D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 10, r. 10-A316
There are 169 countries across the globe with foreign missions in the District of Columbia. These missions assist the US government in maintaining positive diplomatic relations with the international community. By international treaty, the US government is obligated to help foreign governments in obtaining suitable facilities for their diplomatic missions. This obligation was reinforced through the Foreign Missions Act of 1982, which established an Office of Foreign Missions within the Department of State and empowered the Secretary of State to set criteria relating to the location of foreign missions in the District. As noted in the text box at left, foreign missions are housed in many different types of buildings, ranging from row houses and mansions to custom-designed office buildings. 316.1
The number of Foreign Missions in the city increased 27 percent between 1983 and 2003, in part fueled by the breakup of the Soviet Union. While an increase of this scale is not expected in the near future, some growth is likely. In addition, some of the existing missions are likely to relocate as they outgrow their facilities, respond to increased security requirements, and move beyond their traditional diplomatic functions. The Federal Elements of the Comprehensive Plan indicate that sites for as many as 100 new and relocated chanceries may be needed during the next 25 years. The availability of sites that meet the needs of foreign missions within traditional diplomatic areas is limited and the International Chancery Center on Van Ness Avenue has no available sites remaining. Additional areas may be needed for chancery use and it may be necessary for foreign missions to look beyond traditional diplomatic enclaves. 316.2
Washington's Foreign Missions 316.3
The facilities that house diplomatic functions in Washington are commonly referred to as embassies. To differentiate the functions that occur in buildings occupied by foreign missions, a variety of designations are used:
Chanceries are the principal offices used by a foreign mission.
Chancery annexes are used for diplomatic purposes in support of the mission, such as cultural attaches or consular operations.
Ambassador's residences are the official homes of ambassadors or chiefs of missions.
Many foreign governments occupy chanceries, chancery annexes, and ambassador's residences in more than one location. In 2004, the federal government indicated there were 483 separate facilities in the city serving these functions.
Since 1982, chanceries have been allowed to locate in most of Washington's non-residential zone districts as a matter of right. They are also permitted in the city's higher-density residential and special purpose (SP) zones, and in less dense residential areas covered by a diplomatic overlay district.
Historically, the city's chanceries have concentrated in Northwest Washington, particularly along Massachusetts Avenue ("Embassy Row"), and in the adjacent Sheridan-Kalorama and Dupont Circle neighborhoods. There are also 16 chanceries on a large federal site adjacent to the Van Ness/UDC Metro station, specifically created to meet the demand for foreign missions.
The Foreign Missions Act of 1982 established procedures and criteria governing the location, replacement, or expansion of chanceries in the District of Columbia. The Act identifies areas where foreign missions may locate without regulatory review ("matter of right" areas), including all areas zoned commercial, industrial, waterfront, or mixed use. These areas are located in all quadrants of the city, and include large areas south of the National Mall and east of the Anacostia River. The 1982 Act also identifies areas where foreign missions may locate subject to disapproval by the District of Columbia Foreign Missions Board of Zoning Adjustment (FMBZA). These include areas zoned medium-high and high-density residential, special purpose, and areas within a Diplomatic overlay zone. 316.4
As a result of the analysis accomplished in support of the Foreign Missions Act, a methodology was developed in 1983 to determine the most appropriate areas for foreign missions to locate, subject to FMBZA review. The 1983 methodology allows foreign missions to locate in low and moderate density city blocks ("squares") in which one-third or more of the area is used for office, commercial, or other non-residential uses. In some cases, a consequence of the square-by-square determination has been an unanticipated increase in chanceries. 316.5
In 2003, the National Capital Planning Commission completed a further analysis of chancery siting standards, concluding that zoning regulations and maps could be revised to more compatibly accommodate foreign missions in the future. The Federal Elements of the Comprehensive Plan suggest that new chanceries be encouraged along South Capitol Street, Massachusetts Avenue (within Reservation 13), and the 16th Street corridor, and that a new foreign mission center be developed on the Armed Forces Retirement Home or along South Capitol Street. Since the time the Federal Elements were adopted, Walter Reed Hospital also has been discussed as a possible site. 316.6
Policy LU-3.3.1: Chancery Encroachment in Low Density Areas
Encourage foreign missions to locate their chancery facilities in areas where adjacent existing and proposed land uses are compatible (e.g., office, commercial, and mixed use), taking special care to protecting the integrity of residential areas. Discourage the location of new chanceries in any area that is essentially a residential use area, to the extent consistent with the Foreign Missions Act. 316.7
Policy LU-3.3.2: Target Areas for New Chanceries
Encourage the development of new chancery facilities in locations where they would support the District's neighborhood revitalization and economic development goals, particularly on federal enclaves and in the portion of the city east of 16th Street NW. Work with the Department of State, the National Capital Planning Commission and other organizations to provide incentives for foreign missions to locate in these areas. 316.8
Policy LU-3.3.3: Compatibility of New Chanceries
Promote the design of chanceries in a manner that protects the city's open space and historic resources, mitigates impacts on nearby properties, is compatible with the scale and character of its surroundings, and enhances Washington's international image as a city of great architecture and urban design. 316.9
Action LU-3.3.A: Modifications to the Diplomatic Overlay Zone
Work with the National Capital Planning Commission and Department of State to develop a new methodology to determine appropriate additional chancery development areas; and revise the mapped diplomatic areas, reflecting additional areas where foreign missions may relocate. The methodology and zoning map revisions should avoid concentration of chanceries in low density neighborhoods, to the extent consistent with the Foreign Missions Act. 316.10
Action LU-3.3.B: Foreign Mission Mapping Improvements
Improve the mapping of foreign mission locations in the city, ensuring that they are accurately inventoried and that chanceries, ambassador's residences, and institutional land uses are appropriately distinguished. 316.11
Action LU-3.3.C: New Foreign Missions Center
Support the development of a new foreign missions center on federal land in the District of Columbia. 316.12
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-A316