The Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail (FoMVT) is seeking candidates to join our Board of Directors and serve in the role of Treasurer. FoMVT is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that partners with the National Park Service to improve the Mount Vernon Trail through volunteer stewardship.
The ideal candidate will have some experience with book keeping or accounting. The primary duties of the Treasurer include:
Monthly tracking and reconciliation of income and expenses
Producing monthly and annual financial statements
Completing annual federal and state financial documents
As a member of the Board of Directors, responsibilities include:
Service on at least one committee to provide recommendations to full board
Reviewing and adopting organizational plans and policies
Supporting the organization through giving or getting resources
Serving as an ambassador for the organization
The anticipated time commitment is 4 hours per month. If you are interested please send an introductory e-mail to Board Chair Judd Isbell at judd.isbell@gmail.com telling us about yourself and what interests you in serving on the Board and as our Treasurer by July 30th. Candidates will be reviewed and interviewed by a committee of current Board members.
FoMVT strives to build a Board that reflects the diversity of the people that use the trail.
On June 10th and 11th from 9:00 am – 12:00 pm, Hilco Redevelopment Partners (HRP) will host guided tours of the Potomac River Generating Station (PRGS) site in Old Town North. The tours will offer members of the public an opportunity to meet with the project team and visit the site, which has been closed off from Old Town North and the waterfront for decades. These guided tours will offer members of the public an opportunity to visit the site and learn more about the vision for a vibrant, friendly and walkable waterfront community.
The Virginia Passenger Rail Authority will be holding an online public meeting to talk about the Long Bridge Project on Wednesday, June 22, at 7:00 P.M.
The Long Bridge Project will construct a new, two-track railroad bridge next to the existing Long Bridge, creating a four-track corridor. A new bike-pedestrian bridge also will be constructed as part of the mitigation to National Park Service (NPS) parkland and will span the Potomac River and George Washington Memorial Parkway, connecting Long Bridge Park directly to East and West Potomac Parks.
Can’t make the meeting? The VPRA will also be holding two all-day pop-ups at the Wharf in DC on Wednesday, June 15, and at the Long Bridge Aquatics and Fitness Center on Saturday, June 18.
Register online to receive the Zoom link for the June 22 meeting, and learn about other upcoming events on the VPRA event page.
The Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail needs your help to continue improving the trail. Sign up for a volunteer trail improvement event or Donate to Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail to help us purchase tools and supplies.
The Crystal City to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Multimodal Connection (CC2DCA) study team recently released a summary of community feedback on the initial concepts for a direct pedestrian connection between Crystal City and National Airport. The feedback included multiple requests for a direction connection to the Mount Vernon Trail. Based on community and transportation agency feedback, five designs have been advanced for further development as part of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process.
The five concepts being advanced for further study which includes a mix of alignments that incorporate either a tunnel, bridge or both.
The Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail submitted comments supporting a direct connection of any concept to the Mount Vernon Trail to provide additional options for trail users to reach National Airport and National Landing. We joined multiple other groups advocating for Concept 7D. Additional public outreach will occur in Fall 2022.
The Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail needs your help to continue improving the trail. Sign up for a volunteer trail improvement event or Donate to Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail to help us purchase tools and supplies.
NPS recently released fact sheets containing a property inventory, an estimate of deferred maintenance and repairs and a list of major projects for each NPS unit. The good news is that the George Washington Memorial Parkway has $220 million of projects in its funding stream including the Mount Vernon Trail North rehab as well as rehabilitation of three wooden bridges on the trail.
The bad news is that GWMP has an estimated $600 Million in deferred maintenance and repairs. The Park maintains 105 buildings, 51 miles of trails, 79 miles of paved roads, 2 water systems and 10 waste water systems along with 149 other assets including bridges, marinas, and monuments.
A summary of assets maintained by the George Washington Memorial Parkway.
The Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail needs your help to continue improving the Mount Vernon Trail. We are on the trail every weekend fixing a maintenance issue. Visit https://mountvernontrail.org/events and sign up to volunteer today.
The Mount Vernon Trail is turning 50 and the Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail is planning #MVT50 – a celebration of a truly monumental trail. We will honor five decades of natural beauty, community partnership, and volunteer stewardship of one of the great public resources that makes the Washington area special.
Please join the FOMVT Board, along with our pals and partners, for an afternoon of guest speakers, family-friendly activities, and booths featuring the National Park Service ParkMobile, Bike Arlington, Capital Bikeshare, Go Alex, Capital Trails Coalition, East Coast Greenway, Rosslyn Business Improvement District, Friends of Dyke Marsh and more.
A ceremony at 11 a.m. will honor everyone who has volunteered and donated to improve the Mount Vernon Trail. Speakers will include GWMP Superintendent Charles Cuvelier, Arlington County Board Chair Katie Cristol, Alexandria City Council Member Sarah Bagley and Fairfax County Supervisor Dan Storck.
Trail users have another opportunity to engage in planning for the power plant redevelopment in Alexandria. The project will bring improved connections to the Mount Vernon Trail. The focus of this meeting is on environment and sustainability.
From the press release:
On Thursday, February 24 at 6:30 p.m., Hilco Redevelopment Partners (HRP) will host the eighth in a series of virtual and open house community meetings regarding the transformation of the Potomac River Generating Site (PRGS) in Old Town North. The City and the HRP Alexandria team are committed to engaging the community and obtaining feedback on this project and are working together to facilitate the best possible process during this challenging time. In-person community meetings will supplement online engagement throughout this process when public gatherings are again advisable.
The meeting will focus on environment and sustainability for the redevelopment of the former PRGS site project. The community will have an opportunity to provide feedback and ask questions.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.You can send your questions and comments to HRPInfoMidatlantic@hilcoglobal.com before the webinar. Spanish Interpretation services will be available.
View of the current southern approach to Bridge 12, which is on a steep hill with multiple curves.
NPS will begin construction to rebuild Bridge 12 starting on Monday. Bridge 12 is just north of Fort Hunt. It’s the bridge that is located in a ravine with steep hills and curves on either approach to the bridge. The new bridge will have a straight alignment and will also avoid any elevation change while meeting modern design standards. NPS will also replace the bumpy asphalt on either side of the bridge. Trail users will be detoured on to a lane on the Parkway and will be separated from cars by a concrete barrier. See the picture below for an outline of the detour, the current trail alignment and the new trail alignment.
The full press release is below:
McLean, Va. — On February 14, the National Park Service (NPS), in partnership with the Federal Highway Administration and Virginia Department of Transportation, will begin a project to replace Bridge 12 and realign the Mount Vernon Trail to improve safety near Fort Hunt Park. During the project, trail users will be detoured around the construction area on a temporary trail.
The NPS will straighten trail curves that lead to Bridge 12, located approximately 400 yards north of Fort Hunt Park. The bridge will be relocated, allowing for a straighter alignment and a reduced grade leading to and from the bridge. The NPS will also upgrade the bridge railings and replace more than 350 tons of asphalt on the trail. Realigning the trail, replacing the bridge and laying new trail asphalt will reduce the severity and frequency of bike crashes on this section of trail.
“The Mount Vernon Trail is a popular recreational resource and serves as an important regional transportation connection hosting over one million users annually,” Charles Cuvelier, Superintendent of the George Washington Memorial Parkway, said. “This project will improve trail conditions and increase safety for all visitors.”
During this project— which is expected to be completed in late summer— trail users will be detoured on the adjacent southbound section of the George Washington Memorial Parkway near Waynewood Boulevard. To protect trial users on the detour, concrete barriers will be placed on the roadway and drivers will be guided into one lane. Trail users and drivers should expect temporary, short-term closures and should follow trail signs and directions from onsite flaggers.
Mount Vernon Trail is an 18-mile paved multi-use trail stretching from George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate to Theodore Roosevelt Island. The trail is a hub for recreational activity and connects with regional trails including the Potomac Heritage, Custis, Rock Creek, Four Mile Run, and Woodrow Wilson Bridge trails.
Fencing went up in January 2022, marking the start of renovation. The Crystal City Connector remains open.
Fencing has gone up around the Crystal City Water Park as work begins to renovate the park. The Crystal City Connector to access the Mount Vernon Trail remains open, but please exercise extra caution as you pass by the work zone.
The redevelopment promises some upgraded amenities for trail users. A new trailhead facility that includes restrooms be built. Other changes include several vendor kiosks, a platform for performers, more shaded grassy areas and a bar built over the top of the existing water fountain. These changes are likely to make the water park an appealing destination from the trail and build upon the work that the National Landing BID has done to make the park an active and lively location with Fridays at the Fountain. Check out the full concept.
High level view of changes to the park include a VRE entrance, an event lawn, shaded seating, a fountain plaza, a hillside lawn, a bar on top of the fountain and the addition of retail in the promenade area along Crystal Drive.
Trail side seismograph in Alexandria where the Mount Vernon Trail meets Pendleton Street.
Trail users may have noticed a few recent changes on the trail in Alexandria where the trail meets Pendleton Street. The most recent is a white box with a solar panel. The box is a seismograph which has been placed to monitor ground vibrations as a result of Alexandria River Renew’s project to prevent combined sewage overflow from entering the Potomac.
New signs at the trail intersection with Pendleton Street.
Earlier this year the City of Alexandria changed the signage at Pendleton Street. Previously trail users had a stop sign before entering the street. That sign was replaced with a yield sign and a sign reminding users to look both ways before entering the street. The city also added two wayfinding signs to direct trail users to continue to the Mount Vernon Trail via either Union Street or Royal Street.
The Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail needs your help to continue improving the trail. Sign up for a volunteer trail improvement event or Donate to Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail to help us purchase tools and supplies.
