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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 11-4. RESIDENCE DISTRICT: HEIGHT, AREA, AND DENSITY REGULATIONS |
Section 11-411. PENTHOUSES (R)
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411.1A penthouse permitted in this title shall comply with the conditions specified in this section.
411.2[RESERVED]
411.3Except for compliance with the setbacks required by § 411.18 and as otherwise noted in this section, a penthouse that is less than four feet (4 ft.) in height above a roof or parapet wall shall not be subject to the requirements of this section.
411.4A penthouse may house mechanical equipment or any use permitted within the zone, except as follows:
(a)Penthouse habitable space on a detached dwelling, semi-detached dwelling, rowhouse, or flat shall be limited pursuant to § 411.5 below;
(b)Within residential zones and the Capitol Interest Overlay in which the building is limited to forty feet (40 ft.) maximum penthouse use shall be limited to penthouse mechanical space and ancillary space associated with a rooftop deck, to a maximum area of twenty percent (20%) of the building roof area dedicated to rooftop unenclosed and uncovered deck, terrace, or recreation space;
(c)A nightclub, bar, cocktail lounge, or restaurant use shall only be permitted as a special exception if approved by the Board of Zoning Adjustment under § 3104; and
(d)Penthouse habitable space is not permitted on any building within an area bound by I Street, N.W. to the north; Constitution Avenue, N.W. to the south; 19th Street, N.W. to the west, and 13th Street, N.W. to the east.
411.5Notwithstanding § 411.4, a penthouse, other than screening for rooftop mechanical equipment or a guard-rail required by Title 12 DCMR (CONSTRUCTION CODE SUPPLEMENT OF 2013) for a roof deck, shall not be permitted on the roof of a detached dwelling, semi-detached dwelling, rowhouse, or flat in any zone; however, the Board of Zoning Adjustment may approve a penthouse as a special exception under § 3104, provided the penthouse:
(a)Is no more than ten feet (10 ft.) in height and contains no more than one (1) story; and
(b)Contains only stair or elevator access to the roof, and a maximum of thirty square feet (30 sq. ft.) of storage space ancillary to a rooftop deck.
411.6All penthouses shall be placed in one (1) enclosure, and shall harmonize with the main structure in architectural character, material, and color; except that a rooftop egress stairwell enclosure not containing any other form of habitable or mechanical space may be contained within a separate enclosure.
411.7Mechanical equipment shall be enclosed fully, except that louvers for the enclosing walls may be provided. A roof over a cooling tower need not be provided when the tower is located at or totally below the top of enclosing walls.
411.8When roof levels vary by one (1) floor or more or when separate elevator penthouses are required, there may be one (1) enclosure for each elevator penthouse at each roof level.
411.9Enclosing walls of the penthouse shall be of equal, uniform height as measured from roof level, except that:
(a)Enclosing walls of penthouse habitable space may be of a single different height than walls enclosing penthouse mechanical space;
(b)For a penthouse containing no habitable space, enclosing walls of penthouse mechanical space shall be of a single uniform height except walls enclosing an elevator override may be of a separate uniform height; and
(c)Required screening walls around uncovered mechanical equipment may be of a single, different uniform height.
411.10Enclosing walls of a penthouse from roof level shall rise vertically to a roof, with a slope not exceeding twenty percent (20%) from vertical.
411.11The Board of Zoning Adjustment may grant special exceptions under § 3104 from §§ 411.6 through 411.10 and 400.18 upon a showing that:
(a)Operating difficulties such as meeting Building Code requirements for roof access and stairwell separation or elevator stack location to achieve reasonable efficiencies in lower floors; size of building lot; or other conditions relating to the building or surrounding area make full compliance unduly restrictive, prohibitively costly, or unreasonable;
(b)The intent and purpose of this chapter and this title will not be materially impaired by the structure; and
(c)The light and air of adjacent buildings will not be affected adversely.
411.12Penthouses shall not exceed one-third (1/3) of the total roof area upon which the penthouse sits in the following areas:
(a) Zones where there is a limitation on the number of stories other than the C-3-B Zone District; and
(b) Any property fronting directly onto Independence Avenue, S.W. between 12th Street, S.W. and Second Street, S.W.
411.13For the purposes of calculating floor area ratio for the building, the aggregate square footage of all space on all penthouse levels or stories measuring six and one-half feet (6.5 ft.) or more in height shall be included in the total floor area ratio permitted for the building, with the following exceptions:
(a) Penthouse mechanical space;
(b) Communal recreation space;
(c) Penthouse habitable space, other than as exempted in § 411.13(b), with a floor area ratio of less than four-tenths (0.4); and
(d) Mechanical equipment owned and operated as a penthouse by a fixed right-of-way public mass transit system.
411.14Areas within curtain walls or screening without a roof, used where needed to give the appearance of one (1) structure, shall not be counted in floor area ratio, but shall be computed as a penthouse to determine if they comply with § 411.12.
411.15The gross floor area of penthouse habitable space shall be included in calculations to determine the amount of off-street vehicle parking, bicycle parking, and loading as required elsewhere in this title; except that recreation space for residents or tenants of the building or other ancillary space associated with a rooftop deck shall not be included.
411.16For residential buildings, the construction of penthouse habitable space, except penthouse habitable space devoted exclusively to communal rooftop recreation or amenity space for the primary use of residents of the residential building, is subject to the Inclusionary Zoning set-aside provisions of Chapter 26.
411.17For non-residential buildings, the construction of penthouse habitable space, including all forms of habitable space, shall trigger the affordable housing requirement as set forth in § 414.
411.18Penthouses, screening around unenclosed mechanical equipment, rooftop platforms for swimming pools, roof decks, trellises, and any guard rail on a roof shall be set back from the edge of the roof upon which it is located as follows:
(a)A distance equal to its height from the front building wall of the roof upon which it is located;
(b)A distance equal to its height from the rear building wall of the roof upon which it is located;
(c)A distance equal to its height from the side building wall of the roof upon which it is located if:
(1)In any zone, it is on a building used as a detached dwelling, semi-detached dwelling, rowhouse, or flat, that is:
(A)Adjacent to a property that has a lower or equal permitted matter-of-right building height, or
(B)On a corner lot adjacent to a public or private street or alley right-of-way or a public park;
(2)In the R-1 through R-4 Zone Districts, it is on any building not described in (c)(1) that is:
(A)Adjacent to a property that has a lower or equal permitted matter-of-right building height, or
(B)On a corner lot adjacent to a public or private street or alley right-of-way or a public park;
(3)For zones not listed in paragraph (c)(2), it is on a building not described in paragraph (c)(1) that is located adjacent to a property that has a lower permitted matter-of-right building height;
(4)For any zone, it is on a building adjacent to a property improved with a designated landmark or contributing structure to a historic district that is built to a lower height regardless of the permitted matter-of-right building height; and
(5)For any zone, it is on a building with walls that border any court other than closed courts;
(d)A distance equal to one-half (1/2) of its height from any side building wall of the roof upon which it is located that is not adjoining another building wall and not meeting the conditions of paragraphs (c)(1) through (5); or
(e)A distance equal to two (2) times its height from any building wall of the roof upon which it is located which fronts onto Independence Avenue, S.W. between 12th Street, S.W. and 2nd Street, S.W., or fronting onto Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. between 3rd Street, N.W and 15th Street, N.W., subject to any penthouse constraints contained within adopted PADC Guideline documents.
411.19For the administration of this section, mechanical equipment shall not include telephone equipment, radio, television, or electronic equipment of a type not necessary to the operation of the building or structure. Antenna equipment cabinets and antenna equipment shelters shall be regulated by Chapter 27 of this title.
411.20[RESERVED]
411.21[RESERVED]
411.22[RESERVED]
411.23[RESERVED]
411.24A request to add penthouse habitable space to a building approved by the Zoning Commission as a planned unit development or through the design review requirements of Chapters 16, 18, 28, or 29 prior to January 8, 2016, may be filed as a minor modification for placement on the Zoning Commission consent calendar, pursuant to § 3030 provided:
(a) The item shall not be placed on a Consent Calendar for a period of thirty (30) days minimum following the filing of the application; and
(b) The Office of Planning shall submit a report with a recommendation a minimum of seven (7) days in advance of the meeting.
411.25In addition to meeting the requirements of § 3030, an application made pursuant to § 411.24 shall include:
(a) A fully dimensioned copy of the approved and proposed roof plan and elevations as necessary to show the changes;
(b)A written comparison of the proposal to the Zoning Regulations; and
(c)Verification that the affected ANC has been notified of the request.
411.26Pursuant to § 5 of the Height Act, D.C. Official Code § 601.05(h), a penthouse may be erected to a height in excess of that permitted therein if authorized by the Mayor or his or her designee and subject to the setback and other restrictions stated in the Act.