Section 10-A318. LU-3.5 FEDERAL FACILITIES

 

318.1When streets and highways are subtracted out, about one-third of the land area of the District of Columbia is owned by the federal government. Most of this land is managed by the National Park Service, but a significant amount-more than 2,700 acres-is comprised of federal installations, offices, military bases, and similar uses. This acreage includes nearly 2,000 buildings, with over 95 million square feet of floor space. Federal uses occupy a range of physical settings, from self-contained enclaves like Bolling Air Force Base to grand office buildings in the heart of Downtown Washington. Federal uses operate in all quadrants of the city, often amidst residential neighborhoods. Since they are largely exempt from zoning, coordination and communication are particularly important to ensure land use compatibility. 318.1

 

318.2Many of the District’s federal uses have unique security requirements and operational needs. This became particularly apparent after 9/11, as streets around the US Capitol were permanently closed and major federal offices and monuments were retrofitted to improve security. Security needs are likely to create further changes to the District’s landscape in the future; the recent proposal to relocate thousands of Homeland Security workers to the west campus of St. Elizabeths Hospital is just one example. 318.2

 

318.3The size of the federal workforce in the District is projected to increase during the next decade, following more than two decades of downsizing. The District supports this increase, as well as continued adherence to a 1968 federal policy to maintain 60 percent of the region’s federal employees within the District of Columbia. At the same time, the federal government is in the process of transferring several tracts of land to the District, potentially reducing the land area for their expansion. This suggests the need for even greater coordination on the planning and development front in the future. Several successful joint planning efforts have recently been completed, including plans for the South Capitol Street Corridor, the Southeast Federal Center, and the Anacostia Waterfront. Efforts like these must continue as the future of Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the Armed Forces Retirement Home, RFK Stadium, and other large federal sites is resolved. 318.3

 

318.4Major federal activities in the District are shown on Map 3.8. Priorities for the use of these lands are expressed in the Federal Elements of the Comprehensive Plan. The “Federal Workplace” Element of that Plan includes policies to reinforce the preeminence of the monumental core through future siting decisions, give preference to urban and transit-served sites when siting new workplaces, and emphasize the modernization of existing structures before building new structures. The Federal Elements include guidelines on the types of federal functions that are appropriate within the Capitol Complex, the Central Employment Area, federal installations, and other areas within the District of Columbia, as well as elsewhere in the region. 318.4

 

318.5Map 3.8: Federal Lands, 2005 318.5

 

http://planning.dc.gov/planning/frames.asp?doc=/planning/lib/planning/2006_revised_comp_plan/3_landuse.pdf.

 

318.6Policy LU-3.5.1: District/Federal Joint Planning

 

Coordinate with the National Capital Planning Commission, the National Park Service, the General Services Administration, the Architect of the Capitol, and other federal agencies to address planning issues involving federal lands, including the monumental core, the waterfront, and the park and open space network. Encourage the use of master plans, created through participatory planning processes, to guide the use of large federal sites. 318.6

 

318.7Policy LU-3.5.2: Federal Sites and Adjacent Neighborhoods

 

Support expansion of the federal workforce and redevelopment of federal sites in a manner that is consistent with neighborhood revitalization, urban design, economic development, and environmental quality goals. Federal land uses should strive to maintain land use compatibility with adjacent neighborhoods. 318.7

 

318.8Policy LU-3.5.3: Recognition of Local Planning and Zoning Regulations

 

Encourage the federal government to abide by local planning and zoning regulations to the maximum extent feasible. 318.8

 

318.9Policy LU-3.5.4: Federal Workplaces and District Goals

 

Strongly support the implementation of Federal Element policies for federal workplaces calling for transportation demand management, sustainable design, energy conservation, additional workforce housing, and the creation of job opportunities in economically distressed communities within the District of Columbia. 318.9

 

318.10Policy LU-3.5.5: Neighborhood Impact of Federal Security Measures

 

Consistent with the Federal Elements, ensure that federal security measures do not impede the District’s commerce and vitality, excessively restrict or impede the use of public space or streets, or impact the health of the existing landscape. Additional street closures are to be avoided to the maximum extent possible. 318.10

 

318.11Policy LU-3.5.6: Reducing Exposure to Hazardous Materials

 

Avoid locating and operating federal facilities that produce hazardous waste or that increase the threat of accidental or terrorist-related release of hazardous materials in heavily populated or environmentally sensitive areas. 318.11

 

Actions relating to federal facility sites may be found in the Comprehensive Plan Area Elements.

 

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.