Reopened Avenue Is a Shadow Of What Was

In front of the White House, Pennsylvania Avenue pedestrians, above, can stroll on new granite pavers. (Susan Biddle -- The Washington Post)

Initially, he proposed a separate lane alongside the northern sidewalk, defined by a single row of trees on both sides. This was to accommodate a proposed downtown bus, called the circulator, and also to narrow the wide street by a bit.

This idea fell afoul of reversibility advocates, who probably were right to suspect that, down the pike, erasing a row of nice trees might cause a stink. But nixing the proposal sure did rob the new place of a much-needed touch of human scale.

The other major change was to rule out the fine, gravel-like paving that the landscape architect desired for the all-important middle section of the design. Again, the reasons are understandable. A gravelly surface is hard to plow during snowstorms, explained an official of the National Park Service, and this new pedestrian boulevard definitely must be kept open for presidential access and egress.

And again, the change had a negative effect. Replacing the fine gravel with a brown-tinted, asphalt-like aggregate transforms what might have been immediately understood as a pleasant promenade into what can only be seen as an empty street.

A haunting, edgy quality now dominates this section of Pennsylvania Avenue. It is as if, by intention or accident, we have resurrected a ghostly image of a once-vital street. You can practically hear the honking horns of yesteryear.

Personally, I like the unsentimentality of this effect. This once was a lively vehicular street, the design says, and now it's not. But such realism comes at a price: This stark new place is not terribly welcoming. It's like a memorial to Pennsylvania Avenue.

Things will improve with the trees, of course. In 15 to 20 years, those disease-resistant elms will be high and leafy enough to cast long shadows and provide a sense of scale.

And then, too, people can liven up the place -- and did, yesterday. As soon as the ceremonies were over, families of tourists ambled in and began taking snapshots. The sight made you intensely aware that, one way or another, it sure is good to have the avenue back.