A reader alerted me that Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Kathy Henderson (5D05) has announced a public meeting to discuss reopening the National Arboretum's southern entrance at M Street and Maryland Avenue NE. Dr. Richard Olsen, Director of the U.S. National Arboretum, will be there to discuss the proposed reopening. The meeting, to be held at the Developing Families Center (801 17th Street NE), will take place at 6 pm Tuesday, August 15th. The topic of re-opening the gate has been on the agenda the past few ANC 5D meetings, but Commissioner Henderson and Commissioner James Butler (5D03) have indicated they need more input from their constituents before they can vote to reopen the gate. So here's your chance to learn more about what's happening with the gate, and to share your opinion. For what it's worth, MPD supports the reopening.
12 comments:
can it be set up as a secured entrance? With cameras and controlled access?
Pat, who would get access?? It's a public park. Cameras, I agree. But controlled access? I'm asking honestly, how you would propose that works and who would you give/deny access to?
The Arboretum should charge $10 or so for admission, like other world-class arboretums. Then it would not be perpetually poor and would be able to do some maintenance, like repairing and reopening the restrooms in the picnic area and the Asian valley. It would also deter those bent on mischief and not interested in the mission of the National Arboretum.
The Arboretum is not.a.park. It is a federal facility used to study and propagate plants. By the way, it cost a lot of money to charge admission. Think a bit about it, you have pay staff to collect, then staff to count, and then staff to track the money.
Opening the gate would be great. Everyone knows it would lower crime and improve the quality of life for the residents of 5D. We should get a bike-share rack there too.
Let's get this gate open! the neighborhood needs a close bikeshare too, the starburst is always full
@8:07 You raise the money yourself! I already pay for a metro that does not run, a free trolley for tourist and the tow truck that follows it. For the love of God stop asking people to pay more for elected officials salaries and their benefits when we get nothing in return.
How will the proposed re-opening of the Maryland Ave entrance impact the current entrances and traffic flow, and why was it closed in the first place?
5:40,
The 1992 closure resulted from a combination of funding concerns, and concerns about crime in the surrounding neighborhood. Here's an old WaPo story.
Wait, but then won't poor people be able to just walk right in?
What is the logic behind opening of the gate to reduce crime? I'm not against it, I just don't see the correlation.
when I say Controlled access, I just mean something like a subway gate, so you see who is coming and going
and can video them. So when there are incidents, you get pics of perps.
Post a Comment