Section 10-A202. THE DISTRICT AND THE REGION

 

202.1Between 1980 and 2005, the Washington metropolitan area grew by almost 50 percent, increasing from 3.4 million to 5.0 million residents. More than 1.2 million jobs were added during this period, an increase of almost 70 percent. This type of growth might not be surprising in a sunbelt city like Houston or Los Angeles, but in the urban northeast, the statistics are truly impressive. Greater Washington is the fastest growing large metropolitan area in the country outside of the South and West. This growth has been accompanied by unprecedented urban sprawl—the region has actually become less dense as it has added people and jobs. Metropolitan Washington now sprawls across 4,000 square miles of the Middle Atlantic States. 202.1

 

202.2Growth has changed the District’s role within the region. In 1950, the District had 46 percent of the region’s population and 83 percent of its jobs. By 2000, it had just 12 percent of the region’s population and 25 percent of its jobs. Given the city’s finite land area, this trend is expected to continue. Even the most ambitious projections show the District with a diminishing share of the region’s population and jobs in the future. 202.2

 

202.3A declining share of population and jobs does not necessarily suggest a less important role, however. Our position as the nation’s capital, our historic and unique neighborhoods, and our cultural and urban amenities will keep the city vital. In fact, these attributes have already placed a premium on Washington as it has become more distinct from the vast and relatively new suburbs growing up around it. 202.3

 

202.4There are warning signs that regional growth may be out of balance, however. The “inner ring” suburbs of Montgomery, Prince George’s, and Fairfax Counties are planning to add 620,000 jobs during the next 25 years but only 273,000 households. Similar imbalances appear in Arlington, Alexandria, and even in counties on the suburban fringe. If the region continues to grow this way, more workers will seek housing outside the region, creating more congestion, more sprawl, and more expensive housing in the region’s core. The jobs-housing imbalance may fuel demand for housing in the District as suburban residents seek to reduce their commuting times by moving closer to their jobs. However, the opposite may occur if jobs move further away and the workforce follows. 202.4

 

notation

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 9a 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.