ROCKVILLE — A pedestrian path linking Kennett Street with East-West Highway is scheduled to sprout from the asphalt later this year, one county rep announced.
Currently, the path at 1008 East-West Hwy (below) is just an alley dissecting a thick city block in South Silver Spring, Rick Nelson, director of the county’s department of housing and community affairs, told county council members Monday. Neighborhood businesses had been using it for parking during construction of The Veridian’s semi-public garage off East-West Highway.
Now that The Veridian’s garage is open for business, the county is ready to roll on the planned path, Nelson said. The department of general services has already requested a demolition permit to wipe out a building in the path’s way, he said.
The planned path is another piece of the hood’s larger pedestrian plan, designed to smash large city blocks into manageable, pedestrian-friendly pieces. (Think peanut brittle. I know I am.) That plan includes the already-buff Arts Alley, linking Georgia Avenue and the new Blair Mill Way. There’s also a sidewalk lining the Eastern Avenue entrance to the Kennett Street garage that gives pedestrians a way to cut through that block.
Designs on the new path drop this spring, with construction starting late in the summer or in early fall. According to a county council memo, the path is a vehicular and pedestrian link with a budget of $680,000.
Photo of an alley courtesy of Flickr user Roomic Cube.
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They are going to more substantial connections in several places across the rail tracks if they truly want to connect silver spring. There are thousands of residents living along e-w highway and in the blairs that would patronize businesses in DTSS if they could just walk there. Right now, most have to drive.
Penguin photog Ron Pace found a good shot of the planned walkway, courtesy of Google Maps.
More links across the railroad tracks would be very useful.
As in the past, I agree with W’sider 110% on this.
Yup, I was just complaining about this the other day. I generally don’t drive down there, I do walk, but I’m much less inclined to go because I have to walk all around everything to get down there. A path over the tracks would be fantabulous.
Where would this hypothetical link/bridge over the tracks go? I’m curious what people are envisioning.
The linking bridge ought to go where either Silver Spring or Sligo intersects the train tracks. Turn to be perpendicular to the tracks and you’d come out in between some existing buildings. Drag a walk out to East-West Highway and bingo. Geographically the one at Silver Spring would be better because of its proximity to Blair World and getting them in on the Fenton Village action. Sligo would be better aesthetically cause it would dump into the neat-o plaza between Canada Dry and the Veridian(?).
I apparently am in the minority here, but one of the reasons that we moved to South Silver Spring was the walkability and the easy access to Downtown Silver Spring. We never drive unless it’s raining or we’re going to get groceries at Whole Foods. Is an extra two or three blocks on East West Highway really a reason not to patronize the downtown businesses?
There is already a pedestrian tunnel that runs from behind the Veridian (E-W highway), under the train tracks and leads to an exit located next to the old B&O railroad station (Georgia Ave). It is currently closed but if they were to reopen it, that would greatly help individuals from the Veridian area get to businesses in South Silver Spring.
M’eh, I’m with JF. I don’t mind the walk from South Silver Spring to the downtown shopping center.
I know from personal experience that people recovering from injuries, or who simply find walking difficult, appreciate any shortcuts that let them get from here to there with as little pain as possible. So on balance, this sounds like a good thing.
While many of the readers of this blog might be walkers (I certainly am), as a society in general we are not. All I’m saying is: make it easier for people to get across the tracks and far more peds will patronize businesses on both sides. Once those two highrises are built in the Ripley District, there will be thousands more residents who would patronize the Giant shopping center.
I’m envisioning the small rivers that run through many European towns…there are bridges every few blocks to connect the towns’ two sides together.
Don’t get me wrong, Woodsider. If the sidewalk gods grant us a bridge connecting the Ripley District with South Silver Spring, I’d probably use it (as long as it’s safe). I’m just saying the extra walking doesn’t keep me from visiting Georgia Avenue businesses now.
I’m glad that this third pedestrian bridge is finally going to be created. We love our walkability in South Silver Spring!
It should also be noted that this site is on the perimeter of what could possibly be a small neighborhood park. The County has discussed creating a park in that area, bound by East-West Highway, the Gramax apartment building, Kennett street and the smaller Discovery (Caldor) building. But in very tough budgetary times, I am not sure what the likelihood is of getting such a park or the aforementioned pedestrian bridge.
Editor’s note: Just so that we’re all on the same page, what’s being constructed is a sidewalk shortcut and NOT a bridge over the CSX tracks. Anyways, give it up for my man, Southside Evan, president of the South Silver Spring Neighborhood Association. — JD (Jan 31, 2009)
Speaking of construction (or lack thereof), what’s going on with the Silver Spring Transit Center? I just saw them pack up another large piece of excavating equipment on a trailer and there’s almost nothing left. They planted grass seed on the area they’ve already dug out – that usually means nothing is going to happen there for a long time. How come there hasn’t been any article on this?
Editor’s note: I’d be happy to supply weekly updates on the progress of that grass seed. ;-)
Seriously, David Dise, with the county’s department of general services, told county council members last week that the transit center project was still cooking with oil. — JD (Feb 4, 2009)
Thanks JD – you might need to explain that “cooking with oil” metaphor – does that mean progress continues? If so, what’s the point of digging out a retention pond in the middle of where the new bus lane will be and planting grass seed when they haven’t finished half of the excavation?
Just FYI – There are currently 3 main ways to get from SouthSS to the other side of the tracks -
1. walk to Georgia, then walk along Georgia either follow the sidewalk under the red-trimmed rail bridge OR walk up the steps and over it using the bike path.
2. walk to Colesville Road, walk under the rail bridge (where the Penguin painting was) on other side of Colesville
3. walk through the NOAA public parking garage, cross up and over the tracks – near the MARC train station
#3 seems to be a well-kept secret some helpful SIGNAGE on both sides would save a lot of people the extra shoe leather.
Sure, two of those ways get you to “the other side of the tracks”, but they don’t put you near the center of the “action” in DTSS. One requires a hike up Wayne through the transit mess and the other requires the ever-pleasant experience of walking along the narrow sidewalk on on sleepy Georgia Ave and then under the train trestle. If we continue to say “why don’t people just walk around”, then we’ll continue to have residents living in South SS who won’t patronize DTSS (or will drive there). Make it easy to get there and the dollars will flow…and the sidewalks will be animated.
And the third is a walk through a parking garage. None are desireable and none are direct routes.
Could someone please elaborate on number 3?
The pedestrian tunnel behind the Veridian that leads out to the old B&O train station was originally built as a pedestrian entrance to that side of the tracks…Why not rehab it and put it back in operation? Little expense involved other than clean up and lighting.
I have been hoping for a couple years that “they” will open up the pedestrian tunnel by the old train station or construct pedestrian bridges connecting South Silver Spring to Georgia Ave. Given the new residential construction south of the tracks both of these ideas make even more sense.
Who is “they”? Who has the power to open up the tunnel or start the process of constructing a pedestrian bridge(s)? Anyone know?
Editor’s note: “They” would be the county, but reopening that tunnel probably won’t happen anytime soon, if at all. — JD (Feb 9, 2009)
To use option #3, you have to enter the parking garage under the NOAA building 3 (at the garage entrance closest to Colesville Road, walk up several levels of stairs (don’t remember how many – might be as many as four), and then you can walk out on a platform that’s at the same level as the railroad tracks. You then have to walk up more flights of stairs to get to the bridge over the tracks, cross to the other side, and then walk back down a flight of stairs to get at the track level at the other side. With the (supposed) construction of the Silver Spring Transit Center, you then have to walk all the way around the construction area, which then puts you at the corner of Dixon and Bonnefant. The whole thing was designed for commuters on the MARC trains – it’s not really a shortcut.
I work in NOAA building 2, and the word around here was that there were a lot of muggings in the tunnel to the old train station. One of the victims worked on my floor — those events probably contributed to the decision to close the tunnel. Any replacement for that would have to be an open, well-lighted bridge with gradual ramps on either side, otherwise I don’t think enough people would be willing to use it to justify the construction expense.