January 25, 2003
Participants will evaluate five transportation options at third public workshop for South Capitol Street Gateway Study
(Washington, DC) -- Area residents, small business owners, commuters, bicyclists and other interested parties are invited to participate in the South Capitol Street Gateway Study's third public workshop, from 9 am to 12 pm on January 25, 2003, at Savoy Elementary School (2400 Shannon Place, SE). Registration begins at 8:30 am.
Hosted by the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), this workshop is the third of four related to the South Capitol Street Gateway Study. The purpose of the study is to identify options for improving the livability, economic development, urban design and access (pedestrian, transit and vehicular) in the South Capitol Street Corridor between Independence Avenue and Suitland Parkway (including Frederick Douglass Bridge), and New Jersey Avenue between Independence Avenue and M Street, SE. DDOT wants to engage all interested parties in the process of defining these options.
At the January workshop, DDOT will provide newly developed material and drawings that clearly demonstrate different traffic and right-of-way possibilities. These added details should help participants visualize potential effects of each option, and are based on public comment from the most recent workshop (December 7), which more than 70 people attended.
In small facilitated groups, participants will evaluate five transportation options based on benefits and drawbacks of each—including residential, financial, environmental, aesthetic, economic and historic impacts. One of the options involves making no transportation changes at all to the area; others involve new or improved bridges; another option features a new tunnel.
Participants will also be asked to consider how options will affect land use and infrastructure, including regional and local transportation, neighborhood revitalization, the relationship to the Anacostia waterfront and the creation of a gateway/boulevard to the Nation's capital.
DDOT launched the study this year in response to direction from Congress, the United States Department of Transportation, neighborhood residents and businesses, and the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative.
The January meeting will take place at Savoy Elementary School, located across the street from the Anacostia Metro Station. It is wheelchair accessible by entering from the parking lot facing Talbert Street. Persons with special needs should contact DDOT at (202) 671-2244 as soon as possible. Light refreshments and limited child assistance will be provided.
Data collected at the first and second public meeting are currently available at DDOT's website for the study, and at the PublicSpaceTM website developed by Justice and Sustainability Associates, LLP, where participants can also contribute comments and feedback. The fourth and final public meeting is scheduled for March 1, 2003.
