CSG in the news: D.C. fails to take up Comprehensive Plan amendments, pushes issue to 2019

Bisnow, Dec. 14, 2018:

Advocates are not happy that the council pushed the Comprehensive Plan amendment to 2019. Coalition for Smarter Growth Policy Director Cheryl Cort said the group is pushing the council to take up the amendments early next year. “We are frustrated that it was not moved forward,” Cort said. “We would have liked to have this Comprehensive Plan be a higher priority, but we know the council is still engaged, and the chairman has not forgotten about it.”

“The PUD process is being crippled by all the meritless appeals,” Cort said. “We used to get some appeals, which makes sense, but now pretty much everything is being appealed and it’s crippling our ability to redevelop larger affordable housing sites.” 

The D.C. Council held a hearing on the amendments in March that lasted over 13 hours and had 273 people signed up to testify. Many top D.C. developers, including JBG Smith, EYA, Trammell Crow, MRP Realty, MidCity Development and Menkiti Group testified in support of the amendments. Advocates like Cort also testified in favor of the amendments, while other anti-development activists like Chris Otten testified in opposition to the changes. 

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