New nonprofit trust for the GW Memorial Parkway

[KWL]

May they be as successful as the C&O Canal Trust has been. This could be good.

[mstone]

@KWL 118301 wrote:

May they be as successful as the C&O Canal Trust has been. This could be good.

I feel like there’s more chance for a community growing around 185 miles of trail, historic buildings, and wilderness than around a glorified highway, but best of luck to them.

[PotomacCyclist]

It’s more than a glorified highway. The Mt. Vernon Trail is an important part of this “park” too. The MVT is one of the key bike trails in Northern Virginia.

This group can offer people a way to influence and assist the NPS, through participation, promotion and (for those who can afford it) financial donations. There are people in this area who are willing and able to make major contributions to facilities that they see as important (and that are highly visible). Some examples are the millions of dollars donated for the repair of National Cathedral and for the Kennedy Center expansion. David Rubenstein donated $50 million for the Kennedy Center project. He has deep connections to the DC and Mid-Atlantic area. He is a co-founder of The Carlyle Group. His net worth has been estimated at $2.5 billion. He plans to give away at least half of his fortune to charities before he dies.

An organization like the new nonprofit provides a convenient way for someone like Mr. Rubenstein to donate to something like the Mt. Vernon Trail, the parkway itself, Memorial Circle and Memorial Bridge. I think it’s a match just waiting to happen. The money is there. The will to donate is there. The DC connections are there. And now the nonprofit is there.

The Trust for the National Mall operates to support the Mall. They are attempting to raise hundreds of millions of dollars to assist the NPS in maintaining and improving the Mall. Their Board includes CEOs, executive VPs and founders of companies like Akridge, Kettler, General Dynamics and Pepco.

They are a model for what the GWMP group is trying to do. I think it’s a good idea. The GWMP includes one of the most famous and well-known vistas in the U.S. — Arlington Memorial Bridge and the visual connection between Arlington National Cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial. It includes one of the most popular bike trails among local residents, the Mt. Vernon Trail.

I believe the GWMP “parkway” organization in the NPS is also responsible for the Marine Corps War Memorial (Iwo Jima), Arlington House, Gravelly Point, Jones Point Park & Lighthouse, the Navy-Merchant Marine Memorial, the Columbia Island Marina, Theodore Roosevelt Island and the Potomac Heritage Trail. All this falls under the umbrella designation of the GWMP. It’s an odd structure, but that’s how it’s organized. These are some of the most famous locations in the United States.

It’s far more than “just a highway.”

http://www.nps.gov/gwmp/planyourvisit/mtvernontrail.htm

[mstone]

Ok, glorified highway with a side path. I still don’t see it attracting the kind of community that the canal has.

[PotomacCyclist]

You must be fun at parties…

[MFC]

I would be happy if NPS or the foundation could do something about the wooden bridges, which I understand may be part of the land swap deal with Alexandria. I saw a woman take a spill on the bridge by the power plant today. Those bridges are starting to remind me of the kite-eating trees that plagued Charlie Brown in Peanuts

[peterw_diy]

The trust is a fiction. The WBJ article says somebody wants to create it but needs $500k to get started. I can’t see that money materializing unless they can better articulate goals. What do they want to preserve, the green space or the 60 mph highway? Which is more important?

[PotomacCyclist]

Let them know your concerns and specific criticisms:

http://www.livingoodgroup.com/trust-for-the-george-washington-memorial-parkway.html

The more that they get specific input and recommendations, the better the organization could be.

[Terpfan]

@MFC 118327 wrote:

I would be happy if NPS or the foundation could do something about the wooden bridges, which I understand may be part of the land swap deal with Alexandria. I saw a woman take a spill on the bridge by the power plant today. Those bridges are starting to remind me of the kite-eating trees that plagued Charlie Brown in Peanuts

I think everyone has taken a spill at that bridge at one point or another. If someone else is coming the other way, you’re not going slow enough, and there has been any moisture then your chances of falling are like 1 in 3. My last fall there was the day where the pavement was wet and grass had some frost/ice accumulation. South of OT that day the bridges were fine, but even at an exceedingly slow speed (like 3 mph because I was worried), the bridge’s ice still made for a funny slow-mo fall over and continued falling over trying to cross it.

Frankly, I don’t understand why we can’t have trex-like bridges with some grip paint or grip surfaces built on them? I don’t think it takes away from the aesthetics at all.

To the broader subject at hand, I would be supportive if their top priority was winter plowing of the MVT .

[mstone]

@Terpfan 118447 wrote:

Frankly, I don’t understand why we can’t have trex-like bridges with some grip paint or grip surfaces built on them? I don’t think it takes away from the aesthetics at all

I think the stated reason was concern about the environmental impact of spraying the traction chemicals right at the edge of the river on a routine basis rather than aesthetics. The same concerns ruled out biocides & power washing. You can certainly argue that the impact is minimal compared to the freaking highway that’s right there, but their mission is their mission and it’s hard to fault them for looking for alternatives. Maybe they’ll reconsider since they seem to be running out of alternatives and it actually is an ongoing safety issue.

[peterw_diy]

@mstone 118474 wrote:

I think the stated reason was concern about the environmental impact of spraying the traction chemicals right at the edge of the river on a routine basis

If only someone would develop something flexible, maybe something made of some kind of cloth that could catch any overspray so it wouldn’t drop into the water..,

[baiskeli]

@mstone 118474 wrote:

I think the stated reason was concern about the environmental impact of spraying the traction chemicals right at the edge of the river on a routine basis rather than aesthetics. The same concerns ruled out biocides & power washing. You can certainly argue that the impact is minimal compared to the freaking highway that’s right there, but their mission is their mission and it’s hard to fault them for looking for alternatives. Maybe they’ll reconsider since they seem to be running out of alternatives and it actually is an ongoing safety issue.

A “trex-like” bridge means they would pull up the wooden deck and put down composite material, which is more slippery but doesn’t rot or get slimy like wood, with some kind of “grip surace” on it, meaning it wouldn’t be sprayed onto the existing deck but built into the new material. It would work great if such a material exists.

I don’t know why they don’t put down paint or some other surface with grit in it, which could be rolled on, not sprayed.

[Author]

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