Infrastructure & Trees
MARP Tests Roadbuilding’s Impact on Trees
RMA President Shares Lessons of MARP with DC Council
Restore Mass Ave President Deborah Shapley testified briefly on the lessons from the MARP (Massachusetts Avenue Rehabilitation Project) to the DC Council Committee on Transportation & Environment on February 9, 2024. Her statement is here. She warned:
“We are concerned that, with current rules and practice, trees near $1 billion worth of city streetscape projects are at risk. This doesn’t have to happen!”
The interagency Urban Forestry Advisory Council heard Ms. Shapley’s more complete briefing on the MARP in April 2023. The slides below show issues and lessons which RMA would like to incorporate into $1 billion of such DDOT projects underway. You may download the slides in pdf format here.
We Monitor MARP Construction – 2020-2023
Watch this space for a colorful slideshow of the construction work around trees by Washington Gas, other utilities, Milani and subcontractors. You’ll view Restore Mass Ave and neighbor responses, such as our innovative Observer Reports system. Also you’ll see how RMA Board Member Carole Feld who met often with the contractor, DDOT IPMD officials, DC Council Pinto’s office to wrap things up at last.
The MARP construction brought benefits – such as FlexiPave sidewalk surfaces alongside some big trees. But it leaves short- and long-term problems. The DDOT should address the issues we found, so that it will protect and grow better trees in road reconstruction across the city. In 2024 Restore Mass Ave will share the lessons learned.
MARP Roadbuilding Plans “Greened” – 2017-2021
The present MARP plan is the result of a DDOT planning process first released to the public in October 2017. Then “rehabilitating” the mile was justified on the grounds of improving traffic safety and also replacing the roadbed. The first version rerouted one major intersection and proposed other roadway changes that sparked pushback from the local community.
RMA focused on the plans’ impact on Embassy Row trees and landscape, such as new storm drains cut in the curb edge whose soil has roots of mature trees. Also the lights as proposed could be bad for human health and definitely hurt wildlife. The timeline of this first phase is at Back Story below.
Back Story – 2017-2019
Canopy
Increased
Plans
Reviewed
Report
Job Activity
Change
Assessed
2017
Oct 18
IPMD notice of Community Meeting for the MARP 30% plan.
Oct 24
IPMD 30% plan released at Community Meeting (Friends Meeting House). Q&A about traffic safety rationale, also why plans show median strip down center of roadway.
Oct 27
Restore Mass Ave (RMA) letter to IPMD about this project.
2018
Jan – Jun IPMD says MARP will start in 2019
Jan 01
RMA receives Pitchford Assoc field review of plans impact on 46 trees sampled along the route. “…[A] large percentage of these are viable….It would be a significant loss to the streetscape to have them removed.” All 46 had a “high potential for root damage” from sidewalk and curb replacement.
Jan 08
RMA Position Paper on IPMD MARP plan co-signed by Sheridan-Kalorama Historical Association and Sheridan-Kalorama Neighborhood Council. To the Mayor, City Council Members Cheh and Evans and others, ANC Commissioners for 2B (Dupont Circle) and 2D (Sheridan Kalorama, Eleanor Holmes Norton and IPMD Project leaders K. Ayeva and H. Kim.
Our strategic goals for the project stressed tree and root protections, best practice planting of new trees and keeping the Avenue’s historic character. We also said the new street lights proposed a 4,000K or even 3,000K are “too bright and harsh.”
Feb 07
Meeting at DDOT Urban Forestry Division (UFD) office with UFD and IPMD and reps of SKHA and RMA. Received UFD’s comments on trees in the 30% plan.
Feb 15
Casey Trees comments on the plan. Casey Trees also inventoried the street trees on the MARP route.
IPMD “Comments and Resolutions” chart on concerns in RMA submissions in Oct and Jan.
Feb 21
Street Lights Task Force leaders D. Bushong and B. Garrity lead nighttime walking tour of street light types in the Dupont-Mass Ave area. Organized by RMA. Hosted by Embassy Row Hotel. Tour Slide Show is on City Policy page.
Mar 06
“Petition” signed by Residents of 2540 Mass Ave Apartments, to City Council Members Evans and Cheh regarding street lights.
Mar 09
RMA meets with IPMD and UFD leaders.
Mar 12
RMA submits list of sites for possible ‘second row’ trees at IPMD request. Casey Trees also found sites for additional ‘second row’ trees. (These planting sites are outside MARP work area.)
Apr 03
IPMD 65% plan released.
Apr 19
– 21
Pitchford Assoc studies 65% plan…recommends changing new storm drains to avoid cutting roots of established street trees.
Apr 23
“City Needs Better Policy on Street Lights” by RMA President Deborah Shapley published in Northwest Current.
Apr 30
IPMD speaks about 65% plan to ANC 2D. RMA comments.
May 11
Photo shoot of trees at risk from MARP, by Roger Foley (FoleyFoto) commissioned by RMA.
Jul – Dec
Jul 16
IPMD 90% plan released.
Sep 02
RMA consults with ANC 2B Transportation and Public Infrastructure Committee about MARP impact on segment from Dupont Circle to Florida Avenue. Q&A why Mass Ave rebuild does not add bike lanes.
Preparation for meeting RMA sought with IPMD and UFD to request/resolve our tree-and street light related concerns in the 90% plan:
- DC ClimateAction John MacGregor pole-by-pole markup of street light plans, color coded. Markup and report suggests some trees be relocated farther from trees to keep their leaf canopies intact.
- Pitchford Assoc. Sept 24 “Construction Plan Review” lists changes/concerns for storm drain sites, protection of present trees, and planting specs for new trees.
- RMA Supplemental Tree List adds requests for trees of historic landscape value.
Oct 04
Meeting at DDOT with reps of IPMD, UFD, Pitchford Assoc, RMA.
Followup: Pitchford list of meeting outcomes. RMA Supplemental list outcomes.
Nov 19
UFD seeks clarification about RMA requests for trees on R Street and Mass Ave.
2019 IPMD says MARP will start in 2020
Apr 25
IPMD 100% plan released.
Apr 30
IPMD shared with RMA an internal consultant review of 90% plan impact on trees. *Results should to be checked against 100% plan.)
From 191 street trees shown on Existing Conditions maps (2017 survey):
- 34 present trees go away
- 45 new trees are planted, including trees in new planting spaces.
- 11 stems are net gain.
- 202 = new total of street trees.
Consultant: 20 years after project completion (now 2023) street tree canopy in the MARP area will be 59.9% previous canopy.
Our take: The sidewalk shade is 40% less 20 years later, because MARP replaces 34 of 191, or 18% of present trees, including some big shady ones. Satellite data every five years (2020, 2025, 2030 etc) will show actual change. But new urban trees take years to give significant shade.
2020
MARP work postponed. Washington Gas ProjectPipes must first replace gas pipelines before MARP deep road excavation can begin. In 2020 RMA volunteers worked with Miller Pipeline crews and UFD arborist to help crews follow DC rules protecting trees. For more see our blog post Gas Pipeline Job
We met with IPMD leaders to share our lists of trees impacted by MARP.
Rehabilitation of Massachusetts Avenue NW Project
From 20th Street to Waterside Drive = 0.86 miles
March 2021 – December 2022
When the MARP is complete, those who live, work, walk, run or drive along the Avenue will benefit from a stable roadbed, better drains and sidewalks, LED streetlights with 5G, and other amenities. Benefits:
- 70-year old roadbed reconstructed. Mill/overlay of road around/near Sheridan Circle.
- Sidewalks, curbs, gutters reconstructed. Sidewalks near big trees to be Flexi-pave.
- ADA – compliant ramps.
- Traffic will continue in both directions even when one lane is blocked for excavation.
- No bike lanes. DDOT master plan has bike routes to/from downtown on other principal streets.
- New traffic signals and street lights part of District-wide “smart” infrastructure for 5G and other amenities.
- New LED street lights will be 3,000 Kelvin color temperature per DDOT policy. Color temperature and other light specs will follow DDOT’s smart light modernization plan.
- Streetscape improvements include benches, trash receptacles, updated(?) drains.
- Trees and landscape See https://restoremassave.org/marp/
- Arborist with Urban Forest Division (UFD) to respond about tree issues.
- Community engagement in person, email and massaverehabilitaton.com
View video of Feb 23 briefing.
Some project leaders:
Robyn Jackson DDOT Project Manager robyn.jackson@dc.gov
Andy Graf, HNTB Construction Manager
Shaun Davis, HNTB, Construction Manager shdavis@hntb.com
Stacee Hemby, TB&A OUTREACH stacee@tbaconnects.com
DDOT UFD Arborist – Becky Schwartz Rebecca.schwartz@dc.gov
Huntae Kim, PE, DDOT Program Manager, Infrastructure Project Management Division
