Posts tagged Ncpc
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Live chat about DC’s height limit
The National Capital Planning Commission has invited experts on building height from European capital cities to come to Washington for a forum about our height limit. I’m moderating a chat with two of them today. Update: The archived video is now available here and embedded below. Keep reading…
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See you at Tuesday’s 5th birthday party! And other events
Are you coming to the party to celebrate 5 years (and one month) of Greater Greater Washington? We hope you can! We’ll be celebrating from 6-10 pm at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, 641 D Street, NW near Archives Metro and not far from Gallery Place. Besides a great chance to meet your fellow readers, some elected officials from DC and elsewhere in the region will be joining… Keep reading…
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Breakfast links: No breaks
Metro budget details; Cut property taxes on the rich?; Park bustin’ loose; FredCo leader for bikes, smart growth; Few houses available to buy; That’s a lot of cars; Parking solves congestion?; And…. Keep reading…
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Formal geometry forces awkward South Capitol design
Commenters had almost universally negative reactions to DDOT’s South Capitol Street project, which would build a new Frederick Douglass Bridge with a circle and “racetrack” on each end. The project team responded to some questions I sent along. While they have understandable reasons for choosing what they have, it doesn’t persuade me this is a good idea… Keep reading…
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What should be the federal interest in urban design?
Is it in the federal government’s interest to prevent tall buildings barely visible on the horizon from the monumental core of Washington? Or near a river? Or dictate the widths of sidewalks? At its November 1, members of the National Capital Planning Commission engaged in this longstanding debate. This time, the subject came up around a new Urban Design Element to the… Keep reading…
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Should the height limit change?
Darrell Issa and Eleanor Holmes Norton just announced that they’ve asked for a study on revising the Height of Buildings Act of 1910, also known as DC’s height limit. Should it change? The law restricts buildings to 20 feet taller than the adjacent street, up to a maximum of 90 feet on residential streets, 130 feet on commercial streets, and 160 feet on Pennsylvania… Keep reading…
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Tregoning, Wells bash blank wall on Ukraine memorial
DC Office of Planning Director Harriet Tregoning and Councilmember Tommy Wells criticized the design for the planned memorial to the Ukrainian Manmade Famine of 1932-1933 on Massachusetts Avenue near Union Station, primarily for of the way it turns a blank wall to F Street. Both ultimately voted against the design at yesterday’s meeting of the National Capital Planning… Keep reading…
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Grassy triangle will become a plaza and Ukrainian memorial
A small, empty grass triangle just west of Union Station will soon be a new memorial. Victims of the Ukranian Manmade Famine of 1932-1933 will get memorialized, and residents and workers will get a usable plaza. The back side of the memorial, however, will turn a mostly blank wall to F Street. Keep reading…
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To save the Eisenhower Memorial, we may need to move it
Construction on the proposed Eisenhower Memorial in southwest Washington has stalled amid criticism of the current design. Critics have challenged specific elements of the design, but few have questioned whether we’re putting the memorial in the right place. Could we better honor President Eisenhower by moving his memorial somewhere else? The proposed… Keep reading…
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Southwest Ecodistrict would repair 1960s damage
One day, disjointed streets and lifeless blocks around L’Enfant Plaza could become a complete neighborhood with a connected street grid, park space, mixed-use buildings, a museum and more. That’s the vision of the Southwest Ecodistrict plan from the National Capital Planning Commission and a companion plan focusing on Maryland Avenue, SW by the DC Office of… Keep reading…