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Old Posted Jan 2, 2018, 5:08 PM
C. C. is offline
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Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 3,014
Washington, DC's boom

I'm amazed at the number of cranes that can be seen rising above Washington, DC. I'm interested in the zoning which is allowing all this development to occur. I know there was a big rezoning change a could years back, but DC has been in its boom now for over a decade.

So what's the deal, DC members? Was there always a number of areas in the city that allowed 12+ floor buildings (prior to the 2016 zoning update) and the economic demand is pushing development to underdeveloped areas (like New York Ave near Gallaudet University)? Was there a series of minor zoning changes prior to 2016 that helped encourage all this development or was it always on the books?

I'm really curious. WMATA still sucks, but I love the feel and vibe of the city.

I'm a fan of density over height, and DC does this well. The height limit in DC forces developers to be more clever about the design of their buildings, maximizing light and views, efficiently using space, and being more welcoming to pedestrians that walk by. The thing that irks me about modern skyscrapers is that the base of the building may be entirely a lobby or other useless spaces. Developers/architects can hit their required square footage just by building up. I wish architects of modern skyscrapers would give their base or podium more thought. I'm wondering if there is something in zoning that can help.
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