The city’s plan for a grand park between the stadium and river would suffer significantly under one proposed parking scheme

The Post and NBC 4 are reporting what appear to be two different stadium parking schemes put forward by DC mayoral candidate Adrian Fenty.

Details of both plans are scant, but this is how BeyondDC understands them: Both plans are for above-ground parking garages. The plan reported by NBC would shift the garages to the south side of the stadium, leaving the north side location available for other development. The plan reported by the Post would build three-story garages at the long-established north side location, with no ground-floor retail except a Nationals team store and no accommodation for wrapped uses, but designed with the capability for office space or residential units to be constructed on the upper floors at a later date.

Assuming we’ve got the gist of the plans correct – which isn’t necessarily the case given how few details are available at this time – neither is even remotely acceptable.

The south side plan would eradicate any chance of turning this part of the Anacostia waterfront into an attractive riverwalk and destroy the ambiance of the proposed South Capitol Park. It is in direct conflict with every other city design for the neighborhood, including the proposed new South Capitol Street bridge, which is being proposed in large part so the pedestrian-hostile viaduct can be removed. Garages between the ballpark and river would broadcast clearly one and only one message: Parking for suburbanites is more important than having a good city.

The north side plan isn’t any better. Fenty seems to think that by providing for additional development on top of the garage, he is satisfying the urbanistic needs of the site as well as Mayor Williams’ wrapped garage plan. But Fenty’s proposal is for suburban-style garages with virtually no ground floor retail – pedestrians walking along the sidewalk would be greeted not with bustling and interesting storefronts, but with dark caverns more reminiscent of the worst parts of Tysons Corner than the best of Chinatown. In short, the plan would defeat the purpose of putting the stadium on South Capitol Street in the first place.

But, hard as it may be to believe, there’s a bigger issue here than stadium parking. Fenty has revealed a troubling insight into how his administration will treat development issues. By proposing pedestrian-hostile garages but claiming that rooftop offices will satisfy the mixed-use plans of the city, Fenty makes it clear that his understanding of city planning is rudimentary at best, and that he doesn’t know the difference between urbanistically sound, neighborhood-friendly development and urban renewal-style, urbanistically antagonistic development. In other words, he is bringing back to city government the mindset that’s responsible for travesties like the Reeves Center on U Street and the Southwest urban renewal area.

Considering that development pressure in the District isn’t going to slow any time soon, a mayor who doesn’t understand planning could do irreparable harm to Washington’s built environment.

Update: The DC City Council rejected Fenty’s plans at its October 18 meeting. It is likely, though not yet certain, that in order to meet contractual obligations the city will now pave the north side property for use as surface parking, possibly to be redeveloped in the future. Addressing the Council, Fenty showed an utter lack of regard for urban design or the long-term vitality of the neighborhood, saying “There are a lot of different options, but not many that preserve the economic development on the site and ensure the project is completed on time.” – October 19, 2006