November 30, 2007
Wells Wants to Keep 7th Street Closed on Weekends
After a fire gutted Eastern Market last April, the stretch of 7th Street SE adjacent to the market building was closed off on weekends to accommodate vendors, construction of the temporary East Hall and reconstruction of the South Hall. In an interview on WTOP (link to audiostream) last week, Ward 6 Council member Tommy Wells said he wants to keep 7th Street that way. The Hill picked up the story on Wednesday, and the Hilleast neighborhood listserv has been buzzing on the topic since.
At issue are vendor complaints that the weekend closings of 7th Street hurt their businesses; customers aren't able to drive to the market and park. Wells believes that keeping the street closed will promote a livable and walkable community, a theme which helped him win his spot on the D.C. Council. The market is safer with 7th Street closed, according to Wells, because kids aren't hurt by "darting into the street."
Parking is at a premium in Eastern Market's surrounding neighborhoods, especially on weekends when outdoor vendors are added to the mix. During the interview, Wells said,
There's no reason ... that someone who is not from the neighborhood should be able to park there all day. We really need to move cars along, have a maximum two hours and really charge a premium. This is done in other cities, it's called performance parking.
He added that increasing meter fees on Pennsylvania Avenue during the weekends could be a way to charge that premium.
One of the vendors is skeptical of Wells' safety claims. Agora Farms owner Dan Donahue, who sells apples and apple cider from a tent on the street, told the Hill, "there hasn’t been an accident on 7th Street in 17 years," despite 7th Street being open.
Reaction from members of the Hilleast listserve to the street closure is mixed. Some applaud the move, while others see it as a threat to the survival of Eastern Market.
photo by ohad*
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The market is safer with 7th Street closed, according to Wells, because kids aren't hurt by "darting into the street."
Which is exactly why we need to close off traffic on every avenue in DC that's named after a State. The children!
There's no reason ... that someone who is not from the neighborhood should be able to park there all day.
See, now that's a double-negative. So someone who IS from the neighborhood HAS a reason to NOT be able to park there. I wonder how the non-market-affiliated businesses feel about the closure? I wouldn't have a problem with it if they actually used the street for something, like more vendors or expanding the market. But if it's just a closed street with empty spaces, that seems like kind of a waste.
Fuggit, so long as I can get my Mangers' halfsmokes from Canales, they can build a Scientology Auditing Center in the street for all I care. I could use a laugh, and I haven't had an e-meter up my butt since I stopped huffing paint fumes.
Wells needs to peddle his bike until he finds a clue.
I think it sounds like a great idea. I was down there the other week and it was really nice to have the street closed. And if people are willing to walk a bit, there's totally enough daytime parking in the area....and before people jump on me, I support the same thing in my own neighborhood on Friday and Saturday nights....
Frankly, DC could use more pedestrian-only zones, in conjunction with a proper revamping of mass transit and traffic patterns around the city.
One feature of many major European cities is their pedestrian-only districts in metropolitan centers. They make for excellent shopping, dining and people watching, and step down the pace of life a little bit - something that many people in this artificially-hype-laden city (and in the U.S., in general) could use.
I think that Wells is onto something with this, and I hope that he's able to get it to happen. People will adapt to the change, and I think it's more positive to make the 7th Street SE area a car-free zone for the weekends: it's a little piece of Europe in DC.
There are stores on 7th Street SE, tax-paying businesses that need customer parking and delivery access. Yes, on weekends too.
I'm sure closing 7th Street provides a pleasant 20-minute stroll for tourists, but Eastern Market is a residential neighborhood, not Disneyland. Re-open the street on weekends.
I like the expansion of the vendors on the street. I say keep it locked up! besides, it's not like you can't find parking on independance/north cacckylack/6/7/8/c st.
sometimes you might need to be creative but there's parking. i use to live right across the st. from the market.
If people are so worried about parking, take the metro or a metrobus there.
Close it!
Oh come on. More than tourist walk on 7th street se on weekends. And yes, it is pleasant not to run across the street for your life, nor listen to the car horns of fustrated fools who decided to drive down a very congested 7th. Deliveries can be made early in the morning. When the street was open, all of the parking spots were taken by the Eastern market vendors. Keep the street closed.
The parking in the area is really not bad at all, even on weekends. Also, wouldn't this move help local businesses? People are more likely to check out those little specialty shops if they're forced to walk past them.
Parking on the section of 7th street that is currently closed on weekends was limited anyway before the market burned. Almost all the spots were taken up by the vendors' trucks. Market visitors couldn't park there anyway. It really seems like a non-issue. Also, and I know I keep ranting and raving about this, there are WAY to many people driving in this city. the Eastern Market Metro station is just steps away from the market. Save yourselves the frustration and just take the metro.
I actually thought that the weekend market improved with the closing of 7th street. Now there is more space to walk and it opened up more space for new vendors.
Who would drive to the Market anyway??
I have seen people slowly crawling by in thier cars back when it was open, and wondered what the hell they were thinking going down to a busy market with in thier car anyway. I have had lunch looking onto 7th and sat amazed as the same car lapped around 5 times looking for a spot over an hour. Lazy comes to mind.
If you need to pick up something heavy at the flea in your car, use 8th ST.
Ummm... metro two blocks away?
CLOSE THE STREET.
I think it looks very sexy and I can't wait to check it out!
Make it a gated community and charge admission. And give little gold stars to all those pedestrians who realize driving is evil.
DCificare - You owe me a new keyboard.
Got a great name for your gated community: The Roadblocks at Market Square.