I-66 West Leg Future?

This proposed project would construct a deck over D.C. I-66 in front of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts at the interchange with the E Street Expressway.

The concept appeared in the 1996-97 NCPC planning publications "Extending the Legacy: Planning America's Capital for the 21st Century" for "air rights" atop this segment of D.C. I-66.

The more recent study included numerous options, all of which treat it as a heavily truncated system.

The design reduces potential capacity to the south by placing its underground parking alongside rather then atop I-66 on its existing grade. (A proper below ground design would instead drop the I-66 grade to sandwich the parking between I-66 and the deck surface). Hence it includes no provisions for accommodating future extensions, at either end, whether for an I-695 South Leg (or conceivably a tunnel to Route 27 in Virginia), the previously planned I-66 K Street Tunnel, nor a deep drilled tunnel to the north, north-west, taking advantage of technological advances since, for a logically needed Northwest Freeway Tunnel.

This is despite calls -- or lip service -- from the federal government since September 11, 2001, for new evacuation routes from cities.
http://www.contextsensitivesolutions.org/content/reading/Kennedy_center/resources/kennedy_ea_summary/http://www.efl.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/kennedy/kennedy.pdf
http://testimony.ost.dot.gov/test/pasttest/02test/Peters4.htm

This project was recently de-funded.

Although clearly an improvement on the surface -- and representative of the proper concept of covering depressed highways -- it's underground portion needs extensive re-design to accommodate a comprehensive, primarily underground, Washington, D.C. motorway network.

DCist- Kennedy Center's Plaza Project Doomed?

Addendum- January 6, 2015:

Below is a design proposal - which is not my preference - from the "National Alliance to Restore Pride in America's Capital" (NARPAC) featuring a re-design of the I-66 West Leg to connect directly with the Rock Creek Parkway.

 http://www.narpac.org/REXLRPRO.HTM#plkencen

My preference would be partial ellipse park covered underground interchange somewhat akin to my Alexandria Orb proposal featured in the Alexandria Journal, connecting into a revived I-66 K Street Tunnel.