Woodley Park Historic Societies Recognize the Contribution of the Lawn
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BEFORE THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ZONING COMMISSION In the matter of: ) ) APPLICATION OF KLINGLE CORPORATION ) Case No. 96-7C Cl ci c::::. BRIEF OF CATHEDRAL PARK CONDOMINIUM COMMITTJLE IN ACCORDANCE WITH COMMISSION'S MARCH 10, 2000 LETTER -~ ; :.) Andrea Newmark Cathedral Park Condominium Committee 3 100 Connecticut A venue, # 13 8 Washington, D.C. 20008 (202) 234-3286 May 12, 2000 ZONING COMMISSION ZONINGDistrict ofcor~H.r'i,SSiOi''{ Columbia Case No. 96-7 CASE No._!fi_-ZONING](, COMMISSION District of Columbia qz_CASE NO.96-7 ~"1: ..IIBIT No. 3DeletedEXHIBIT NO.392,.. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION . 1 The Proceedings To Date . 2 RESPONSE TO QUESTIONS POSED BY THE COMMISSION . 3 1. Density ......................................................................... 3 In your brief, please address the following questions raised by the Court: . 3 (1) whether the PUD would not be a "low density" development within the meaning of 10 DCMR § 1407.3(c) ................................................................. 3 (2) whether the National Zoo and/or Klingle Valley are "landmark parks" for purposes of that section . 4 (3) whether the proposed PUD is "adjacent" to Klingle Valley and/or the National Zoo for purposes of that section . 4 If your answers to the above questions are in the affirmative, please address whether and to what extent the application of 10 DCMR § 1407.3(c) to the PUD in this case is limited (e.g., by other provisions of the Comprehensive Plan or by ameliorative measures) . 5 Finally, in light of your answers to these questions and any other information relevant to the low density requirement of 10 DCMR § 1407.3(c), please discuss whether the proposed PUD is not inconsistent with the Comprehensive Plan as a whole . 6 2. Specific Protection of Green Space on Kennedy-Warren Property ........................ 9 Please discuss whether the proposed PUD is not inconsistent with the Comprehensive Plan in light of the proscriptions of 10 DCMR § 1407.3(d) and 1409.4(a)(3) against infill of open space that is "recognized to contribute to the integrity of the site or structure" at the present time. To the extent you consider the original design of the Kennedy-Warren relevant to the issue, please include a discussion thereof in your response . 9 The Kennedy-Warren Lawn is Recognized to Contribute To The Integrity Of The Site Or Structure At The Present Time . 10 a. The Lawn Is A Character-Defining Feature In The Existing Building's Historic Designations . 10 b. The Plan Itself Recognizes The Contribution Of The Kennedy-Warren Lawn 11 c. The Lawn Is Widely Recognized To Contribute To The Integrity Of The Structure or Site At The Present Time . 12 i. The D.C. Preservation League has long recognized the contribution of the lawn .... 12 11. The Cleveland and Woodley Park Historic Societies recognize the contribution of the lawn. 13 iii. ANC-3C and the Citizens Planning Coalition recognize the contribution of the lawn.. 13 1v. The Commission on Fine Arts and the National Zoo recognize the present contribution of the lawn to the site... 15 v. The community recognizes the lawn to contribute to both the structure and its site ... 17 This Infill Would Not Be "Appropriate" ........................................... 18 The Proposed PUD Would Be Inconsistent With The Comprehensive Plan . 18 While The Original Design May Be Relevant To Determining "Compatability" Under The Historic Preservation Act, It Is Not Relevant To The Pending Issues ..................... 19 3. Impact, if any, of the 1999 Comprehensive Plan Amendments. 21 Please discuss whether the Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 1999 has any impact on the PUD application. If you believe that any of the 1999 amendments have an impact, please identify the amended provision(s) in question and explain why you believe the amendment impacts the application.. .21 i. additional protection for the settings of historic landmarks . 21 10 DCMR § 1407.4(d) ii. increased emphasis on curtailing development adjacent to parkland . 22 10 DCMR § 1409.4(a)(3)(B) 10 DCMR § 1403.7(a)(3) 10 DCMR § 1407.3(b)(6) iii. additional buffer requirements . 23 10 DCMR § 1407.l(d) iv. clarification regarding housing near metro stations .......................... 25 10 DCMR § 1401.6(b) CONCLUSION . 26 11 INTRODUCTION The Zoning Commission's enabling statute, D.C. Code §5-414, requires that "zoning maps, regulations, and amendments thereto ... not be inconsistent with the comprehensive plan for the nation's capital." In its decision of January 20, 2000, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals vacated the Commission's order approving the construction and associated rezoning of a Planned Unit Development ("PUD") by the Klingle Corporation ("Klingle"), adding a new wing to the Kennedy-Warren apartment building on Connecticut Avenue, N.W., because of the Commission's failure to adequately consider the PUD's apparent inconsistency with three provisions in the Comprehensive Plan (the "Plan"). See Cathedral Park Condominium Committee v. District of Columbia Zoning Commission, 743 A.2d 1231 (D.C. 2000). The Cathedral Park Condominium Committee ("CPC")Y, which opposes the PUD, had explained during the 1997 zoning hearings the significance of those provisions, but the Commission adopted Klingle' s proposed findings and conclusions, which simply glossed over them. Now, the Court of Appeals has directed the Commission to address specifically whether the PUD is inconsistent with the Plan "in light of (1) the requirement of 10 DCMR § 1407.3(c) that development adjacent to landmark parks 'must be low density'; and (2) the proscriptions in 10 DCMR §§1407.J(d) and 1409.4(a)(3) against infill of open space that is 'recognized to contribute to the integrity of the site or structure."' 743 A.2d at 1251. The Commission has, in turn, asked the parties to brief those questions, and also to address the Ji At the time of the initial proceedings, CPC was a group of unpaid, volunteer co-owners of the Cathedral Park Condominium, located at 3100 Connecticut Avenue directly opposite the Kennedy W arren. Since then, the individual CPC members transferred their interests in these proceedings to member Andrea Newmark, so that Ms. Newmark's appearance in the Court of Appeals on behalf of persons other than herself would not conflict with her job at the Department of Justice. - I - applicability to the PUD of the 1999 amendments to the Plan. As CPC shall demonstrate, the PUD is plainly inconsistent with 10 DCMR §§1407.3(c), 1407.3(d), and 1409.4(a)(3), and the amended Plan as a whole. The Proceedings To Date On September 15, 1997, after several nights of hearings, the Commission granted Klingle, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the B.F. Saul Co. and the owner of the subject property (also referred to in these proceedings as the "applicant"), permission to exceed the density, rear yard and penthouse limitations in order to construct a luxury high-rise addition to the Kennedy-Warren Apartments, an historic landmark located at 3133 Connecticut Avenue, adjacent to the National Zoo. The development would replace the Kennedy-Warren lawn, which is surrounded by historic landmarks, and serves as a buffer between those landmarks. The plans for the proposed development approximate the plans for the South wing that was designed in 1931, prior to this City's adoption of density limitations, and never built. However, the principal purpose of this PUD is to build rental apartments. Moreover, much has changed since 1931. The lawn has become significant in its own right: the setting it provides was an element in the designation of the Kennedy-Warren as an historic landmark, and it has been singled out in the Comprehensive Plan for protection against development. The National Zoo has fought to preserve the lawns surrounding its Connecticut A venue entrances as integral parts of its own setting. And the kind of density that was viewed as desirable for the site in 1931 has since been roundly condemned. The density of the existing Kennedy-Warren, a nonconforming structure, exceeds its current zoning - thus precluding any further development on the site as a matter of right. In - 2 - approving the PUD, the Commission granted applicant an 80% increase in allowable density, 70% waiver of the rear yard requirement, and various waivers of the penthouse restrictions through the PUD regulations set forth at 11 DCMR §§ 2400-2499. In conjunction with the PUD, and using the same standards, the Commission granted applicant an upzoning of the site from R-5-D to R-5- E. This was the first residential PUD application to be evaluated under the Ward 3 Element of the Plan, adopted on August 19, 1994, see 41 DCR 5536, 5686 (Aug. 19, 1994), and the first to be evaluated under the 1995 revisions to the PUD regulations. CPC appealed the Commission's September 15, 1997 Order (hereafter "Order") to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals which, on January 20, 2000, vacated the order, and remanded the case on the question of whether the requested zoning relief is inconsistent with the Comprehensive Plan. RESPONSE TO QUESTIONS POSED BY THE COMMISSION 1. Density. In your brief, please address the following questions raised by the Court: (1) whether the PUD would not be a "low density" development within the meaning of 10 DCMR § 1407.3(c ). The PUD would be zoned R-5-E and have a FAR of 6.29 - a density so high it is "off the charts." See 11 DCMR §§ 402.4; 2405.2. Indeed, the 6.29 FAR of the proposed project would be the highest residential density in the entire City. And, as applicant's land use expert conceded on cross-examination, there currently is no other R-5-E, "high density" zoning in all of Ward 3.J Y It also is undisputed that the project site is currently zoned for a 3.