Residents along Georgia Avenue NW have mixed reactions about the plan to close three miles of the busy thoroughfare to vehicles this Saturday for D.C.’s first-ever Open Streets event.
The day of programming, which is organized by the city, aims to encourage pedestrian travel and envision a different use for roads. The event includes workshops, live music, yoga, and more, and Capital Bikeshare will be offering free rides that day.
Some residents and workers on the corridor have described feeling “hyped” about it, but other business owners are concerned that it will lead to decreased revenues on the weekend day, and residents have expressed nostalgia for long-held events on Georgia Avenue like Georgia Ave Day and the Caribbean Festival.
Amy Smith, a longtime resident of the area, says she is excited about Open Streets, mainly because the streets will be cleared of cars, which she sees as an improvement. “Georgia Avenue is not a desirable place to walk and enjoy,” Smith says. “You scurry along to get to your destination.”
On a typical day, approximately 20,000 to 25,000 vehicles drive on the three-mile stretch, per District Department of Transportation data.
The area will close to traffic at 8 a.m. on Saturday and most of the scheduled events will run from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
There will be two fitness stages located at along George Avenue: one located at the corner of Longfellow Street and the other at Kenyon Street. From Barry Place to Missouri Avenue, there will be cycling and scooter workshops, kids traffic safety classes, and other events related to pedestrian safety. The Main Stage is at New Hampshire Ave, where there will be a salsa and step demonstration in the morning. Mayor Muriel Bowser is scheduled to give remarks at 11:30 a.m., followed by live Afro-Colombian music by La Marvela and go-go from TOB.
Open Streets is part of the Vision Zero initiative launched by Bowser in 2015, which calls for a total elimination of traffic fatalities by 2024. (Despite this initiative, D.C. saw an increase in traffic fatalities last year.)
Jeff Marootian, director of the District Department of Transportation, said on the Kojo Nnamdi Show on Tuesday that the event is “is one additional step in that direction by really capturing people’s imagination about how our roadways can be safer … Really this is about people having the opportunity to experience the street.”
While this is D.C.’s inaugural Open Streets event, the program has been around for decades. It began in Bogotá, Colombia in 1976, and has since spread to other continents, including more than 130 North American cities, according to Greater Greater Washington.
Marootian noted that businesses along the Georgia Avenue corridor would be offering specials on Saturday to get people in their doors. But don’t call it a festival, because “it really will function much differently than that. Everything is free. There won’t be commercial activity. That activity will be limited to even people’s side storefronts.”
Amanda Menas, a freelancer for The Northwest Courier, said on the Kojo Show that business owners had some complaints about how the event organization was handled.
“Business owners were feeling left out of the initial conversation,” Menas said, noting that the city came to them in mid-August—”later than they might have liked.” As examples, she mentioned a coffee shop having an author talk off-site due to Open Streets and some salons having to close due to lack of parking space for clients visiting from across D.C. and Maryland.
She added that some business community members she spoke to were worried about the event because “it seemed like a very imposed event that was happening and that it was replacing an undermining culture that was there.” But that wasn’t representative of all of the business owners in the area. She also spoke to folks who were looking forward to the day.
Marootian contended that “this event is intended to highlight” local businesses, some of whom called in during the Kojo Show to issue their support.
For residents and visitors, parking restrictions will go into effect Friday at midnight. On Saturday, buses will offer alternative routes (those can be found on WMATA’s website). Capital Bike share will offer free rides on Saturday for riders using the code OPENSTREETDC. A full schedule for the event is available at the Open Streets DC website.
Previously:
Three Miles of Georgia Avenue Will Be Car-Free For a Day-Long Transportation Event This Fall
