D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 10, r. 10-A304
Key to the Comprehensive Plan is the transformation of the city's core (generally referred to throughout the Plan as "Central Washington") into a more cohesive urban center. The six or seven distinct commercial districts that make up Central Washington already comprise the third largest central business district in the United States, after New York and Chicago. Yet, with a few notable exceptions, much of the area lacks the dynamic "24/7" character that defines other great world capitals. For more than 35 years, Washington's planners have aspired to create a "living downtown"-a place alive with housing, theaters, department stores, and restaurants as well as the vast expanse of office space that defines the central city today. Recent developments around Gallery Place and the Penn Quarter show that these efforts are finally paying off, but the area's full potential has yet to be realized. 304.1
Between 2005 and 2025, approximately 30 percent of the District of Columbia's future housing growth and 70 percent of its job growth will occur within the urban core of the city and adjacent close-in areas along the Anacostia River. This growth must be accommodated in a way that protects the area's historic texture, including the street and open space frameworks established by the L'Enfant and McMillan Plans, the 1910 height limit, and the vistas and monumental spaces that define the central city. Infill and redevelopment will take place within the established business districts west of 5th Street NW, but a majority of the central city's future growth will be achieved through redevelopment of areas on its east side. 304.2
Two areas, each over 300 acres in size, are already emerging as the new frontiers for central city growth. The first includes land in the triangle bounded by New York Avenue, Massachusetts Avenue NW, and the CSX railroad, along with adjacent lands around the New York Avenue Metro station. The second area includes the South Capitol corridor and Near Southeast, including the site of the Washington Nationals Baseball Park and the adjoining Southeast Federal Center and waterfront area. Whereas much of Central Washington was redeveloped with single-purpose (office) uses during the second half of the 20th century, these two areas are envisioned as mixed use centers, including housing as well as employment. These areas represent the most promising setting in the entire region to accommodate Metropolitan Washington's next generation of urban living. 304.3
As the urban core expands, reinvestment in established business districts such as the Golden Triangle, the Downtown Core, and the Near Southwest also must continue. These areas will be modernized, better connected to one another, and developed with new infill uses and public improvements. Large sites such as the Old Convention Center provide opportunities for spectacular new civic focal points while smaller sites present the opportunity for new retail, housing, and office development. 304.4
Additional discussions of planning issues in these areas may be found in the Central Washington Area Element and the Lower Anacostia Waterfront/ Near Southwest Area Element. These chapters should be consulted for specific policies and actions. 304.5
Policy LU-1.1.1: Sustaining a Strong City Center
Provide for the continued vitality of Central Washington as a thriving business, government, retail, financial, hospitality, cultural, and residential center. Promote continued reinvestment in central city buildings, infrastructure, and public spaces; continued preservation and restoration of historic resources; and continued efforts to create safe, attractive, and pedestrian-friendly environments. 304.6
Policy LU-1.1.2: "Greater" Downtown
Promote the perception of Downtown Washington as a series of connected business districts, including Metro Center/Retail Core, Golden Triangle/K Street, Federal Triangle, Northwest Rectangle, Gallery Place/Penn Quarter, Downtown East/Judiciary Square, Mount Vernon District, NoMA, Near Southwest/L'Enfant Plaza, South Capitol, and the Southeast Federal Center. The traditional definition of Downtown (roughly bounded by 16th Street, the National Mall, and Massachusetts Avenue) does not fully convey the geographic extent of Washington's Central Business District, or the many unique activities it supports. 304.7
Policy LU-1.1.3: Central Employment Area
Continue the joint federal/District designation of a "Central Employment Area" (CEA) within the District of Columbia. The CEA shall include existing "core" federal facilities such as the US Capitol Building, the White House, and the Supreme Court, and most of the legislative, judicial, and executive administrative headquarters of the United States Government. Additionally, the CEA shall include the greatest concentration of the city's private office development, and higher density mixed land uses, including commercial/retail, hotel, residential, and entertainment uses. Given federally-imposed height limits, the scarcity of vacant land in the core of the city, and the importance of protecting historic resources, the CEA may include additional land necessary to support economic growth and federal expansion. The CEA may be used to guide the District's economic development initiatives, and may be incorporated in its planning and building standards (for example, parking requirements) to reinforce urban character. The CEA is also important because it is part of the "point system" used by the General Services Administration to establish federal leases. The boundaries of the CEA are shown in Figure 3.2. 304.8
Policy LU-1.1.4: Appropriate Uses in the CEA
Ensure that land within the Central Employment Area is used in a manner which reflects the area's national importance, its historic and cultural significance, and its role as the center of the metropolitan region. Federal siting guidelines and District zoning regulations should promote the use of this area with high-value land uses that enhance its image as the seat of the national government and the center of the District of Columbia, and that make the most efficient possible use of its transportation facilities. 304.9
Central Employment Area 304.10
Policy LU-1.1.5: Urban Mixed Use Neighborhoods
Encourage new central city mixed-use neighborhoods combining high-density residential, office, retail, cultural, and open space uses in the following areas:
The location of these areas is shown in the Central Washington and Lower Anacostia Waterfront/Near Southwest Area Elements. Land use regulations and design standards for these areas should ensure that they are developed as attractive pedestrian-oriented neighborhoods, with high-quality architecture and public spaces. Housing, including affordable housing, is particularly encouraged and should be a vital component of the future land-use mix.
Policy LU-1.1.6: Central Employment Area Historic Resources
Preserve the scale and character of the Central Employment Area's historic resources, including the streets, vistas, and public spaces of the L'Enfant and McMillan Plans as well as individual historic structures and sites. Future development must be sensitive to the area's historic character and should enhance important reminders of the city's past. 304.12
Please consult the Historic Preservation and Urban Design Elements for related policies.
Policy LU-1.1.7: Central Employment Area Edges
Support the retention of the established residential neighborhoods adjacent to the Central Employment Area. Appropriate building setbacks, lot coverage standards, and a stepping down in land use intensity and building height shall be required along the edges of the CEA to protect the integrity and historic scale of adjacent neighborhoods and to avoid creating sharp visual distinctions between existing and new structures. 304.13
Please refer to the Urban Design Element for additional guidance on the appropriate transition of intensity at the edges of Downtown.
Policy LU-1.1.8
Reconnecting the City through Air Rights
Support the development of air rights over rail tracks and highways. In several parts of the central city, there is the potential to build over existing railway tracks and highways. These undeveloped air rights are the result of the interjection of massive transportation infrastructure after the establishment and development of the original city. The tracks and highways have created gaps in the historic urban fabric that have left large areas of the center city divided and difficult to traverse. With substantial investment, these sites represent opportunities for development of housing, retail, and commercial buildings, and for the reconnection of neighborhoods and the street grid.
Where possible, streets should be reconnected and air-rights development should be constructed at and measured from grade level consistent with adjacent land. When development at grade level is not physically possible, air rights should be measured by a means that provides for density and height commensurate with the zone district. Establishment of a measuring point for any particular air-rights development shall be consistent with An Act To regulate the height of buildings in the District of Columbia, approved June 1, 1910 (36 Stat. 452; D.C. Official Code § 6-601.01et seq.) ("Height Act"), and should not be taken as precedent for other development projects in the city. Densities and heights should be sensitive to the surrounding neighborhoods and developments and be sufficient to induce the investment needed for such construction.
Action LU-1.1.A: Central Employment Area Boundary
Encourage the National Capital Planning Commission to amend the boundary of the CEA depicted in the Federal Elements to match the boundary shown in the District Elements of the Comprehensive Plan. 304.14
Action LU-1.1.B: Downtown Action Agenda
Update the 2000 Downtown Action Agenda to reflect changing conditions, priorities, and projections (the Agenda is Downtown's strategic plan for future growth, improvement, and conservation). The revised Agenda should define Downtown more broadly to include the multiple business districts that comprise the Central Employment Area. 304.15
More specific policies for this area are contained in the Central Washington Area Element and the Lower Anacostia Waterfront/Near Southwest Area Element.
Action LU-1.1.C: Development of Air Rights
Analyze the unique characteristics of the air rights development sites within the District. Determine appropriate zoning and means of measuring height for each unique site consistent with the Height Act, taking into consideration the ability to utilize zone densities, the size of the site, and the relationship of the potential development to the existing character of the surrounding areas.
The provisions of Title 10, Part A of the DCMR accessible through this web interface are codification of the District Elements of the Comprehensive Plan for the National Capital. As such, they do not represent the organic provisions adopted by the Council of the District of Columbia. The official version of the District Elements only appears as a hard copy volume of Title 10, Part A published pursuant to section 9 a of the District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1994, effective April 10, 1984 (D.C. Law 5-76; D.C. Official Code § 1 -301.66)) . In the event of any inconsistency between the provisions accessible through this site and the provisions contained in the published version of Title 10, Part A, the provisions contained in the published version govern. A copy of the published District Elements is available www.planning.dc.gov.
D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 10, r. 10-A304