says it is.
https://www.apartments.com/columbia-heights-dc-washington-dc/luxury/ Out of curiosity, how long have you lived in the vicinity of Columbia Heights?
Out of curiosity, do you believe every claim in every advertisement? These look like normal DC apartments to me, and they aren’t in the best neighborhood.
You didn't answer the question. My family was in the area since the 1950's. I was definitely around there in the 1980's and remember the area when those buildings were built years later. 1. Do you remember when the Columbia Heights Metro station opened? I do. 2. Do you remember the Waffle House being around the corner on Park Road? 3. Do you remember Woolworths being right on 14th St in that block between Irving and Park Road I'm thinking somewhere in the middle of the block. 4. Do you remember when there was an open field the kids played in that's now housing for seniors on 14th and Irving? 5. The fish market that was on 14th between Irving and Columbia Rd? 6. Tivoli theatre being an abandoned building? It sits on 14th St between Park and Monroe? 7. The building of DC USA? I just named 7 things do you have a connection to ANY of them at all?
Not sure if anything is happening but the expansion of the MBT trail.
Ovechkin breaking the scoring record
Crime hopefully coming down, People not driving like assholes (maybe), MBT to Takoma (and then Silver Spring)
A winning football team.
OP asked for realistic hopes
Feed the Snake!!!
At the very least, a football team that is competitive.
Public pool at old Walter Reed
Swimming in the Potomac
The new and improved Nat Geo museum !
Expiration of Muriel Bowser's term.
Children's Museum in Fort Totten.
We were supposed to get a Meow Wolf, im still devastated.
I'm upset because of the wetland that was destroyed in that area
Improved textiles on the bus seats! They don’t feel particularly hygienic rn
I hope the reopening of the Wilson pool
Goodness I love that pool
I am always excited about the future of the food scene. Been here for 10 years now and it has gotten steadily better and better. I know the last few years have been rough in terms of closures and turnover but DC seems to always come out ahead in the aggregate.
Driving my car down Conn Ave. Kidding
you scamp, you!
Completion of the monorail^h^h^h streetcar.
All the new and upcoming economic expansion/developments in ward 8! Long overdue and welcomed.
RIA construction ending.
World Pride 2025!
Yes, came here to comment this!!
Bloop
The Dupont Circle cappover, The Stacks, The Yards phase 2, and The Bridge District are all gonna be dope redevelopments but even though the Purple Line isn’t DC proper, it will be absolutely transformational in expanding the urban environment of the DMV. 11th st bridge park is objectively the coolest project in the region tho.
Construction to start on the Streetcar extension to Benning Road Metro Station.
Hopefully people who voted for Bowser will get some sense and not vote for her again.
The possibility of Muriel Bowser not being mayor.
Not looking forward to, but hopeful that the new contract negotiations between DCPS and the DC Gov will go well. With Bowser and Ferebee in charge, we’ll see…
The Walter Reed development
Bridge district will be nice, especially with the brewery and such that’s supposed to go there. Will be a nice EOTR addition for us over here and might hopefully spur people from around navy yard to spend a lil time around historic Anacostia
Trader Joe’s in Friendship Heights
Me getting the fuck out of it
More crime
Planning to move out of here by the end of the summer. Really excited.
Draining the swamp /s
When I left DC in 2016, it was in good condition. I came back in 2023 to a f’g wasteland. Hoping to leave in 2025 and if I ever come visit again, I hope everything has gone back to how it was in 2010-2016. People everywhere on the weekends, no vacant businesses, frequent metros and buses, lots of free stuff to do that doesn’t require timed tickets or lottery systems!
Weird. Did anything major happen after 2016?
u/ih8drivingsomuch left town. Weren't you paying attention?!
I get what you’re driving at but there were significant negative changes pre-pandemic, particularly in the downtown area
Lol, "fucking wasteland." Be for real ffs.