The Alexandria Bike Campus takes a big step forward
December is not the ideal time for manual labor. Nonetheless, more than a dozen volunteers and representatives from partner organizations braved the cold and the wind to help WABA take the first steps toward installing the Alexandria Bike Campus.
WABA and the National Park Service (NPS) agreed to the proposed facility in 2015, and we successfully raised funds last spring to make it a reality. Final design and compliance approval took a bit longer than expected, but just before Thanksgiving, we got the final go-ahead.
Unfortunately, because of the low temperatures, actually painting the Bike Campus onto the pavement wasn’t possible. Instead, we spent the morning on “demolition” to get the site ready for the spring. We removed 74 concrete parking stops, pulled nearly 150 pieces of rebar from the ground, swept up and bagged all the debris, and patched the holes to prevent surface damage over the winter.
Best of all, we had a blast! Please sign up here to stay up to date as the project moves forward.
You can see a selection of pictures from the day here:
The parking lot under the Wilson Bridge at Jones Point Park, before we started work.
Our volunteers gathered on a cold-but-sunny morning.
National Park Service staff Aaron LaRocca and WABA staff Jeff Wetzel demonstrate how to remove a concrete parking stop.
The parking stops start to pile up! Photo credit Daniel Hoagland.
One row down, three to go…
WABA staff Daniel Hoagland demonstrates how to patch a hole.
Two of our intrepid volunteers patch a hole while a third looks on. Photo credit Daniel Hoagland.
Surveying the cleared and cleaned parking lot. Perfect for biking!
Huge thanks to our volunteers and the NPS staff who helped out (and Bob the dog for stopping by)!
You must be logged in to post a comment.