Re: City to Host Holmes Run Bike & Pedestrian Trail Restoration Project Update on Wednesday, July 28

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E Wright

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Jul 20, 2021, 6:07:17 PM7/20/21
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Can anyone confirm if the city has posted notices of the meeting below in any of the information kiosks along the HR Trail/Greenway?

Elizabeth 


On Tue, Jul 20, 2021 at 5:13 PM Alexandria eNews <nor...@everbridge.net> wrote:

City to Host Holmes Run Bike & Pedestrian Trail Restoration Project Community Meeting on Wednesday, July 28

For Immediate Release: July 20, 2021

The Department of Recreation, Parks & Cultural Activities and the Department of Project Implementation will host a community meeting to provide an update one the Holmes Run Bike & Pedestrian Trail Restoration Project on Wednesday, July 28 at 6:30 p.m. at the Patrick Henry Recreation Center (located at 4653 Taney Ave.). The purpose of the meeting will be to share information on the restoration schedule, planned restoration activities, and answer questions. 

In 2018, a portion of Holmes Run Trail, within Dora Kelley Park, that connects to North Morgan Street was closed due to flooding and severe erosion that undermined the stability and structural integrity of the trail and boardwalk. In 2019, the City received historic flooding, which severely damaged three additional sections of Holmes Run Trail, including two bridge structures. The 2018 and 2019 flood events completely undermined the trail base and caused significant erosion around the trail and undermined the structural integrity of the two bridges. As part of the design phase of the restoration project the City will study how the flood impacted Holmes Run and determine how the trail, bridges, and slopes should be modified/stabilized to minimize potential damage from future flood events.

For additional information, visit the Holmes Run Trail Repairs project website or contact Jack Browand, Acting Deputy Director, with the Department of Recreation, Parks & Cultural Activities at jack.b...@alexandriava.gov.

For reasonable disability accommodation, contact jack.b...@alexandriava.gov or call 703.746.504, Virginia Relay 711.

# # #

This news release is available at alexandriava.gov/123385.

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Peter Watkins

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Jul 22, 2021, 5:42:29 PM7/22/21
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As of this afternoon there seem to be none. I looked at each kiosk and sign post between Eisenhower Ave and the end of the nature center and saw printed signs about City contact phone numbers, Heat-Related Illness, nature center programs, etc. but nothing about this meeting, even near the spots at Duke and between Pegram and Beauregard that were most damaged and remain closed. (I did not check the barricades at Beauregard and Morgan but I did check the barricade at the southern approach to the old I-395 culvert tunnel.)

-Peter

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John Yuda

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Jul 23, 2021, 9:32:38 AM7/23/21
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Still nothing at the Latham Street entrance today (I’m walking the dog so not likely to visit any others right now)



E Wright

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Jul 23, 2021, 1:59:55 PM7/23/21
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John, perfect!  Thank you.  

T&ES turned over the bike trails over to Parks and Rec and Jack Browand is the contact point.  Thanks to attending the parks commission meetings forever Jack and I have a good relationship.  One contact and Jack will fix the notification. 

Sometimes it just takes turning the light 💡 switch on.  😎

When someone notices the notification posted, please advise.  This will include the dog parks in Cameron Station and on Duke Street.  

I bet Parks didn’t provide information for Beatley Library either, prime location for community information; especially for those who rely on print and not digital and it’s right there next to the trail.  

I’m on it!

Elizabeth 

Peter Watkins

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Jul 23, 2021, 9:33:46 PM7/23/21
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Wait a minute... that photo... bike route 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.? Note that's different (more generous) than the "park" hours, but it still limits the viability of the trail for bike transportation. How long has that restriction been on the sign?

On Fri, Jul 23, 2021 at 9:32 AM John Yuda <jo...@yuda.org> wrote:

Peter Watkins

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Jul 23, 2021, 9:57:23 PM7/23/21
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Answering my own question: 5am to 10pm seems to be an IMO harsh (mis)reading of City Ordinance 6-1-1 - Public parks and playgrounds—closing hours: "It shall be unlawful for any person to go upon or remain upon the lands or premises of any public park or public playground within the city between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., eastern standard time or daylight saving time, whichever time is in effect; except..."

The sign itself differentiates between the "park" and the "bike route". City ordinance 6-1-1 (b) does authorize changing "the hours of operation of any public park or public playground" if those hours are posted, so,,, if the "bike route" is a "park" premises, why are its hours different from the "park", and if it's not park premises, where does that 5am-10pm range come from?

Also, if this "bike route" is a "park" and subject to the 6-1-1 (a) hours, doesn't that suggest that many other trails like the Potomac Yard Trail have nightly 10p.m. curfews unless otherwise posted?

-Peter

John Yuda

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Jul 23, 2021, 10:49:59 PM7/23/21
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Those have been the trail hours as long as I can remember (although I’ll admit I don’t tend to look at any of the signs that closely).

I also seriously doubt they’re enforced very vigorously, unless people are making a lot of noise. (This doesn’t mean they’re the right decision, mind you).

That particular stretch is _extremely_ dark after the sun goes down; there are no artificial lights at all and the tree canopy limits how much moonlight gets in. I’m not sure I’d recommend it as a route regardless of the hours.

casey...@gmail.com

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Jul 24, 2021, 4:28:05 PM7/24/21
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My recollection is that the City modified the hours the parks were open just a few years ago. Before that most, if not all parks were open sunrise to sunset. In fact, some signs still reflect the those hours.

Here is one at the Vermont Avenue entrance to Tarleton Park.



A colleague was stopped by police officers in Four Mile Run Park a couple of years ago for riding after dark in the park. Note the sign below permits limited use of “lighted trails”. 



The City needs to recognize that the trails are part of the transportation network and ensure that proper funding is available to maintain them to include maintenance, wayfinding, and snow removal and of course they are used 24-hours a day. 

Casey
Sent from my iPad

On Jul 23, 2021, at 10:50 PM, John Yuda <jo...@yuda.org> wrote:



David Bouk

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Jul 24, 2021, 4:43:27 PM7/24/21
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I got chased off of 4 Mile Run Park Trail after 10 PM one night by a police cruiser driving down the trail. For me, 4MRT is the safest way to get from Commonwealth and its bike lane over to Old Dominion Ave and its bike lane in the northern part of the city.

David Bouk

Jonathan Krall

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Jul 24, 2021, 6:18:53 PM7/24/21
to alexand...@googlegroups.com, David Bouk

The specificity of your description on how to get from a bike lane (on Commonwealth) to a bike lane (on Dominion) illustrates the need for a network of safe bike routes. The people in cars have a gazillion ways to get from point A to point B. By bicycle, we struggle to come up with safe routes

 

Jonathan Krall

Steve Palincsar

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Jul 25, 2021, 10:20:14 AM7/25/21
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The problem is, the way the streets are laid out in Alexandria, about the only realistic connector between those two streets up at the north end of town other than the route David described is East and West Glebe, and that route is very hazardous for bicyclists. 

Much better to continue on Commonwealth to Four Mile Run and take the Four Mile Run Park Trail west, take the left fork at the south end of the soccer field, cross Mt Vernon onto Four Mile Rd and then head south on Old Dominion Blvd.   Except for that very short stretch on Four Mile Run Rd and Old Dominion north of W Glebe, it is bike trails and bike lanes all the way.

Very far to the south, one could take Windsor, Russell, Woodland Terrace and Cameron Mills and then cut east to Old Dominion, but that's kind of circuitous as well.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/alexandriabpac/2857f2af1d3a010ac16202a925abed62%40jonathankrall.net.
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Steve Palincsar
Alexandria, Virginia 
USA
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