TheWashCycle

Holmes Run Crossing Update Meeting and Site Visit May 28-30

The City of Alexandria is conducting a study of Holmes Run near Dora Kelly Nature Park to a landing on the northwest side of the run at Glen Hills Park in Fairfax County. Map of study area. 

The engineering and design analysis will explore the possibility of building a pedestrian/bicycle crossing and impacts on stream bank erosion. As of March 31, 2009, the City has also moved to incorporate stream bank stabilization/restoration for the banks between North Chambliss Street and the city limits.

Project Schedule

• March 2009: Project kickoff
• May 28-30, 2009: A community meeting on May 28 will include recent project updates and a site visit on May 30 will include a tutorial and hands-on discussion about streambank restoration/stabilization
• Summer/Early Fall: Project completion

Upcoming Meeting Information 

Thursday, May 28, 2009 (6:30 pm to 8:30 pm) at William Ramsay Recreation Center, 5650 Sanger Avenue

• This meeting will feature a project update and engineer's opinion of probable crossing type
• Community Meeting Agenda

Saturday, May 30, 2009 (noon to 2 pm) at Jerome "Buddie" Ford Nature Center, 5750 Sanger Avenue

• This meeting will include a tutorial on streambank stabilization/restoration and a site visit/Q&A with the project team
• Tutorial/Site Visit Agenda

Alexandria Bike Year in Review

The April edition of Local Motion has a break down of Alexandria's accomplishments. This includes:

• Installation of 6.2 miles of bikeway lanes on Pickett Street, Taney Avenue, Kenwood Avenue, Monticello Boulevard, Old Dominion Boulevard, and Commonwealth Avenue.
• Installed nearly a half mile of new sidewalk along including Edsall Road, West Nelson Avenue; approved a Safe Routes to School sidewalk project on Cambridge Road.
• Improved over 20 individual intersections with new crossing signals, median refuges, crosswalks, and other infrastructure that improve safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.
• Installed over 90 new bicycle racks.
• Conducted two bi-annual Street Smart campaigns, each in the spring and fall, targeted towards drivers, pedestrians, and bicyclists to raise awareness about safety. Each campaign included specific enforcement waves with tickets issued to drivers, pedestrians, and bicyclists. The Alexandria Police Department issued over 1,000 warnings and more than 400 citations.

And it had trail updates too

Eisenhower Avenue Trail
In fall 2008, the trail on the south side of Eisenhower Avenue east of Lake Cook was resurfaced. The trail now connects with a new shared-use path that continues west toward the bridge over Cameron Run near the Vola Lawson Animal Shelter.

Tarleton Trail
Construction will begin this year on improvements to the unpaved connection between the Holmes Run Greenway and North Gordon Street, which will improve access from North Gordon Street and establish a formal – though unpaved – trail connection.

Chambliss Crossing of Holmes Run
The City is conducting a study of Holmes Run, near Dora Kelly Nature Park, to a landing on the northwest side of the run at Glen Hills Park in Fairfax County, which examines building a pedestrian/bicycle crossing and the impacts on stream bank erosion. The City is also incorporating stream bank stabilization and restoration plans and shared-use path connections. This $750,000 project includes funding for construction and is expected to run through fall 2010.

Photo by obgfoster

Holmes Run/Chambliss Crossing Study

The City of Alexandria is conducting a study of Holmes Run near Dora Kelly Nature Park to a landing on the northwest side of the run at Glen Hills Park in Fairfax County. Map of study area. 

The engineering and design analysis will explore the possibility of building a pedestrian/bicycle crossing and impacts on stream bank erosion. The city is also incorporating stream bank stabilization/restoration plans and shared-use path connections to existing trails.

Project Schedule

• March 2009: Project kickoff meeting - March 18
• Spring/summer: Additional community meetings, engineering and study
• Fall: Project completion

Meeting Information and Materials 

March 18, 2009
7:00 - 8:30 p.m.
William Ramsey Recreation Center - 5650 Sanger Avenue, Alexandria, VA

• Community Information Flyer 
• Agenda (coming soon)
• Presentation (coming soon)

Spanish translators available. Traducción al español.

Additional Information 

The Holmes Run/Chambliss Crossing project will:

• Update the findings of an existing 2002 site/feasibility study for the Holmes Run Multi-use Crossing with particular consideration paid to recent flood events
• Include hydrology and hydraulic analysis at a preliminary crossing location to identify and propose stream bank stabilization and restoration options which should also be incorporated into design and construction plans
• Include all environmental assessments and environmental impact statements
• Complete design for a crossing and shared-use path connections to existing trails

Stay informed. Receive updates about this project by signing up for eNews - Transportation Alternatives.

Contact Information
Mr. Yon Lambert, AICP
Principal Transportation Planner, Pedestrian & Bicycle Program
Dept. of Transportation & Environmental Services
301 King Street
City Hall, Room 3200
Alexandria, Va. 22314
703.519.3400 x 183
yon.lambert@alexandriava.gov

Holmes Run Extension

Right now, the Holmes Run Trail runs from Cameron Run Regional Park to Glen Hills Park. Work begins soon to extend the trail another 1.5 miles to Columbia Pike (what happened to the I Bike the Pike blog? Every time I ride it I think about what a great name that was).

The eight-foot-wide asphalt trail will have five stream crossings. Each will be a "fair-weather" crossing that allows users to ford when the water is at normal flow.

Tom McFarland, Park Authority project manager, said the crossings are essentially submerged concrete bridges, ranging from 15 to 45 feet long, that provide a hardened surface for bicycle riders to go through a few inches of water.

The new trail will become part of a network covering an estimated 200 miles, including the recently completed, 40-mile Cross County Trail between Great Falls in northern Fairfax County and the Occoquan River in the county's southern region.

Earlier this year, the Park Authority and Board of Supervisors acquired a 41-acre conservation easement and purchase options on a historic McLean property known as Salona that officials think can contribute trails to link to the Pimmit Run trail system.

I often worry about stream valley trails. In Montgomery County, I think the Sierra Club tried to outlaw them. I could certainly see how laying down asphalt in an environmentally sensitive area could be harmful, but Ed Pickens, president of Fairfax Trails & Streams, said this and it made sense to me,

"The reason that trails are important is because they get people in the stream valleys, and they learn that they love the stream valleys, and they become stewards,"

Holmes Run makes up part of what Alexandria is calling the Green Crescent.