Upper Bluemont Park – Conceptual Design Community Meeting #1 – Community Comments from Break-out Stations Date: October 29, 2019

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Comments from Break-out Stations

• Vehicular Circulation & Parking

• Agree that entrance is an issue? But Where?• Please no parking garage.• Ground level parking only.• The parking lot floods.• Ground level parking only – no additional parking footprint!• Can the roof for parking become the new tennis courts? Expensive?• Does improving the facilities mean more parking is needed? Where does the

overflow parkers go?• Add a second level of parking with expanded facilities. Potentially with 2 tennis

courts on top of the lot.• No chainsaw massacre please – save/preserve mature trees.• Limit land disturbance.• Parking more than adequate.• Lot does flood…consider underground cisterns.• Limit land disturbance to minimum.• Consider gravel paver system – grass paver systems.• Retrofit existing pavement/asphalt to meet ADA standards.• I like the parking lot just fine. Consider only steps from the west side up the hill to

the sidewalk along Manchester.• Please do not expand the size of the parking lot. Please do not build a parking

structure. Current parking is sufficient, but if you disagree, people can freely useour residential streets to park. The 1A, 1B, 75 buses go directly to and fromBallston metro. Thank you

• Yes to a permeable parking lot.• Don’t make a multi-level parking lot.• Keep no story parking lot• Permeable parking lot is a great idea.• Current parking lot is sufficient. No issues with using the residential streets when

there’s an influx of people.• Try to retain mature trees when installing biorientation – bioretention good.• Like the permeables and bioretention.• If you think you need more parking, can people use the Ashlawn lots on the

weekends?• No need for additional parking – street overflow is less then Ashlawn parking

overflow.

• Tennis Courts & Lighting

• Environment friendly materials for court

Upper Bluemont Park – Conceptual Design Community Meeting #1 – Community Comments from Break-out Stations Date: October 29, 2019

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• Manage peak playing time on wkds/after school. • Don’t create more space for baseball. • LED lights, EV charging, E bikes & scooter, solar panel, battery storage. • No chainsaw massacre please – preserve mature trees and other valuable

natural infrastructure. • Minimize impervious surfaces – provide before and after figures in sq ft of any

increase decrease. • What will the Kelvin rating/color be of the new lights? Use wildlife friendly lights. • Reduce impermeable surfaces, convert tennis courts to grass courts, no new

tennis courts. • Please do not expand impervious surfaces. • Could you use a material on the practice wall that muffles the noise, while not

harming the tennis? • Make sure lights are to shut off @ certain time. • Dark sky lights. • In fall/winter courts are used for cricket – consider the multi-use aspect of the

hardscape. • Conversion of one court to a batting cage to support the 3 diamond fields (3,000

Arlington kids play BB or SB). • Embrace ACTA’s vision: 12 courts (4 covered) within existing tennis footprint.

Awesome tennis center. • Satisfy demands for pickleball elsewhere. • Consider clay surface on at least some courts.

• Stormwater Management & RPA

• Do not add impermeable surfaces. Do not increase widths of trails or size of

parking lot. Convert tennis courts from hard surface to grass courts. • Install water return system at locations where flooding is most likely – as does for

developments on the waterfront in Old Town Alexandria. • Please do not increase impervious surfaces and expand pervious surfaces to

slow the flood going to the stream. • Please consider building a pervious parking lot that slows down the stormwater,

thank you. • Will the County provide increase/decrease in impervious surfaces – sq. ft. • Baseball field should not be in an area that frequently floods. • Creek intakes various waste products. Clean up groups? • No increase in parking please. • Reconfigure courts to remove from RPA but keep number of courts. • Mitigate water flow with a pond or other device that combines with pollinator

garden/wildlife area? • Consider reducing # of courts due to flooding & RPA. • Please do not increase the impervious footprint. The area will most likely flood

again. • Don’t do multi-story parking.

Upper Bluemont Park – Conceptual Design Community Meeting #1 – Community Comments from Break-out Stations Date: October 29, 2019

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• How will or will the County conform to the USACE (United States Army Corps of Engineers) flood control agreement for Four Mile Run?

• How can we plan to invest so much money in an area we know will likely flood significantly again?

• Underground cisterns help stormwater management…as do French drains in smaller areas…

• Consider working w Blvd. Manor/upstream neighborhoods to slow stormwater overland flow and storm sewers.

• Existing Conditions • Put a stop sign here (parking lot entrance). • Remove eastern two tennis courts and build a reforestation area to buffer Four

Mile Run. • Convert entire area between trails and parking lot to pollinator/meadow areas.

Stop mowing. • Additional parking should be developed on the east side of Four Mile Run. • Look at the design width of the channel available to Four Mile Run? Will it affect

the RPA near the tennis courts? • Convert entire area between Manchester Street and parking lot/tennis court to

pollinator meadow area. • Check to see how frequently the tennis courts are really used and consider

reducing the number of them – don’t expand the number of courts. • How about clay tennis courts (pervious surfaces)?

• Restrooms & Picnic Shelter

• Please do not increase impervious surfaces. Please stay in the existing footprint,

or reduce the footprint. Thank you • Planning to accommodate summer camps. • How can we make a huge investment in an area that will flood again? • Current function and design work well, spruce it up. • How can county close Bon Air’s restrooms and make disable people cross 4

traffic lanes to reach restrooms? • Green roof to be considered. • Recycling facilities in the renovated facility. • How can we make a huge investment in an area that will flood again. • Save money on Bluemont Park project – use savings to relocate Bon Air Park

restrooms to higher ground. • Keep existing height and massing. No extra floors. • Do not separate structures. This creates need for mowed areas between

structures and decreases area available for meadows, pollinator areas, and trees.

• What is the percentage of budget allocated to ADA compliance? • Pickleball courts (2).

Upper Bluemont Park – Conceptual Design Community Meeting #1 – Community Comments from Break-out Stations Date: October 29, 2019

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• 2nd story – common/function space. • Consider solar panels or solar tubes for lighting/power. • Concession stand for tournaments.

• Pedestrian/Bike Circulation & Four Mile Run Trail

• Do not increase widths of trails. This increases speeding by cyclists and users of

motorized scooters. People travel side by side on wide trials, they walk their dogs on long lease. This forces cyclist to change lanes and travel against traffic thus decreasing safety.

• Half court basketball. • EV – Electric vehicle charge. • Better signage of what behind what’s ahead. • Wider path for handicap and assistance for walk. • Trails need to be constructed like “roads” in which a very slight incline each side

for water runoff. • Water fountains with improved water quality. • Trail replacement w/ solar panels, - better w/ the environment (esp. in summer

and winter). • Fix cracks on the trail path. • Do not increase widths of trails. This adds impermeable surfaces and increase

speeds, creating safety hazards when users travel side by side. • Do not make separate bike and walking trails. Cyclist will usually take the less

congested route, regardless of its designated use. • Need light on W & OD and Four Mile Run. • Preserve the trees even if you have to tweak the parking lot. • Separate bike/ped on both trails. • Four Mile is bad for bikes. • Underpass is horrible, bikes can’t see peds. • Congestion, people letting kids out for games and school events. Safety issue. • Improve link between parking lot and soccer field across 4MR. • Imbedded bleachers here (hill between Manchester St. and tennis courts). • SE corner of tennis courts and paths needs better drainage/sw(m) filtering –

maybe dry wells? • Potentially raise the courts for better drainage by flooding issue. • Signage. • Docking stations and other spaces for non-vehicular modes of transport. • Fixing trail that washed out in rain. • With the closing of the Bon Air Park bathroom, children and others will be

crossing Wilson. It is dangerous to go under the bridge because bikes are traveling very fast and the cave makes it hard to see pedestrians. Crossing Wilson is also currently dangerous – could you please make the path to the Bluemont bathroom safer? Thank you.

• Crosswalk • Bridge

Upper Bluemont Park – Conceptual Design Community Meeting #1 – Community Comments from Break-out Stations Date: October 29, 2019

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• Swale between tennis court and trees should be turned into a biorientation basin. • Don’t increase width in RPA and compromise existing trees – perhaps better

signage. • Path is very important for cross country and running races. Need to keep and

maintain. • Should W & OD – bike 4 Mile – walking – separate walking and biking. • Consider removing one tennis court to help with RPA and trail.

• Tree Canopy, Landscaping & Pollinators

• Retain mature (native) trees as much as possible. • Make tree inventory available to public that are removed. • Like and keep maintain the pollinator garden. • No chainsaw massacre on this site please. • Minimize impervious surfaces and land disturbance please. • Calculate interception, infiltration and evapotranspiration of trees to be cut down. • Don’t change existing wildlife - do invasive removals. Add more trees. • Convert mowed grass to pollinator/meadow area on slope near Manchester

street. • Convert entire areas between trails from mowed grass to pollinator/meadow

areas. • Plant more hardwood trees. Plant trees that ‘match’ the found they’re planted in.

eg. Trees than can handle floods planted in the flood prone area. • Reduce the amount of land dedicated to ‘lawns’ of grass and replace with clover

and native plants. • Remove invasive vines that are choking and killing trees around the soccer field

and W & OD Trail. • Only cut down trees that are dying or dead. Don’t cut down tree to make way for

more buildings and impervious surfaces. • School use of parking needs consideration. • Add trees, convert all mowed lawns to meadow and pollinator areas. Mow once

a year outside of growing season to control invasive vines and shrubs. • Do not change the natural areas. • Save Trees. • Add more Trees. • Remove invasives that are killing trees. • Do not disturb existing wildlife. • Do not kill trees for construction. • Do not increase impervious surfaces.

UPPER BLUEMONT PARK – RESTROOM & SHELTER

Explore connecting vs. separating the structures Evaluate connections to park amenities

Additional Input

UPPER BLUEMONT PARK – TENNIS COURTS & LIGHTING Explore alternate surface materials Evaluate court spacing for safety

and efficiency Explore efficient, unobtrusive

lighting options Explore access to courts without

impacting play

Additional Input

UPPER BLUEMONT – VEHICULAR CIRCULATION & PARKING

UPPER BLUEMONT – VEHICULAR CIRCULATION & PARKING Explore alternative entry/exit points Evaluate existing vehicular circulation Explore alternative materials

Additional Input

UPPER BLUEMONT – PEDESTRIAN AND BIKE CIRCULATION

Bike racks

UPPER BLUEMONT – PEDESTRIAN/BIKE CIRCULATION & FOUR MILE RUN TRAIL

School crossing

Bike racksFOUR MILE RUN TRAIL

Evaluate existing pedestrian circulation Evaluate intersections and ‘pinch points’ Explore opportunities for creating ‘gathering spaces’ or nodes

Additional Input

UPPER BLUEMONT – TREE CANOPY, LANDSCAPING & POLLINATORS

Evaluate existing trees Evaluate areas for invasive removals Explore opportunities for adding additional pollinators

Additional Input

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UPPER BLUEMONT – STORMWATER MANAGEMENT & RPA

Evaluate existing drainage patterns Explore stormwater management solutions

Additional Input