bottom of 18th St. June 10th, 2009
Night at the busy intersection at the bottom of 18th street, the end of the Adams Morgan strip. And that’s all I got for today. Happy Wednesday!
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damp. June 4th, 2009
My title for this photo on my flickr stream is “Damp” and that is exactly how I’m going to be after my ride home in the rain today. Or maybe the term is “totally saturated”. Either way, RAIN RAIN GO AWAY!
Rainy night in Adams Morgan as seen with Olympus XA2.
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Tags: DC, Night, XA2, adams morgan, urban
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Lecture Report: The High Cost of Free Parking – Donald Shoup May 28th, 2009
At the Masonic Temple in Alexandria last night Dr. Donald Shoup held a lecture on his recent book, “The High Cost of Free Parking.” Dr. Shoup has caused quite a few ripples with findings and has been called everything from the “Rock Star of Parking” to “Anti-American” (guessing the second one might have come from somewhere in Michigan).
Shoup’s discussion centered, as the name of his book indicates, on the real cost associated with free parking, particularly free street parking, and the benefits that communities can see by using performance based pricing for the parking. As nothing in life comes free, he argues that free parking is only free to us in our roll as drivers, but that we pay for it in all other aspects of our lives. This means that we are paying increased taxes to maintain parking, paying for the distorted urban form and degraded sense of place that comes along with auto-centric planning, paying for it through the increased burden the environment, paying for it through increased housing costs that are bundled with parking spaces, and paying for it through lowered redevelopment/reuse of older buildings due prohibitive parking requirements. To compact these many woes and to use parking as a positive generator for change, Shoup recommends three key reforms that he has seen work in communities across the country:
-1: use performance based pricing for street parking which will leave 1-2 or 85% of spots on all blocks available at all times
-2: return all revenue generated from parking in a community directly back to the community to increase public services
-3: reduce off street parking requirements in zoning
The use of performance-based pricing is possible now due to new technologies in the parking meter world, namely digital multi-space meters. The new meters can be adjusted to have different rates for different times of day, or for different lengths of stay on different days of the week. Because the meters are flexible in their set-up, city planning officials will be able to experiment and eventually hone in on “sweet spot” for pricing. This is not an immediate process and does require significant attention by planning officials, but it is a process that will pay huge dividends once completed. The “85% at all times” benchmark ensures that no matter when you come to park, you will be able to find a space and you will pay market value for that space. Managing parking in this manner insures that no time and energy (personal and petrol) are wasted cruising for spots and the fair market value price adjustments help to bring in more revenue during peak hours of usage — without overcharging during “off” periods. This approach can work for commercial streets which would be 100% metered and residential streets that would only require payment of the meter if the parked car did not have the appropriate zoned parking sticker.
Dr. Shoup found that initially many businesses were strongly resistant to a change from free street parking to metered street parking in front of their establishments. They thought that it would be bad for business and that they would reap no benefits. These feelings changed once the concept of keeping the money in the community for public services and improvements is introduced. One it is realized that benefits such as increased street cleaning, graffiti removal, alley improvements, overhead wire removal, plantings and street furniture in their immediate community could be achieved strictly through parking revenue, without an increase in taxes, business and community members became the biggest advocates.
In Old Pasadena, one of Shoup’s case studies, the institution of the meters and performance based parking rates raised $1.2 million dollars over the year for a 15-block area (roughly $80K in improvements and services PER BLOCK). Old Pasadena business owners even began to publicize the efforts through signs stating “Your Meter Money is Making a Difference” and listing out all the services that were being provided. Old Pasadena businesses have seen regeneration in business instead of a decline and life has been brought out to the streetscape.
The reduction in the code minimum parking will allow developers to build parking at a market dictated instead of code dictated rate. Removing the additional burden from developers will free up more money for design, streetscape improvements, etc. Additionally, Dr. Shoup states, it will allow for more adaptive reuse in old buildings that are currently restrained due to parking availability.
There are certainly areas that will be slow to adapt to these sort of ideas and changes to how we look at parking. The storage of automobiles will continue to trump the pedestrian experience for many communities, but this idea can have some foot-hold in more progressive cities and towns, particularly ones with good alternative forms of transportation and a walkable urban grid and scale. San Francisco is working to establish performance based parking around the city, and I believe that Washington, DC could benefit greatly from a similar policy. This is particularly true in mixed-use neighborhoods such as Adams Morgan, 14th/U St, and Dupont Circle where the neighborhood is amply served by public transit, parking as at a premium, and often residents are unable to find available spots on the residential streets due to people visiting the adjacent commercial establishments. Realizing this missed revenue stream can help to fund many of the streetscape improvement projects that are on the table waiting for funding and make the neighborhoods cleaner and safer places to live, work, and play.
Great lecture and another book to add to the reading list (hopefully on some BID and DDOT reading lists as well).
The above picture was taken in Adams Morgan with an Olympus XA2 35mm camera.
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Tags: DC, Olympus XA-2, U Street, adams morgan, cars, dupont circle, lecture, parking, urban
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mass civil disobedience March 4th, 2009
A large mural was installed in Adams Morgan that is in protest of clean coal technology. I assume that this is the product of the “This is Reality” group which have recently had a significant advertising presence in the metro. While I have not had a chance to do much reading on either side of this issue I really like the little dead canary logo that The Reality Coalition came up with so that is cool in my book. This particular mural features Ghandi, gas masks, and a group of anonymous workers.
The blurry (potentially headache inducing) affect is from my handi-dandi Lensbaby.
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Tags: DC, adams morgan, artwork, graffiti, lensbaby, mural, politics
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BARACK O’ RAMA (a tri-photo post) January 17th, 2009
I figure I’m going to be taking about a bazillion photos in the coming days so I thought I’d do a tri-photo post instead of a stingy single photo post…enjoy!
Lori and I met over at Tryst on Friday night for a few post work drinks. This minivan pulled up on 18th St. and started opening up shop. They had Obama signs, posters, hats, shirts, pins, and American flags all for sale at presumably obscene price, the one thing that they didn’t have, and keep in mind yesterday was the coldest day DC has seen in something like a decade, was customers. Hats off to them for their entrepreneurial spirit but sometimes you just need to bow to mother nature and realize that people are not, 5 days before the actual inauguration, going to stop in the freezing cold and buy patriotic paraphernalia (and don’t you need a permit for that sort of thing anyway?).
We watched the less than successful street vending from our comfortable perch at the window bar in Tryst. Special on the menu for this chilly January evening were three pleasantly warm drinks:
The Vermonter – Irish Whiskey and Irish Cream with hot chocolate topped with whipped cream, the Hot Vanilla Russian – Vanilla Kahlua and Vodka with hot coffee and steamed half n’ half topped with whipped cream, and the Caramel Apple – fresh steemedhot apple cider and caramel with Captain Morgan Spiced Rum. These are all delectable…very very delectable (we made sure to try each one…a couple times). If you happen to be in Adams Morgan I’d whole heartedly recommend stopping in for a pleasant winter warmer. Tried to figure out if the selection of drinks had any thing to do with President – Elect whose, now famous, Shepard Fairey portrait is prominently featured on the menu but could not come up with any particular connection. Anyone more politically in tune think of any relation of these drinks?
Just up the hill at the corner of 18th and Columbia Adams Morgan Mainstreet/Adams Morgan NOW are hosting a series of Republican Elephant pinata bashings. This photo is from the 1st of the bashings that occurred last night at 5:30p. Since then they have hosted 3 more bashings but don’t fret there are still opportunities available for those in need of getting out some pent up political anger. The schedule for the remaining times is as follows:
- Grand Central, Saturday 7p
- Tom Tom, Sunday 9:30p
- El Tamarindo, Tuesday 12 midnight
So go, get angry, shout into the mega phone about how Bush disappointed you in the last 8 years, smash the elephant pinata, subsequently eat some candy, stop by the kiosk and write down your hopes and message for the incoming administration, and generally enjoy yourself while doing so.
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Tags: DC, adams morgan, drinks, inauguration, nikon coolpix P5100
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fisheye mural January 10th, 2009
This crazy mural is in Adams Morgan on Columbia just past the top of 18th St. It features people playing misc instruments, exploding TV’s, a card game, and lots of other peculiar things. I like it and think it is fun. The best part (which unfortunately can not be seen in this shot) is a tag line that says “people without murals are demuralized people.
Oh and it was taken with my new Lomo Fisheye camera that is a lot of fun. CVS did a wonderful processing job on this roll that gave everything a nice red tint….booo CVS booooo!
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Tags: DC, adams morgan, artwork, fisheye, graffiti, mural
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Checkmate! January 8th, 2009
I have never seen anyone play chess at these outdoor tables at Marie Reed Park in Adams Morgan. In fact, you rarely ever see anyone at that playground area, but I guess that’s not to say it never happens…
David and I are currently in the middle of our second online chess game. (He won the first one, boo!) The time limit is 3 days to make a move, that makes it easier to allow for the DC – to – Alaska time difference and our schedules. It also makes it much harder for me to remember what I was doing the last time I moved. Or what I should say is that I am making a much slower and more strategic attack!! HA!
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Tags: DC, Exteriors, adams morgan, black + white
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Festivus for the rest of us December 15th, 2008
Cosmo Kramer: Is there a tree?
Frank Costanza: No, instead, there’s a pole. It requires no decoration. I find tinsel distracting.
It’s made from aluminum. Very high strength-to-weight ratio.
According to this guide on celebrating Festivus, you are supposed to tell your friends and family all of the instances where they disappointed you the previous year…. This photo is of a note from the one-and-only Adams Morgan festivus pole. (No, I was not the one who wrote that. In fact, I haven’t left a note yet.) I guess it is a chance for everyone to tell the city of DC how it has failed them. A few more funny notes here.
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Tags: DC, Exteriors, Holidays, adams morgan, black + white
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bright reflections October 2nd, 2008
Matt took this photo a few weekends ago on a rainy night in Adams Morgan. We had just polished off an amazing amount of sushi and a round of saki bombs at Singapore Bistro along with 4 of our friends. When we left the restaurant, it started to pour, so we hopped in a cab and went to have a drink on 18th Street. Soon after, we walked home in the rain.
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Tags: DC, Interiors, adams morgan, bars, drinks, lights
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Street Art August 26th, 2008
An interesting little metal installation piece that we saw the other day in Adams Morgan. It’s like 3-d graffiti made out of metal and attached to the back of a stop sign. I wonder if this artist does traditional spray paint graffiti as well?