Tag Archives: Fort Totten metro

June 27: Fort Totten Metro Movie Night

Posted by nextstoprp in Uncategorized and tagged with ,

From WMATA:

Metro Movie Night at Fort Totten Station

Metro invites you and your family to a night under the stars! The first-ever Metro Movie Night will be held on Saturday, June 27 at the Fort Totten Metrorail Station parking lot. This family-friendly event is free for all guests.

Bring your lawn chairs, snacks and beverages to this special screening of the DreamWorks animated film “Bee Movie”. Gates open at 5 pm and guests can enjoy interactive sports games and music, or just sit back and relax with friends and neighbors, until the movie starts at dusk (approximately 8:30 pm).

Metro staff will be on hand to answer service questions, offer trip planning advice, and discuss parking options for Metro riders. Local community organizations will share information and offer giveaways.

Parking for this event will be limited, so we strongly recommend that guests take Metrorail (Green, Yellow or Red Line) or walk to the event. Food and beverage are welcome, but please note that alcohol and glass containers are not permitted.

We hope you can join us for this special community event!

 

Metro news: Grocery pickup & bidders for development of long-term parking lot

Posted by nextstoprp in Fort Totten Metro Development and tagged with , ,

Catching up on news, starting with metro news

Grocery pickup at Fort Totten metro station

WMATA is negotiating an agreement with Giant’s online Peapod service to allow grocery pickup at three metro stations, including Fort Totten metro station. The six-month pilot project could start as early as spring 2015. There will be a minimum order of $60 and a $2.95 pickup fee. Customers will prepay online and choose a pick-up day of Monday, Wednesday, or Friday between 4:00 pm and 7:00 pm. The other two stations involved in the pilot project are Glenmont and Van Dorn Street. The project was initiated by Giant.

Initial bids received for development of long-term parking lot

In other metro news, after receiving an unsolicited offer to develop the long-term parking lot at Fort Totten metro station, WMATA re-released the RFP for joint development of the parking lot and received two “solid” initial proposals. Recall from this post that WMATA issued an RFP for joint development of the parking lot in November 2013 and received no proposals. At that time, WMATA stated it suspected the cost of replacing the parking lot was an obstacle and also that investors were probably waiting to see how planned development in the area would shape up. Accordingly, WMATA stated it planned to re-release the RFP in a year or two once Fort Totten Square and Art Place were further along. Now it appears that hunch was correct, as Art Place is well underway in construction and Fort Totten Square is expected to come online in spring 2015.

The RFP is largely the same with an emphasis on transit-oriented development. The development should promote safe, walkable, attractive communities with quality design and placemaking elements. As we stated in our post last year on the topic, let’s hope these initial proposals are more attractive than Aventine Fort Totten (and Rhode Island Row). WMATA plans to discuss the timeline and initial proposals in general terms at an ANC meeting, so stay tuned for that.

Fort Totten Metro Development Call for Propsals

Posted by nextstoprp in Fort Totten Metro Development, Neighborhood Development, Uncategorized and tagged with ,

On November 4, 2013, WMATA released its solicitation for proposals for transit-oriented development at Fort Totten metro station (pdf).  This solicitation includes only the large parking lot (called the West Parcel).  It does not include the short term parking, kiss and ride, bus bays, or taxi areas (these make up the East Parcel).  The submission deadline line is March 2014.

Large parking lot at Fort Totten slated for redevelopment

Large parking lot at Fort Totten metro station slated for redevelopment

The request calls for primarily residential development and a parking garage with at least 425 parking spaces.  The residential component can be rental, ownership, or both.  Metro contemplates it will contain at least 300 units in buildings up to seven stories.  The development must comply with inclusionary zoning laws. It may include street level retail (particularly closer to the metro entrance) and a childcare center.

The developer will have to double the number of bike racks and lockers and provide a bike & ride facility close to the Metropolitan Branch Trail.  The proposed development plan will have to improve bike connectivity in the area and bike lanes to connect to trails are encouraged.  The solicitation notes that a bikeshare station is planned for the west parcel and that DDOT plans to construct a segment of the MBT west of the station.

Just as a highlight, the cover letter to the solicitation states the proposals should promote quality development and placemaking and “emphasize principles of transit oriented development: safe walkable and attractive communities providing synergy with the transit service.”  The solicitation notes the forthcoming development of Fort Totten Square and Art Place at Fort Totten.  Once all of these projects are complete, the area around the metro will look very different.  As mentioned on the Fort Totten walking tour, community residents hope the development will not look like a suburban project (like Aventine at Fort Totten).  It is worth taking a look at all of the details of the request for proposals beginning on page 21 of the linked document.