Another example of a "public planning" fail by a private developer: Silver Spring's Ellsworth Avenue

Greater Greater Washington has a piece, "After 15 years, Downtown Silver Spring is getting a big update," on the proposed update by developer Foulger-Pratt to Ellsworth Avenue, the mostly pedestrianized spine of "Downtown Silver Spring," the now more than 15 year program to anchor Silver Spring's revitalization, necessary at the time because of the decline of the retail offer there as well as Montgomery County's continued growth outward and westward, which threatened to leave Silver Spring and "East County" behind.

-- Downtown Silver Spring Refresh

It's interesting because I have written a lot about Silver Spring over the years, and more recently, when I provided a multi-point vision for how to go really really big, in response to opportunities presented by the forthcoming Purple Line light rail service which will have multiple stations serving the community.

-- "The layering effect: how the building blocks of an integrated public realm set the stage for community building and Silver Spring, Maryland as an example," 2011

-- PL #5: Creating a Silver Spring "Sustainable Mobility District" (2017)
-- "Part 1: Setting the stage"
-- "Part 2: Program items 1- 9"
-- "Part 3: Program items 10-18"
-- "Part 4: Conclusion"
-- "Map for the Silver Spring Sustainable Mobility District"
-- "(Big Hairy) Projects Action Plan(s) as an element of Comprehensive/Master Plans"
-- "Creating the Silver Spring/Montgomery County Arena and Recreation Center

-- "Making "Downtown Silver Spring" a true open air shopping district by adding department stores," 2018
-- "Revisiting the Purple Line (series) and a more complete program of complementary improvements to the transit network," 2019

Private developers planning public spaces.  The GGW piece misses a key point.  The developer pursued planning for changes without a public process.  There are public meetings now, but basically the developer is merely presenting what they've already decided.

This is pretty typical of private developers, but can be problematic when private developers manage public places as part of long term development agreements with a local jurisdiction, which is the case in Silver Spring.

Business improvement districts are an issue too.  It's also an issue with business improvement districts, which typically most represent property owner interests.

-- "NoMA revisited: business planning to develop community," 2011
-- "Integrating citizen residents into "business" improvement districts: Capital Riverfront district as an opportunity and example of the need for change," 2014

Parking in Reston Town Center as a similar example.  And like with Boston Properties and their debacle over instituting charges for parking at Reston Town Center, I argued that the debacle could have been significantly reduced had the private developer taken the time to do a public process, with the time investment necessary to build understanding, if not consensus for the changes.

-- "What to do about public input when seemingly public facilities are privately owned?: Parking at Reston Town Center, Fairfax County, Virginia," 2016
-- "Reston Town Center parking issue as a "planning failure" by the private sector," 2017

Public planning processes need to be taken up for "public" places even if privately controlled.  While it's obvious that urban places constantly change, in recognition that the space is "owned" in part by its users, property owners need to acknowledge the need for public processes.

I would argue in the case of both Reston and Silver Spring, very public planning processes are required.

Downtown Silver Spring.  It's not that some of the proposed changes aren't interesting.

And it's necessary to keep "refreshing" the place in the face of ongoing competition with other destinations, changes in the retail sector, etc.

But this is a great illustration of one of my points in the 2017 series on the Purple Line/Silver Spring set of articles specifically is that Montgomery County shouldn't be ceding primary planning responsibility for the area to the private sector.

If Foulger-Pratt had done a public process, there would have been an opportunity for someone like me to participate, submit ideas like the extension of the pedestrian path between the Metrorail station and Georgia Avenue, pedestrianizing a section of Fenton Street, extending the pedestrian section of Ellsworth across Fenton Street, etc.

Now that to them, the plan for changes is mostly finalized, there aren't opportunities to significantly challenge--as is often necessary--their ideas.

Making a different kind of plaza by getting rid of the splash fountain and evening the grade and putting down artificial turf aren't world changing concepts.

Creating a pedestrian zone beyond the current street stub is a big idea.  From "Revisiting the Purple Line (series) and a more complete program of complementary improvements to the transit network":

1. Extend the Ellsworth Avenue Pedestrian Mall to the Metrorail Station.  I wrote a piece in 2018 about extending the pedestrian district from Ellsworth Avenue between Georgia Avenue and Fenton Street west to the Silver Spring Metrorail Station, ideally anchored by a Boscovs Departmenet Store in the redeveloped Discovery HQ ("Making "Downtown Silver Spring" a true open air shopping district by adding department stores").


Spine of the Wiesbaden Germany Pedestrian Zone.  From Pedestrian Zones: Car-Free Urban Spaces, published by Braun, page 93.

I know this is a bit of a stretch, but department stores can still thrive in certain situations, and I believe that Silver Spring is one such place.

Expanding on the pedestrian district there would be a model best practice for the DC area.  Note that as it is, this pedestrianizing district is one of the only ones in the DC area that anchors night-time activity, something I've meant to write about for a couple years.

2. Pedestrianizing part of Fenton Street.  I should have suggested some pedestrianizing (but still with transit) of Fenton Street, at a minimum from Colesville Road to Wayne Avenue.  Bus access would still be maintained.


4.  Add at least one children's playground to the urban core.  My thinking has evolved on accommodating families, especially little kids with lots of energy ("Keeping Cities from Becoming “Child-Free Zones”," Governing Magazine).

While Downtown Silver Spring has a small splash park, and in the winter an ice rink, that's not enough.


Inspiration Playground, Bellevue, Washington.
While the district doesn't need to develop a full-fledged focus on families, as it is more adult-focused, having a couple small playgrounds would help to expand the range of amenities provided for other demographics.