1000. OVERVIEW

1000 OVERVIEW 1000.1 The Historic Preservation Element guides planning for the protection, revitalization, and preservation of Washington, DC’s valuable historic assets. It defines the District’s role in exercising preservation leadership, promoting awareness of Washington, DC history, identifying and preserving historic resources, and ensuring compatible design in historic neighborhoods. The element recognizes historic preservation as an important responsibility at all levels of government and as a valuable planning tool that provides an opportunity for community input, development collaboration, partnerships, and education. Historic preservation offers a sustainable urban development model that fosters a sense of community well-being and an appreciation of the multifaceted achievements of past Washingtonians. 1000.2 The critical historic preservation issues facing Washington, DC are addressed in this element. These include: Welcoming new growth in the District while preserving its historic character; Advancing cultural heritage planning that supports active use and appreciation of the District’s distinctive places; Commemorating the sites of significant events and the places associated with individuals significant in District history; Identifying appropriate means to preserve the historic character of District neighborhoods; Expanding the reuse of historic buildings for affordable housing; Increasing public access to information about historic properties and development plans in historic areas; Developing more detailed and area-specific design guidelines that apply to historic buildings and sites; Enforcing preservation laws; and Increasing public education and awareness of the District’s heritage and the lasting contributions of District residents to its history. 1000.3 Washington, DC is both the nation’s capital and one of the world’s great planned cities. These conditions have profoundly influenced the course of Washington, DC’s development, shaping its culture and physical character. 1000.4 The nation’s founders selected a special place for the federal city. Both northern and southern, the site was a gentle flatland surrounded by a ring of hills interlaced with broad rivers and streams. Native Americans had inhabited this land for thousands of years, and for nearly two centuries it was an agricultural landscape. By the mid-1700s, as the District began developing, both Georgetown and Alexandria were its trading centers. 1000.5 The natural terrain and early trading centers enabled the creation of a brilliant geometric plan whose array of civic buildings would give the capital city its symbolic profile. The 1791 Plan of the City of Washington, drawn up by the French engineer Pierre Charles L’Enfant, envisioned a majestic seat of government embedded in a city of trade, commerce, and thriving communities. This intermixing of national landmarks with commercial buildings and new apartments still gives Washington, DC a distinctive historic character. 1000.6 How long this experimental District—or nation—would last was unclear. Amid the turmoil of Civil War, as Abraham Lincoln made completion of the new Capitol dome a symbolic goal, disruption laid waste to the District’s greenery and few public adornments. Soldiers and freedmen streaming into Washington, DC burdened its limited resources. It was not until the massive public works program of the Reconstruction era that Washington, DC began to assume a civic dignity befitting its ambitions. As part of the beautification effort, District leaders created a system of privately maintained green space and regulated building projections that would enable sculptural building fronts and a continuous landscape along L’Enfant’s wide thoroughfares. This system is still in effect and continues to shape the design character of the District’s row house neighborhoods. 1000.7 The thirst for civic embellishment and picturesque settings prevailed in the capital through the end of the 19th century. National monuments rose in ornate parks, complementing the sculpted facades and tree-lined lawns along the District avenues. New parkland and a curvilinear tidal basin emerged from the Potomac River mudflats. As metal frame construction and elevators pushed buildings into the skyline, District leaders adopted the first height limits in 1894. In incremental steps, Victorian Washington, DC became a more comfortable, pleasant, and beautiful District. This legacy remains strong in the ring of neighborhoods around downtown. 1000.8 The District began to grow beyond its original boundaries, but after the first few subdivisions were platted in haphazard fashion, District leaders stepped in to ensure that this expansion would be consistent with the District’s planning traditions. Congress set aside the Rock Creek valley for a zoological park and nature preserve and mandated a plan to extend the spirit of L’Enfant’s geometry into the new suburbs. Realized in 1893 as the Permanent System of Highways, commonly known as the Highway Plan, this network of streets and avenues establishes the fundamental character of the District’s outlying neighborhoods. 1000.9 As the nation entered a new century with growing global confidence, the McMillan Commission Plan of 1901 envisioned an even greater city and capital. The plan’s authors reclaimed the legacy of L’Enfant while reinterpreting his vision on a more magnificent scale. The expanded seat of government became a civic precinct, less intermingled with the daily life of the city. The National Mall gained formal majesty, but with a loss of intimate ambience. This vast rearrangement took more than a half century to bring about, slowly evolving through two world wars and the Great Depression. It created the now-familiar heart of historic monumental Washington, DC. 1000.10 Often less recognized are other enduring urban design legacies of this era. The McMillan Plan converted the Civil War Defenses of Washington, DC to a ring of parks, known as the Fort Circle Parks, linking outlying neighborhoods. New playgrounds improved neighborhoods, and sewage-filled mudflats along the Anacostia were filled in for parkland. The architecture of classicism filtered through Washington, DC in houses of commerce downtown and homes with wide front porches in new neighborhoods. Lavish mansions of the social elite began to define elegant boulevards. Social reformers sought to provide better homes for low-income residents in modest housing. 1000.11 As the Great Depression brought many newcomers into Washington, DC, New Deal housing programs introduced garden city planning and better homes to relieve crowded housing, even as the New Dealers themselves sought the charms of living in old Georgetown. Recollection of the colonial past was meant to inspire a nation in hardship. It dominated the District’s civic architecture and home building, even as a heroic Public Works Administration (PWA) modern sensibility began to permeate the new federal buildings framing the National Mall. 1000.12 After World War II, growing suburbs, urban renewal, and modernist design ideas overtook the McMillan Plan as the main influences on Washington, DC’s development. Attractive residential neighborhoods spilled out far beyond the District’s boundaries, while modernist renewal destroyed most of the old Southwest neighborhood. New highways cut into Washington, DC’s fabric with little regard for its architectural beauty or historic plans. Resident activism in response made historic preservation a force in the District’s development. 1000.13 Home Rule in 1973 gave District residents more say in their daily lives and turnedattention to long-neglected inequities. New civic projects brought an era of hope and opportunity, and more inclusive planning. Civic leaders created a living downtown vision for a mixed-use District center guided by traditional urbanism. They also enacted one of the nation’s strongest historic preservation laws. Starting along Pennsylvania Avenue NW, more than three decades of reinvestment have proven the wisdom of those decisions, as revival has spread well beyond the historic downtown, bringing new life to neighborhoods across Washington, DC. With the new century, that District-wide revival has been propelled by widespread renovation of historic landmarks and ambitious modernization of public schools and community facilities in every neighborhood. 1000.14 The District’s recent growth by 100,000 residents in a single decade parallels earlier booms during wartime and the Great Depression, when newcomers flocked to Washington, DC seeking jobs and opportunity. Each of these spurts led to innovation and expansion, but also the challenge of providing adequate housing and services for new residents. 1000.15 With these challenges come new opportunities. This is an era of revitalized historic neighborhoods, vibrant new design ideas, and a more sophisticated appreciation of the role that preservation can play in rejuvenating Washington, DC. Reinvestment has built new homes and businesses, and adaptive reuse has put many older buildings back into productive use. Continuing use of historic building stock can advance sustainability goals, while thoughtful design helps new technologies fit within the context of historic communities. Washington’s historic districts offer distinctive character that provides context for new development and elevates the quality of public spaces. The policies in this element aim to lead preservation forward as an effective tool in achieving those goals. 1000.16 The preservation policies in this plan are premised on the following basic assumptions: The preservation, protection, enhancement, and enjoyment of historic properties are established benefits to the public welfare. The District’s historic character distinguishes it and shapes its cultural heritage and identity. Historic properties cannot be replaced if they are destroyed. Protections should focus on what merits preservation, as measured by demonstrated significance under official designation criteria. Historic properties were built for continued use, and a primary goal of preservation is to support Washington, DC’s vitality by adapting historic properties for modern needs. Historic preservation can be an effective driver of economic development and growth. Preservation conserves usable resources, stimulates tourism and investment in the local economy, creates jobs, and enhances the value of the civic environment. Preservation standards should be reasonable and flexible enough in their application to accommodate different circumstances and community needs. With thoughtful planning and development, growth and changing conditions can occur without degrading historic character. Preservation benefits and educates everyone, honoring and celebrating history. SOURCE: District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984, effective April 10, 1984 (D.C. Law 5-76; 31 DCR 1049 (March 9, 1984)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984 Land Use Element Amendment Act of 1984, effective March 16, 1985 (D.C. Law 5-187; 32 DCR 873 (February 15, 1985)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1989, effective May 23, 1990 (D.C. Law 8-129; 37 DCR 55 (January 5, 1990)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1989 NCPC-Recommended Amendments, and Closing of Public Alleys in Square 669, S.O. 88-452, Act of 1990, effective May 23, 1990 (D.C. Law 8-132; 37 DCR 2213 (April 6, 1990)); as amended by District Government Land Use Temporary Amendment Act of 1994, effective October 1, 1994 (D.C. Law 10-190; 41 DCR 5360 (August 12, 1994)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1994, effective October 6, 1994 (D.C. Law 10-193; 41 DCR 5536 (August 19, 1994)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984 Land Use Amendment Act of 1994, effective March 21, 1995 (D.C. Law 10-235; 42 DCR 30 (January 6, 1995)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 1996, effective April 18, 1996 (D.C. Law 11-110; 43 DCR 530 (February 9, 1996)); as amended by Second Technical Amendments Act of 1996, effective April 9, 1997 (D.C. Law 11-255; 44 DCR 1271 (March 7, 1997)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 1998, effective April 27, 1999 (D.C. Law 12-275; 46 DCR 1441 (February 19, 1999)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 1999, effective April 12, 2000 (D.C. Law 13-91; 47 DCR 520 (January 28, 2000)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2006, effective March 8, 2007 (D.C. Law 16-300; 54 DCR 924 (February 2, 2007)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 2008, effective March 25, 2009 (D.C. Law 17-353; 56 DCR 1117 (February 6, 2009)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2010, effective April 8, 2011 (D.C. Law 18-361; 58 DCR 908 (February 4, 2011)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2021, effective August 21, 2021 (D.C. Law 24-20; 68 DCR 006918 (July 16, 2021)). District of Columbia Municipal Regulations Comprehensive Plan 10-A DCMR § 1000