http://odd.greatergreaterwashi...s/2012/mdaveplan.pdf
Executive Summary
The Maryland Avenue Southwest (SW) Plan (“the Plan&rdquo
presents an opportunity for the District, with the objective of restoring the L’Enfant street grid and turning an office enclave of 60,000 office workers into a residential mixed-use neighborhood, just south of the National Mall. The study area is located in Ward 6, and is bounded by 6th and 12th Streets, SW, along the Maryland Avenue SW corridor.
The Plan was initiated by the Office of Planning (OP) in February 2011. It summarizes the viability of decking and establishing Maryland Avenue SW, currently occupied by the rail corridor, and creates a framework to build mixed-use development as land is conveyed from federal to private use. It also provides options for a reconstructed Avenue and multi-modal facility at L’Enfant Station that integrates VRE, Metrorail, and Metro Bus services, and envisions accommodating MARC, Amtrak, commuter buses and the Streetcar system in the future.
The vision for the Maryland Avenue corridor is to serve as the spine of a livable and walkable neighborhood for residents, tourists and office workers –one that is visually and physically connected to the Capitol and integrated into the environmental systems of the National Capital Planning Commission’s Southwest Ecodistrict. Recommendations in the Plan provide for novel live near your work housing, year-round event programming in signature open spaces, abundant bicycle facilities, and new multi-modal services.
Near term improvements, like underpass enhancements, should be the immediate focus for implementation in order to change the office-only perceptions and create better north-south linkages between the National Mall and waterfront. However, building the reconstructed Avenue is critical to the long term evolution of downtown, particularly as additional redevelopment opportunities unfold in Southwest.
Critical partnerships and additional planning are necessary to make the vision for Maryland Avenue a reality, beginning with the establishment of ownership arrangements and funding toolkit strategies. Both a street and park, with opportunities to filter and reuse rainwater, establish tree canopy, generate electricity and improve walkability, Maryland Avenue will be a livable green amenity that defines an emerging neighborhood
