Category: District of Columbia

Testimony: Performance Oversight for the Department of Housing and Community Development and Housing Production Trust Fund (DC)

We wish to express our strong support for the HPTF, and urge the Council to remain committed to this essential tool for addressing our acute housing affordability challenges. Without it, we would be so much farther behind, leaving thousands of families without the homes they now enjoy. DC’s strong commitment to preserving and producing affordable housing is one of the leading efforts in the country. While our housing affordability challenges are severe, the HPTF provides irreplaceable capacity to address our needs. 

Testimony: NHP Elm Gardens Redevelopment (DC, Support)

We wish to express our strong support for Case No. 23-19. We are pleased to support this Planned Unit Development (PUD) to facilitate a tenant and non-profit-led redevelopment of an aging 36-unit rental apartment building into a new, 4-story 100% affordable, accessible 80-unit building. These units would include 36 replacement units and 44 new homes. The 44 new units would serve households earning 50% MFI or less. Eight units in the building would be reserved as permanent supportive housing to formerly unhoused people.

Testimony: Reducing parking requirements for affordable housing near transit (DC, Support with amendments)

We wish to express our support for Case No. 23-17 in two ways.
1) We support the recommended text amendment to reduce parking requirements for publicly assisted affordable dwelling units near transit, though we urge the commission to revise upward the threshold for relieving small projects of a parking requirement burden to 50 units rather than the 40 units proposed.
2) We ask the Zoning Commission to take a more significant step by eliminating parking requirements for affordable housing units, at least near transit.

Testimony: Support for bills voiding exclusionary covenants (B25-480, 482, 481)

We wish to express our support for B25-480, B25-482, and B25-481. We commend Councilmember Frumin and the other co-sponsors for bringing this legislation forward. This legislation advances the immediate goal of clearing obstacles to adding approximately 100 units of affordable housing for households earning 30-80 percent median family income to the Chevy Chase library site. Our affordable housing goals for the site is part of a shared statement with Washington Interfaith Network (WIN) and Ward3Vision. 

Testimony: Proposed rezoning of the U Street police/fire station sites (DC, Support)

We want to again express our support for the proposed rezoning for the U Street police and fire station sites from MU-4 to MU-10. This proposal follows the land use designation change adopted in the 2021 Comprehensive Plan amendments and will make the site’s zoning consistent with the Future Land Use Map (FLUM). 

CSG comments on state DOT draft Carbon Reduction Strategies

The Coalition for Smarter Growth respectfully asks your consideration of these comments as you refine your Carbon Reduction Strategies (CRS) prior to submittal to FHWA next month. These comments build on our October 17 letter to the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board. 

CSG Support for Connecticut Avenue Development Guidelines

We are pleased to express our support for the revised Development Guidelines for the commercial areas on Connecticut Avenue in the Cleveland Park and Woodley Park Historic Districts. The revised Development Guidelines will help us meet the Comprehensive Plan goals of increasing housing, and improving the mix of uses, while ensuring building forms that integrate with the historic districts and foster a people-friendly streetscape around the Cleveland Park and Woodley Park Metro stations.