The Dot Strategy
Urban renewal? Just add paint.
Taalib-Din Uqdah has a plan for making the stretch of 14th street between Spring and Crittenden the new hot spot for shopping and dining. It involves spots.
“It’s a branding concept,” explained Uqdah, pointing at a diagram with large colored circles painted on the sidewalks and the sides of buildings. “Everything we do, we’re going to play off these spots.”
With such a distinctive identifier, someone meeting a friend at a restaurant could easily give directions. There could be a contest, “spot the dot,” where kids look for coupons hidden under taped-down dots. The plan also involves employing people to beautify the sidewalks, teaching them landscaping skills in the process, as well as providing startup capital for new businesses.
Uqdah, president of the 14th Street Uptown Business Association, has a personal reason for wanting to draw more traffic: He owns a hair salon and a development firm on the strip. He says he’s already gotten the go-ahead from 45 businesses in the area, and will be taking the plan to local ANCs and neighborhood associations. The Office of Planning is enthusiastic, and he’s even got buy-in from the very top—he explained the concept to Mayor Adrian Fenty this morning in person.
“Fantastic,” said Fenty, who joined Ward 4 Councilwoman Muriel Bowser—as well as the directors of DDOT, the Office of Planning, and the Department of Parks and Recreation—for a few blocks of a neighborhood walk-through this morning along 14th street. Neighborhood bystanders curiously regarded the parade of city officials, who were followed by a crew of workers repainting sidewalks. The mayor soon left to attend funeral services across the city, but Uqbah looked pleased.
“I’ve got quite a bit of time and money invested,” he said, his eyes shaded by a porkpie hat. “If I don’t know something about making money, I don’t know who I can depend on.”
Bowser explains, Fenty looks concerned, DDOT Director Gabe Klein checks his BlackBerry.
1:00 pm
Hmmmmm big colored dots. Sounds like a 60s nightmare to me
1:23 pm
Fenty calls everything "fantastic."
1:32 pm
I can't recognize him with his shirt on.
5:52 pm
Was he HIGH when this hair brain idea was conceived
9:40 am
Sounds pretty cool to me. But this city shits a brick when it comes to public art. I'm still sad the bike sculpture for 18th and Columbia was nixed due to a bunch of whining yuppies. I say go for it.
10:24 am
I smell a good game of Twister on 14th Street. Spinner says, "right foot on blue!"
4:11 pm
This is a really horrible idea. Hot spot - I get it.
4:27 pm
No 'John' the idea was nixed because this city is looking at a five hundred million dollar deficit! Hey Tommy Wells it time to tap that stupid bag tax money!
10:52 pm
Thank you Ms. Dipillis; we've certainly got them talking in the neighborhood. Like them or not, it's been nearly 10 years since anyone has even mentioned our commercial corridor and its potential for development.
One point in the interest of clarification: Even though the mayor's walk-thru was from Spring to Decatur, the boundaries of our association are from Webster to Longfellow, including Colorado Ave.
The initial concept is designed to connect our upper commercial corridor, Jefferson to Longfellow, to our lower half, Decatur to Webster. The "dots" would only be placed in front of our commercial establishments, of which we have received 100% approval from all that we've talked to.
For anyone interested, we are scheduled to make our first public presentation before ANC 4C, Tuesday, 04/13/10 at Roosevelt HS; 6:30PM.
Taalib-Din Uqdah, Interim ED
14th St. Uptown Business Assoc.
. . . Enjoying Intown . . . Uptown @ the SPOT!
4700B-14th St., NW
Washington, DC 20011
202-291-TOWN (8696)
202-421-8945 (cell)
202-291-1185 (fax)