Posts tagged Libraries
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Boxing Day links: bikes, buses and blogs
Ticket dismissed: One of the bicyclists ticketed for riding the wrong way on New Hampshire Avenue by U Street, Sam DuPont, successfully appealed his citation. DuPont argued that “going the wrong way on NH was the only safe way to navigate that part of the city, and that DDOT has recognized this fact in their plans to install contraflow bike lanes on that very block.”… Keep reading…
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Breakfast links: Bridging the gap
No skybridges allowed? After a Montgomery County Council committee voted to choose an option for the Silver Spring Library containing a $684,000 (and unnecessary) skybridge, Planning Board Staff discovered a 1999 policy for Silver Spring prohibiting skybridges. The Council may hold another community meeting in January to dedcide. Keep reading…
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Urbanism in the public realm: the Silver Spring library
Last Thursday, I attended the public meeting on the new Silver Spring Library. As David already posted, the consultants, RKTL, have proposed a variety of options for discussion. Only four options remain: 1b, 1c, 6a, and 6b. The others had to be disqualified, as some were impractical for the library, while others wouldn’t attract a private developer to build the residential… Keep reading…
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Skybridges and voids return in Silver Spring library designs
Back in February, when this blog had recently launched, the issue that generated the most comments was… skybridges. This 1960s design fad, which segregated pedestrians into elevated crossings from building to building, made streets less safe and damaged the pedestrian character in cities like Des Moines and Denver. Keep reading…
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Cheh, Brown ask to shelve Tenley library PPP
Councilmembers Mary Cheh and Kwame Brown have formally asked Mayor Fenty to stop pursuing a public-private partnership for the Tenley library and the adjacent Janney school. The original idea was a good one: the library is a low-rise building on a major corner that could support housing above, and help fund a better library and expansion for Janney. Keep reading…
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Better Know a Single-Member District: 7D06
“The fightin’ 7D06” Walkable urbanism is coming to 7D06 and the surrounding neighborhood. The burning political question in the area is, are residents ready for it, and will it benefit their community? 7D06 is one of four Single-Member Districts touching the corner of Minnesota Avenue and Benning Road, often called “downtown Ward 7.”… Keep reading…
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Cheh, Wells, Fisher on car-freedom
Marc Fisher spoke to Councilmembers Mary Cheh and Tommy Wells at last week’s Car-Free Day. Fisher relays anecdotes about Harriet Tregoning converting her free office parking space into bike parking, and about Marion Barry moving Tommy Wells’ bike to take one of the parking spaces at the Wilson building. Keep reading…
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Library victory in Shaw, Brooklanders still fighting for trees
In 2004, DC closed the the Watha T. Daniel library in Shaw and several other libraries, to replace the aging buildings with new, modern facilities. Though the interior drew some criticism, neighbors widely praised the open, airy glass design as a huge improvement over the prison-like, concrete, Brutalist original library. Keep reading…
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Dinner links: We can do better edition
Cheh comes out against Tenley library plan: NIMBYs and smart growth advocates have common ground on the LCOR development proposal for the Tenley-Friendship Library: they all hate it. A mixed-use building with housing and shops along with a library is a good idea for that high-traffic corner, but sources who know about the proposal say it’s a bad one, and Councilmember Mary… Keep reading…
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Late night links: familiar battle lines edition
Moran, Oberstar defend transit: Virginia’s Burke Connection covered Monday’s town hall meeting in Tysons. Oberstar, the chair of the House Transportation Committee, got most of the quotes in the article, defending light rail and criticizing the federal funding formula which ignores many factors. And, like all pro-transit officials, he expressed a clear hope that… Keep reading…