The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (MWCOG) awarded the NoMa (North of Massachusetts Avenue) Business Improvement District (BID) a technical assistance grant valued at $50,000 as part of its 2009 Transportation/Land-Use Connections (TLC) Program. The NoMa Gateway Project will complement the District Department of Transportation’s (DDOT) plans for reconstruction of the intersection of New York and Florida Avenues, N.E. as a virtual traffic circle.The grant will fund technical design services to enhance pedestrian and bicycle connectivity, wayfinding, and safety around the intersection, while greening and beautifying the public realm. The project will engage NoMa stakeholders from the public and private sectors, including BID members, D.C. agencies, and local community organizations. The NoMa BID applied for the grant in partnership with the District of Columbia Office of Planning and with support from DDOT. The shared objective is to transform the intersection into a signature gateway to downtown Washington and the rapidly developing NoMa neighborhood.
The TPB initiated the TLC Program in 2007 to provide focused assistance to local jurisdictions working on creative, forward-thinking and sustainable land use and transportation plans and projects. The NoMa Gateway Project is one of eight new technical assistance projects approved by TPB and the only one in the District.
“Together with DDOT’s planned reconstruction of the intersection, the design services provided through the TLC Program will help transform a notoriously intimidating intersection into a true gateway to the Nation’s Capital, suitable for pedestrians and motorists alike,” said Elizabeth Price, President of the NoMa BID.
NoMa is an emerging mixed-use neighborhood north of the U.S. Capitol and Union Station in Washington, D.C. Private developers have invested over $1 billion in 2007-2008 alone, with plans to develop more than 20 million square feet of office, residential, hotel, and retail space in the 35-block area covered by the NoMa BID over the next 10 years. For more information about the BID, including an interactive development map, see the BID Web site at http://nomabid.wpengine.com.