Takoma has always been one of the more wooded and suburban-feeling of D.C.'s Metro-blessed communities. From the perspective of a city that needs more housing, the parking lots and auto body shops that surround it are a big waste of space. It's great to see, then, plans for sizeable housing developments on two sites just [...]
So this morning, Mayor Vince Gray and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced an initiative to enhance the landscaping and pedestrian experience around the Anacostia metro station. That's great. It's one of the most confusing and hard-to-get-to stations in the whole system, garlanded by intersections, and could sure use some upgrades.
But the bigger problem with [...]
Last week, the Council approved a raft of amendments to the Comprehensive Plan, the fat document that guides land use in the District. The update process has taken over a year, with hundreds of changes proposed, and many rejected. Several of those that made it through very clearly reflect Almost Mayor Vince Gray’s campaign promises. [...]
While reading about the new Safeway-anchored residential development just approved in Wheaton, all I could think was: Why can't we get these kinds of buildings in the District? It's a 17-story, 486-unit, 195-foot-tall apartment complex that will add density and vibrance to the suburb's delightfully diverse and quirky town center. But it won't look like [...]
Everybody knows that everybody wants to live around metro stops–and as living car-free becomes a more viable option in cities, living close to mass transit is an increasingly valuable commodity. How can we keep that housing available for low-income people? Inclusionary Zoning, as we discussed last week, is certainly part of the equation. The District [...]
EYA is going for transit-oriented development in a big way, if its metro car advertisements are any indication. At the risk of stating the obvious, considering how much it seems like parking concerns tend to retard new business development, building communities that help residents live car-free is a huge thing.
