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D.C. Municipal Regulations (Last Updated: September 13, 2017) |
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Title 11. ZONING REGULATIONS OF 1958 |
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Chapter 11-3. R - 2, R - 3, R - 4, AND R - 5 RESIDENCE DISTRICT USE REGULATIONS |
Section 11-330. R-4 DISTRICTS: GENERAL PROVISIONS
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330.1The R-4 District is designed to include those areas now developed primarily with row dwellings, but within which there have been a substantial number of conversions of the dwellings into dwellings for two (2) or more families.
330.2Very little vacant land shall be included within the R-4 District, since its primary purpose shall be the stabilization of remaining one-family dwellings.
330.3The R-4 District shall not be an apartment house district as contemplated under the General Residence (R-5) Districts, since the conversion of existing structures shall be controlled by a minimum lot area per family requirement.
330.4Except as provided in Chapters 20 through 25 of this title, in an R-4 District, no building or premises shall be used and no building shall be erected or altered that is arranged, intended, or designed to be used except for one (1) or more of the uses listed in §§ 330 through 349.
330.5The following uses shall be permitted as a matter of right in an R-4 District:
(a)Any use permitted in R-3 Districts under § 320.3;
(b)Child/Elderly development center located in a building that was built as a Church hand that has been used continuously as a church since it was built; provided, that all of the play space required for the center by the licensing regulations shall be located on the same lot on which the center is located;
(c)Child/Elderly development center or adult day treatment facility; provided, that the center shall be limited to no more than sixteen (16) individuals;
(d)Community-based residential facility; provided that, notwithstanding any provision in this title to the contrary, the Zoning Administrator has determined that such community-based residential facility, that otherwise complies with the zoning requirements of this title that are of general and uniform applicability to all matter-of-right uses in an R-4 District, is intended to be operated as housing for persons with handicaps. For purposes of this subsection, a "handicap" means, with respect to a person, a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more of such person's major life activities, or a record of having, or being regarded as having, such an impairment, but such item does not include current, illegal use of, or addiction to, a controlled substance;
(e)[REPEALED];
(f)Flat;
(g)Hospital, sanitarium, or clinic for humans;
(h)Museum; and
(i)Private club, lodge, fraternity house, sorority house, or dormitory, except when the use is a service customarily carried on as a business.
330.6A rooming or boarding house shall be permitted as a matter of right in an R-4 District; provided:
(a)Accommodations are not provided to transient guests who stay ninety (90) days or less at the premises;
(b)No sign is displayed on the premises;
(c)No advertisement is displayed or published on or off the premises holding out the establishment to be a hotel, motel, inn, hostel, bed and breakfast, private club, tourist home, guest house, or other transient accommodation;
(d)Cooking facilities are not provided in any individual unit; and
(e)In a rooming house, no central dining or food preparation area is provided for guests.
330.7 Conversion of an existing non-residential building or structure existing prior to May 12, 1958, to a residential building shall be permitted as a matter of right in the R-4 Zone District subject to the following conditions:
(a) There is an existing non-residential building on the property at the time of filing an application for a building permit;
(b) The maximum height of any addition to the existing structure shall not exceed thirty-five feet (35 ft.);
(c) There shall be a minimum of nine hundred square feet (900 sq. ft.) of land area per dwelling unit;
(d) An addition shall not extend further than ten feet (10 ft.) past the furthest rear wall of any principal residential building on an adjacent property;
(e) A roof top architectural element original to the structure such as a turret, tower, or dormers shall not be removed or significantly altered, including changing its shape or increasing its height, elevation, or size;
(f) Any addition, including a roof structure or penthouse, shall not block or impede the functioning of a chimney or other external vent on an adjacent property required by any municipal code;
(g) Any addition, including a roof structure or penthouse, shall not interfere with the operation of an existing or permitted solar energy system on an adjacent property, as evidenced through a shadow, shade, or other reputable study acceptable to the Zoning Administrator; and
(h) An apartment house in an R-4 Zone District converted from a non-residential building prior to June 26, 2015, shall be considered a conforming use and structure, but shall not be permitted to expand either structurally or through increasing the number of units, unless approved by the Board of Zoning Adjustment pursuant to §§ 3104.1 and 3104.3 and § 337.