This project is in 5C05 on the bounding roadway of 5B04; both ANCs 5C and 5B have automatic party status and Great Weight.

tl;dr

  • This is a proposed 8-home building with 4 parking spaces to replace a detached home with no parking spaces
  • The developer could likely build a slightly larger building to provide more homes and set-aside Affordable Housing, as well as less parking
  • Due to procedural shortcomings inherent in SMD-based Commission organization, neither ANC has weighed in formally, but there is a Commissioner sign-on letter to push for more homes and less parking
  • Residents can submit comments before the morning of Tuesday July 18th!

BZA proceedings

This case is being heard by the Board of Zoning Adjustment, which hears cases involving small zoning variance.

agency case summary next hearing ANC status case status
BZA 20927 Allow increase in density in RA-1 7/19/2023 no action taken; likely too late no action yet

Any increase in density in an RA-1 zone requires an exception of this type; there is no additional relief being sought beyond matter-of-right uses in an RA-1 zone.

Some important artifacts from the case record include:

ANC proceedings

This property is in Single-Member District 5C05, which is represented by Commissioner Darlene Oliver. It’s on the bounding roadway with Single-Member District 5B04, which is represented by Commissioner Ra Amin.

When a case is on the ANC boundary, both adjacent Commissions have “automatic party status” and their recommendations carry Great Weight. As 5B and 5C both rely on SMD Commissioners to handle cases within their SMD in all policy areas, reacting to this case and bringing the matter before each Commission was primarily a task for Commissioners Oliver and Amin.

The applicant made every effort to engage with both 5C and 5B. While attempts were made in both Commissions to learn about the project, and a presentation to ANC 5C did occur on July 12th (a special meeting convened in part due to this case and its hearing the next week), neither Commission passed a recommendation or report. The final reason for this, in the July ANC 5C meeting, was Commissioner Oliver’s absence (due to a medical emergency).

As a response, nearby Commissioners from the three surrounding Commissions have drafted a sign-on letter voicing some advocacy for more homes and less vehicle parking, but otherwise being supportive.

Plans

The property is currently improved by a small detached single-family home. The plan is to raze this structure and build an eight-home building.

front elevation

renderings of the building

The alley-facing rear is currently improved with raised landscaping and no off-street parking; the proposed plans will grade this down and create four alley-facing parking spaces.

Inclusionary Zoning

Typically, developers building multifamily buildings in DC need to set aside some floor area for Affordable Housing (per Inclusionary Zoning), and receive some bonus density for doing so. In an RA-1 zone, the maximum matter-of-right Floor Area Ratio (FAR) is .9, but a building providing IZ homes can build up to 1.08 (a 20% increase). The Floor Area Ratio is the ratio of occupied floor space (Gross Floor Area, which doesn’t include cellar levels or the penthouse) to the lot area.

IZ is only required when a building reaches ten homes, and this one only includes eight. The building can voluntarily include IZ with bonus density as part of zoning relief, or, likely possible in this case, the extra density could put the building at ten homes (or more) in any case. At ten homes, likely one would be set aside for IZ (10-12.5% of the floor area of a wood-frame building).

Per the Applicant’s statement and zoning analysis, the building is below the maximum allowed height for the zone and well below the maximum lot coverage, even without seeking any additional zoning relief.

Standard Required Min/Max Proposal
Height, Stories 40 ft., 3 stories 33 ft. 6 in., 3 stories
FAR w/o IZ 0.9 0.9
Floor Area w/o IZ 4,455 SF 4,455 SF
FAR w/IZ 1.08 N/A
Floor Area w/IZ 5,346 SF N/A
Lot Occupancy (%) 40% 32%
Lot Occupancy (SF) 1980 SF 1593 SF
Side Yards 8.4 feet 8 ft. 6 in.
9 ft. 6 in.
Rear Yard 20 ft. 55 ft.

New homes could be added primarily by building more on the rear of the proposed building.

Parking Requirements

Typically, a residential building in DC requires one parking space per three homes after the first four.

This building has 8 homes as planned, so:

(8 - 4) ÷ 3 = 1.333 which rounds to 1.

Because this building is close to multiple transit lines, including the Rhode Island Ave metro and high-frequency buses, there is a reduction by a half, though this doesn’t change the outcome due to rounding:

((8 - 4) ÷ 3) ÷ 2 = 1.333 ÷ 2 = .666 which rounds to 1.

It would be possible for the developer to seek zoning relief to maintain no parking spaces on the property. It also would be easy to only build one. Instead, the developer is proposing to build four.

At the 7/12 ANC 5C Special Meeting, I asked the applicant specifically about why this decision was made, and the applicant simply said it was “a tough market.”

Community Action

Anyone can submit comments in support or opposition into the case record, to be considered by the BZA when judging the application. I would be happy to help regardless of your position, especially if you are a 5C05 or 5B04 resident, so feel free to reach out if you aren’t sure what to write. You may also choose to speak at the hearing, but you will have to submit written comments either way.

Submitting a Letter

To submit a letter:

  • send before 9:30am Tuesday 7/18/2023 to be sure it’s received in time
  • email it to bzasubmissions@dc.gov
  • include the case number (BZA 20927) and address (1015 Rhode Island Ave NE) in the subject
  • including some information about your proximity to the site, and/or residency within 5C05/5B04 if applicable, may help strengthen the weighing of your comments

A template to start might be:

Subject: Letter in (Support/Opposition) of BZA 20927, 1015 Rhode Island Ave NE

Chairperson Hill and members of the BZA:

This letter of (support/opposition) is in regard to Board of Zoning Adjustment case 20927, relief related to razing a detached home and building an eight-home building.

I (do not) believe the BZA should allow this building to be constructed, because (reasons).

Very respectfully,
(your name)
(your address)

Template in full support

Subject: Letter in Support of BZA 20927, 1015 Rhode Island Ave NE

Chairperson Hill and members of the BZA:

I am writing to support the subject application. The proposed building would add sorely needed homes to the neighborhood, and place them proximal to transit and amenities. As the subject property is already on a block with multiple multifamily buildings, this proposal does not significantly change the residential density one would expect here.

I hope that the BZA approves this application.

Very respectfully,
(name)
(address)
5C05 (or 5B04) resident (if applicable)

Template in support but with less parking

Subject: Comments regarding BZA 20927, 1015 Rhode Island Ave NE

Chairperson Hill and members of the BZA:

I am writing to support the subject application. The proposed building would add sorely needed homes to the neighborhood, and place them proximal to transit and amenities. As the subject property is already on a block with multiple multifamily buildings, this proposal does not significantly change the residential density one would expect here.

I do, however, want to express concerns about the construction of four new vehicle spaces on this property, where none are now and only one is required for this number of homes. This building is well-served by transit, and providing this parking would increase the cost of these homes and could induce car ownership that wouldn’t otherwise occur, hindering our long-term climate and traffic safety goals.

I hope that the BZA asks the applicant to reconsider this aspect of their plans.

Very respectfully,
(name)
(address)
5C05 (or 5B04) resident (if applicable)

Template in support but with Affordable Housing/Inclusionary Zoning

Subject: Comments regarding BZA 20927, 1015 Rhode Island Ave NE

Chairperson Hill and members of the BZA:

I am writing to support the subject application. The proposed building would add sorely needed homes to the neighborhood, and place them proximal to transit and amenities. As the subject property is already on a block with multiple multifamily buildings, this proposal does not significantly change the residential density one would expect here.

I do, however, want to express concerns about the lack of Inclusionary Zoning in this project. While this wouldn’t be required for a building with eight homes, the applicant could voluntarily request it as part of relief (or build additional homes in the bonus density that it would be required in any case).

I hope that the BZA asks the applicant to reconsider this aspect of their plans.

Very respectfully,
(name)
(address)
5C05 (or 5B04) resident (if applicable)

ANC sign-on letter

Chairperson Hill and members of the BZA:

This letter is on behalf of ourselves and our constituencies, and not our respective Commissions. The subject property sits in Single-Member District 5C05 on the bounding roadway with 5B04, making both ANCs 5C and 5B automatic parties to the case. The subject property is also approximately 1200 feet from the 5F boundary. As no Commission has voted on, or submitted, an official report into the record, we, as individual Commissioners from the three Commissions, are assembling thoughts here for consideration by the BZA.

We lament that the community input process was not conducted in normal order, and do not blame the applicant or their representatives. As they’ll no doubt demonstrate, they performed quite a bit of outreach, including emails to both Commissions beginning in April and a presentation delivered to ANC 5C on July 12th, at a Special Meeting convened, in part, to cover this case ahead of the July 19th hearing.

While we are generally proponents of building new homes in our neighborhoods, and will appreciate any outcome that produces a net seven new homes, we have concerns with the specific plans in this case.

Among the concerns:

  • This proposal does not provide for Affordable Housing units through Inclusionary Zoning.
  • In not seeking the bonus density through IZ, the proposal is creating fewer homes overall.
  • The proposal is not fully utilizing the matter-of-right height or lot occupancy allowances, where the aforementioned additional housing could be provided
  • This proposal, as planned, would provide three parking spaces in excess of zoning requirements, when the building is adjacent to transit and errand-serving amenities

Taking opportunities to add additional housing in this location is critical, given:

  • the aforementioned adjacency to transit and errand-serving amenities
  • a recognized shortage of housing locally, regionally, and nationally in transit-accessible locations
  • a limited number of surrounding areas where small multifamily projects are readily allowed
  • The underutilization of surrounding neighborhood schools, as outlined by the Office of Planning report on this application

Being judicious on the ratio of homes to vehicle parking spaces is important, as:

  • the cost of constructing and maintaining these spaces will convey to future residents and further decrease the affordability of these homes
  • attaching these spaces to homes might induce future car ownership and vehicle volume in contrast to DC’s long-term environmental and transportation safety goals

For these reasons, we urge the BZA to compel the applicant to revisit this proposal and consider more housing and/or less parking, as they move forward on this vital project.

Very respectfully,

VJ Kapur
Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner
Single-Member District 5C07

Prita Piekara
Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner
Single-Member District 5B06

Joe Bishop-Henchman
Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner
Single-Member District 5F06

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