Poll: Seven Corners Residents (Arlington, Annandale: fit in, motels, home)

[Carlingtonian]

Originally Posted by tysonsengineer

For anyone who has actually driven seven corners at rush hour, the roundabout again will do NOTHING to help traffic. This proposal is not a traffic mitigation. It will simply maintain the traffic flow which is congested no matter what due to the daily back up on Route 50 to 495. There is nothing that can be done to fix that except for a more efficient system other than vehicle only, not gonna happen this decade :P

This proposal would simply be to maintain traffic (which wont be hard because its an S show) and not make it any worse but the benefit is to provide a clear and direct pedestrian path that creates a safer way of crossing, and to reorganize the mess of lanes to reduce the over all width being used by the intersections.

Traffic for cars will remain bad until a better solution is found for Route 50, no matter what is done on the corner.

Ah. So it won't help traffic but will cost millions of dollars, with the intent of shoehorning a bunch more people nearby. No thanks.

Urbanists justify their advocacy for additional density (TOD) near transit stations by saying it allows developers to leave the suburban areas alone. This argument ends up being an unwritten, uneasy peace between suburbanites and urbanists. You want mixed-use TOD? You already have most of DC and just about anywhere along the Metro corridors. Leave us our box stores with parking, a short drive from our quiet, leafy neighborhoods of detached houses. And leave us our roads, clogged and imperfect they may be, without ploinking additional residents near them. (And I hate to tell you, but those residents will bring cars with them--especially in a site that far from the Metro.)

Re. pedestrians: There's already a large, recently built bridge over Route 50, right near the Home Depot. It's seldom used. Instead, what few pedestrians there are insist on crossing at P. Henry, ignoring this massively expensive bridge built specifically for them.

Not everywhere can or should be a pedestrian area.

Originally Posted by spencgr

While many people were adamantly opposed to the roundabouts on Rt 50 and Rt 15 in Loudoun, I don't think there is anyone now who can deny how much they have helped traffic in that area.

I would not be opposed to a roundabout per se--but I would very much oppose the construction of any new residences nearby.

[Darkseid]

Originally Posted by Carlingtonian

Ah. So it won't help traffic but will cost millions of dollars, with the intent of shoehorning a bunch more people nearby. No thanks.

Well, the county has already approved a hotel and some town houses on Seven Corners. They are due to break ground this fall. Then on top of that, the fitness center retrofit is already underway and the offices just south of the Bank of America will be completed soon. So the density is already increasing and going to increase even more. So that should not really be part of the argument

However, it is ridiculous that one will need a car let's say to get from the hotel and/or the new townhouses to (safely) get to Eden Center. And what are we talking about here? About a quarter mile or so? And you have to drive??

[tysonsengineer]

It wont cost millions is the point. The super structure is in place. What it will help is keeping people from being killed. But seeing as all you car about is getting in your car and going everywhere Carlingtonian, I suppose you could care less about people who DONT have that luxury and live right next to where they work or shop. The BRIDGE was largely fought against because it is stupidly located and serves very few shops and residents and causes people to walk an extra half mile out of their way from the most popular and most populated regions.

Thats the idiocy of fairfax, Never listening to what people actually want even though it would cost less.

[tysonsengineer]

Originally Posted by Carlingtonian

Ah. So it won't help traffic but will cost millions of dollars, with the intent of shoehorning a bunch more people nearby. No thanks.

Urbanists justify their advocacy for additional density (TOD) near transit stations by saying it allows developers to leave the suburban areas alone. This argument ends up being an unwritten, uneasy peace between suburbanites and urbanists. You want mixed-use TOD? You already have most of DC and just about anywhere along the Metro corridors. Leave us our box stores with parking, a short drive from our quiet, leafy neighborhoods of detached houses. And leave us our roads, clogged and imperfect they may be, without ploinking additional residents near them. (And I hate to tell you, but those residents will bring cars with them--especially in a site that far from the Metro.)

Re. pedestrians: There's already a large, recently built bridge over Route 50, right near the Home Depot. It's seldom used. Instead, what few pedestrians there are insist on crossing at P. Henry, ignoring this massively expensive bridge built specifically for them.

Not everywhere can or should be a pedestrian area.



I would not be opposed to a roundabout per se--but I would very much oppose the construction of any new residences nearby.

PS, its not your RIGHT as an Arlington resident to tell people who live in Seven corners they cant have what they want (the majority wants walkability and safer access and less road in this region). Get it? You dont live there, so you dont get to say YOU want the box stores. THEY dont want the massive road ways keeping them from being able to do stuff. Why dont you read the actually visioning workshop statements and realize that you can't enslave others under your wishes for access to stores for same reason why people outside of arlington shouldnt be allowed to come through arlington and put a highway on your front lawn.

Id love to see what your reaction to THAT would be.

If you cant stand the fact that almost all of your neighbors and those in this region want something to change about the crappy planning, then maybe you should move to a place that loves strip malls, highways, and nothing to do. Seems like a perfect fit. Otherwise you are the minority in the fight against walking.

[mrchanello]

i liked "mixed use hipster nirvana" ... otherwise, I would prefer some improvements to make the area slightly more navigable and safe for pedestrians

[spencgr]

Originally Posted by tysonsengineer

It wont cost millions is the point.

Really? I'd like to see a budget that puts a roundabout at Seven Corners that doesn't cost millions. I haven't seen any infrastructure project cost less than a million dollars, usually much, much more. The 4 Gilbert's Corner roundabouts were budgeted at 16M, or $4M a piece. Are you saying that the new roundabout at Seven Corners, connecting multiple lanes of multiple major intersections (and also include pedestrian walkability) is going to be dramatically less complicated to design than Gilbert's Corner?

[tysonsengineer]

There is no right of way acquisition with my concept, in fact approximately 1 acre of right of way would be sold back at auction which would pay for the minor changes to the super structure. The roads already all come to what is essentially a round about. Except at the time this was done VDOT was against roundabouts so they created the intersection mess that we see today. To say it will cost millions (plural) is a stretch. The largest costs for transportation projects are usually 1) right of way acquisition 2) structural costs. In this case both of these things already exist. The largest correction necessary is 350' of realignment for Route 7 in the eastbound direction. The project, when right of way sale is balanced, would cost around 1, MAYBE 2 million to change out the curb returns, add a standard walk. The landscape would be provided with a separate fund not necessary with the actual revision to the project whose funding could be generated with a public parking garage whose price would be regulated by the chamber of commerce, does not exist at this time, or other regulating local board. The roundabout itself doesnt cost that much to construct. Public parking garage would be paid for by the new developers asking for rezoning.

[spencgr]

Originally Posted by tysonsengineer

The landscape would be provided with a separate fund not necessary with the actual revision to the project whose funding could be generated with a public parking garage whose price would be regulated by the chamber of commerce, does not exist at this time, or other regulating local board.

I'm sorry, but what attractions, businesses, or shopping are you putting in to lure people with cars who will pay to park at Seven Corners? I can't think of any reason to pay to park there (short of a good bahn-mi, but I'd think twice if I had to pay to park). It certainly isn't the Home Depot of Death, the "fake" DSW, the seedy motels, or the flag store.

I think it is flawed rationale to say a project won't cost a certain amount, just because you've divied up the funding from various sources.

[Carlingtonian]

Originally Posted by tysonsengineer

PS, its not your RIGHT as an Arlington resident to tell people who live in Seven corners they cant have what they want (the majority wants walkability and safer access and less road in this region). Get it? You dont live there, so you dont get to say YOU want the box stores. THEY dont want the massive road ways keeping them from being able to do stuff. Why dont you read the actually visioning workshop statements and realize that you can't enslave others under your wishes for access to stores for same reason why people outside of arlington shouldnt be allowed to come through arlington and put a highway on your front lawn.

Id love to see what your reaction to THAT would be.

If you cant stand the fact that almost all of your neighbors and those in this region want something to change about the crappy planning, then maybe you should move to a place that loves strip malls, highways, and nothing to do. Seems like a perfect fit. Otherwise you are the minority in the fight against walking.

I'll say exactly what I want, son. You can have all the "workshops" you want full of people with nothing better to do on a weeknight. Meanwhile, my neighbors (none of whom support this) and I will continue to enjoy and advocate for the "massive" roadways (like Route 50) that make life convenient.

[CaliTerp07]

Originally Posted by tysonsengineer

maybe you should move to a place that loves strip malls, highways, and nothing to do. Seems like a perfect fit. Otherwise you are the minority in the fight against walking.

I did (Burke), but then you come one here and tell me I'm wrong for not wanting town centers and whatever else put into the middle of my old strip malls that I actually like just fine.

What's the balance?