Section 10-A314. LU-3.1 PUBLIC WORKS AND INDUSTRIAL LAND USES

 

314.1Approximately 2,000 acres of land in the District of Columbia are zoned for industrial uses. The city’s industrial areas support a variety of uses, many of which are essential to the delivery of municipal services or which are part of the business infrastructure that underpins the local economy. In 2005, the inventory of private industrial floor space in the city was approximately 13 million square feet. 314.1

 

314.2Some of the municipal activities housed on the city’s industrial land include trash transfer and hauling, bus storage and maintenance, vehicle impoundment, police and fire training, street repair and cleaning equipment storage, and water and sewer construction services. Private activities on industrial lands include food and beverage services, laundries, printers, concrete and asphalt batching plants, distribution centers, telecommunication facilities, construction contractors and suppliers, and auto salvage yards, to name only a few. The contribution and necessity of these uses to the city’s economy is discussed in the Economic Development Element of the Comprehensive Plan. 314.2

 

314.3Given the lenient zoning standards within industrial areas (most of which actually favor commercial uses over industrial uses), much of the city’s industrial land supply is at risk. While public works and PDR uses may no longer be logical in some areas given their proximity to Metro or residential areas, proactive measures are needed to sustain them elsewhere. 314.3

 

314.4In 2005, the District of Columbia commissioned an analysis of industrial land supply and demand to provide a framework for new land use policies (see text box). The recommendations of this study are incorporated in the policies and actions below. 314.4

 

314.5One of the most important findings of the industrial land use analysis is that there is an immediate unmet need of approximately 70 acres for “municipal-industrial” activities. Facility needs range from an MPD Evidence Warehouse to replacement bus garages for WMATA. Several agencies, including the Architect of the Capitol, indicate that their acreage needs will increase even more in the next ten years. At the same time, there is evidence that efficiencies could be achieved through better site layouts and consolidation of some municipal functions, particularly for vehicle fleet maintenance. The findings provide compelling reasons to protect the limited supply of industrial land, and to organize municipal-industrial activities more efficiently. 314.5

 

314.6Taking a Hard Look at DC’s Industrial Lands 314.6

 

The 2005-2006 Industrial Land Use Study classified DC’s industrially zoned lands into four categories:

 

a.Areas for Retention and Reinforcement have healthy production, distribution, and repair (PDR) uses and have good prospects for hosting such uses in the future.

 

b.Areas for Intensification/Evolution will continue to be desirable for PDR activities but show patterns of underutilization and opportunities for intensified uses. Some non-PDR activities may take place in these areas in the long-term future.

 

c.Areas for Strategic Public Use are needed to accommodate municipal and utility needs.

 

d.Areas for Land Use Change are areas where a move away from PDR uses may be appropriate due to a lack of viable PDR businesses and the desirability of these sites for other uses. In some of these areas, the District may let the market take its course. In others, pro-active measures such as rezoning may be in order.

 

The District is currently developing criteria for evaluating rezoning requests which reflect these typologies and further consider the land use, transportation, and environmental context of each site, its unique characteristics, and its potential need for future municipal purposes.

 

314.7Policy LU-3.1.1: Conservation of Industrial Land

 

Recognize the importance of industrial land to the economy of the District of Columbia, specifically its ability to support public works functions, and accommodate production, distribution, and repair (PDR) activities. Ensure that zoning regulations and land use decisions protect active and viable PDR land uses, while allowing compatible office and retail uses and development under standards established within CM- and M- zoning. Economic development programs should work to retain and permit such uses in the future. 314.7

 

314.8Policy LU-3.1.2: Redevelopment of Obsolete Industrial Uses

 

Encourage the redevelopment of outmoded and non-productive industrial sites, such as vacant warehouses and open storage yards, with higher value production, distribution, and repair uses and other activities which support the core sectors of the District economy (federal government, hospitality, higher education, etc.). 314.8

 

314.9Policy LU-3.1.3: Location of PDR Areas

 

Accommodate Production, Distribution, and Repair (PDR) uses-including municipal public works facilities-in areas that are well buffered from residential uses (and other sensitive uses such as schools), easily accessed from major roads and railroads, and characterized by existing concentrations of PDR and industrial uses. Such areas are generally designated as “PDR” on the Comprehensive Plan’s Future Land Use Map. 314.9

 

314.10Policy LU-3.1.4: Rezoning of Industrial Areas

 

Allow the rezoning of industrial land for non-industrial purposes only when the land can no longer viably support industrial or PDR activities or is located such that industry cannot co-exist adequately with adjacent existing uses. Examples include land in the immediate vicinity of Metrorail stations, sites within historic districts, and small sites in the midst of stable residential neighborhoods. In the event such rezoning results in the displacement of active uses, assist these uses in relocating to designated PDR areas. 314.10

 

314.11Policy LU-3.1.5: Mitigating Industrial Land Use Impacts

 

Mitigate the adverse impacts created by industrial uses through a variety of measures, including buffering, site planning and design, strict environmental controls, performance standards, and the use of a range of industrial zones that reflect the varying impacts of different kinds of industrial uses. 314.11

 

314.12Policy LU-3.1.6: Siting Of Industrial-Type Public Works Facilities

 

Use performance standards (such as noise, odor, and other environmental controls), minimum distance requirements, and other regulatory and design measures to ensure the compatibility of industrial-type public works facilities such as trash transfer stations with surrounding land uses. Improve the physical appearance and screening of such uses and strictly regulate operations to reduce the incidence of land use conflicts, especially with residential uses. 314.12

 

314.13Policy LU-3.1.7: Cottage Industries

 

Support low-impact “cottage industries” and “home-grown businesses” in neighborhood commercial districts and on appropriate industrial lands. Maintain zoning regulations that strictly regulate such uses in residential areas, in order to avoid land use conflicts and business-related impacts. 314.13

 

314.14Policy LU-3.1.8: Co-Location of Municipal Public Works Functions

 

Improve the performance of existing industrial areas through zoning regulations and city policies which encourage the more efficient use of land, including the co-location of municipal functions (such as fleet maintenance, record storage, and warehousing) on consolidated sites rather than independently managed scattered sites. 314.14

 

314.15Policy LU-3.1.9: Central Management of Public Works

 

Promote the central management of municipal public works activities to avoid the displacement of essential government activities and the inefficiencies and increased costs resulting from more distant locations and future land acquisition needs. Consider “land banking” appropriately located District-owned properties and vacant sites to accommodate future municipal space needs. 314.15

 

314.16Policy LU-3.1.10: Land Use Efficiency Through Technology

 

Encourage the more efficient use of PDR land through the application of technologies which reduce acreage requirements for public works. Examples of such applications include the use of diesel-electric hybrid buses (which can be accommodated in multi-level garages), using distributed power generation rather than large centralized facilities, and emphasizing green building technologies to reduce infrastructure needs. 314.16

 

314.17Action LU-3.1.A: Industrial Zoning Use Changes

 

Provide a new zoning framework for industrial land, including:

 

a.Prohibiting high impact "heavy" industries in the C-M zones to reduce the possibility of land use conflicts;

 

b.Prohibiting certain civic uses that detract from the industrial character of C-M areas and that could ultimately interfere with business operations;

 

c.Requiring special exceptions for potentially incompatible large retail uses in the C-M zone to provide more control over such uses without reducing height and bulk standards;

 

d.Limiting non-industrial uses in the M zone to avoid encroachment by uses which could impair existing industrial and public works activities (such as trash transfer);

 

e.Creating an IP (industrial park) district with use and bulk regulations that reflect prevailing activities; and

 

f.Creating a Mixed Use district where residential, commercial, and lesser-impact PDR uses are permitted, thereby accommodating livework space, artisans and studios, and more intensive commercial uses.

 

Once these changes have been made, pursue the rezoning of selected sites in a manner consistent with the policies of the Comprehensive Plan. The zoning changes should continue to provide the flexibility to shift the mix of uses within historically industrial areas and should not diminish the economic viability of existing industrial activities or the other compatible activities that now occur in PDR areas. 314.17

 

314.18Action LU-3.1.B: Industrial Land Use Compatibility

 

During the revision of the Zoning Regulations, develop performance standards and buffering guidelines to improve edge conditions where industrial uses abut residential uses, and to address areas where residential uses currently exist within industrially zoned areas. 314.18

 

314.19Action LU-3.1.C: Joint Facility Development

 

Actively pursue intergovernmental agreements to develop joint facilities for District and federal agencies (such as DPR and NPS); District and transit agencies (DPW and WMATA); and multiple public utilities (Pepco and WASA). 314.19

 

314.20Action LU-3.1.D: Inventory of Housing In Industrial Areas

 

Compile an inventory of existing housing units within industrially zoned areas to identify pockets of residential development that should be rezoned (to mixed use or residential) in order to protect the housing stock. 314.20

 

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.