Land Use
Greater Greater Washington writes about where we live, work, and play, why we make the location choices we do, and what forces shape these places.
Many people would like to live in safe, diverse, walkable neighborhoods with access to transit, stores, parks, good schools, and other amenities. While our region has more walkable urban places than most, the demand still exceeds available housing, making these places more expensive (and prices keep rising rapidly).
We must ensure that there are enough housing choices so everyone who wants to live in such a neighborhood can choose to do so. We should ensure that housing in desirable areas is available to people at many points along the income spectrum, and take action to fight segregation. And we can improve the vitality of all neighborhoods by encouraging new retail and amenities to improve the quality of life for all residents.
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Wheaton town square should belong to the public
It looks like Wheaton’s getting a town square after all. Last week, the Gazette wrote about developer B.F. Saul and their plans to turn Parking Lot 13, located at the corner of Reedie Drive and Grandview Avenue, into a town square: A town square will feature community events, much like Ellsworth Drive in downtown Silver Spring. B.F. Saul prefers to own and program the space,… Keep reading…
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New York sees similar bike and communication debates as DC
New York City is 13 times the size of DC and its greater metro region 3½ times as big. Political fights there are also far larger, including ones over bicycle lanes and public spaces, as a New York Times profile on Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan details. It explains how Sadik-Khan has pushed forward with many innovative projects including closing parts… Keep reading…
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The Temporium: An experiment in urbanism
Have you ever looked at a storefront that’s been empty a long time and wondered why it couldn’t be filled, at least temporarily, by a small local business? After all, nobody benefits when a storefront sits empty too long. The property owner isn’t making any money, potential businesspeople aren’t operating their business, and neighborhood residents… Keep reading…
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UDC will fix dead plaza with student center
The University of the District of Columbia wants to build a student center on what’s now an empty plaza creating a hole in the Connecticut Avenue streetscape right at the Van Ness Metro station. An active building here would be a big improvement over dead space. Keep reading…
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Breakfast links: Fundamental rights
ACLU will sue over bag searches; Federal cost cutting hurts regional transit; Delaware gets more train service; what about Maryland; New Anacostia library an architectural success; Who’s running in Arlington; NYC rethinking rethinking 34th Street; And…; A roar on Arora. Keep reading…
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AU students need more, quality on-campus housing
American University recently presented neighbors with the latest draft of its 10-year campus plan. The top priorities are to increase undergraduate student housing and provide more space for student recreation, dining, and activities on campus. The most controversial of the plan’s elements is the construction of an East Campus, across Nebraska Avenue from the… Keep reading…
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Breakfast links: Safety on board
Guardian Angels upping Metro patrols; Safety issues on Metrobuses; Can the Mayor overrule HPRB?; Changing ways at Wilson Building?; CaBi posts impressive numbers; Make sure density helps all incomes; What it takes to save solar in DC; Giant globe may become giant baseball; And…. Keep reading…
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On the calendar: Biking west, retail/zoning north, buses east
There’s an important meeting about bike lanes on New Mexico Avenue tonight. Other upcoming meetings discuss retail on upper 14th Street, the Montgomery zoning rewrite, and buses east of the Anacostia River. Tonight, ANC 3D, which spans from American University to the Potomac River, will discuss several transportation and planning issues, including safety at Ward… Keep reading…
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Make Capitol Hill’s Hine project better, not smaller
Developers of the Hine school near Eastern Market unveiled the latest iteration of their plans last night. It’s not the most beautiful Capitol Hill building, but historic review should improve the project as long as it doesn’t also accede to some bad ideas from opponents to try to shrink the project and push it away from the street. On the EMMCA blog, Larry Janezich… Keep reading…
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ANC making unfair demands on Georgetown transportation
Monday night, Georgetown ANC approved recommendations concerning the University’s 10 Year Campus Plan. This includes the usual complaints about students living off-campus, but also dedicates four pages to concerns about transportation-related issues including objections to campus shuttles traversing the neighborhood. Neighbors have long complained that… Keep reading…