Streetcar Land Study

Streetcar Land Use Study
district of columbia phase one
Goody Clancy Kittelson & Associates W-ZHA Zimmerman/Volk Associates EHT Traceries January 2012
Streetcar Land Use Study

district of columbia phase one
January 2012 submitted to the District of Columbia Office of Planning by Goody Clancy
Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | i
acknowledgements
Executive Office of the Mayor Vincent C. Gray, Mayor Office of Planning Harriet Tregoning Director, Office of Planning Rosalynn Hughey Deputy Director, Citywide and Neighborhood Planning Kimberly Driggins Associate Director, Citywide Planning Geraldine Gardner Associate Director, Neighborhood Planning David Maloney State Historic Preservation Officer Joel Lawson Associate Director, Development Review Melissa Bird Project Manager, Neighborhood Planning Colleen Mitchell Project Manager, Citywide Planning Jen Hughes Former Capital City Fellow, Citywide Planning Art Rodgers Senior Housing Planner Sakina Khan Senior Economic Planner Consultant Team Goody Clancy W-ZHA ZVA Kittleson EHT Traceries Historic Preservation Agency Resources Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development Deputy Mayor, Victor Hoskins District Department of Transportation Director, Terry Bellamy Department of Housing and Community Development Director, John E. Hall DC Housing Authority Executive Director, Adrianne Todman Department of Small and Local Business Development Director, Harold B. Pettigrew Jr. Citywide Resources National Capital Planning Commission WMATA Downtown BID NOMA BID Capitol Riverfront BID Washington DC Economic Partnership River East Emerging Leaders (REEL) Anacostia Economic Development Council H Street Main Street Barracks Row Main Street Ward 8 Business Council DC Surface Transit
ii | Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system
January 2012
Dear Resident: The District of Columbia is committed to bringing a streetcar system to the city to improve transit services available to residents and create walkable, vibrant communities. In the spring of 2010, the DC Office of Planning (OP) initiated a land planning study to ensure that the city and its residents gain the greatest possible benefits from the new system, and that the overarching vision and goals for the District are furthered by the new system. Goals of the DC Streetcar system: Link neighborhoods with a modern, convenient and attractive transportation alternative. Provide quality service to retain and grow transit ridership. Offer a broader range of transit options for District residents. Reduce short inner-city auto trips, parking demand, traffic congestion and air pollution. Connect people to jobs and services with frequent, affordable, reliable transit service. Encourage economic development and affordable housing options along streetcar corridors. The Streetcar Land Use Study provides an assessment of the citywide benefits of the system in terms of access to jobs and schools, quality of life, transportation costs for
households, job growth, and real estate impacts. The study also considers potential challenges to the introduction of streetcar service such as the impact on historic and cultural resources, housing costs and small business retention. The report examines the benefits and challenges along each proposed corridor and proposes adjustments to phasing and small segments to maximize mobility and economic development benefits of the investment. In the months ahead, the Streetcar Land Use Study will provide an initial foundation of analysis that OP, DDOT and other involved agencies will use to make recommendations regarding the Districts streetcar system. Future elements of the Streetcar Land Use Study will examine specific land use recommendations at the corridor and neighborhood level including zoning, retail and residential uses, streetscape and urban design. The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) will lead the system design, financing, construction and operation of the streetcar, and DDOT is moving forward with the initial phase of the streetcar system with construction of the H Street/Benning Road line. As DDOT completes system planning for each corridor, extensive public outreach to local residents and businesses will take place. The findings supported in this study will further the dialogue between communities and District agencies as we continue planning for future lines.
Harriet Tregoning Director, Office of Planning
Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | iii
iv | Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system
contents
1. Introduction a. planning for a streetcar system > Study purpose and methodology > The Districts suitability for streetcar service > Lessons from other cities > How the streetcar compares to other transit options b. summary of findings > Streetcar benefits (Chapter 2) > Challenges and mitigation strategies (Chapter 3) > Neighborhood analysis (Chapter 4) > Strategies and tools for optimizing land use benefits (Chapter 5) 1 1 4 4 7 8 8 11 11 12
f. provides real estate market benefits > Residential market > Office market > Retail market g. increases tax revenues h. expands the creative economy 3. Systemwide Challenges and Mitigation Strategies > Housing affordability > Market shifts > Small business preservation > Constrained right of way on city streets > Parking > Congestion > Bicycles
24 25 27 29 30 31
2. Systemwide Benefits a. improves access to premium transit b. reduces transportation costs c. offers quality-of-life benefits > Improves walkability > Promotes public health > Extends the walk > Encourages development of Main Streets > Broadens access to schools > Preserves historic resources > Expands housing choices d. improves job access e. attracts new jobs and residents
33 35 36 36 37 37 37
13 13 15 15 16 17 17 18 19 21 21 22
4. Corridor/Neighborhood Analysis a. assessing benefits and challenges in each corridor 39 > Corridor 1: MLK, Firth Sterling Avenue, and 40 South Capital Street > Corridor 2: Good Hope Road and Minnesota Avenue 42 > Corridor 3: Capitol Riverfront, Buzzard Point, Capitol Hill, and 7th Street 44 > Corridor 4: K and H streets to Union Station; F, 14th, and 7th streets downtown 46 > Corridor 5: H Street/Benning Road 48
Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | v
> Corridor 6: 14th, 18th (Adams Morgan), U streets, Florida Avenue, and 8th Street > Corridor 7: Rhode Island Avenue NE > Corridor 8: Woodley Park, Columbia Heights, Washington Hospital Center, and Brookland > Corridor 9: Georgia Avenue and Takoma b. capturing opportunity through alternative routing or phasing 5. Strategies and Tools for Optimizing Land Use Impacts a. maximizing land use benefits, minimizing implementation costs > Potential development tools > Potential land use and design-guidance tools > Coordination with other infrastructure investments b. funding > Development-driven funding mechanisms > Improved eligibility for federal funding 6. Next Steps
50 52 54 56 58
65 65 67 67 68 68 70
vi | Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system
1. introduction
The streetcar represents an effective strategy for advancing many of the 1a Planning for a streetcar system Districts core economic The District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT) has initiated a program to reestablish streetcar and social goals. service in the District. The purpose of the DC Streetcar is
he District of Columbias decision to build a streetcar network emerged from a long-term assessment of the citys transportation needs. Integrated with Metrorail and other transit services, the 37-mile system would extend transit to large, underserved portions of the District, and it would expand the benefits of transit for many areas already served by Metrorail.
As the District agency responsible for the system planning, design, financing and construction of the project, DDOT has collaborated with other agencies, including the Office of Planning, to ensure that efforts are coordinated and benefits of the investment are maximized. The Office of Planning led this Streetcar Land Use Study to investigate impacts of the proposed system on land uses, as well as job access, quality of life and housing affordability. To reduce disruption to residents and businesses, DDOT has begun building sections of two streetcar lines as part of previously planned roadway reconstruction along H Street/Benning Road NE and Firth Sterling Road SE. Environmental work has begun on other lines, but decisions still need to be made about many routes and other critical aspects of streetcar planning.
study PurPose and Methodology
to provide high-capacity and high-quality transit service to residents and invest in infrastructure that will catalyze economic development. The planned system is the result of 14 years of planning (see Figure 1) and touches every ward in the District. The recommended plan includes a network of streetcar lines operating in eight corridors. The selection criteria for these corridors included ) ridership potential, 2) demand for additional capacity on existing Metrorail and bus lines, 3) gaps in existing service that connect neighborhoods, employment, and retail centers, and 4) economic development opportunities. Map 3, Full Streetcar System Phasing, shows streetcar segments and project phasing.
Commissioned by the District Office of Planning, this Streetcar Land Use Study constitutes an integral part of the planning for the new system. Among possible land use impacts of a streetcar system, the study examines jobs, quality of life, and the affordability of housing in the District; potential fiscal benefits to the District; the streetcars projected effect on real estate development; and
Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | 1
FIGURE 1 Early Studies

Year StudY SponSor SummarY
1997
Vision, Strategy and Action Plan
DDOT
The plan recommended intracity connections between the radial WMATA rail lines, designating ten corridors for transit improvements that would connect District neighborhoods and help support community economic development initiatives. The plan advanced five corridors for further study. The study identified systemwide Metrorail improvements to accommodate estimated future ridership. The study considered each of the previously identified corridors for surface rail transit and recommended four priority corridors for implementation. The study identified bus improvements to serve inside previously designated corridors and to aid in District circulation and Metrorail system-capacity relief. The study refined a citywide system plan of enhanced, multimodal surface transit on designated corridors. The study resulted in the implementation of the Metro Express (Metro Extra at the time) limited-stop bus service, Route 79, in 2007. The study identified a restructuring of five bus routes, resulting in a combination of local, limited-stop and shuttle routes to serve Wisconsin and Pennsylvania avenues. New Metro Express limited-stop bus services, Routes 37 and 39, were initiated in 2008. The study resulted in the implementation of the Metro Express limited-stop bus service, Route S9, along 16th Street NW. The study identifies improved bus service levels and a planned Metro Express limited-stop service in the heavily travelled corridor 2009 DC Circulator New Routes DDOT Further expansion of DC Circulator to serve Adams Morgan, Woodley Park, Columbia Heights, Capitol Riverfront, Capitol Hill, and the Nationals Park Stadium area. Update DDOT. This updates the plan for a system of streetcars and limited stop bus services in the District.
related issues. Its conclusions about all of these impacts will help inform planning for the system. Certain parameters and methodologies for this study were established in order to analyze the impacts to land use and develop future projections. These include study area boundaries, decisions on timing, data sources, and key criteria to be measured. They are highlighted in Figure 2 and described in further detail in the subsequent chapters. This document represents the first of several study phases and District efforts in planning for the streetcar system. In addition to projecting potential impacts and benefits, it identifies land use opportunities, corridor adjustments, and other actions that can either amplify benefits of building a streetcar system or address challenges its creation might pose. By measuring the economic benefits of the streetcar to the city, this study can help decision makers assess the broad value of the streetcar system and determine whether streetcar-related land use benefits can be tapped to help fund the cost of building the system. DDOT is conducting a comprehensive financing plan that will examine property values and funding of specific projects. Later phases will focus in greater depth on land use issues and will facilitate community engagement in planning for the streetcar.
1999 2001 2002
Transit Service Expansion Plan Core Capacity Study Transit Development Study Regional Bus Study
WMATA WMATA WMATA
2003
WMATA
20042010: DCs Transit Future Alternatives Analysis (DCAA) 2004 2005 2006 DCs Transit Future WMATA, Alternatives Analy- DDOT sis (DCAA) Georgia Avenue/7th Street Rapid Bus Service Plan 30s Line Study WMATA, DDOT
2007
WMATA, DDOT
2008
16th Street Line Study Benning Road/H Street Study (Metrobus Routes X1, X2 and X3)
WMATA, DDOT WMATA, DDOT
2009
CURRENT
DCs Transit Future (DCAA) System Plan
Source: http://ddot.dc.gov/DC/DDOT/On+Your+Street/Mass+Transit+in+DC/DC+Streetcar/DC+Transit+Future/ DC+Transit+Future+System+Plan+-+Planning+Process
2 | introduction
FIGURE 2 Methodology Overview

Streetcar Land uSe StudY phaSe one Streetcar Land uSe StudY phaSe one
Study area
All streetcar corridors in the DC Transit Future System Plan (2010) Study area organized into nine corridors that share similar land use characteristics mile (1,320 ft.) from streetcar lines, but excluding areas within mile of existing Metrorail stations where the streetcars benefit would be largely redundant Forecasts order-of-magnitude real estate value and market demand increase attributable to the streetcar over a 10year horizon; analysis assumes entire planned system in operation as of 2010 study Assumes no zoning changes in this phase Informed by analysis of demographic data, land use data, and characteristics of urban form (i.e., block size, walkability, neighborhood character) Historic-resources analysis informed by identification of existing and eligible historic structures and districts along streetcar corridors Public health benefits analysis informed by published research on health and safety impacts of transportation by transit, car, foot, and bicycle Considerations for transportation benefits assessment: added transit capacity; net new premium transit service; transit service to pedestrian-friendly areas; service to transit-dependent populations; and improved transit access to jobs Considerations for corridor-constraints assessment: roadway congestion; on-street parking impacts; pedestrian barriers; bicycle network overlaps; and priority bus network overlap Additional analysis addresses how the Streetcar Land Use Plan findings can be used to support future FTA New Starts planning efforts for the DC Streetcar.
Methods of real estate analysis
Informed by review of the major types of market benefits evident where streetcar service has been introduced in other cities
OFFICe
Projected streetcar impact area Timing
Zoning changes Quality-of-life impacts analysis
Baseline office projection: determined by the Council of Governments Round 7.2 Employment Forecast and District of Columbia, Department of Employment Services MSA employment projections by industry and occupation Streetcar benefit projection: determined by applying four specific criteria measuring the streetcars unique officemarket benefit in specific corridor areas to office-inclined employment projections combined with Transportation Analysis Zone data from the Council of Governments
ReSIDenTIAl MARkeT POTenTIAl
Transportation impact analysis
Determined by applying six specific criteria measuring the streetcars unique housing market benefit in specific corridor areas to Zimmerman/Volk Associates proprietary target market methodology. This methodology establishes market potential based on housing preferences, demographic trends and socio-economic characteristics of households. Includes migration analysis (internal and external), Census data from the American Community Survey, and data from the nielsen Claritas PRIZM ne market segmentation tool
ReTAIl MARkeT POTenTIAl
Determined from the additional retail spending potential of new households and workers attracted by the streetcar Value-capture mechanisms Projects the order-of-magnitude increment in the value of existing development and projected new development attributable to the streetcar Discusses strategies for value capture, including taxincrement financing districts, special assessments, business improvement districts, joint development agreements, and property acquisition Discusses potential land use and design guidance tools, including changes in allowable densities, mandatory inclusionary zoning, and development of design guidelines
MAP 1 Proposed And Historic Streetcar Routes

ST
13TH ST
CHES TNUT
32ND
ST
HOLLY ST
9TH ST
7TH ST
BIR
WISE RD
BRUMMEL
CT
14TH ST AL AS KA AV
BEECH ST
FLORAL ST FERN ST
12TH ST
CH
ST
GERANIUM ST
FLORAL PL
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FERN PL ELDER ST
EA
ABERFOYLE PL
ARCADIA PL WORTHINGTON ST
E
ST
ER
7TH ST
13TH PL
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12TH ST
EY
OREGON
9TH ST
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29TH PL
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WIL
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TENNYSON ST
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AVE
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OREGON
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2ND PL
33RD ST
PATTERSON PL
PATTERSON ST
OLIVER ST NORTHAMPTON ST
OL IVE R
NORTH CAPITOL ST
T ES
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RITTENHOUSE ST
VAN BUREN ST UNDERWOOD ST

UNDERWOOD ST TEWKESBURY PL TUCKERMAN ST SOMERSET PL
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7TH PL
BINGHAM DR
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WHITTIER ST
VENABLE PL
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QUESADA ST
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UNDERWOOD ST TEWKESBURY PL TUCKERMAN ST
UNDERWOOD ST
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STUYVESANT PL 32ND PL
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MORRISON ST
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LIVINGSTON ST LEGATION ST
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NEWLANDS ST
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MILITARY RD
GLOVER
29TH ST
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3RD PL
5TH
JOCELYN ST JENIFER ST
JOCELYN ST
RD
MONTAGUE ST
4TH ST
3RD ST
MARIETTA PL
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MILMARSON PL MADISON ST
CHILLUM
PL
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KANAWHA ST
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NICHOLSON ST
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2ND PL
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NORTH CAPITOL ST
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GARRISON ST
KENNEDY ST
14TH ST 13TH ST
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RIG
NE
HARRISON ST
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AS
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KENNEDY ST
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JEFFERSON ST
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HARRISON
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AS
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8TH
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JENIFER ST
MADISON ST
MADISON ST
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OGLETHORPE ST
NICHOLSON ST
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Two-thirds of the proposed lines follow historic streetcar routes. Existing development patterns, which the streetcar helped establish, are expected to thrive in the future with renewed streetcar service.
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EA ST
BE AC H DR
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UTA H AV E
the districts suitability for streetcar service
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GRAN
JEFFERSON ST INGRAHAM ST
JEFFERSON ST
RIGG
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CHILLUM PL
INGRAH AM ST
30TH PL
FESSENDEN ST EVERETT ST ELLICOTT ST
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SS RO
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HAMILTON ST
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FORT TOTTEN DR
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FORT DR
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HAMILTON ST GALLATIN ST
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10TH ST
DAVENPORT ST CUMBERLAND ST
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BRANCH
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FARADAY PL EMERSON ST
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GRANT
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FARRAGUT ST EMERSON ST
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BRANDYWINE ST
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ALTON PL YUMA ST
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PINEY
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Fort Totten Park

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IDAHO AVE
INTERNATIONAL DR
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URELL PL
UPSHUR ST TAYLOR ST
TILDEN ST
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CRESTWOOD DR
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ROWLAND PL
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SIGSBEE PL
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MOUNT PLEASANT ST
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HOLMEAD PL
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LAWRENCE ST KEARNY ST
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PL
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31ST PL
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26TH ST
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RD SCALE GATE
PL
QUINCY ST
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ST
QUINCY ST PERRY ST
25TH PL
QUEB
9TH ST
PORTER ST
PL
RD
QUINCY
ST
RANDOLPH ST
RD
QUINCY ST
QUINCY ST
PER
RY
PERRY ST
OTIS
ST
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37
ST
TH
ST
KLINGLE RD
34TH ST
KLINGLE PL
KLINGLE
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PL
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ST
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ST
CORTLAND PL
KENYON ST
MIL
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PL
KENYON
ST
JACKSON ST
14TH ST
FO
CATHEDRAL AVE
CATHEDRAL AVE
25TH ST
33RD PL
BELLEVUE TER
32ND ST
IRVING ST
QU AR
27TH ST
4TH ST
38TH ST
28TH ST
OO
26TH ST
27TH ST
35TH ST
34TH PL
29TH ST
29TH PL
6TH ST
EL
WOODL
36TH PL
9TH ST
AN
EY RD
EDMUNDS ST
VAT SER OR
24TH ST
ON
2ND ST
20TH ST
CIR
RY
ST
ERV ATO
31ST ST
ING
38TH ST
12TH PL
NORTH CAPITOL ST
D PL
RD
DO WN
15TH ST
RE
OBS
30TH ST
EA
FLAGLER PL
HM
LM
HIGHWOOD CT 39TH ST
BE
LN RD
35TH ST
SS
WILTBERGER ST
37TH ST
24TH ST
IR
8TH ST
38TH ST
10TH ST
34TH ST
LN
24TH ST
2ND ST
20TH ST
JOHNSON AVE
BL A
HA
RS
15TH ST
PO
7TH ST
&
MP
S ST
S ST
AV
3RD ST
SH
EE
BANCROFT PL
SWANN ST
SWANN ST
SEATON PL S ST
SEATON PL
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T ST
AV
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SE
CALIFORNIA ST
PL OY LER BANCROFT PL
1ST ST
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VER
AC
TRACY PL
FL
OR
IDA
AV
WILLARD ST
CAROLINE ST
WALLACH PL
T ST
T ST
T ST
THOMAS ST
TODD PL T ST
TODD PL
T ST
FEN
E ST OKI
T ST
T ST
HICKEY LN
PH
36TH ST
LOVE
19TH ST
NE
AVE
4TH ST
RESERVOIR RD
DENT PL Q ST
AVON PL
MO NT
9TH ST
28TH ST
30TH ST
KINGMAN PL
ETT
18TH ST
MILL RD
L AV
ELLIPSE RD
3RD ST
PI TO
35TH ST
COLUMBIA ST
HOPKINS ST
26TH ST
33RD ST
PL
16TH ST
14TH ST
AVE
27TH ST
BATAAN ST
36TH ST
37TH ST
MO NT
POTOMAC ST
20TH ST
KIRBY ST
VER
4TH ST
DA
N ST
OLIVE ST
22ND ST
10TH ST
18TH PL
3RD ST
K ST
1ST TER
THOMAS JEFFERSON ST
26TH ST
DELA WARE
ABBEY PL
H ST
16TH ST
AVE
29TH ST
1ST ST
15TH ST
DE
POTOMAC ST
MO NT
12TH ST
MO
25TH ST
17TH PL
17TH ST
S ST
24TH ST
4TH ST
13TH ST
43RD PL
21ST ST
22ND ST
21ST ST
STA
20TH ST
18TH ST
AN
6TH ST
MP
5TH ST
EAST EXECUTIVE AVE MADISON PL
8TH ST
24TH ST
1ST ST
NE
11TH ST
7TH ST
PICKFORD PL
2ND ST
ST
18TH ST
15TH ST
15TH ST
IL W
AV
CIR
19TH ST
PL
US
23RD ST
ST
3RD ST
9TH ST
ES TE XP
SE
E ST EXPY
MA
21ST ST
13 1/2 ST
17TH PL
23RD ST
9TH ST
INTERSTATE 395
AV
16TH ST
ANACOSTIA RD
DR
NIL WO
46TH ST
ANACOSTIA AVE
5TH ST
BURNS ST
33RD ST
KE
2ND ST
22ND ST
NR Y
12TH ST EXPY
MADISON DR
1ST ST
7TH ST
19TH ST
22ND ST
EAST CAPITOL ST
13TH ST
23RD ST
RAOUL WALLENBERG PL
3RD ST
1ST ST
36TH ST
LENFANT PROMENADE
AVE
MEMORIAL AVE
ARL
C ST
MAR
YLA
SEWARD SQ
AC
HU
BAY ST
SE TTS AVE
13TH ST
DELAW ARE
1ST ST
C ST
C ST 6TH ST
33RD ST
12TH ST
17TH ST
32ND ST
G ST
G ST
G ST
GORMAN TER
46TH PL
4TH ST
ST
WESLEY PL
CIR
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EY
CHA
DELA WAR
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30TH ST
PK
BRG
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PO TO
MA
C AVE
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NT
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ROCHAMBEAU
31ST ST
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DR
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H ST
H ST
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CA NA L ST
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OH
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AT W
4TH PL
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6TH PL
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VIRG
695
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CAR
OLIN
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MA IN
FRONTAGE RD
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NE
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ANA
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ST
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TA
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ST
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AN
BA
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PE
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F ST
ELY PL
ELY PL
40TH PL
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TIA
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AV
AC
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OS
DR
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C ST
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C ST
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TEXAS AVE
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TON
ME
RIA MO
L BR
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INDEPENDENCE AVE
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INDEPENDENCE AVE
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MAR
ND
AVE
RT NO
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LIN
34TH ST
B ST
37T H PL
B ST
BA
B ST
SS PL
WALTER PL
MA
SS
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D ST
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TH
CAR
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RD
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A AVE
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DUBOIS PL
C ST
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12TH ST
ND
AVE
A ST
A ST
A ST
ST
BU RN S PL
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46TH ST
The Mall
EAST CAPITOL ST
EAST CAPITOL ST
HE
EAST CAPITOL ST
EAST CAPITOL ST
CENTRAL AVE
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A ST
A ST
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CH
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IN ST
FALLS TER
LVA
APL
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RST VIRG INIA I PL ATE AVE 695
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H ST
G ST
FO
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A PL
RT
DU
PO
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CH
DR
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NN
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MADISON DR
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A ST
41ST ST
BA
RTH NO
CO
ALDEN PL
AMES ST
AMES ST
AMES ST
AMES ST
48TH PL
35
MA
A ST
ORE RD
TH
36
RY
12TH ST
46TH PL
TH
FL
LAN
CONSTITUTION AVE
BLAINE ST
BLAINE ST
45TH ST
INTER
17TH ST
ST
IN
STATE
AVE
CONSTITUTION AVE
43R
RT
ST
66
ION
D AVE
A AVE LIN RO CA AMES PL
PL
CONS
TITUT
AV E
2ND ST
22ND ST
20TH ST
12TH PL
2ND ST
PARK ST
BAKER ST
CLAY PL
D RD
C ST
ST
BANKS PL
47TH ST
IA AVE
WARREN ST
C ST
C ST
LVAN
C ST
AVE
C ST
C ST
14TH PL
NSY
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IA
6TH ST
PEN
ANA
LO
DELA WAR
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INDI
INDI
C ST
34TH ST
ANA
CORBIN PL
C ST
18TH PL
20TH ST
GIN
D ST
SI UI
10TH ST
CLAY PL
CLAY ST
35TH ST
34TH PL
AVE
39T
AN
AVE
TE
ELL
E AVE
D ST
AV
D ST
TTS
18TH ST
IPS
NN
SE
36TH ST
VIR
D ST
DIX ST
ST
HU
42ND ST
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ES
D ST
E ST
SS
AC
LEXINGTON PL
DUNCAN PL
ISHERWOOD ST
EADS ST
44TH ST
MITCH SNYDER PL
20TH ST
LA
8TH ST
1ST ST
COL
E ST
OK
PENNSYLVANIA AVE
10TH ST
E ST
AV
STATE PL
E ST
UMB
8TH ST
23RD
24TH
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OT
48TH PL
MA
HO
ACKER PL
EMERALD ST
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RY
F ST
BENN
FO
EDSON PL
45TH ST
25TH
LAN
PL
MA
F ST
F ST
F ST
F ST
44TH ST
F ST
F ST
D AVE
47TH PL
AV
FOOTE ST
46TH ST
MORRIS PL
20TH
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14TH PL
NIA
G ST
G ST
G ST
G ST
ELLIOTT ST
VIR
GI
G ST
14TH ST
G PL
RT H
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G ST BENN ING RD
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PA
G PL
LINDEN PL
BENNETT PL
KE
FO
NI LW
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RK
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OR
AVE
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SI DE
HA
NIA
S AVE
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H ST
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TH
LVA
11TH ST
ETT
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BA
PL
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SH
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HUS
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PEN
NSY
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SAC
WYLIE ST
AC
MAS
AN
OS
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NORTH CAPITOL ST
27TH ST
26TH ST
9TH ST
19TH ST
3RD ST
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RN
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ST
IE
HE
HUNT PL
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AV
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PARKER ST
AA VE
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NA
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45TH PL
GH
HAYES ST
S AVE
47TH ST
HUNT PL HAYES ST
ST
M
E PL
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47TH PL
K ST
8TH ST
PLE
OR
R ST
K ST
K ST
RID
RE
MT VERNON PL
1ST TER
WATE
RS
E ST
K ST
SHERIFF RD
48TH PL
3RD ST
KENT PL
MO
18TH ST
19TH ST
N ST
VER
NE
SOUTH ST
FL O
48TH ST
5TH ST
ST
EADS ST DIX ST CLAY ST
EADS PL
FITCH PL
CLA Y PL
DIX
ST
BROOKS
BLAINE ST
49TH ST
KANE PL
45TH
FWY
L ST
L ST
L ST
L ST
L ST
L ST
AL
BLA
HA
EHU
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RST
GRACE ST
L ST
NE
L ST
LEE ST
PL 45TH
MP
WHIT
SU
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16T
NT
L PL
SH
NS
ST
LANG PL
Anacostia Park
ST
PIERCE ST
MM
EL
DE SALES ST
S AVE
PIERCE ST
IS
HO LBR
IR
BU
ETT
ORLEANS PL
LEV
LYMAN PL
21ST PL
CANAL RD
23RD ST
LO
IT
HUS
OO
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M ST
AV
AV
RG
ST
SAC
M ST
AVE
MAS
M ST
OW
RD
PROSPECT ST
EN PL OA TE S ST
M ST
40TH ST
TR
PL
RHODO
MEADE ST
MEADE ST
47TH PL
RD
TER
INI
ND
PATTERSON ST
18TH ST
WA
JEFFERSON PL
HIG
HLA
NEW
PE
EE
RIDGE ST
NN
ST
N ST
D AV
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N ST
N ST
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N ST
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QU
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OK
KE NIL KE WO NIL WO RTH RT AV E H AV E
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DUMBARTON ST
NEWPORT PL
SUNDERLAND PL
S AVE
11T
DE RHO
ISL
AND
HANOVER PL
MO
RS
HO LB
RO
ME
IGS
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CRABTREE RD
NASH ST
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AVE
EAGLE
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P ST
POPLAR ST
SAC
NIL WO
P ST
P ST
MAS
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HUS
ETT
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O ST
O ST
O ST
WY NE
SIM RA UM
NE
MS
MO
PL
RT
UN
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PL
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P ST
P ST
CA
BRE
NTW
W ES
VOLTA PL
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BE
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AV
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IV
DUPONT
ST
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ST
CIR
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BATES ST
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CHURCH ST
CHURCH ST
10TH ST
NN
PKY
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VER
SAC
MARION ST
RT
RID
HARR Y THOM
PL
WINFIELD LN
DENT PL
CA RG PIT IN IA OL AV AV E E
SCOTT
MAS
HILLYER PL
CORCORAN ST
WARNER ST
FLO
QUINCY PL
AZALEA RD
MEADOW
RD
PO
Q ST
A AV
ND
Q ST
S ST
LE
AV
PL
32ND ST
AR
RESERV
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AS WAY
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DE RHO
ISL
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OK
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PK
AND
AVE
RANDOLPH PL
RANDOLPH PL
ST
R ST
MA
DECATUR PL
PL
TO
EL
PS
RIGGS PL
RIGGS PL
RIGGS ST
FRENCH ST
S ST
S ST
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VALLEY RD
23RD ST
WHITEHAVE
MO NT
MA
AT W
NS BU
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1ST ST
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WYO
MIN
VERNON ST
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U ST
U ST
U ST
V ST
RG
SEATON ST
12TH ST
ON
G AVE
CALIFORNIA ST
V ST
V ST
OAKDALE ELM ST
PL
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RD
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5TH ST
1ST PL
PL
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RD
CK RO
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BR
KAL
EN
CR
ORA
10TH ST
TW
W ST
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MA
BEE
W ST
W ST
W ST
W ST
W PL
W ST
AD
V ST
SPRING HOUSE RD
33RD ST
3RD ST
LA W
RD
KMA
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DR
CR
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LM
ON
FLOR
ST
NC
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ADAMS ST
ADAMS ST
N PL
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CR
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BELMONT RD
CE
NT
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BELMONT ST
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BRYANT
13
AV
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KA
BARRY PL
ST
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TH
NI
NG
30TH PL
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LO
PL
BELMONT ST
BRYANT ST
PL
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AM
S PL
33
PL
D PL
RA
MA
COLLEGE
ST
BRYANT ST
BRYANT ST
ADAMS ST
RD
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MINTWOO
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6TH ST
ST
36TH PL CONIFER RD
S ST
HICKEY
HILL RD
TIA AVE
RAND PL R ST
UN
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RD
ST
TH
21ST PL
NST
ST
ON
ST
rk Pa
BILTMORE ST
CLIFTON ST
HOWARD
DR
CHANNING ST
CHANNING ST
BR YA
SA
CALVERT ST
MA
28T
R
PL
NT
14
CHANNING ST
33RD
PL
NAM ED
PA
NOR
LLA
30TH ST
MI
RA TO
CROMWELL TER
RK
RD
CALVERT ST
GA
EUCLID ST
MC
AV
DOUGLAS ST
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DAVIS PL
DAVIS ST
OB
CALVERT ST
AV
LA
EUCLID ST
CH
DOUGLAS ST DOUGLAS ST
NI NG DOUGLAS ST ST MO NT CHANNING ST AN A AV E BRYANT ST
AN
DOUGLAS ST
DOUGLAS ST
31ST PL
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TA
RI
ER NI
PL
FULLER ST
FAIRMONT ST
FAIRMONT
EUCLID ST
9TH ST
EVARTS ST
EVARTS ST
EVARTS ST
BR
EN
TW
22ND ST
AV
YD CL
PL
24TH ST
ES
DA
LE
GIRARD ST
RI O
GIRARD ST
GIRARD
ST
ST
FRANKLI
N ST
FRANKLIN ST
FRANKLIN ST
OO
RD
FRANKLIN ST
AVE
APPLE RD
EVARTS ST
EVARTS ST
BAN
EV
AD
PL
AR
5TH ST
FULTON ST
CL
AM
IT PL
GIRARD
ST
GIR
BERRY RD
31ST PL
FOR T LINC
SUMM
NN GO
GRESHAM
NEK
GIRARD ST
20TH ST
BR
ST
8TH ST
HARVARD ST
1ST ST
GARFIELD
PL
GIRARD ST
GIRARD ST
AR
OLN
RY HARVARD ST RD
TW
30
LL
ER
EN
MI
PL
PL
DR
HOBART
HAMLIN ST
DR
RD
TH
GARFIELD ST
PL
ST
HOBART ST
IRVING ST
LU CO
MB
IA
RD
HA WT
RT
PL
IRVING ST
CA
COLUMBIA RD
HOBART PL
HAMLIN ST
RD
IRVING ST
DR
IRVING ST
TO RL
AV
FULTON PL
HAMLIN ST
EA
RL
HAMLIN ST
A ST VI
ST
PL
SU
AV E
MM
IT
CT
ANA
COS
QU
ST
E AV RK
PE
RD
DOU
GLA
47
TH
AV
S ST
OL
ST
IVE
ORD ST
PL
RA
UM
ST
DENDE
ON VALLEY
RD
MARNE PL
MI
NN
ES
A OT
AV
LANE PL
LEE ST
KANE PL
The District had an extensive streetcar network between 862 and 962, and many of todays development patterns originally formed around its lines (Map 1, Proposed and Historic Streetcar Routes). Since the late 970s Metrorail has served as the Districts signature transit service. The second-busiest subway system in the United States, it provides high-quality service every day to hundreds of thousands of area residents and visitors. Metrorail service, however, is not equally available throughout the District and does not reach certain areas with high demand for premium transit. The proposed streetcar system is planned so that it would reach many of those areas, tying them to each other and to Metro. Unlike Metro, the above-ground nature of the streetcar would increase its visibility and expand opportunity for visitors and others to experience the city visually.
lessons froM other cities
1ST ST
R TE
D VA NE
NIC
2N D ST
E AV
HO LS ON
A E AV
ST
5T H ST
BLAIR
EV
33
JA
GEORGIA
RD
11TH ST
REN O RD
12 TH
4T H
3RD
ST
7T
2ND ST
ST
ST
ST
ST
ILL INO IS
RIDGE RD
FA
AVE
AVE
RR
FA
IO WA AV E
7TH PL
AG UT PL
RR AG UT ST
FARRAGUT ST
ATIN PL
29TH ST
28T H ST
AS
GR
RN
BA
5TH ST
DR
CANAL ST
1ST ST
EY
CUSHING PL
CARROLLSBURG PL
HOWISON PL
11TH ST
CANA
VAN ST
34TH ST
DAHLGREN AVE
ISAAC HULL AVE
12TH ST
PATTERSON AVE
RO CH
LS
10TH ST
HALF ST
PARSONS AVE
29TH ST
AL ST
NF AN
27TH ST
O ST
N PL
O ST
CAN
3RD ST
O ST
LE
O ST
O ST
TE WA
ST
ON
T SQ
LS
ST
31ST PL
37TH PL
4TH ST
East Potomac Park
PAULDING AVE
N ST
N ST
TINGEY ST
N ST
NIC
BU
HO
RN
ST
PL
N ST
ANA
COS
34TH PL
ON
TIA
RD
33RD PL
9TH ST
L ST
2ND ST
10TH ST
CK
BR
BU
L ST CAN AL ST
HALF ST
AU
AM BE
18TH PL
WHITE PL
1ST ST
23RD ST
T ST
25TH ST
AN
28TH ST
SOUTH CAPITOL ST
31S
17TH ST
31ST ST
ER
24TH PL
TOV
2ND ST
S ST
S ST
S ST
5TH AVE
23RD ST
TEX
WES
1ST AVE
2ND AVE
4TH AVE
3RD AVE
21
RD
30TH ST
HI GH
24
BA
RD
FIR
TH
STE
MN
ER
BL VD
SCH
PI TT
ER
BO
PITOL ST
NS
MIT
RD
NV
FE
ELVANS RD
18TH PL
18TH ST
SOUT H CA
NG
CUD
ST
Virginia
LA
RD
ALABAMA AVE
DR
28
DA
31ST ST
TH
ST
TH
OM AS
CE
RO
ON
ST
PO
ME
FRANKFORD ST
PL
UG DO
POMEROY RD
UC
WA
PL
RD Y RT RD HE INS DO BB RO
IC W
DUNB
LAS
S RD
ERIE ST
FO
RT
GE
29TH
PL
BIRNEY
DR
AIN
ST
RD
RD
25TH ST
AR RD
EATO
N RD
HO W
DE
DE
AR
RR
HU
RD
WE
IS
DE
MO
NT
ER
BB RO
AT W
EN
ST
ST
RD
W EN
PL
INS
EV
33RD ST
ST
PL
RD
ST
RD
RD
BRYAN PL
EA TO
ER
HO W
TH
Y RR
RLI
NG
SU
DE
XT
TL
ST
AVE
BU
SK
32ND ST
E ST
RD
D PK
31ST ST
18TH ST
D ST D ST
SU
ITL
AR
ST
AN
M
Y
RD
SH
AN
31ST PL
D ST
HO W
NO
VA
MA PL E
LL
EY
PL
GALE
W ST
W PL
37TH ST
RO BB
PL
AMO ALT
32ND PL
RD
38TH ST
14TH
FEND
19T
INS
W ST
16TH
NT
PL
V ST
FO
V ST
WAR D
13TH
ST
U ST
30TH ST
15TH
ST
HO
ALL ST
ST
V ST
PL
PARK DR V PL
DA VIS
ST
ST
ST
U ST
HOPE
RD
T PL
33RD
ST
ST
U ST
S ST
N ST
GR
W ST
W ST
SUI TLA ND
RD
AR
ER
ER
YL
TE
BANGOR ST
ST
SK
AN
AUSTIN ST
RD
SU
ITL
AN
TE
SO
UT
HE
RN
AV
W YL AG SK AN NE YL D TE R AN ST R D PL
PL
BANGOR ST CAMDEN ST
36 TH PL
DENVER ST
TE
PL
ERIE ST
FRANKFORD ST
PL
BR
GH HI
VI
EW
Y RD
GAINESVILLE ST
GAINESVILLE ST
Y ST
HEM LOC
SPRUCE ST
PLUMB ST
PERSIMMON ST
22ND ST
TH
FRE
ACCE
STANTON RD
DIA
DER
PL
ICK
JASPER
21ST ST
RO JASPER BI RD NS ON PL
20TH ST
PL
12
ST
SS RD
23
RD
INTERSTATE 295
ST
SHIPL
28TH ST
PL
22ND ST
23RD ST
K ST
23
RD
PL
HARTFORD ST
Y LL HO
PI NE
ST
SUITLA
AHE
ND PKY
IRVING ST
JA SP
IRVING PL
MAPLE SQ
15TH PL
NN
TE
REDWOOD DR
AH
MARR
BR
CIR
PL
JOHN
UC
EY TER
SYCAMORE DR
SA VA
AH
SOUTH CAPITOL
LE AVE
H PL
proposed streetcar line on the route of a historic line proposed streetcar line not on the route of a historic line Streetcar corridor1/4 mile on either side of proposed line
SCOTT CIR
D AVE ARNOL
PL
NAPIER AVE
22ND ST
8TH ST
ST
KISLING ST
ICK
DR
7TH ST
HALL
CIR
LORING SOUT
WAY
MACD
GE
ST
ILL BLVD
ST
DR
CO NG
OR
AN
ST
ST
AR
RE
OA
OM B KW ST OO D ST
ON
UM
PL
OA
SS
LL
BA
PO
SA VA
NE
NN
4T
WC
ME
LE
RID
GE
CR
ST
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Proposed streetcar line not correlated with the path of a historic streetcar line Proposed streetcar line following the path of a historic streetcar line
4 | introduction
ST
1ST ST
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SOUTH CAPITOL TER
MASTER LAND USE PLAN M Metro station Streetcar station FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA STREETCAR SYSTEM
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR AVE
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GALVESTON ST
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17 TH
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2ND ST
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INTERSTATE 295
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0.25 0.5
1 Miles
The impact of streetcar systems in other cities has reached well beyond enhanced transportation. While the research and analysis underpinning this study are specific to the District and its neighborhoods, the study also examines the experience of cities that have implemented contemporary streetcar systems, including Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle.
M
PE AR ST
RA IL ST
35TH
EL
34TH ST
LE
ST
BE
BA
CK
ST
ST
RK ER
ST
17TH PL
LN
33 RD
34TH
PL
DE NT ST
BRANCH
36 TH
36TH
PL
LL HI
AG O ST
CR ES
ST
ST
OH IO DR
AR
T DR
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TA LB ER T ST
VIE W PL
CED AR ST
EE N ST
SHERIDAN RD
SO N RD
BU EN A VIS TA TER
TERRACE
15TH PL
RD
YL NA
KNOX ST
ASH ST
OR
MAG NOL IA ST
KNOX TERR
RD
ER ST
PECAN ST
STAN TON
25TH ST
2ND ST
TER
24TH ST
21ST ST
19TH ST
18TH ST
12TH
12TH ST
9TH PL
LARK PL
8TH ST
PL
10TH PL
11TH PL
13TH PL
7TH ST
13 TH ST
BURWELL ST
These cities have experienced compelling land-use-related benefits that include increased real estate investment, improved quality of life, and expanded economic
12 TH ST
9T
TY ND AL L ST
H ST
1ST PL
MO
CT
HALLEY
TER
3RD
ST
opportunity.1 This suggests that access to streetcar service can yield a diverse range of positive benefits: reduced commuting and other transportation costs for households for whom better transit access meant the opportunity to own fewer cars.
1
Portland Streetcar Development Oriented Transit, 2008. Prepared by The Office of Transportation and Portland Streetcar, Inc. (www.portlandstreetcar.org/ pdf/development_200804_report.pdf). Among other results, Portland has seen $3.5 billion in new investment within two blocks of its streetcar system since 1997. The Effect of Rail Transit on Property Values: A Summary of Studies, 2001. Prepared by Parsons Brinkerhoff (www.reconnectingamerica.org/public/show/ bestpractice162). Light Rail Systems and Property Values, 2004. Prepared by The Sacramento Regional Transit District (www.slp2.org/documents/propertyvalfs04. pdf). Cincinnati Streetcar Feasibility Study, 2007. Prepared by HDR and Parsons Brinkerhoff (www.cincinnati-oh.gov/city/downloads/city_pdf17754.pdf).
enhanced quality of life for urban neighborhoods, including increased vitality in local commercial districts, greater walkability, improved access to shopping and services, and similar benefits. expanded access to economic opportunity, including employment, training, and education sites and a wider array of services. increased fiscal returns for local governments. a rise in real estate values and development potential, primarily within one-quarter mile of a route and in areas that are relatively underdeveloped.
tarting in the middle of the 19th century, a growing network of streetcar lines helped shape the citys urban fabric. Electrified streetcars, introduced in the late 1880s, proved faster and better able to handle steep grades than horse-drawn cars, which had served the District from 1862 on. A swift transition to electrified service in the 1890s set the stage for rapid expansion of streetcar lines in the first decades of the 20th century. Real estate developers used the convenience and increasing efficiency of the system to persuade the growing numbers of federal workers to buy moderately priced homes in neighborhoods springing up outside the old city center. By the second decade of the twentieth century, automobiles had become increasingly common on District thoroughfares, and commercial buses joined them in the 1920s. Streetcars continued as a major mode of
Back to the Future: The Districts First Streetcar System
transportation, but their popularity began to neighborhoods that grew up around streetcar decline with widespread suburban development routes and stops. and an explosive growth in car ownership after World War II. Competing lines merged into a single company in the 1930s, but a charter transfer in the mid1950s imposed a drastic requirement on the new owner: replacement of the streetcar fleet with buses. Although the last trolley ran in January 1962, the system left a lasting imprint on the citys physical form historic commercial Washingtonians throng sidewalks and streetcar stops at F and 10th streets corridors and near Woodward & Lothrop in the 1940s.
Numerous studies have also documented rail transits impact and importance in attracting housing, jobs, retail, and other amenities to urban areas. The Center for TransitOriented Developments 2004 study, Hidden in Plain Sight, calculated unmet national demand for transit-oriented housing, and very recent reports by real estate and economic development organizations such as the Urban Land Institute and CEOs for Cities. The development around Metrorail stations over the past three decades provides clear, if anecdotal confirmation of this trend. In fact, the scale of the Districts proposed system and the history of many of the citys main commercial corridors and neighborhoods, which grew up around an earlier streetcar network, may actually help the District realize greater benefits from a streetcar system than some of these counterpart cities. For example, more than 50% of District households and a large majority of the citys jobs would lie within walking distance of the fully built system. The comparable number for Portland is 9% and for Seattle, 6%, although both systems have fewer than 0 miles of tracks. The Districts streetcar would be in the same league as San Franciscos, where 65% of households sit within a quartermile of a streetcar linealthough that system is twice the size of the one proposed for the District. The study team treated the streetcar experiences elsewhere as helpful guidance, not as substitutes for evaluating the streetcars impact on the Districts unique conditions, such as scale of streets and blocks, patterns
San Franciscos F Line has been demonstrating the community and economic value of streetcars since the 980s (above). Seattles South Lake Union streetcar, funded largely by the private sector, has stimulated substantial development of research, office, housing and retail space (left).
6 | introduction
of workplaces and housing; and existing transit-system configuration. Nevertheless, other cities do hold lessons for the District, particularly the importance of early planning to insure that increased values, expanding markets, and other effects do not hinder some residents and businesses in unanticipated ways. They also highlight the value of taking a comprehensive approach to streetcar planning and of integrating it with land use and broader transportation planning.
how the streetcar coMPares to other transit oPtions
decisions require predictability over periods of up to 30 years). Although well-designed BRT systems attract some development, their impacts are typically much less than those for rail2 and the BRT systems that have generated the strongest development response operate on exclusive rights of way at all times and not in mixed traffic, as the District streetcar would. In cities without the potential to attract much development investment, implementation costs and other factors give buses a clear advantage. In the District, however, streetcar service appears very likely to attract significant real estate investment. The increases in real estate values and development that the streetcar could spur over a ten-year periodlooking only at land within a quarter-mile of new routeswould exceed the projected cost of creating the system by 600%
2
This study examined the relative costs and benefits of streetcar service as compared to other transit options, including some with potentially lower construction costs. The comparisons indicate that in the District, streetcar service offers a more cost-effective means of achieving community goals than other options. Bus rapid transit (BRT) and other bus alternatives, like the Districts popular Circulator service, have the advantages of much lower capital costs and much faster implementation. Buses also provide broad flexibility in terms of changing routes and can maneuver more readily in heavy traffic. The primary benefit the streetcar offers, evident in shelters at stops and in the rails themselves, is its visible permanence, which can serve as a powerful attraction to private real estate investment. Although highly visible shelters and stations can raise the profile of bus service, the very flexibility of routes and service levels that represents its biggest advantage also dilutes its ability to spur real estate investment (investment
Further information on transit-oriented development (TOD) associated with BRT systems can be found in TCRP Report 8: Bus Rapid Transit Practitioners Guide, 2007. Prepared by the Transportation Research Board of the National Academies (www.community-wealth.org/_pdfs/articles-publications/tools/tod/ tool-tcrp-bus-rapid-transit.pdf)
Defining Premium Transit

Premium transit typically refers to high-quality transit, either rail or bus, that provides reduced travel times, enhances regional/local connectivity, uses improved vehicles and features (such as quality of ride, specific branding, simplified routing) and offers improved amenities (bus stop, platforms, shelters, line supervision) compared to typical local bus service. Premium transit services in the District would include limited-stop bus service, bus rapid transit (BRT), streetcar, light rail and local rail (Metrorail) services.
to ,000%. While increased value often precedes the completion of fixed-rail transit, such increases occur along each segment as they connect to Metrorail and do not depend on completion of a full system. Increased real estate investment would translate into stronger fiscal, employment, and population growth for the District. Residents, visitors, and many commuters tend to prefer streetcars to buses and bus rapid transit for their low noise levels, superior ride quality (steel rails and steadier acceleration/deceleration yield a much smoother ride), lower level of vibration in nearby buildings, and limited emission. Evidence also suggests that streetcar vehicles offer better long-term cost-benefit value than buses.3
1b Summary of findings
With the completion of the streetcar system and new housing attracted to it, approximately 50% of District households would be located within one-quarter mile of premium transit service (the streetcar or Metrorail; see Map 2, Net New Premium Transit). This dramatic increase in access to premium transit would open the door to a set of significant land use benefits, and to a smaller group of challenges, that represent major considerations in evaluating and planning the streetcar system. (Note: In order to develop accurate estimates, the report uses 200 dollars. Land-use impacts reflect projected growth over ten years, calculated as if the full system began operation in 200.)
streetcar benefits (Chapter 2) Both light and heavy rail systems would provide faster, Streetcar service: more reliable service than a streetcar because they would Improves access to premium transit for more than operate in exclusive rights of way. Light rail would likely one-third of the Districts households, including produce somewhat greater real estate investment and 100,000 residents along streetcar corridors who do not related benefits than the streetcar, but a light-rail system have access to a car. would cost two to three times the roughly $40 million Reduces transportation costs by offering households per mile currently projected for the Districts streetcar within one-quarter mile of the streetcar a realistic systemand acquiring the necessary rights of way would opportunity to be car light (that is, own fewer cars) add to the cost considerably. Metrorails experience suggests or car-free. Nationally, the average yearly cost of that heavy-rail transit would produce an even larger owning a car reached $8,437 in 200. 4 increase in real estate investment, but heavy rail transit 4 This is a national average calculated annually by the American Automobile costs several hundred million dollars per mile to build.
Two recent publications that suggest that maintenance costs can be lower include Street Smart: Streetcars and Cities in the Twenty-First Century (Gloria Ohland & Shelley Poticha; 2009, Reconnecting America) and Seven Rules for Sustainable Communities (Patrick M. Condon; 2010, Island Press).
Association (AAA) for a medium-size sedan driven 15,000 miles in a year, with the cost of gas held constant at $2.60/gallon (for the 2010 calucations; www. aaaexchange.com/Assets/Files/201048935480.Driving%Costs%202010.pdf, retrieved 1 March 2011). Taxes and fees would push this total somewhat higher for District drivers, as would the rising price of gasoline. Using a more current average for the District of $3.47 for a gallon of regular, reported by AAA on 1 March 2011, brings the figure to $8,902 (http://fuelgaugereport.aaa.com/?redirectto=http:// fuelgaugereport.opisnet.com/index.asp, retrieved 1 March 2011).
8 | introduction
M
ST WE
MAP 2 Net New Premium Transit

WISE RD
BEA
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KALM
IA RD
AL AS KA
AV E
CHESTNUT ST
Takoma Metrorail Station to Buzzard Point Georgetown to Benning Road Metrorail Congress Heights to Washington Circle
SHEP HE
Offers multiple quality-of-life benefits: > improves walkability: new transit trips translate into new walk trips as local residents typically walk to and from transit in urban settings. Higher rates of walking support local businesses and promote a greater sense of safety that will encourage still more residents to walk. > extends the walk by generating more trips on foot outside of existing commercial districts and other busy areas, thereby supporting expansion of retail and other neighborhood-serving uses. > fosters the growth of main streets, as new residents and employees attracted by the streetcar inject more than $300 million in retail spending annually into local commercial districts. > broadens access to schools by more than doubling the number of public and charter schools located within a quarter-mile of rail transit, making it easier for parents to commute with their children to school and work and for families to choose from a wider variety of schools. > returns premium transit to disinvested historic commercial districts built around the streetcar in the late 9th and early 20th centuries; the new investment that would follow the streetcars introduction would encourage adaptive reuse of more historic properties, contributing to a stronger net new premium transit access sense of place. existing premium transit access (1/2-mile radius > Expands housing choices by supporting development around metro stations) of market-rate and mixed-income housing in DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA STREETCAR LAND USE MASTER PLAN M Metro station areas that have witnessed little or none in recent Figure 3: Net New routes DC Circulator Premium Transit decades, spurring demand across the District for Park/open space
ASPEN ST
OREGON AVE
PIN EY BR AN C
41ST ST
MCKINLEY ST
MILITARY RD
AV E
SA VE
MIS S
DO
HIR
CO LO RA
KA
AV E
KENNEDY ST
NS A
Rock Creek Park
EA VE
OU RI A V
With a fully built streetcar system, M the share of District residents living within a convenient walk of rail transit would rise from roughly M 16% to 50%. Areas would gain that premium access appear in purple.
Prince George's Plaza
College Park-U of Md
HR D
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16TH ST
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AV E
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WEBSTER ST
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BUCHANAN ST
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AII W HA
14TH ST
M AS
34TH ST
SA
MACOMB ST
Cleveland Park
RD
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TILDEN ST
UPSHUR ST
FO RT DR
RD CK RMA CCO E AV
TAYLOR ST
RANDOLPH ST
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H UT SO
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11TH ST
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DR
9TH ST
RS I
15TH ST
NORTH CAPITOL ST
33RD ST
W ES
P ST
24TH ST
20TH ST 19TH ST
22ND ST
21ST ST
HUR ST
FWY
66
18TH ST
44TH ST
23RD ST
12TH ST EXPY
Court House
3RD ST
4TH ST
8TH ST
CONSTITUTION AVE
17TH ST
INDEPENDENCE AVE
MA INE AV E
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MIN NE
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AS
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M
Congress Heights E A AV BAM ALA
Naylor Road
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0.5 Miles
CHESAPEAKE ST
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Streetcar Alignments
BL UE P
Metrorail Lines blue green orange red yellow
Congress Heights to Buzzard Point
Metro Stations Net New Premium Transit Existing Premium Transit Service Circulator Service LandmarkBldg
Woodley Park/Adams Morgan to Brookland Bolling AFB to Minnesota Ave Metrorail Station Woodley Park/Adams Morgan to Congress Heights
Water
Rhode Island Ave/Eastern Ave to Washington Circle
51ST ST
Arlington Cemetery
L'Enfant Plaza
C ST
SO TA AV E
The Mall
6TH ST
Smithsonian
H RT NO
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IN OL
BS
EAST CAPITOL ST
Benning Road
Stadium-Armory
50TH ST
M MFederal Triangle
D ST
2ND ST
Rosslyn
E ST
L RY MA
VE AA
DIVI SI
CENT
AV E
7TH ST
G ST
F ST
Judiciary Square
VE DA AN
Minnesota Ave
ON AV
RAL AV
VIR GIN IA
W NE
Gallery Pl-Chinatown
H ST Union Station
BENN ING RD
MK ST M I ST
L ST
Farragut North
Anacostia Park
SHERIFF RD
RK YO
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395
49TH ST
WH ITE
TR INID A
M ST
KE
RID GE RD
N ST
DA VE
NIL W
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FL OR IDA AV E
35TH ST
VIR G
Dupont Circle
Q ST
PE
NN S
M
Deanwood
AV E
R ST
IN
AV E
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12TH ST
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DR
RD
developments of ten or more units subject to inclusionary zoning, and expanding the supply of lofts, smaller units, accessory units, and other housing types sought by an increasingly diverse population. Improves access to jobs by bringing an additional 72,000 households into walkable distance of premium transit, which guarantees them access to more than 85% of the districts office jobs and more than half of all jobsa benefit to both residents and to employers. Attracts new jobs and residents by improving accessibility and spurring creation of more amenities. Over a ten-year period, the District could expect to draw new households and retain existing ones at a combined annual rate of roughly ,400 if the system were complete today. At the same time, the proportion
of District workers who also live in the District, making them subject to its income tax, could increase over 20 years from 3.5% to roughly 34%. Strengthens real estate values by adding $5 billion to $7 billion to the value of existing property and sparking an additional $5 to $8 billion in new development in the ten years after completionin the corridors alone. These benefits extend across housing, commercial, and retail markets and apply in varying degrees to every streetcar corridor. Increases revenue to the District by strengthening the real estate market, adding new residents, and producing greater sales-tax receipts. Together, these sources would likely generate between $238 million and $29 million in annual new revenue within ten years of completion of the system.
A streetcar loads at the Portland State University campus, above. The Portland streetcar system has sparked more than $3.5 billion in development, transforming light-industrial districts and railyards into new neighborhoods that mix housing, stores, and commercial uses, like the citys South Waterfront, pictured at right.
10 | introduction
will likely choose accessible sites over non-streetcar Strengthens growth in the creative economy (genersites) and by supporting businesses in the corridors, ally, arts, media, and communication businesses) by particularly retailers, concerned about dislocation as offering the enhanced accessibility and amenities, new businesses seek to move to the corridors. improved walkability, and support for local Main Streets that employers and their workers in these fields value Routing and right-of-way issues arising from some highly. The creative sector already accounts for 0% of potential loss of curbside parking, traffic congestion, District jobs and adds economic diversity, job growth, and similar issues in specific neighborhoods and and job quality to the District employment market. commercial districts. Mitigation may involve early Improves public health by offering significantly more identification of route adjustments, alternative parking, or other solutions. people the health benefits of walking, preventing added emissions of unhealthy air pollutants, and providing safer transportation than by automobile. neighborhood analysis (Chapter 4) The study suggests that all corridors would share in challenges and Mitigation strategies the benefits and challenges brought by the streetcar (detailed reviews of each corridor appear in Chapter (Chapter 3) 4), although these impacts would vary considerably Advance planning can mitigate potential challenges, including: among corridors. Impacts would be most dramatic Housing affordability, by addressing early in the in areas that today have limited current access to planning process the possibility of dislocation posed by a Metrorail service. 5% to 2% increase in property values that appears likely to result from improved access to jobs and amenities and In certain locations, alternative routing or phasing by other benefits. These issues are most likely to appear of the streetcar route would unlock greater where streetcar corridors pass through neighborhoods employment, fiscal, and development benefits with lower household incomes, lower housing prices, and by extending premium transit to land with untapped higher proportions of renters. Although residents in these redevelopment potential. Some of these refinements corridors would benefit from reduced transportation costs would mean higher initial costs, but the additional benefits they would trigger seem likely to outweigh and greater access to jobswhich could offset increased the extra cost and deserve study. Other refinements, housing costs for some householdsthe District should including earlier construction of particular route monitor these areas and be prepared to step in with segments, would provide better connections to active measures to promote affordability. employment centers, resolve right-of-way issues, or Potential market shifts within the District by planning provide more convenient service. early for alternative redevelopment on parcels without direct streetcar access (offices and other uses
Construction of the H Street/ Benning Road NE streetcar segment, August 2010
Improve access to the streetcar for pedestrians and bicyclists by making sure that new development, streets, and sidewalks appeal to pedestrians and The District can maximize land use benefits and minimize cyclists and assure safe and convenient use. implementation challenges in many ways: Use multiple mechanisms to capture the value of new Make use of existing and new development development drawn to the streetcar corridors to help tools to augment the streetcars ability to support fund construction and/or operation of the system. neighborhood retail, foster redevelopment of blighted Taxes generated by the rising value of all property property, attract investment in housing and jobs, and could underwrite more than half the systems capital yield similar benefits. costs through the sale of bonds backed by this revenue. Optimize existing and potential land use policies and Projects or business improvement districts may see design guidelines to ensure that zoning fully supports self-interest in contributing to construction costs where the Districts ability to realize benefits brought by a new line would increase the value of their property the streetcar and that new development enhances or business. Determining the timing, extent, and best community character and quality. mechanisms for pursuing such strategies will require Coordinate with other transportation investments, significant additional study. including regional and local bus lines, bikeshare, and other modes to facilitate transfers, share operating lanes and stops, and generally take a comprehensive approach to integrating transportation and land use planning.
strategies and tools for oPtiMizing land use benefits (Chapter 5)
12 | introduction
2. systemwide benefits
he study area for this analysis includes all land within one-quarter mile of the proposed streetcar lines, representing the area within a convenient walking distance (roughly five minutes) of each line. National research indicates that the strongest impacts generated by the introduction of streetcar service occur within one-quarter mile of its routes. Research also indicates that impacts generally extend in a uniform corridor along streetcar routes, owing to the half-mile spacing typically found between stops.
FIGURE 3 New Access to Premium Transit

Approximately 95,000 District households are currently located within one-quarter mile of the proposed streetcar corridors.
The streetcar can ,700 D nOw In 72ouseholIDsORS THATe h transform the Districts mil ORR THe C eyonD 1/4 RE b ro A T most underdeveloped oF me areas into thriving This study area has been organized into nine corridors that share similar land use characteristics to provide a neighborhoods, finer-grained and place-specific way of looking at land use or less from the proposed streetcar. The streetcar would enlarge existing changes the streetcar could conceivably bring. Dividing open significant new transportation choices for these the corridors into smaller subareas enabled the study residents, in particular the 44% of the households along commercial districts, team to focus on critical sites or other targeted land use the proposed corridors that do not own a car. and link established issues. Map 4 shows the nine corridors and their sub-areas. 2b Reduces transportation costs neighborhoods to new 2a Improves access to premium The streetcar can enable households to be car light (that is, jobs and amenities. transit
Premium transit describes transit service that is reliable, predictable, and offers a high-quality ridein other words, Metrorail or the streetcar. Roughly 72,000 District households now located more than one-quarter mile from a Metro station would be located one-quarter mile own fewer cars) or car-free. Either option offers the opportunity for considerable saving. In 200 the average automobile cost $8,437 to own and operate;5 most transit commutes cost less than one-third this amount when figured on an annual basis. Avoiding the expense of car ownership has an espe5
These households have a five-minute walk (or less) to rail transit with the streetcar
0 NOW 22,3s0holRDRsIDORS e hou
CO In THeARE wiThinro THAT ile oF meT 1/4 m
See footnote 4 on page 8.
MAP 3 District Department of TransportationFull Streetcar System Phasing

CHES TNUT
MAP 4 Neighborhood Context Corridors

M
AV E
ST
AVE
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PIN
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AVE NEVADA
AV E AS KA NE BR
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5TH ST
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LS
E AV
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As planned, construction of the streetcar system will take place in four phases. The initial phase is already under construction.
M
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MILITARY RD
( !
AV E
KA N SA
Nine streetcar corridors were identified that share broadly similar contexts and then divided into 34 smaller sub-areas that correspond to specific neighborhoods or development zones.
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Rock Creek Park

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UR
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AN
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Maryland
NO IS E AV
GALLATIN ST
NE W
ALBEMARLE ST
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EN
DECATUR ST
Fort Totten Park

S TE BA RD
SA RG
BL A
CO
BUCHANAN ST
ENT RD
NN EC
IO W
WEBSTER ST UPSHUR ST
FO R TD
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16TH ST
14TH ST
RD
PARK PL
PORTER ST
34TH ST
LN RD
AV E
S ST
AV E
9TH ST
( !
R ST
VE R
11TH ST
GT ON
15TH ST
35TH ST
28TH ST
ECKIN
33RD ST
NORTH CAPITOL ST
30TH ST
ILW
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T AV V E
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21ST ST
20TH ST
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8TH ST
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The Mall
IA IND
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CH
East Potomac Park
TEX AS
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27TH ST
A AN
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25TH ST
Virginia
SOUTH CAPITO L ST
29 5
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Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3

( !
M
orange red yellow
SHEP
green
BL U
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Initial
blue
INS
DR
Streetcar station Streetcar Segments
Metrorail Lines
PKY
OVERLOOK AVE
TU W NLA RD
AVE
M Metro station STREETCAR SEGMENTS
14 | SYStEMWidE BEnEFitS
M
37TH ST
WIS CO
JE RS NEW
Streetcar Stations
NS VE IN A
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49TH ST
( !
CONSTITUTION AVE
NO
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IT
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Streetcar phaSing
initial phase 1 phase 2 phase 3
ST
corridor 1
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corridor 6 corridor 7 corridor 8 corridor 9
MALCOLM X AVE
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AL AB
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Maryland

M Metro station
Streetcar station Park/open space Water
HE
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0.3
0.6
ATLANTIC ST
1.2 Miles
CHESA PEAKE
N ST GALVESTO
Metro Stations Street Centerlines LandmarkBldg Parks and Open Space Waterbody
MAP 5 Walkability Index
cially powerful impact on lower-income households, which spend a higher percentage of their income on transportation than any other group. District households with $20,000 to $50,000 in yearly income spend 28% of that income on transportation and another 32% of it on housing (for a total of 60%). By comparison, an average American household spends 20% of income on transportation and 27% on housing (for a total of 47%).6
9D
A streetcar system can build on the excellent walkability of the Districts neighborhoods, represented here by red-brown areas. In yellow-highlighted areas, the streetcar could attract new pedestrian-oriented development to replace auto-dominated environments.
9C
Rock Creek Park
Fort Totten Park
2c Offers quality-of-life benefits

Because the streetcar offers premium transit service to areas with large transit-dependent populations, and because it makes both transit and walking more attractive options for all residents, the system would create significant quality-of-life benefits for people visiting, working, and living in streetcar corridors.
4A 8B 8A
R oc k C re ek Pa rk
9B 8D 8C 9A 7A 6A 6C 6B 6D 6E
Anacostia Park
8E 7C
7B
5B 4C 5A 5C 5D 4B
iMProves walKability
Because the bulk of streetcar trips begin on foot, streetcar service would increase pedestrian activity within the streetcar corridors. This added activity would in turn support local businesses and contribute to a greater sense of personal safety. Introducing the streetcar along a corridor may reduce motor vehicle speeds and may include facilities for pedestrians, such as improved crossing treatments and sidewalks. Infrastructure and streetscape improvements would also likely take place as part of streetcar line construction. All of these changes would make the walking environment more comfortable, and streetcar service would enable more pedestrians to take advantage of areas where streets and blocks are already well-scaled for walking (for
The Mall
3D
area where the streetcar and related development can improve poor walkability
exiSting WaLkabiLitY
2C 3A 3C 2B 3B 1E
Anacostia Park
Fort Dupont Park
East Potomac Park
2A
Low
M Metro station
Streetcar station Park/open space Water Criteria
1C
Block length Intersection type DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA STREETCAR LAND USE MASTER PLAN Census-block density 6 Sidewalk presence Figure 4: Pedestrian Friendliness These numbers are based on research by the Center for Neighborhood Technology. Building setback BASED ON: STREET CONNECTIVITY, SIDEWALK PRESENCE, BUILDING SETBACK, AND POPULATION DENSITY
The full report is available at http://www.cnt.org/repository/heavy_load_10_06. Pedestrian Friendliness Index pdf

Lo w Hi g h
high
1A
Landmark Building Parks and Open Space Waterbody
1B
1D
0.5 Miles
example, Capitol Hill, downtown, and Petworth). In more auto-oriented areas, such as portions of Georgia Avenue NW, Rhode Island Avenue NE, and Benning Road in Anacostia, it would bridge distances between destinations that are too far apart for comfortable walking and encourage redevelopment that is oriented to pedestrians. In underdeveloped areas like Buzzard Point, a walkable street network can emerge as new destinations and sidewalks are created through development.
ProMotes Public health
riders than does bus transit. Research has further shown that people are willing to walk further to use rail transit than bus transit. The streetcar will offer additional value in places where it stimulates investment in pedestrianoriented streets and development, as 43% of people with safe places to walk within ten minutes of where they live achieve physical activity targets, compared with just 27% of people living in less-walkable areas.9 Motor vehicles produce a major portion of airborne particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and smog, all of which directly contribute to respiratory health problems. The streetcars electric propulsion eliminates such air pollutants that would be introduced along streets by automobiles or buses operating in its place.10 Travel by transit is also associated with much lower rates of traffic injuries and fatalities than automobile travel, which can be 20 times or more as deadly per passenger mile. Rail transit, further, has only 40% the rate of passenger fatalities of bus transit.11 On top of these health benefits, the streetcar can also play an important role providing access to healthy food choices and medical care, particularly for economically and physically disadvantaged populations.12
Todd Litman, Evaluating Public Transportation Health Benefits. Victoria Transport Policy Institute, June 2010 http://apta.com/resources/ reportsandpublications/Documents/APTA_Health_Benefits_Litman.pdj, accessed 23 December 2011. 10 Howard Frumkin, Lawrence Frank, Richard Jackson. Urban Sprawl and Public Health, p.103. Island Press, 2004. 11 Litman, op. cit. 12 ibid.
9
Streetcar service can be expected to offer positive public health benefits in three principal ways: by promoting more walking, which leads to associated health benefits; by promoting healthy air quality; and by encouraging travel on transit and on foot as safer alternatives to driving. People who walk more tend to enjoy better physical fitness, with significantly lower tendency toward obesity or a variety of other serious health problems. On average, transit users get more physical activity than non-transit users, even after accounting for differences in income and other demographic characteristics.7 This added activity is significant in that transit users are, on average, approximately three times more likely than non-users to meet or exceed the CDC recommendation of a minimum of 22 minutes of exercise daily.8 Streetcars offer the advantage of attracting more, and more diverse,
7
Ugo Lachapelle and Lawrence D Frank, Transit and Health: Mode of Transport, Employer-Sponsored Public Transit Pass Programs, and Physical Activity. Journal of Public Health Policy (2009) 30, S73S94. doi:10.1057/jphp.2008.52. David Ebner, For Healthy People, Build a Healthy City . Toronto Globe & Mail, www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health/new-health/health-news/for-healthypeople-build-a-healthy-city/article2251518/page2/, accessed 23 December 2011.
MAP 6 New Retail Potential

CHES TNUT
AV E
ST
AVE
ORE GON
eXtends the walK
PIN
LINCO
CALVERT ST
re ek Pa rk
8B 6A
15TH ST
Q ST
LN RD
As the streetcar generates more trips on foot outside of traditionally busy areas, such as the vicinity of Metrorail stations and existing commercial districts, it expands the area in which intense pedestrian activity helps support re tail and other neighborhood-serving uses. Local stores can benefit significantly from this new activity (as the Main Streets discussion below confirms), and as local retail activity grows, the additional amenity and increased number of destinations would promote even more pedestrian activity.
M
5TH ST
LA U
EY
ES
BR
ASPEN ST
9D
RE
R TE
AN
LS
E AV
CH
MCKINLEY ST
New retail demand generated by the streetcar would reinforce existing neighborhood Main Streets and support creation of newones.
M
S EA TE R N E AV
AL A
SK
RD
AH UT E AV
AV E
AV E
AD
13TH ST
KENNEDY ST
KA N
SA
Rock Creek Park

LO R
UR
I AV
SA VE
AS
KA
CO
AVE NEVADA
NE BR
VAN NESS ST
IR BLA
A BE C H D R
RD
MILITARY RD
9C
IL LI
MIS SO
S RIGG
RD
M
GALLOWAY ST
AV E
AN
EA VE
LIN
Maryland
NE
NO IS
SH
AV E
IR
GALLATIN ST
E AV
AV E
AN
HA
NE W
ALBEMARLE ST
AR K
EN
DECATUR ST
Fort Totten Park

S TE BA RD
SA
MP
SA RG
BL A
CO
BUCHANAN ST
ENT RD
NN EC
IO W
FO R TD
JOHN
16TH ST
14TH ST
RD
PARK PL
PORTER ST
34TH ST
AV E
EUCLID ST
11TH ST
35TH ST
28TH ST
ECKIN
33RD ST
NORTH CAPITOL ST
SOUTH CAPITO L ST
As increased development along streetcar corridors attracts new residents and employees, these additional people can drive the establishment of more retail. The analysis indicates that roughly every ,000 additional households can spur the creation of one new block (30,000-50,000SF) of main street retail space. Map 6 shows where this new demand would likely be strongest. Combined with spending by employees of new businesses attracted to the corridors (primarily office workers), these new households could introduce a projected $305 million to $370 million in new retail spending into areas along the streetcar system. Such a broad wave of spending would significantly strengthen existing neighborhood retail and support new retail clusters. Key areas where the streetcar would likely encourage additional pedestrian-oriented retail, a priority for the District and a stated goal of the Retail Action Roadmap 13 (200), include:
13
30TH ST
NT
ID
CANAL RD
AD
M ST
EL LO
6B
ES
P ST
W NE
T AV V E
ILW
AV E
24TH ST
21ST ST
20TH ST
VIR
18TH ST
GIN
22ND ST
19TH ST
4A WHITEHURST FWY
IA
L ST
K ST M M I ST
M
TR IN
7TH ST
AV E
G ST
23RD ST
EX PY
10TH ST
2ND ST
12TH ST EXPY
8TH ST
INT ER
E 66 STAT
M
The Mall
N DIA INM
4TH ST
E ST
M
E A AV
E ST
D ST
C ST
CONSTITUTION AVE
6TH ST
NO
H RT
CA
RO
A LIN
E AV
5D
EAST CAPITOL ST
44TH ST
4B M F ST
4C
M
5A
M
5B
H ST
MA
RY
N LA
VE DA
Anacostia Park
MO
KE N
N ST
M 6E
5C
BE NN
ING RD
OR TH
encourages develoPMent of Main streets
S ST
AV E
VE R
9TH ST
GT ON
R ST
6D
YO
RK
IR
AV
SHERIFF RD
AV E
IN
IA
AV E
RESERVOIR RD
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PL
FL O
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BL A
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MO
T ST
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U ST
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BU R
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AS
ND IS LA
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oc
7A
RD
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ST
RD
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7B M
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VIS
M 8A
FRANKLIN ST
TA
HARVARD ST
ST
GARFIELD ST
NO RE RD
MACOMB ST
TIC
LE V
E AV
AII W HA
UT AV
EL AN
MCC
TILDEN ST
TAYLOR ST
BUNK
E AV
HAREW
ORM ACK RD
ER HI LL
RD
RANDOLPH ST
SP RI
NG
M
N KLI GLE
M
OTIS PL
RD
PA R
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CATH ED
RA L
IRVING ST
AV E
8C M COLUMBIA RD
9B
GEORGIA AVE
KE NY
ON ST
MIC
HIG
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8E
12TH ST
OOD RD
WA RD
SO H UT
ER ST
A AD M S M IL L RD
MONROE ST
DA KO TA E AV
8D
7C
SHERMAN
17TH ST
DR
IN
AS
EA S
PK Y
TB
IA
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RS TA TE 69 5
BR
MIN
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2C
BRANCH AVE
NE SO
M 3A
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M
IV Y
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3D M
TA AV E
ELY PL
AM
BE
M
ST
M
CANA L
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East Potomac Park
3C
27TH ST
A AN S CO
AU
Fort Dupont Park
RO
3B
M TO PO
AC
E AV
2A
Anacostia Park
GOOD
W ST
NA YL O
25TH ST
T IA
FW
TEX AS
AVE
Virginia
1A 1D
MALCOLM X AVE
29 5
OVERLOOK AVE
NEW RETAIL POTENTIAL

Potential for new neighborhood retail M Metro station
(from new households and jobs) Streetcar station Park/open space < 0.5 block development potential M 0.5 - 1.5Water development potential blocks
M
SHEP
IN
TE
0.5-1.5 blocks of development potential
RS
TA TE
PKY
HE RD
http://planning.dc.gov/DC/Planning/Across+the+City/Other+Citywide+ Initiatives/Retail+Action+Strategy/Retail+Action+Roadmap
BL U
EP LA
INS
DR
TU W NLA RD
AVE
37TH ST
potentiaL For neW neighborhood retaiL (From neW houSehoLdS and neW jobS)
WIS CO NS VE IN A
JE RS NEW EY AV E
49TH ST
ST
CENT RAL AVE
RID
INDEPENDENCE AVE
G E RD
N KE TU CK VE YA
E AV
V ST
2B
R
W BO
EN
RD
RD
PE N
NS
YLV AN
IA
HOPE
AV E
RD
1B
HO
AR D
RD
1E
OH IO DR
SU IT
LA
ND
RD
RR
IS
RD
SU
N R D
AN ST TO
IT
LA N
PK
M
AMA AV E
1C
AL AB
SIS MIS
PI SIP
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< 0.5 block of development potential
HA LL EY
SO
PL
TH
ER
E AV
Maryland
HE
EL ER
RD
0.25 0.5
ATLANTIC ST
1 Miles
1.54.0+ blocks of development potential
CHESA PEAKE
ST
Criteria
N ST GALVESTO
Number of new households attracted by Streetcar Segments Metro Stations streetcar Typical household retail spending profiles blue Streetcar Stations Number of new jobs attracted by streetcar green Parks and Open Space Typical worker retail spending profiles
M
Water
orange red yellow
1.5 - 4.0+ blocks development potential
( ! ! ( MAP 7 Improved Access to Public and Charter Schools

CHES TNUT
SK
AV E
ST
AVE
OVERLOOK AVE
( ! ! ! ( ( ( ! ! ! ( ( ! ( !! !! (( (( ( ! ! ! ( ( ( ! ! ( !! (( Maryland ( ! ! ( ( ! ( ! ! ( ( ! ! ( ! ( !! ! (( ( (( !! ! ( ! ! ( ( ( ! ( ! !! (( ! ( ! ( ! ( ( ( ! ! !! (( ! ! ( ( ( ! ! ! ( ( ( ! ( ! ! ! ( ( ( ( ! ! ! ( ! ! ( ! !! ! (( ( ( ! ( ( !! (( ( ! ! ( ( ( ( ! ! ! ( (( ! !! ( ! ! ! ! ( ( ( ! ! ! ( ( ( ( ! ! ( ! !! ( (( ( ! Streetcar service can also rebalance auto-oriented ( ! ( ! !! ! !! (( ( (( ! ( ( ! ! ( ! ( ! ( ! ( ( ( ! ! ( ! ( ! !! (( commercial streets such as Georgia Avenue NW and ! ( ( ! ( ! ! ( ( ! ! !! ( (( ( ! ( ! portions of Rhode Island Avenue NE, by increasing foot ( ! ! ! ( ( ! ! ( ! ( ( (( !! ! !! ( (( ! ! ! ( ( ( ( ! ! ! ( ( ! ( ( ! ! ! ( ( traffic, better serving bicyclists, and creating a more ( ! ( ! ! ! ( ( ! ( ( ! (( !! ! ( ( ! ! ( ( ! ( ! ! ( walkable Main Street character. ! ( ( ! ( ! ! ( ! ( ! ( ( ! ! ! !! ! ( ( (( ( ! ( ( ! ! ( ( ( ! ! !! ! (( ( ( ! ( ! ! ! !! ( ( (( ( ! ! ( ! ( ! ( !! (( The streetcars support of Main Streets extends to a broader ( ! ! ( ! ! ! ( ( ( ( ! ( ! ( ! ! !! ! ( (( ( ( ! variety of services and job opportunities, strengthening ! ! ( ! ( ( ( ( ! ! !! (( ! ! ( ( ( ! !! (( ! ( ( ( ! ! !! (( ( ! the self-sufficiency of each neighborhood. Residents would !! (( ! ( ! ( enjoy access to a wider range of local shopping, civic ( ! ! ( ( ! (( !! !! ! ! (( ( ( services, schools, jobs and other necessities. ( ! ( ! ! ( !! ! (( ( ( ! ( ! broadens access to schools !! (( ( ! ! ( !! (( The streetcar would increase the share of public and Virginia SchooLS: StudentS pubLic ( ! ( ! ! ( ! ( outSide oF each SchooLS charter schools located within a quarter-mile walk of rail diStrict boundarY ! ( no info available ( ! ! ( transit from 8% to 39%. Many of these schools are already ! ( > 50% inside boundary Maryland ! ( ( ! !!! ! ! ((( ( ( ( ! accessible by bus, but the fact that more than 85% of the > 50% outside boundary ( ! ( ! !! ! (( ( Districts office jobs are located along streetcar routes ( ! charter SchooLS !! (( means that many more parents would be able to travel ( ! charter school ! ( ( ( ! ! !! (( with their school-age children to and from school and work STREETCAR ACCESS: PUBLIC AND CHARTER SCHOOLS
MCKINLEY ST
Minnesota Avenue SE/NE and Benning Road NE (subareas 2C, 5D) 13 ( ! ! ( Downtown Anacostia (E) Georgia Avenue NW (9C) 41 ! ( 21 ! ( The Atlas District and Florida Avenue NE/NW in !! (( ( ! ! ( NoMa (subsections 5B, 6E) ( ! ! ( Rhode Island Avenue NE at the Rhode Island Avenue 88 ( ! ! ( Metro (7B) ! ( 67 Southwest Waterfront (3A) ( ! ! ( U Street NW (6C)
W ES R TE
AN
ORE GON
BR
EY
PIN
50 24
5TH ST
LA U
ASPEN ST
RE
LS
E AV
( ! ! (
46
CH
The streetcar would provide access to approximately two-thirds of the Districts public schools and over half of its charter schools, expanding education choices for families.
M M
AL A
RD
AH UT
E AV
AV E
AV E
AD
13TH ST
KENNEDY ST
KA N
SA
Rock Creek Park
UR
I AV
SA VE
LO R
KA
AVE NEVADA
IR BLA
A BE
S EA
RD
TE
E AV
MILITARY RD
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LIN
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AN
20
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AS
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S RD RIGG
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SH
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SA
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AN
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ALBEMARLE ST
AR K
EN
DECATUR ST
36
HA
MP
59
GALLOWAY ST
IR
GALLATIN ST
E AV
Fort Totten Park
SA RG
BL A
CO
S TE BA
RD
BUCHANAN ST
ENT RD
NN
IO
EC
JOHN
VAN NESS ST
16TH ST
14TH ST
TILDEN ST
19 37 29
NG RD
WEBSTER ST
MACOMB ST
34TH ST
NG KLI
LE
RD
58
M 49
PARK PL
PORTER ST
1ST ST
S ST
11TH ST
GT ON
R ST
15TH ST
35TH ST
28TH ST
ECKIN
33RD ST
NORTH CAPITOL ST
30TH ST
24TH ST
21ST ST
20TH ST
WHITEHURST FWY
L ST
VIR
18TH ST
GIN
22ND ST
19TH ST
M K ST M M I ST
54
M
20
NT
61
18
ID
CANAL RD
AD
M ST
EL LO
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TR IN
MA
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Anacostia Park
MO
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68
ES
P ST
85
N ST
AV E
37
W NE
47
ILW
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70
YO
VIR
RK
AV
AV E
EN
Q ST
IN
IA
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RESERVOIR RD
79
9TH ST
56
VE R
88
AV E
AA VE
PL
FL O
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41
BL A
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MO
73
T ST
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OD
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oc
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re
ek
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rk
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CALVER 70 T ST
62
LN RD
AV E
EUCLID ST
30
37
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40
AV E
VIS
FRANKLIN ST
52
TA
HARVARD ST
ST
GARFIELD ST
NO RE
TIC
E AV
AII W HA
UT
MCC
UPSHUR ST
FO R
TD
TAYLOR ST
40
RD
AV
BUNK
E AV
ORM
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RD
ACK
HAREW
SP RI
RANDOLPH ST
RD
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40
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SO
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KR
LE V
CATH ED
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IRVING ST
AV E
M 41 RD COLUMBIA
KE NY
ON ST
MIC
HIG
E AV M AN
MONROE ST
34
H UT
ER ST
A AD
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KO
TA
12TH ST
IL L
E AV
GEORGIA
RD
57
AVE
SHERMAN
7TH ST
23RD ST
EX PY
10TH ST
2ND ST
E ST
12TH ST EXPY
8TH ST
INT ER
E 66 STAT
IND
IA N
4TH ST
E ST
E A AV
D ST
80
53
44TH ST
6TH ST
17TH ST
DR
IN
AS
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TB
IA
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56
20
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EM
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76 69
58
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27
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23
27TH ST
E AV
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NA YL O
25TH ST
SOUTH CAPITO L ST
29 5
RS
TA TE
TE
IN
HE RD
SHEP
Streetcar Segments Streetcar Stations Area with 1/4-mile of streetcar

M
BL U
by rail transit. The increased number of schools accessible
PKY
! ( ! (
( !
Streetcar station More than Half in-boundary Park/open space M Water More than Half out-of-boundary
No Info Available
M
EP LA
Label = % of students out of boundary
! (
DR
Charter School Locations
INS
TU
W NLA
AVE
RD
37TH ST
Public Schools: Students out-of-boundary
WIS
CO
JE RS NEW
NS
VE IN A
EY AV
17
SHERIFF RD
IA
H ST
AV E
G ST
F ST
78
BE NN
58
ING RD
29
32
42
49TH ST
CONSTITUTION AVE
76
C ST
70
The Mall
NO
H RT
CA
LIN RO
VE AA
66 37
39
19
EAST CAPITOL ST
ST
CENT RAL AVE
RID
INDEPENDENCE AVE
27
RD
N KE
35
41 ELY PL
55
TU
CK
VE YA
East Potomac Park
AIN
69 5
Fort Dupont Park
56
E AV
BRANCH AVE
ST
IA
FW
52
W BO
RD
RD
59
PE N
NS
YLV AN
Anacostia Park
GOOD
IA
V ST
HO
W ST
39PE RD
AV E
AR D
23 RD
48
OH
SU IT
LA
IO
ND
RD
DR
RR
IS
RD
38
17
35
SU
24
MALCOLM X AVE
56
AL AB
AMA AV
M 47
11
SIS MIS
AN ST
IT
LA N
PK
36
Y
S 42IPP
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HA LL EY
PL
31
20
SO
TH
ER
E AV
HE
ATLANTIC ST
34
EL ER
RD
0.25 0.5
CHESA PEAKE
58
ST
21
1 Miles
M Metro station
GALV Charter Schools
ESTO N ST
Street Centerlines
Parks and Open Space Waterbody
Metro Stations
MAP 8 Historic Districts and Structures

CHES TNUT
AV E
ST
AVE
ORE GON
EY
PIN
5TH ST
LA U
ES
BR
ASPEN ST
9D
RE
R TE
AN
LS
E AV
CH
16TH ST
14TH ST
by premium transit will also expand the school choices available to the Districts students. The streetcar would also greatly increase transit capacity during peak hours for students traveling to and from school, a key benefit because so many students depend on transit to reach school.
M
MCKINLEY ST
The streetcar would help revitalize historic buildings, neighborhoods, and commercial corridors by attracting market-driven reinvestment.
M
S EA TE R N E AV
AL A
SK
RD
AH UT E AV
AV E
AV E
AD
13TH ST
KENNEDY ST
KA N
SA
Rock Creek Park

LO R
UR
I AV
SA VE
AS
KA
CO
AVE NEVADA
NE BR
VAN NESS ST
IR BLA
A BE C H D R
RD
MILITARY RD
9C
IL LI
MIS SO
S RIGG
RD
M
GALLOWAY ST
AV E
AN
EA VE
LIN
Maryland
NE
NO IS
SH
AV E
IR
GALLATIN ST
E AV
AV E
AN
HA
NE W
ALBEMARLE ST
AR K
EN
DECATUR ST
Fort Totten Park

S TE BA RD
SA
MP
SA RG
BL A
CO
BUCHANAN ST
ENT RD
NN EC
IO W
FO R TD
JOHN
34TH ST
Preserves historic resources
RD
PARK PL
PORTER ST
NO RE RD
TIC
E AV
AII W HA
UT AV E
TILDEN ST
MCC ORM
TAYLOR ST
BUNK
E AV
ER HI LL
SP RI
NG
9B
M
OTIS PL
RD
RANDOLPH ST
ACK
HAREW OOD RD
RD
WA RD
M
MACOMB ST
NG KLI
LE
RD
PA R
An earlier streetcar system spurred development of many of the Districts commercial corridors and residential neighborhoods. These development patterns remain largely intact and constitute a majority of the citys historic districts and landmarks (see Map 8; these patterns also include districts and buildings eligible for designation). After streetcar service ended in 962, some of these areassuch as the corridors along Rhode Island Avenue NE, Georgia Avenue NW, and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SEsuffered from a lack of access to efficient transit and other factors that drove subsequent disinvestment. Others, including M Street NW (Georgetown) and 6th Street NW, continued to thrive and have become important contributors to the Districts sense of place. Implementation of a new streetcar system would trigger reviews by multiple agencies investigating impacts on historic resources. Meeting this obligation would require significant effort.14 The reviews would address a
14
KR
C
GARFIELD ST
1ST ST
S ST
AV E
VE R
9TH ST
11TH ST
GT ON
R ST
15TH ST
35TH ST
28TH ST
ECKIN
33RD ST
NORTH CAPITOL ST
ES
P ST
30TH ST
NT
ID
CANAL RD
AD
M ST
EL LO
AV E
24TH ST
21ST ST
20TH ST
VIR
18TH ST
GIN
22ND ST
19TH ST
4A
M
WHITEHURST FWY
L ST
M K ST M I ST
TR IN
7TH ST
IA
AV E
G ST
4B M
4C
M
E ST
23RD ST
EX PY
M
E A AV
10TH ST
2ND ST
12TH ST EXPY
8TH ST
E 66 STAT INT ER
M
The Mall
N DIA INM
4TH ST
E ST
D ST
C ST
CONSTITUTION AVE
6TH ST
TH OR
CA
RO
A LIN
E AV
5D
EAST CAPITOL ST
44TH ST
F ST
5A
H ST
5B
MA
L RY
D AN
E AV
Anacostia Park
MO
KE N
BE NN ING RD
6B
W NE
T AV V E
ILW
N ST
M 6E
5C
OR TH
YO
RK
IR
AV
SHERIFF RD
AV E
Q ST
IN
IA
AV E
RESERVOIR RD
AA VE
6D
PL
FL O
RID
BL A
TT S
6C
MO
T ST
DE
SE
NT
BR E
U ST
NS
SA C
6A
D HO
E IS
BU R
AV E
NT
AS
ND LA
AV
oc
RD
BRYA NT
ST
7A
RD
re
ek
Pa
rk
LINCO
CALVERT ST
8B
LN RD
AV E
EUCLID ST
9A
7B M
NT AN
AV E
VIS
M 8A
FRANKLIN ST
TA
ST
LE V
CATH ED
EL AN
RA L
IRVING ST
AV E
8C M
KE NY
ON ST
MIC
HIG
E AV M AN
8E
12TH ST
SO H UT
ER ST
A AD M S M IL L RD
MONROE ST
DA KO TA E AV
GEORGIA AVE
8D
7C
SHERMAN
17TH ST
DR
IN
AS
EA S
PK Y
TB
IA
INTE
M
RS TA TE 69 5
2C
BRANCH AVE
FW Y
BR
MIN
EM
NE SO
M
W
M
IV Y
3A
M AIN E E AV
ST
TA AV E
3D M
ELY PL
AM
BE
M
ST
M
CANA L
CH
East Potomac Park
3C
27TH ST
A AN C
AU
Fort Dupont Park
3B
OH
M TO PO
AC
E AV
Anacostia Park
V ST
GOOD
W ST
2A
HOPE RD
NA YL O
25TH ST
T OS
IA
2B
R
TEX AS
AVE
RO
Virginia
1A 1D
SOUTH CAPITO L ST
MALCOLM X AVE
TU W NLA RD
AVE
37TH ST
WIS CO NS VE IN A
EY JE RS NEW AV E
49TH ST
ST
CENT RAL AVE
RID
INDEPENDENCE AVE
G E RD
N KE TU CK VE YA
RD
PE N NS
W BO
EN
RD
YLV AN
IA
AV E
1B
HO
M RD
AR D
SU IT
LA
IO DR
ND
1E
RD
RR
IS
RD
SU
N R D
AN ST TO
IT
LA N
PK
M
AMA AV E
The proposed routes pass through 18 districts protected under the Districts 1978 Historic Landmark and Historic District Protection Act. All local historic districts are also listed on the National Register of Historic Places and are protected under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. These protections require local and federal historic-preservation and environmental review processes through the Districts State Historic Preservation Office and its Historic Preservation Review Board. These reviews would be coordinated with other design-review processes conducted by the Commission of Fine Arts and the National Capital Planning Commission, both of which also assess impacts on historic resources.
historic district historic district and park

RS TA TE
1C
AL AB
SIS MIS
PI SIP
E AV
historic structure Benefit cluster subarea

IN
OVERLOOK AVE
HA LL EY
SO
PL
TH
ER
E AV
Maryland
29 5
HE
EL ER
RD
0.25 0.5
HISTORIC DISTRICTS & STRUCTURES

CHESA PEAKE ST
Historic Structures
Park/open space Water M
HE RD
BL U
Streetcar Park Historic District and station
INS
DR
M Metro Historic Districts station
TE
ATLANTIC ST
1 Miles
Parks and Open Space Waterbody

PKY
EP LA
N ST GALVESTO
Streetcar Segments Streetcar Stations Streets

M
SHEP
Metro Stations
The Question of Overhead Wires
For more than 120 years the District of Columbia has prohibited overhead power and telephone lines in the Old City of Washington (often referred to colloquially as the LEnfant City.) In January 2011 the City Council amended the ban to permit use of overhead wires on the H StreetBenning segment and requiring DDOT to submit a plan for the use of wires on other proposed streetcar routes. The issue of overhead wires is not unique to the District, and streetcar manufacturers have responded with experimental models that use alternative power
sources. Some of these alternatives are designed solely for short wireless segments of a route and others are designed to operate without an overhead-wire system over longer stretches. The Federal Transit Administration recently awarded DDOT funding to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of alternative streetcar propulsion systems and provide a recommendation for this and future streetcar lines as part of the Alternative Analysis study of the Union Station-to-Washington Circle extension.
Examples of potential historic resources include (left to right) 16th Street and Columbia Road NW; Florida Avenue and 3rd Street NW; and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE.
range of issues, including the impact of overhead wires, particularly on historic view sheds; the streetcars effect on the character of historic districts and landmarks; introduction of new infrastructure (such as tracks, transformer boxes, streetcar shelters, and medians); and potential changes in the width and general character of historic thoroughfares. The density and significance of resources in some corridorssuch as K Street NW, Columbia Road NW, 8th Street SE, and 4th Street NW would present particular challenges in the review process.
Alongside these challenges, the streetcar could deliver notable benefits. Roughly two-thirds of the proposed system would retrace earlier routes, restoring the transportation context that shaped many historic areas and areas eligible for designation. A new system could build on this inherited urban fabric, particularly in areas that have endured disinvestment, and deliver benefits that include: revitalizing historic commercial corridors by making them more accessible, thus attracting reinvestment; promoting use of historic-rehabilitation tax credits for both commercial and income-producing residential properties; establishing above-ground transit connections to help expand visitor access to and interest in historic and cultural destinations outside the citys core; and bringing communities together around cultural and heritage resources that contribute to a stronger sense of place.
M
ST WE C BEA
Silver Spring
Bethesda
MAP 9 Improved Household Access to Jobs via Transit

KALM IA RD
AV E
CHESTNUT ST
WISE RD
OREGON
VE RM O
9TH ST
15TH ST
35TH ST
In areas that have seen little or no development of marketrate and mixed-income housing in recent decades, the streetcar would support development within roughly a five-minute walk of each new line. As demonstrated in othM er cities, streetcar service also tends to spur development of new housing that responds to current market needs and preferences. This newer development often takes the form of lofts, smaller units, and accessory dwelling units that expand the diversity of housing choices and enable people to find the kind of housing they want within a given neighborhood. Young professionals, for instance, can more easily find affordable starter housing close to employment, family or friends, and empty nesters can more easily shift to smaller units without leaving their community. Although the streetcar is projected to raise housing values and rents in neighborhoods along each line, the size of the increaseroughly 5% to 2%appears unlikely
KE NIL W
24TH ST
18TH ST
7TH ST
23RD ST
12TH ST EXPY
3RD ST
8TH ST
6TH ST
4TH ST
MA INE
AV E
Federal Center SW
MIN N
Arlington Cemetery
L'Enfant Plaza
S IVY
C ST
ES O
INDEPENDENCE AVE
17TH ST
Anacostia Park
3D M
Stadium-Armory
TA AV E
Smithsonian
R NO
C TH
ST
EAST CAPITOL ST
Benning Road
BE AU
KE YE
Waterfront-SEU
HA M
BU
3A

ST
695
Potomac Ave
M
VE CA
Navy Yard
RO C
CAN AL
3C
BR

1E
295
2C 2B
R RD
ELY PL
S XA TE
E AV
impACT oF improveD Pentagon M TrAnsiT ACCess
high Low
3B
IO OH
medium M
Pentagon City
V ST
STANTON RD
M Metro station
1A
SOUTH CAPITOL ST
25TH ST
Crystal City
1B
SU HOW ITL A A N RD D PK RD Y
W ST
GOOD
HOPE
RD
2A
27TH ST
MA TO PO
O AC AN
IA ST
Y FW
NA YL O
PE NN S
W BO
EN
RD
YL VA NIA
AV E
SU ITL A
ND
RD
Streetcar station Park/open space Water Criteria
1D 1C
Congress Heights E A AV BAM ALA
M M
Naylor Road
MALCOLM X AVE
AV E
MISSI
SSIP
E PI AV
Population density 0 Existing transit access to jobs Walkable proximity to Figure 6: streetcar Streetcar Impact on Access to Jobs BASED ON: EXISTING TRANSIT ACCESS TO JOBS, DISTANCE TO PROPOSED STREETCAR LINE, NEW JOBS CREATED, AND Transit-dependent TRANSIT-DEPENDENT POPULATION population New jobs created
OV ER LO
EL E
CHESAPEAKE ST
W HE
SO
OK
TH
ER
E AV
Southern Avenue
ATLANTIC ST
RD
Miles
0.5
Streetcar Benefit on Access to Jobs M Metro Stations

Low Medium High
Landmark Building Waterbody
Parks and Open Space
50TH ST
Suitland
Court House
Federal Triangle
D ST
2ND ST
E ST
East Potomac Park
CONSTITUTION AVE
O AR
VE AA LIN
44TH ST
Rosslyn
4A
20TH ST 19TH ST
21ST ST
22ND ST
ST F W

VIR GIN
66
IA
AV E
G ST
4B
W NE
YO
F ST
E AV RK
395
Judiciary Square
4C
M 5A
H ST Union Station
5B
LA RY MA
SHERIFF RD
E AV ND
BENN
ING RD
Fort Dupont Park
5C
RID
Minnesota Ave
5D
49TH ST
TR IN
WH ITEH UR
MK ST M I ST M
L ST
M ST
Farragut North
The Mall
IDA DA VE
N ST
NORTH CAPITOL ST
33RD ST
AV E
6E
W ES T
OR TH
P ST
RID A
VI RG
Dupont Circle
6B
11TH ST
IA
FL O
ST
AV E
RESERVOIR RD
Q ST
PE NN
IN
AV E
SI D
DR
R ST
Shaw-Howard U
6D
Anacostia Park
BL AD E
The streetcar would expand mobility to and from a large and diverse mix of housing choices. As noted above, the fully built streetcar system would place an additional M 72,000 households within a quarter-mile walk of the streetcar, greatly expanding access to a variety of jobs (see Office Market in section 2f). When these are combined with the approximately 40,000 households already within a quarter-mile walk of Metro stations and another 12,000 (approximately) new households that the streetcar could attract to its corridors over 10 years, more than 50% of all District households would sit within a quarter-mile walk of the streetcar or Metro by the time the system is completed.
Friendship Heights
PIN E
ASPEN ST
YB
RA NC
eXPands housing choices

MCKINLEY ST MILITARY RD
AL AS KA
AVE
HR
HD
9D
IR BLA
Between 40% and 50% of residents would experience improved access to jobs within the District.
M
E AV AH UT
41ST ST
N ER ST EA
43RD ST
KA NS AS AV E
AV E
9C
RD
W ES TE R
NE BR A
16TH ST
BL AG
AV E
NE W
RI VE R
RD
LIN
NE AN
HA MP SH
CO L
SK A
FESSENDEN ST
AV E
OR
KENNEDY ST
EA VE
MIS SO U
E AV
AD O
RI A VE
AV E
RIGG
S RD
AV E
GALLOWAY ST GALLATIN ST Fort Totten
West Hyattsville
IR
ILL INO IS E AV
5TH ST
SARG
VAN NESS ST
Van Ness-UDC
TILDEN ST
Rock Creek Park
14TH ST
PARK PL
PORTER ST
CATHEDRAL AVE
13TH ST
SE TT S
34TH ST
M AS SA C
HU
MACOMB ST
Cleveland Park
SPR IN
GR
9B
UPSHUR ST
WEBSTER ST
SR TE BA
FO RT D R
EN
N CO VE TA ICU CT NE
IO A W E AV
BUCHANAN ST
ENT RD
JOH
NM
AII W HA
N RE OR
AV E
CK RMA CCO E AV
Fort Totten Park
TAYLOR ST
RANDOLPH ST
LIN
W AT ER
6A
M 6C
1ST ST
U ST
NT AV E
BR EN TW
O RH T ST
NS BU R
IS DE
LAN
RD
VE DA
RD
oc
re
CO LN
CALVERT ST
L CO
Pa EUCLID ST k
rk
9A
RD
AV E
8A
BIA UM
FRANKLIN ST
ST BRYANT
7A
7B M
M O
NT AN A
AV E
VIS
TA
ST
D
CL E VE L AN
HAREWO
RD
PA R
IRVING ST
OTIS PL
8B
KR D
RD
8C M
KENY
ON ST
8D
MICHIGAN AVE
8E M
ER WARD
OD RD
Brookland-CUA MONRO E ST
U SO TH
S AM AD L MIL RD
DA
ST
TA KO
7C
N AVE SHERMA
12TH ST
GEORGIA
E AV
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to cause widespread displacement or in other ways dramatically transform neighborhood character. (Chapter 3 includes a more detailed discussion of this point.) The streetcar should indirectly spur creation of affordable housing in higher-income areas in developments subject to mandatory inclusionary zoning, which is discussed further in Chapter 3.
2d Improves job access

As noted above, more than 50% of all District households would sit within a quarter-mile walk of the streetcar or Metro by the time the system is completed. More than twothirds of new housing units and 85% to 95% of all new office employment over the next ten years are projected to be located in the corridors (section 2e, below, examines these figures in more detail), underscoring the streetcars value in connecting jobs and housing. Map 9, Improved Household Access to Jobs via Transit , shows how access increases within corridor subareas. The map reflects both the level of new accessibility that streetcar service adds and the proportion of residents who would gain strong benefit from it.
Adding streetcar service in corridors with a high demand for additional transit service will provide residents in those areas with better links to downtown, other employment centers, and higher education that can improve workforce readiness. These include Howard University, Washington Hospital Center, the St. Elizabeths hospital site, Walter Reed Medical Center, and Georgetown University, all of which currently lack premium transit service. Additionally, the proposed network will improve connections to Metrorail stations, allowing resident access to job centers throughout the region.
2e Attracts new jobs and residents to the District
While this area requires further study, initial figures suggest that the added accessibility and amenity of the streetcar appear likely to attract new jobs and residents to the District. Preliminary projections suggest that as the system grows, it would draw an additional 6,300 to 7,700 jobs and 4,000 to 2,000 households to the District over a ten-year period, compared to a scenario with no streetcar. Figures 4 and 5 compare the two scenarios for residential growth and job growth, respectively. Better Map 9 shows that the proposed streetcar corridors cross access and amenities would also help the District retain neighborhoods that today lack access to premium transit yet whose residents rely heavily on transit. As noted earlier, some households that might otherwise move. Taken together, these two trends could translate into a projected roughly 44% of households now in the corridors do not increase of more than ,400 households annually once the own a car. The streetcar would improve transit service system is complete. This would increase the proportion of in these areas, particularly along Martin Luther King Jr. the District workforce that also lives in the District from Avenue SE, Minnesota Avenue SE/NE, Benning Road NE, 3.5% today to approximately 32.5% over 0 years and M Street SE, Florida Avenue NE/NW, and the northern roughly 34% over 20 years (Figure 5). stretches of Georgia Avenue NW (dark purple).
FIGURE 4 Projected Residential Growth Over Ten Years

PROJECTED STREETCAR IMPACT Figures in parentheses show percentage increase over base condition. Assumes full implementation of streetcar network.*
BASE (WIthoUt StREEtcAR)

POPulATION
COMBINED (BASE + StREEtcAR IMPAct)
Net new District residents

HOuSEHOlDS
34,340 22,000 16,360 39,500 (16% of 248,300 households) 43,500 to 48,500 (1618% of 270,300 new)
15,50018,900 (4555%) 10,80013,200 (4960%) 7,4009,000 (4555%) 72,400 more existing households (29%) 96,200 to 97,800 (3435% of 278,300)
49,80053,200 32,80035,200 23,80025,400 About 112,000 (45% of 248,300 households) 139,700 to 146,300 (5052% of 278,300 households)
Net new District households Of net new households, those located along streetcar corridors Existing households within 1/4 mile of rail transit Existing and new households within 1/4 mile of rail transit
*
See Residential Market on page 24 for explanation of the streetcars potential to attract and retain households.
FIGURE 5 Projected Job Growth Over Ten Years (Office and Retail)
PROJECTED STREETCAR IMPACT Figures in parentheses show percentage increase over base condition. Assumes full implementation of streetcar network.
BASE (WIthoUt StREEtcAR)
Net new jobs* Net new workforce Number of jobs in District held by residents2010 Number of jobs in District held by residents2020 Number of jobs in District held by residents2030
* **
78,133 22,900 248,220 (31.5% of 788,160 jobs) 271,116 (31.5% of 860,760 jobs)* 294,013 (31.9% of 922,259 jobs)
6,3007,700 (810%)** 10,30012,600 (4550%)*** N/A 10,30012,600 more workforce; 6,3007,700 more office and retail jobs 10,30012,600 more workforce; 6,3007,700 more office and retail jobs
85,096 33,20035,500 N/A 281,400 to 283,700 (32.432.7% of 866,293 DC jobs)* 314,600 to 319,200 (33.434% of 941,558 DC jobs)
These projections are preliminary and reflect conservative assumptions. Further study of the streetcars impact on the Districts regional competitiveness appears likely to identify greater opportunities for job growth. See Office Market on page 26 for explanation of the streetcars potential to attract and retain tenants and associated jobs. *** Based on residential market benefits.
2f Provides real estate market benefits

This initial assessment of the streetcars impact on real estate markets conservatively projects that if the system were in place today it would add $5 billion to $7 billion to the value of existing property and attract an additional $5 billion to $8 billion in new investment in the study corridors over ten years (Figures 5 and 6). These projections align with studies of real estate impacts from new streetcar lines completed in Portland and Seattle and projections of the impact of a 15 proposed line in Los Angeles. The study team believes that more detailed assessment in Phase II of the streetcars impact on real estate values and investment would likely show that the streetcar can make the District more competitive for a range of real estate investments. Further assessment will also look at the extent to which the streetcar would make the District more competitive for jobs within the region.
FIGURE 6 Property Value Increases Along Streetcar Corridor (approximate)

aggregate increase in value of existing property aggregate value of new property
CORRIDORS
Please refer to Map 4 on page 14 for the location of the corridors.
FIGURE 7 Expected Ranges for Existing Property Appreciation (typical)

Most residential property will fall in the lower end of the appreciation range shown for each corridor. Properties at the upper end of each range will be primarily offices.
CORRIDORS
15
Estimated real estate investment in Portland from the time the city identified its 7.3 miles of streetcar routes to 2008 was $3.5 billion (http://www.portlandstreetcar. org/pdf/development_200804_report.pdf). In Seattle, approximately $2.4 billion in investment, including 2,500 housing units and 12,500 jobs, has taken place in the last eight years along the 2.6-mile streetcar line that connects the South Lake Union neighborhood and downtown. The line was financed and built within three years, with one-half of the $52.9 million cost coming from adjacent property owners (South Lake Union Investment Analysis, Seattle Department of Transportation, 2008). A 2011 study for the city redevelopment agency and Los Angeles Streetcar, Inc., L.A. Streetcar Economic Analysis, found $1.1 billion in economic impact for a proposed 5.0-mile streetcar route in downtown Los Angeles. That figure includes the value of new commercial and residential construction (respectively, 2,600 units and 675,000 square feet) and 2,100 new non-construction jobs (www.lastreetcar.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Downtown.L.A.Streetcar. Economic.Impact.Report_Feb.08.2011.pdf).
Please refer to Map 4 on page 14 for the location of the corridors.
The streetcars impact on property values and new investment is particularly pronounced in three situations: . Where it improves access to underdeveloped areas. Most real estate investment in the District over the past three decades has visibly clustered within a half mile of a Metro station. The premium transit offered by the streetcar would expand market interest in areas such as Buzzard Point and the Washington Hospital Center, which have extensive underdeveloped land but lack convenient transit service today. 2. Where it encourages further expansion of existing commercial districts and intensively developed transit nodes by extending the walk. In areas such as New York Avenue NE (particularly east of the rail underpass), 4th and U streets NW, portions of Anacostia, and Eastern Market, the streetcar supports growth of existing lively commercial districts along streetcar corridors, in part by making them more readily accessible to nearby neighborhoods. 3. Where it increases accessibilty to areas with existing amenities. Established markets, such as K Street NW, and growing areas like NoMa would realize increased property and business value from more convenient access to restaurants and other amenities in places like the H Street corridor. They would also benefit from the addition of premium accessibility for a larger pool of employees. Similarly, residential markets would benefit, particularly in areas with expanded access to jobs, amenities, schools, and services
residential MarKet
This study measures opportunities for new housing development in each corridor subarea by identifying undeveloped or underdeveloped sites large enough to accommodate significant multifamily housing, and evaluating the development capacity those sites have under current or anticipated zoning. The streetcar would stimulate residential market demand, translating into increases in values for existing housing and investment in housing construction and rehabilitation.16 Map 0, Impact on New Residential Market Demand, highlights areas where the streetcar system appears likely to intensify market demand for new housing. The streetcar system would increase existing residential property value by $.0 billion to $.6 billion, and the increases would be especially pronounced near the Districts core, in locations that are currently less well served by Metrorail. Most property values would increase 5% to 2%, with values likely to rise even higher in areas that have many prime redevelopment sites.17 The
16
The yardstick used to assess the streetcars impact on housing markets in each corridor was how well it increased accessibility to six destinations that affect housing values and demand for development: workplaces, Metro stations, shopping and services, entertainment, eating and drinking establishments, and green space/parks/recreation. In addition, the study team evaluated the extent of publicly owned, vacant, and underdeveloped sites in each corridor that would be readily available for redevelopment. While individual property values could increase 5% to 12%, the study utilized more conservative estimates in calculating corridor-wide totals: between 2.5% and
17
MAP 10 Impact on New Residential Market Demand

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The streetcar could increase market demand by up to 50% over ten years, attracting up to 1,200 net new households to the District each year.
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strongest growth in demand for both existing and new development would occur adjacent to downtown: U Street/Logan Circle/Florida Avenue/NoMa/Howard University/western Rhode Island Avenue (subareas 6A6E, 7H, 9A) H Street/Benning Road (4C, 5A5C) Buzzard Point (3B) Capitol Riverfront (3C) Other significant increases in demand would occur in Downtown Anacostia (E), Washington Hospital Center (8D), Takoma Park (9D), and Georgetown (4A). Figure 8 suggests how the streetcars impact on new housing development would vary in different settings. It reflects both the degree to which streetcar service heightens market demand and the availability of land that could support development to meet that demand. The chart highlights where the greatest value and strongest potential for new residential development would occur once the streetcar system is in place. The charts vertical axis shows the relative increase in market demand for housing that the streetcar would add in each subarea. The horizontal axis shows the potential number of new housing units developed annually, taking into account site availability. For instance, subarea 6C (U Street) would experience a greater increase in market demand than subarea 8E (Brookland/CUA), but more new units could be
5% for residential values and between 5% and 10% for commercial values.
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FIGURE 8 Variations in Streetcars Impact on Housing Development

The streetcars impact on housing development would vary by subarea based not only on market impact, but also on availability and character of development sites.
Criteria fOr avaiLabiLity Of DeveLOpmeNt SiteS
Sufficient site size to accommodate mixed-use development Scale and character of context Site proximity to streetcar corridors
produced in 8E because it has more underdeveloped sites. Subarea B (Poplar Point) appears twice to illustrate the difference between developing a large site with no direct streetcar access (the current plan) and developing it with direct access, which would significantly increase market demand.
office MarKet
The streetcar would bring similar benefits to the markets for existing and new office development along the proposed streetcar corridors. The value of existing office space would increase most in locations without convenient Metrorail access. Map , Impact on New Office Market Demand, shows how streetcar service would increase market demand for new office development
MAP 11 Impact on New Office Market Demand

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Specifically, The streetcar would increase demand for office development within streetcar corridors by 2.5 million to 3.0 million square feet or roughly 5%. The streetcar would make nearly all locations within the streetcar corridors moderately to significantly more competitive for office development than they are today. The streetcar would increase the market share of new office development for these corridors from roughly 85% to more than 90% of new office investment in the District. More than 80% of this demand would occur in parts of the streetcar corridors that today have substantial underdeveloped land and poor transit access. These include Buzzard Point (subarea 3B); portions of the Southwest Waterfront (3A); the eastern part of the Navy Yard (3C); parts of NoMa near New Jersey Avenue NW (4C) and New York Avenue NE east of the train tracks (6E); the Washington Hospital Center (8D); and the eastern reaches of Rhode Island
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around the core of the District as well as along radial corridors. Roughly $ billion to $.3 billion in office development would occur in streetcar corridors within the next ten years (the figure combines new construction and rehabilitation). The streetcar corridors were designed to pass through existing concentrations of jobs and areas of greatest anticipated growth in office development, which they will reinforce. In some underdeveloped areas, introduction of streetcar service will likely play a more transformative role, putting these locations on the map for office development.
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The vast majority of new District office jobs would be accessible by streetcar.
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0 0.150.3 0.6 Access to premium transit Miles Employers access to target employees STREETCAR'S IMPACT ON NEW OFFICE MARKET DEMAND Businesses access to clients/customers CRITERIA: Employers access to above baseline capture Negligible: 0-5% - Access to premium transit services and eating/ - Employers' access to target employees Moderate: 5%-10% above baseline capture drinking establishments - Businesses' access to clients/customers Significant: 10%-20% above baseline capture - Employers' access to services and eating/drinking establishments
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Avenue NE (7C). Improving access to Poplar Point, as described on page 57, could give development prospects a significant boost, increasing demand by more than 20%. The streetcar could increase existing office property values by roughly $3.7 to $5.8 billion. Office property values would increase between roughly 2% and 0% along individual corridors. In areas that are already substantially built out, 2% represents the likely upper limit, while in underdeveloped areas with significant capacity for new development, property values could rise by 20% or more.18 Adjusting the proposed system routing in a limited number of areas, particularly Buzzard Point and Poplar Point, could significantly increase office-development opportunity in those locations.
FIguRe 9 Potential new retail spending*

CORRIDOR SAlES SquARE FEET
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TOTAl FISCAl BENEFIT
$22,800,000$27,900,000 $4,800,000$5,800,000 $54,300,000$66,400,000 $60,200,000$73,500,000 $22,900,000$28,000,000 $53,000,000$64,900,000 $21,300,000$26,100,0000 $29,200,000$35,700,000 $36,500,000$44,600,000 $305,000,000$373,000,000
80,60098,000 17,00021,000 192,000235,000 213,000260,000 81,00099,000 188,000229,000 75,00092,000 103,000126,000 129,000158,000 1,100,0001,300,000
* Projections assume a 10-year time frame and that all corridors receive similar spending potential for each new household or job. Sources: Claritas I nc., Retail Market Power; International Council of Shopping Centers, Office Worker Retail Spending Patterns (2003); W-ZHA
retail MarKet
Increased residential and office market activity along streetcar corridors would benefit retail values and raise demand for retail space nearby. As shown in Figure 9, the streetcar would add a projected $305 million to $373 million to the Districts retail spending potential, which in turn would generate approximately . to .3 million square feet of new retail space after 0 years. New households would provide the most significant support: preliminary analysis determined that each ,000 new households could
18
spur development of roughly 30,00050,000 square feet of additional retail space within a five- to ten-minute walk (a quarter- to a half-mile). This new demand would take different forms in different places. Areas that see substantial new housing and/or jobs, such as Buzzard Point, could support one or more blocks of new retail space. In areas with substantial existing development, new market demand would both increase business for existing retailers and attract new infill retail where space permits it. Because retailers prefer to locate near other retailers, these new businesses would likely attract additional stores that serve broader markets.
Some cities have seen commercial property values rise substantially as a result of building a streetcar system. Portland, Oregon, experienced a 400% property-value increases after completing its system, but much of the land in question began as railyards and vacant industrial sites. The Districts streetcar corridors would not see such dramatic rises, because real estate values typically start at much higher levels .
2g Increases tax revenues

Existing real estate within the proposed corridors represents roughly $00 billion in property value (Figure 10). As noted above in the discussion of real estate market benefits, the streetcar would likely add roughly 0% to 5% to this aggregate figure, increasing District real estate tax revenues by a corresponding amount. Figure 6, as noted earlier, shows the impact the streetcar would likely have on values of both existing and new properties. Most noticeably, increases vary broadly across the streetcar system: some areas would gain value mostly from appreciation of existing properties, other from new development, and still others from both (also see Figure
FIGURE 10 Projected Fiscal Benefit of Streetcar Over Ten Years
BASE (WIthoUt StREEtcAR) COMMERCIAl
7). The difference owes largely to the density of existing properties and the availability of land for development. For example, increased value from new property would significantly outweigh increases in existing properties value in Anacostia because of large planned projects, such as mixed-use redevelopment of the eastern portion of the St. Elizabeths hospital site (subarea D) and Poplar Point (B). By contrast, heavily built-out areas such as downtown (4B) would see minimal gains from new properties but substantial gains in the value of existing property. For parts of the city with both significant new development opportunities and larger volumes of high-value property, such as Capitol Riverfront and NoMa, major value increases would come from both sources.
PROJECTED STREETCAR IMPACT
Existing commercial property tax New commercial development property tax

RESIDENTIAl
$1,260,000,000$1,540,000,000 $135,000,000$165,000,000
$79,200,000$96,800,000 $5,700,000$6,900,000
$1,339,200,000$1,636,800,000 $140,700,000$171,900,000
Existing residential property tax New residential development property tax Income tax (new residents due to streetcar) Retail sales tax (additional sales tax due to streetcar) TOTAl FISCAl BENEFIT
$244,800,000$299,200,000 $136,800,000$167,200,000 $117,900,000$144,100,000 $21,600,000$26,400,000 $1,916,100,000$2,341,900,000
$9,000,000$11,000,000 $68,400,000$83,600,000 $64,300,000$78,600,000 $11,900,000$14,500,000 $238,400,000$291,400,000
$253,800,000$310,200,000 $205,200,000$250,800,000 $182,200,000$222,700,000 $33,500,000$40,900,000 $2,154,500,000$2,633,300,000
MAP 12 Cool Space Potential

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The District would also benefit from additional income taxes paid by new residents attracted by the streetcar (Figure 10), projected at $65 million to $80 million annually after full system buildout.19 Additional retail spending by new residents and employees after full buildout is projected to generate roughly $4 million in new annual tax revenue.
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The streetcar would encourage reoccupancy of vacant upper-floor office space, historic structures, and other smaller, unique spaces that creative industries seek, with particular benefit to neighborhood Main Streets.
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2h Expands the creative economy

Creative Capital: The Creative DC Action Agenda, released in 200 by the Districts Office of Planning and The Washington Economic Partnership, stresses the importance of the creative economy to the citys economic diversity, job growth, and job quality. The District defines the creative economy, which already accounts for 0% of District jobs,20 as economic activity related to museums and heritage, building arts, culinary arts, performing arts, media and communications, and visual arts and crafts. The enhanced accessibility to jobs and amenities and the improved walkability the streetcar system would create represent critical strategic advantages in the Districts effort to retain existing creative-industry businesses and attract new ones. Studies prepared for CEOs for Cities include two key findings particularly relevant to the District: that the U.S. faces a long-term shortage of the kinds of skilled
An estimated ,200 net new households would move into the District annuallyas a result of the full streetcar system buildout, generating $65 million to $80 million annually in new income tax revenue, assuming an average taxable household income (after deductions) of $70,000. 20 Creative Capital: The Creative DC Action Agenda, 2010 (http://newsroom. dc.gov/show.aspx/aency/planning/section/2/release/20010, retrieved 1 March 2011)
19
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and educated workers that are essential to creative industries and that creative-industry employers understand the necessity of locating in areas preferred by their workforce.21 CEOs for Cities surveys indicate that these workers are roughly 50% more likely than the general population to prefer living and working in urban neighborhoods with lively commercial districts; they also are far more likely to value short commutes by transit and convenient transit access to a wide range of shopping, entertainment, and other urban amenities. 22 The streetcar appeals directly to these preferences. Seeking distinctive character but sensitive to cost, creative-economy employers tend to search for cool spacerehabilitated industrial or commercial buildings, upper floors above retail, and similar nontraditional spaces. Often found in older commercial districts and
other neighborhood locations that offer restaurants, unique shopping, and similar amenities, such spaces become more competitive as locations for these businesses once they are accessible by streetcar. Map 2, Cool Space Potential, shows each subareas potential to attract creative-economy businesses.23 Areas well supplied with cool space that would likely see strong interest by creative-economy businesses, include: Capitol Hill along 8th Street NE/SE (subarea 3D) Georgia Avenue NW (9A9C) Logan Circle, U Street NW (6B,6C) Atlas District/H Street NE (5B) Downtown Anacostia (E) Adams Morgan (6A, 8B)
23
Calculations to determine subareas cool space potential appear in Appendix E.
Wanted: Cool Space

21
City Advantage. CEOs For Cities http://www.ceosforcities.org/files/ interesting/historic buildings CityAdvantage.pdf. Retrieved 17 February 2011. locate in cool space 22 The Young and Restless in a Knowledge Economy, 2005. Joseph Cortright, ample natural light fine arts/artists Impresa Consulting for CEO for Cities
Common characteristics:
Industries that frequently include: communications/advertising/ marketing media information technology entertainment health services
easy walking distance to restaurants sidewalks in front of buildings not necessarily inexpensive convenient size for emerging and growing businesses
32 | SYStEMWidE challEngES & Mitigation StratEgiES
3. systemwide challenges and mitigation strategies

rom right-of-way constraints to housing affordability, building a successful streetcar system raises an array of issues that require early and close coordination of planning for both land use and transportation. This chapter identifies challenges facing the proposed District system and potential strategies for mitigating them across the system. Chapter 4 examines how these challenges and strategies could play out in each of the nine corridors.
Strategies are available to help mitigate Addressing challenges challenges that would housing affordability The accessibility and amenity benefits that the streetcar come with streetcar would bring could create affordability issues in multiple implementation. locations along the streetcar corridors. To pinpoint where
these issues might appear, the study team devised an index that combines five indicators of the potential for increased housing costs: Projected rise in the value of existing housing (as calculated for this study) Median household income (existing) Proportion of rental to ownership housing in any area (existing rental housing is more susceptible to shortterm cost increases)
M Street SE
Median home values (existing) Proximity to existing Metrorail
Map 3, Housing Affordability Pressures, shows how each streetcar corridor subarea fared when measured against the index. The analysis found that nearly a third of subareas stand a relatively higher chance of experiencing strong upward pressure on housing prices. Another group of subareas, roughly half, would likely face more moderate upward price pressures. Together, these indicate the advisability of applying city policy to preserve and
MAP 13 Housing Affordability Pressures

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expand affordability in a substantial portion of the streetcar corridors for District residents. Financial benefits generated by streetcar service could help some of these same households offset potential # * increases in housing costs. Introduction of premium rail transit would create an opportunity for households to reduce the number of cars owned (or to become carfree). These households would pocket much of the cost of owning and operating a caras noted earlier, more than $8,000 annually for a mid-sized sedan. That would # * constitute a particularly significant saving for households earning between $20,000 and $50,000 per year, which, on average, spend nearly as much on transportation as they do on housing. Many of these households would also benefit from improved access to jobs as a result of the streetcars introduction.
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In locations where the streetcars housing-market benefits would place pressure on housing costs, active policy efforts can help preserve affordability.
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The District could adopt several strategies to promote preservation and construction of affordable housing: Mandatory inclusionary zoningthe Districts 2009 ordinance will apply to most new housing development with more than 0 units in streetcar corridors. The ordinance would make more than 8% of new units affordable, and these units could offset a small portion of affordable units lost in areas where displacement appears most likely to occur.24 The bulk of new housing construction, however, would take place in areas where strong housing demand has already increased values. While that outcome would expand affordable options
24
OVERLOOK AVE
Assumptions: 80% of new units are in developments of 10 or more units; 60% of eligible units are of wood-frame construction; 40% of concrete- or steel-frame construction; and no density bonuses are used.
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# * # * # * # * # * 9B # * # * ## # ** * * # * 8E# # * # * # * # * # * # * # ## # # * ** * * 8C 7C # * # # # ### ## * * * *** ** ## # ** * 8D ## # ** * # * # # * * ## # ** * # * 8A # * ## ** # * #### # # **** * * * ** # * # * # * 8B # # # # ## * ** 9A # # 7B * * ## ## # ** ** * ## # # ** * * # # # * * * # * # * ## 7A # # ** # * # * * * # * 6A # # * * # * # * 6C # * # * # * # ## * ** * # * ## ** # * ## ## ** ** ## 6D ** # # * # * # * # # # * * * #6B# # ## * * * ** # 6E * # * ## ** # * ## # ** * # * # * # # * * # * ## ** ## ** 4A # # * * # * # * # * # * * 5B # # * * ## 4C ** 5A# # * 4B ## # ** * ## ** # * # * 5C # * # # * * # * 5D # * # * # # * * # * ## ** ## # ** * 3D # # * * # # * * # # * * # * 3A # * # # * * # * # * # * # # * # 2C * * ## ** # * ## ** # * # * # * * # * #3C * ## * # * # * ## ** 2B # * # * # * 3B # * 2A # * # * * 1B #*# ** * # * * # # ## # * * #* # #* # # * * * potentiaL degree oF # * # 1E# # * # * # * # * * # * chaLLenge to houSing # * # # * * aFFordabiLitY # * # * # ## * ** 1A # # * * Virginia Lower # # # * * * # * 1D # * ## # ** * medium ### * *** # # # * * # # * * # # # * * * higher Maryland # Maryland 1C * # * # * # * nLihc dc property # # # * * * ## ** # # ** # * # * public housing 0 0.25 0.5 1 Miles # * * # development ## ** # * # * # * # ### # * *** * Criteria Benefit subarea # * # * HOUSING AFFORDABILITY PRESSURES # # * * Rise value of existing housing Median household income Potential Degree of Challenge to Housing Affordability # * # *
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in more affluent neighborhoods, it could not address all potential lost affordability, and additional measures may be needed to assure that affected households can remain in their communities. Use of public landeither vacant or in need of redevelopmentfor mixed-income housing with specified affordability targets could yield a significant number of units. Roughly 00 acres of publicly owned land (about 40 of them at the former McMillan sand filtration site) lie within the corridor subareas identified on Map 3 as places where the streetcar would likely have the strongest effect on housing costs. Approximately 40 more acres of public land lie in the remaining portions of the corridors; more than half of that total represents the Districts portion of the former St. Elizabeths Hospital campus. Targeted use of tax-credit and other affordable housing funds could encourage additional mixedincome housing on sites within the streetcar corridors. Preserving existing public, subsidized, and/or other affordable housing in or near the streetcar corridors, also shown on Map 3, represents one of the most cost-effective ways of maintaining affordablehousing choices. Encouraging creation of accessory dwelling units within existing properties, by converting basements or garages to apartments, could generate units to meet additional demand in well-established neighborhoods.
MarKet shifts
While the streetcar would likely attract new development into the District, it would also draw some commercial development to the streetcar corridors from other areas of the District. This is particularly true of office space. Of the roughly 19 million square feet of additional office space the streetcar corridors are projected to receive over ten years, .9 million square feet (about 0%) would likely be attracted by the streetcar from elsewhere in the District. Planning should examine redevelopment strategies for places where: Market interest may diminish. Identify other marketbased uses that do not seek locations close to premium transit, like light industry, and determine the best strategy for directing investment in those uses to neighborhoods outside the streetcar corridors. Market interest will likely intensify. Review the Districts zoning and development policy to ensure promotion of mixed-use, transit-oriented development where it has not historically occurred. Examples include the Washington Hospital Center, Buzzard Point, and portions of autooriented street corridors, such as portions of Rhode Island NE and Minnesota Avenue NE. Focusing development along streetcar corridors also has a variety of positive impacts. It would: Make more efficient use of District infrastructure (transit, utilities, streets, sewers) and service delivery. Better support environmental sustainability and cut energy and time costs for residents and businesses by reducing auto-oriented development and dependence.
As in any highly urbanized area, there are many demands for the existing roadway space in the District. Vehicles traveling on the road (private cars, buses, trucks, bicycles), in addition to users parking, loading, and walking along the road all compete for limited space. While adding streetcar provides a desirable and sustainable sMall business Preservation transportation choice for residents, in some cases it Owners and residents have expressed concern that will require tradeoffs with other modes and users. For streetcar service, by inducing higher rents and heavier example, it may require allowing parking on only one competition, poses a threat to small businesses in Anacostia and possibly other areas. Other cities experience side of the street, dedicating sidewalk space for shelters, or reducing travel lanes for motor vehicles. In locations that with streetcar systems suggests that many existing experience particularly severe congestion, the addition of retailers, including smaller mom and pop businesses, streetcar service poses a design challenge: balancing the would benefit from the new streetcar-related spending described in Chapter 2, in part because a large part of such needs of each mode of travel as well as the needs of local residents and businesses, and designing a right of way that spending would flow to existing commercial areas. The is efficient and effective. Other cities have shown that a District maintains several programs designed to support 25 streetcar system can be successfully integrated into this commercial areas and individual businesses. Although type of congested urban environment with appropriate program funding remains limited, streetcar planning design and mitigation. offers an opportunity to determine strategic ways to use these programs to help existing and future small Mitigation strategies include giving transit vehicles businesses benefit from streetcar service, reinforcing the priority over other vehicles by changing signs, lane 25 Tools and Resources in Section Four of the Office of Plannings report, configuration, and/or signalization. The most effective Retail Action Roadmap: The Future of the District of Columbias Retail Markets (2010) describes a number of these programs in more detail (http:// form of mitigation may be the streetcar itself, since its planning.dc.gov/DC/Planning/Across+the+City/Other+Citywide+Initiatives/ availability can reduce the use of private automobiles, Retail+Action+Strategy/Retail+Action+Roadmap). which require more roadway space and parking per
Protect large parcels further from the core, preserving long-term development capacity to accommodate unanticipated uses that may emerge as future priorities. Retain more space for service and light-industrial businesses that support core economic sectors and help diversify the Districts job base with more bluecollar jobs. Reduce development pressure in neighborhoods where it is inappropriate.
diversity and unique character of individual commercial areas. Such planning may also involve addressing parking and traffic concerns, discussed below.
constrained right of way on city streets
person than public transit. Through DDOTs system planning, each proposed corridor will undergo detailed design to address the impacts of streetcar on other modes.
ParKing
native routings for the limited number of locations where congestion may reach levels too high to accommodate the streetcar. Other cities have successfully shown that a streetcar system can be designed to operate efficiently under such conditions. Mitigation strategies include giving transit vehicles priority over other vehicles by changing signs, lane configuration, and/or signalization. The most potent form of mitigation, however, may well be the streetcar itself, since its availability lessens the need to use automobiles. Devising specific strategies for addressing congestion will require further, more localized study.
bicycles
For streetcars to run safely and efficiently, on-street parking needs a permanent, dedicated lane or must be removed. Streetcars cannot operate on roadways with peak-hour on-street parking restrictions, which occur along roughly 40% of the proposed corridors. Eliminating on-street parking or limiting on-street loading may restrict vehicular access to nearby businesses or residences, but that may prove acceptable when comparing the new riders and street-level activity that streetcar service is expected to generate. The question of how to handle on-street parking and loading zones will be addressed case by case at the planning stage, will involve all key community stakeholders, and will reflect the needs of affected properties, traffic requirements, transit users, and pedestrians.
congestion
Attention to detail in the design phase will be essential to ensuring that bicyclists and streetcars can share the road safely. Bicyclists and transit vehicles often leap-frog each other at transit stops creating a weaving pattern that can slow transit operations and increase hazards for all roadway users. Streetcar tracks can also pose a hazard to cyclists, as bike tires can get caught in the rails. Several options are available to mitigate potential conflict. One-way streets can accommodate bicycle lanes on one side of the street and streetcar tracks on the other. Alternately, bike routes can be designated on streets parallel to streetcar routes. In addition, several cities have developed coordinated lane markings for bikes and streetcars that could serve as models for the District.
As in any highly urbanized area, many District streets experience daily vehicular congestion. This study evaluated daily traffic volume per peak-hour travel lane, and Figure 8 shows the areas of potential concern it identified. The analysis found the highest levels of congestion within the proposed streetcar network along K Street NW, Columbia Road NW, Florida Avenue NW/NE, Benning Road SE, and Georgia Avenue NW. This chapter outlines potential alter-
4. corridor/neighborhood analysis
This chapter examines the specific opportunities and challenges the streetcar could bring to the neighborhoods along its corridors. 4a. Assessing benefits, opportunities, and challenges in each corridor
MAP 14 Neighborhood Context Corridors
To clearly describe how the streetcar system will influence particular neighborhoods, this study divides the proposed network into nine corridors (with additional subareas) that reflect similar land use characteristics (see Map 4, Neighborhood Context Corridors). As stated earlier, the full streetcar system would create different opportunities and challenges in different neighborhoods. Generally, the most dramatic benefits will occur in neighborhoods that currently lack access to fixed-route transit and have underdeveloped land and commercial districts. All areas, however, will experience some level of benefits. Section 4b, Capturing opportunity through alternative routing or phasing describes changes in proposed routes that may deliver further benefits. This chapter describes the location or other key local benefits of streetcar service, as distinct from the discussion in Chapter 2 of benefits that would accrue across the system and the District itself. Similarly, while this chapter identifies locations where challenges such as housing affordability and rightof-way constraints might arise, Chapter 3 describes in a more general way strategies for addressing these challenges.
corridor 1 corridor 2 corridor 3 corridor 4 corridor 5

M Metro station
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The portion of this corridor along Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue SE had streetcar service for much of the 20th century. The corridor begins in downtown Anacostia, an area of significant cultural importance that also contains opportunities for reinvestment in properties and businesses. The corridor passes south through the former St. Elizabeths Hospital campus, currently being redeveloped west of MLK as headquarters for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which will ultimately employ approximately 4,000 people here. The campus east of MLK will likely host mixed-use redevelopment. The corridor ends south of a cluster of neighborhood retail and schools in Capitol Heights. A spur from the Anacostia Metro station serves the Barry Farm public housing development and the U.S. Naval Annex.1
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benefits: The streetcar would bolster the areas access to premium transit and strengthen its connections to both neighborhood and citywide amenities. It would link Anacostia, Barry Farm, Congress Heights, and surrounding neighborhoods to employment opportunities at the future DHS headquarters and other development planned on the St. Elizabeths site. Equally beneficial, streetcar service would connect new employees at these sites to Anacostias commercial districts, broadening the market for existing and new businesses and housing.
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NOTABlE INDICATORS job growth projections suggest this area will add 25,000 jobs by 2030. That includes the 14,000 DHS jobs as well as others in downtown Anacostia, Poplar Point, and Congress Heights. One of the largest public housing developments in any streetcar corridor, Barry Farm, gives this corridor a substantial concentration of low-income
households (80% earning less than $35,000) and households without cars (75%). median household incomes are significantly higher elsewhere in the corridor. The corridor has one of the largest inventories of public land available for redevelopment among the corridors.
The streetcar would further support mixed-use development planned or anticipated along MLK SE between Chicago and U streets, at Barry Farm, and at the Anacostia Metro station. Existing and new development in these areas and Congress Heights would benefit from improved access to and from District and regional destinations via Metrorail Green Line connections and direct streetcar connections to areas west of the river. Certain routes in Anacostia could increase the economic benefits that streetcar service brings. Running the streetcar under I-295 for direct access to Poplar Point would expand redevelopment possibilities for the large parcels of land there and improve public access to the Anacostia waterfront. A second alternative would extend service from Congress Heights east along Alabama Avenue to the Congress Heights Metro station, creating stronger connections for Congress Heights, St. Elizabeths, and Metrorails Green Line. (See section 4b for more detailed discussion of these routings.) challenges: The proposed MLK Avenue corridor could present a design challenge if the right of way proves too narrow to accommodate the streetcar, customer and delivery parking, traffic, and existing transit services simultaneously. However, DDOT is working with the Federal Transit Administration to conduct a NEPA analysis to refine and improve the plan for proposed streetcar service in this area.
Solomon G. Brown Corps Community Center on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE
good hope road and Minnesota avenue
2
CORRIDOR
Minnesota Avenue at 16th Street NE
As proposed, this corridor passes mostly through established residential development with clusters of neighborhood retail at Good Hope Road SE and Pennsylvania Avenue SE. The plan proposes extending streetcar service to the Minnesota Avenue Metro station, with its large municipal office building. The corridor runs next to Fort Dupont Park, one of the Districts largest, and runs within a half mile of Anacostia Park. Redevelopment opportunities exist on several sizable commercial parcels north of East Capitol and where Pennsylvania Avenue SE crosses the corridor. Note: Corridor 5 describes the Minnesota Avenue corridor north of East Capitol Street NE. benefits: Streetcar service would better connect the corridors neighborhoods Fairlawn, Randle Highlands, Twining, Greenway, and Fort Dupontto local retail, jobs, and Metrorail and streetcar lines in downtown Anacostia and at the Minnesota Avenue Metro station. The streetcar has the potential to intensify retail/commercial activity, particularly at Pennsylvania Avenue SE and along Minnesota Avenue NE between East Capitol Street and Benning Road, if stops are located close to commercial properties. challenges: Implementation of the streetcar may affect on-street parking.
42 | corridor/nEighBorhood analYSiS
NOTABlE INDICATORS median household incomes and home values are solidly in the middle range of streetcar corridors. However, 40% to 50% of households earn less than $35,000, a high proportion compared to other corridors.
The intersection of Good Hope Road and Minnesota Avenue SE
capitol riverfront, buzzard Point, capitol hill, and 7th street
3
CORRIDOR
Redevelopment of the Arthur Capper/Carrollsburg public housing site to create a new mixed-income community
Most of this corridor once enjoyed streetcar service. The Capitol Riverfront has seen some of the Districts most intensive recent development, including new federal offices, the Arthur Capper/ Carrollsburg mixed-income housing redevelopment, and Nationals Park. Significant redevelopment opportunities remain at the Southwest Waterfront, Buzzard Point, and several other underdeveloped sites. The north-south legs of the corridor pass through Capitol Hill, LEnfant Plaza, and the National Mall, areas already largely developed and/or under historic protections. They contain a variety of important travel destinations and Metro connections and connect areas separated by the Southwest and Southeast freeways.
Buzzard Point
benefits: Streetcar service would enhance connectivity in this area and generate additional economic benefits by offering an additional premium transit option to these neighborhoods. This is particularly true in Buzzard Point and the Southwest Waterfront, both of which have large supplies of underdeveloped land that could greatly increase in value and development potential once a streetcar connection exists. The routing of the spur to Buzzard Point has flexibility and could respond to proposed mixed-use development. (Section 4b, Capturing opportunity through alternative routing or phasing describes alternative route options.) A
route that provides convenient service to both downtown and Anacostias St. Elizabeths Hospital site would be especially beneficial. A route could also serve Nationals Park, strengthening its connection to the region. The mixed-income community that will emerge near M Street SE from redevelopment of the Arthur Capper/ Carrollsburg public housing could take significant advantage of the streetcar. The project will attract public housing residents as well as higher-income professionalsgroups that typically have higher rates of transit ridership. Public housing sites near the WaterfrontSEU Metro station could present further opportunities for mixed-income redevelopment. Both they and the mixed-use development envisioned on Maine Avenue at the Southwest Waterfront would benefit from streetcar service. A more direct streetcar connection to the
Southwest Waterfront would make its planned hotel, stores, and restaurants more accessible to visitors at the National Mall or downtown, as well as to residents and jobs elsewhere in the Capitol Riverfront. The 7th Street NW/SW leg of the streetcar route would establish a critical connection among the Capitol Riverfront and Anacostia, downtown, multiple Metro and commuter rail lines, and visitor destinations to the north. This service would create important workplace-tohousing and business-to-business connections and would open new options for visitors beyond the National Mall. It could also support walkability enhancements needed around LEnfant Plaza. Capitol Hill would benefit from improved connections to Metrorail stations and direct streetcar routes to a other District neighborhoods. Among other benefits, this would make businesses at Barracks Row, Eastern Market, and Massachusetts Avenue more accessible destinations. While streetcar will not markedly increase the magnitude of mixed-use development already completed or planned along M Street SE from South Capitol to the Navy Yard, it will expand access between this significant development and other centers of jobs and housing. challenges: 8th Street NE/SE offers only a single travel lane in each direction, but it could function as a streetcar corridor with an appropriate redesign to manage traffic and parking-related issues.
Barracks Row on 8th Street SE
NOTABlE INDICATORS
more varied household-income levels. Nevertheless, wide disparities will almost certainly persist. median household income varies within the corridor. Capitol Hill is tied for the second-highest South of the freeway, as few as 20% of median income among streetcar corridors, but households own cars, one of the lowest carsouth of the freeway income drops substantially. ownership rates among streetcar corridors. A concentration of public and other affordable housing means that as many as two-thirds of The M Street corridor contains 80,000 jobs households earn less than $35,000one of the todaysecond among streetcar corridorsand, largest concentrations of low-income households together with Buzzard Point, is projected to add in any streetcar corridor. Household incomes rise about 25,000 new jobs by 2030, more than any markedly from east to west along M Street, which other corridor. has a large supply of market-rate housing built during the urban-renewal era. Major projects recently A significant expanses of redevelopable land has drawn strong development interest. About 16 completed or under wayincluding redevelopment million square feet of new development has been of the Arthur Capper/Carrollsburg public housing proposed for completion by 2015, including major as a mixed-income community that will retain its housing and office projects. current count of 900 public unitswill produce
K and h streets to union station; f, 14th, and 7th streets downtown
4
CORRIDOR
NoMa (K and st streets, NE)
K Street NW from Georgetown to Mount Vernon Square includes some of the Districts densest and highest-value developmentmostly office space, but with housing as well. Between Mount Vernon Square and Union Station the corridor takes on a different character, with much less development and large parcels cleared for urban renewal, construction of I-395, or industrial uses near Union Station. This area has attracted intense redevelopment activity in recent years, particularly east of North Capitol Street in NoMa. Overall, approximately 0 million square feet of development, split about equally between offices and housing, has been proposed to be built by 205. The corridor crosses three business improvement districts: Georgetown, Downtown, and NoMa. Although the downtown portion of the corridor has several Metro stations, Georgetown and New Jersey Avenue lack rail transit. Streetcar service along this corridor would also enhance east-west connectivity in the downtown core.
benefits: By filling the gaps between the Metro stations at Mount Vernon Square, Gallery Place, Judiciary Square, Union Station, and New York Avenue, the streetcar system would reduce barriers that now make it hard for pedestrians to reach Metro stations and would add new transit connections. These improvements would reinforce favorable conditions for new development and raise the value of existing properties. On a systemwide basis, the streetcars added transit capacity would also help address
capacity challenges on Metro lines in the downtown core. Section 4b discusses alternative routing intended to strengthen redevelopment sites east of North Capitol Street in NoMa. Areas of the corridor that are mostly built out would also gain from the streetcar. The streetcars visibility and sense of permanence would enhance K Street as an address and thus tend to bolster property values. Because K Street property is already quite valuable, even an increase as small as 2% would yield a major boost in tax revenues to the District. The streetcar would also benefit the convention center by offering visitors simpler, more direct connections to hotels, Metrorail, and Union Station. The streetcar would create a stronger east-west connection to Georgetown, enhancing existing premium bus service. In a built-out neighborhood like Georgetown, most streetcar benefits would accrue to existing properties and residents. The proposed corridor extension beyond Phase 3
extending the line north to M Street, Georgetown University, and/or further north along Wisconsin Avenuewould bring rail transits benefits to important destinations; section 4b includes a more detailed discussion of this option. The 7th, F, and 4th Street NW routings downtown also add important connections to the extensive jobs, Metro stations, and amenities that already exist here. Additionally, streetcar service would encourage more residents to use transit and could reduce levels of car ownership. challenges: Building the streetcar line will require a major redesign and reconstruction of K Street. The corridors intense economic activity and traffic volume demand special attention in order to mitigate construction impacts. 7th, F, and 4th streets NW in downtown present challenges, including street widths, intersection geometry, and traffic levels; see section 4b, Capturing opportunity through new connections or phasing for routing alternatives that avoid these potential problems.
NOTABlE INDICATORS This corridor contains the most significant concentration of jobs in the streetcar systemmore than one third of all jobs in the District. Projections show it attracting nearly 20,000 more by 2030. The corridor is one of the most important centers of planned development activity in the streetcar system. Substantial office and housing development are planned or under way, particularly on sizeable parcels east of Mount Vernon Square.
At nearly $120,000, median household income at the Georgetown end of the corridor leads all streetcar corridors by a wide margin. Elsewhere, the corridor matches most other corridors with a median income of about $50,000. Outside of georgetown, the corridor contains some of the lowest household rates of car ownership within the streetcar system, averaging about 40%.
h street/benning road
5
H Street NE
H Street NE, an historic streetcar route, has endured a decades-long decline that ended only when the revival of cultural facilities like the historic Atlas Theater and construction of the first modern streetcar segment in 2009 began to spur reinvestment. High-density mixed-use development has occurred close to Union Station on former industrial parcels at the edge NoMa.
CORRIDOR The H Street NE commercial corridor along
Other portions of H Street and Benning Road NE generally contain small commercial or mixed-use parcels with wellestablished residential development on flanking streets, most commonly two- and three-story townhouses and single-family houses. Only the Hechinger Mall and several vacant parcels near the starburst intersection of H Street and Benning Road break this pattern. Two sizeable multifamily developments are planned northwest of the mall, and the rest of the vacant sites offer significant redevelopment potential. East of the Anacostia River walkability remains poor and most development is light industrial or commercial in nature. The Benning Road and Minnesota Avenue Metro stations have attracted little redevelopment compared to other stations in the District, and most new development has relied on District financing or subsidy. The areas poor walkability, a legacy of auto-oriented development, is one factor discouraging development in the area.
benefits: Under construction since 2009 median household income at the east end of this corridor ranks as part of the Great Streets behind other corridors, with 50% or more of households reporting less than $35,000. Toward the west, however, median incomes rise Streetscape project, the significantly, with more than 80% of households near Union Station H Street/Benning Road reporting income of more than $35,000, high compared to other streetcar route represents corridors. a pilot segment for the car-ownership rates tend to reflect income patterns. In the lowerfull system. It will bring earning east, 30% to 50% or more of households do not own cars premium rail transit access (relatively high compared to other corridors); this rate shrinks to nearly 20% in the west. to more than two miles of H Street and Benning Road and median home values and densities tend to be somewhat below other introduce a variety of new corridors. development opportunities. Connecting to Union Station would increase access to jobs and many other transportation modes for residents of the corridors many neighborhoodsthe Atlas District, Trinidad, Carver Langston, Kingman Park, Mayfair, River Terrace, Mahaning Heights, and Benning.
NOTABlE INDICATORS
parcels, and lower-density residential zoning on adjacent blocks. However, significant potential exists on several underdeveloped parcels, including the shopping center at 8th Street NE, the proposed housing redevelopment north of Hechinger Mall, and in the long term, potentially the Hechinger site itself. Medium-size sites assembled from smaller parcels might be able to support mixed-use redevelopment that, if pedestrian-friendly, could help knit together the four neighborhoods that meet there. Existing properties would see moderate to significant increases in values with the streetcar. Mixed-income redevelopment on public housing sites in the corridor, potentially coordinated with Hechinger Mall redevelopment, could offer a good opportunity to expand affordable and market-rate housing choices. Areas with auto-oriented uses and heavier traffic, particularly around the Hechinger Mall and east of the Anacostia River, will need updated pedestrian facilities to meet current standards for sidewalks, crossings, pedestrian-oriented land uses, and street-level activityall key to deriving full advantage from the streetcars presence. challenges: New street infrastructure with smaller blocks and better pedestrian accommodations must complement development in this area to help it take full advantage of the streetcar. Restoring the street grid across the shopping center at the corner of Benning Road and Minnesota Avenue NE could improve both walkability and traffic flow, making Benning more attractive as a retail destination and residential neighborhood.
Redevelopment opportunities along H Street NE are limited because of established development patterns, with numerous historic buildings, relatively few larger
Minnesota Avenue at Dix Street NE
14th street, 18th street (adams Morgan), u street, florida avenue and 8th street
6
CORRIDOR
These former streetcar corridors just north of downtown suffered decades of decline prior to 2000, when reinvestment began to transform the blocks around the Metro stations at U Street-Cardozo, ShawHoward University and New York Avenue. Much more development is planned near the New York Avenue station. Existing development, some of it historic, limits the corridors potential for new development, yet opportunities remain in NoMa, at Howard University, and on a handful of larger commercial parcels. High ridership and demand for the streetcar will likely come from Howard and Gallaudet universities (student and staff populations) as well as restaurant and entertainment destinations in the Adams Morgan/U Street area. benefits: The streetcars significance in this corridor stems from its ability to extend the walkable area from existing Metro stations along five streetcar corridors that will radiate from the area. Nearly all of this corridor would experience greater market interest for existing and new residential and commercial space, amplifying the revitalization already spurred by Metrorail. Development potential varies along the corridor. Much of U Street NW in Shaw is built out or subject to historicpreservation restrictions, yet several commercial parcels could be redeveloped. Several large parcels also stand out in blocks adjoining 4th Street NW, which otherwise is also mostly developed.
U and 14th streets NW
Along Florida Avenue in LeDroit Park, Bloomingdale, Eckington, and Truxton Circle, the streetcar would complement existing bus service, which is relatively light compared to demand. Streetcar service would particularly improve access to the New York Avenue Metro station, where conditions present barriers to walkability: roadway width and traffic volume on New York Avenue, the railroad embankment, and the auto-oriented character of most existing development. These challenges have severely limited the benefits of the station. Streetcar service would improve access by attracting pedestrianoriented development that can gradually make New York and Florida avenues more walkable. By improving access here, the streetcar would enhance some of the Districts most important redevelopment opportunities in NoMa and the Florida Avenue Market. New streetcar service would provide valuable support in Adams Morgan, where stakeholders say that limited parking and auto capacity have constrained growth of the restaurant/retail district along 8th Street NW (see Challenges section below). streetcar corridor also connects to Metrorails Red Line at Woodley Park,
NOTABlE INDICATORS The corridor contains one of the highest residential populations among the streetcar corridors, and strong household growth is projected through 2030. The area contains the third largest concentration of jobs in the corridors. Taken together, NoMa and The Florida Avenue Market area will add a projected 13,000 jobs by 2030. By 2014 the area around the new York Avenue Metro station will likely add about 6 million square feet of development, almost evenly balanced between offices and housing. The rest of the corridor has relatively little land suitable for redevelopment. The 14th Street and Adams Morgan portions of the corridor have the highest housing-unit densities of all streetcar corridors. Densities in NoMa and the area near Gallaudet University rank at the bottom of the corridors. median household income just surpasses the middle range of values among all the corridors. median home values drop by about 50% from west to east along the corridor.
an important link that helps local destinations and adds mobility for residents and workers across the full Metro/ streetcar network. challenges: Streetscape conditions for pedestrians need improvement, particularly along Florida Avenue. Demand for on-street parking and traffic congestion in the area are high. Construction of the streetcar line would require refinement of existing on-street parking. Neighborhoodscale approaches to parking and congestion management can offer appropriate ways to address these challenges.
Gallaudet University at Florida Avenue and 8th Street NE
rhode island avenue
7
CORRIDOR
Rhode Island Avenue at 2nd Street NE
Once served by streetcars east of 3rd Street NE, this corridor divides neatly into three segments. From Florida Avenue NW to 4th St NE, Rhode Island Avenue contains a median with landscaping and shade trees and runs through well-established residential neighborhoods. A half-mile from the Rhode Island Avenue-Brentwood Metro station the avenues character shifts to automobileoriented commercial usesalthough a new mixed-use project may signal the arrival of a new development model in this section. East of the station lower-density residential neighborhoods line the corridor, with clusters of underdeveloped, auto-oriented commercial parcels near Montana Avenue NE and at the Maryland border. benefits: The streetcar would provide much of the corridor with its first premium transit service in decades and would strengthen the connection between Brookland, Langdon, Woodbridge, Brentwood, and other neighborhoods and the citys core. A relatively broad right of way and moderate traffic volumes on Rhode Island mean that the streetcar could travel at higher speeds, a distinct benefit for residents and workers.
As in other corridors, isolated walkable areas would be extended along the corridor. Important opportunities for higher-value pedestrian- and transit-oriented redevelopment would be created, particularly around the station, near the commercial node at Montana Avenue NE, in the Woodbridge commercial district, and at Brentwood Shopping Center.
Adding a future spur to or an alternative terminus at Fort Lincoln and the Gateway neighborhood along South Dakota Avenue NE would open additional opportunities for development and connectivity. Section 4b examines these ideas in more detail. challenges: Areas dominated by auto-oriented development today will need pedestrian and streetscape improvements; updated zoning and design guidelines and implementation procedures could help achieve these goals. Due to the corridors relatively small number of jobs, ridership seems likely to be dominated by one-way peak travel compared to other corridors.
NOTABlE INDICATORS The corridor contains considerable redevelopable land in both public and private hands, primarily east of the Metro station. The concentration of public housing near the Rhode Island Avenue Metro station corresponds to relatively high numbers of corridor households earning less than $35,000 (more than 50%) and lacking a car (more than 60%). An additional group of public housing units sits just outside the corridor on Montana Avenue NE. Overall, median household incomes and home values fall within the middle range of values for all streetcar corridors.
Auto-oriented commercial properties with transit-oriented redevelopment potential near Rhode Island and Montana avenues NE
woodley Park, columbia heights, washington hospital center and brookland
8
CORRIDOR
The McMillan Sand Filtration sitea development opportunity
Streetcars formerly ran on Calvert Street NW in Woodley Park/Adams Morgan and on Michigan Avenue NE in Brookland. The west end of the corridor links to Metrorails Red Line at Woodley Park. The corridors intermediate section passes through Columbia Heights, where highdensity mixed-use development has recently taken root around the Metro station, and through the Washington Hospital Center, a major employment center. The hospitals, the McMillan Sand Filtration site, and the Armed Forces Retirement Home possess great near- and long-term development potential for residential, biomedical and other uses. The eastern end of the corridor contains Catholic University, Trinity University, other religious and educational institutions, housing, and a light industrial area near the Brookland Metro station that has drawn redevelopment interest. benefits: This route ties together neighborhoods and districts that have long been separated by Rock Creek, large institutional uses, and a rail corridor. It would also relieve capacity constraints on core Metrorail lines by shortening interline connections among Woodley Park, Columbia Heights and Brookland-CUA stations.
While Woodley Park offers limited development opportunities, a streetcar connection to the Metro station would play a key role in expanding access options for residents and easing capacity constraints across the full Metrorail/
west, and the Brookland/CUA Metro station could emerge as a mixed-use center offering a greater range of amenities to the corridor. An alternate corridor could consolidate the planned track configuration into a single route through the hospital campus. See section 4b for a more detailed discussion. challenges: Columbia Road NW presents one of the most stringent right-of-way constraints in the entire streetcar network, with just one travel lane each way and substantial traffic. Due to congestion east of 6th Street NW, additional routes merit consideration for streetcar operation, such as Harvard Road NW. Near the hospital campus and the Brookland-CUA Metro station, autooriented development dominates the corridor, which might benefit from new zoning and design guidelines to encourage more walkable development and streetscapes.
NOTABlE INDICATORS Already important as a jobs destination, the washington Hospital Center is expected to see significant job growth in coming decades. The Adams Morgan and Columbia Heights portions of the corridor have some of the highest population and housing-unit densities per acre among all streetcar corridors. There are significant opportunities for higher-value redevelopment around the washington Hospital Center and Brookland-Cue Metro station, though relatively little development is planned for the near term. woodley Park has one of the highest median household incomes of any portion of the corridors in the streetcar system. The remainder of the corridor contains a range of median household incomes and property values, including a public housing component.
New Columbia Heights development within the one-quarter -mile streetcar corridor
streetcar network. It can also serve the areas many hotels. The streetcar would give Columbia Heights dense population and burgeoning retail destinations important east-west connections on premium transit, and it would improve access to the thousands of jobs at the Washington Hospital Center. That area also holds strong potential for additional jobs in the biomedical and other sectors. The streetcar would expand development potential at the McMillan Sand Filtration and Armed Forces Retirement Home sites two of the Districts largest neighborhood development opportunities. Further east, Catholic University and other institutions would gain better connections to destinations and Metrorail lines to the
georgia avenue and takoma
9
CORRIDOR
Georgia Avenue near Jefferson Street NW
Streetcars formerly served the four-mile stretch of Georgia Avenue NW that forms the heart of this corridor. Howard Universitys campus dominates the corridors southern end, and extensive mixed-use development has arisen around the Georgia Avenue-Petworth Metro station, but neighborhood and auto-oriented retail backed by low-density residential neighborhoods define much of the rest of the corridor. At Butternut Street NW the corridor reaches Walter Reed Army Medical Center, slated to add significant mixeduse redevelopment, then turns east toward the Takoma Metro station, which offers only modest opportunities for multifamily housing or other transit-oriented development on infill sites.
benefits: The streetcar can transform auto-oriented portions of Georgia Avenue NW into more transit-oriented areas with higher-value development and improved access options. Streetcar service would expand the walkable area now concentrated at the Georgia Avenue-Petworth Metro station. Similarly, it would make the northern part of the Howard campus, an important employer, more accessible to the Shaw-Howard University Metro station. The streetcar would also amplify Georgia Avenues appeal as an office location for creative-economy industries. As households and jobs increase along the corridor in response to the streetcar, thousands of square feet of new neighborhood-oriented retail could be created. These
NOTABlE INDICATORS median household income rises along Georgia Avenue from about $35,000 at the corridors southern end to about $70,000 at the north, placing it in the upper-middle range of streetcar corridors At the southern end of the corridor, with many public housing residents and university students, more than 50% of households earn less than $35,000, and nearly 60% lack a car. The corridor is expected to add a large number of households by 2030.
changes would make Georgia Avenues neighborhoods more self-sufficient in terms of jobs and services. Many commercial parcels hold strong potential for infill redevelopment, like the former Curtis Chevrolet dealership at Peabody Street NW. Such sites could reinforce neighborhood commercial nodes and attract employers to locations along Georgia Avenue in Brightwood, Manor Park, 16th Street Heights, and Petworth. The corridors marquee opportunity, however, is the Walter Reed campus, where planning has begun to introduce major redevelopment that combines commercial, government, and housing uses over a decade. Extending the streetcar line north on Georgia Avenue to Silver Spring, instead of ending it at Takoma as now planned, would open opportunities in this part of the District. The Districts northern neighborhoods would gain much better transit access to regional job centers and housing. This could, in turn, significantly raise land value and neighborhood connections along Georgia Avenue. Shifting the route would not markedly affect Takoma, because it already has Metro service. Section 4b contains a more detailed explanation of this alternative routing. challenges: The biggest design challenge involves integrating the streetcar into the right of way along Georgia Avenue, a thoroughfare that currently experiences high volumes of bus, motor vehicle, and pedestrian traffic. Areas now dominated by auto-oriented development will need pedestrian and streetscape improvements.
New development on Georgia Avenue NW
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VERT ST NT C capturing added value through AN rk he Office of Planning evaluated each streetcar Pa A ek AV alternate routing: connecting the h and K re M C ST E line proposed oin the DC Transit Future Plan ck BRYANT VE R A D street nW/ne segmentsLalong 1st street ne inAN to determine whether minor adjustments IS DE avenue nW would extend W M stead of new JerseyO RH along the 37-mile system could, in areas U ST AT ER T underdeveloped land transit access to more ST U Street/African-Amer S Shaw-Howard U close to the corridors,IDcapture even moreCivil War Memorial/Cardozo value or E along K street ne in noma while preserving DR M benefit from existing and future development. ThisR ST access to the Union station metro station for unPE evaluationwhich entailed an analysis ofQ ST lines each Dupont Circle NN FL ST derdeOR P ST M route, construction phasing, and service profile (trip I DA AV veloped E frequency, projected ridership, and capacity)identified N ST M M M M sites M ST several possible opportunities that could yield significant WH ITEH along URS L ST minor dividends in the future as the result of theseFarragut North 66 T FW MK ST K ST Y the adjustments. The Office of Planning, alongside the E 395 AV M I ST M VI RK planned H ST District Department RGIN M of Transportation, will continue EW YO BENN Gallery Pl-Chinatown N ING R IA Union Station new VE D AV M to study the potential for E G ST M M DA M F ST Judiciary Square AN capturing added vaLue Jersey Rosslyn L capturing this extra value. RY through aLternate routing E ST M M M MA avenue D ST current proposed VE M streetcar route route. AA MFederal Triangle LI N CONSTITUTION AVE O possible alternative this H CAR path of the route RT The Mall NO alternative eliminates a need to rebuild tracks metro lines Smithsonian M and the Union station streetcar INDEPENDENCE AVE stop as part of M Metro station MStadium-A L'Enfant Plaza line to the west. C ST Arlington Cemetery extending the Streetcar station
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Rosslyn
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L RY MA
3RD ST
4TH ST
6TH ST
SOUTH CAPITOL
ST
T Smithsonian added opportunity through BS added opportunity through M INDEPENDENCE AVE alternate routing: Poplar Point is one of alternate routing: several strategies MStadium-Armory L'Enfant Plaza C ST gton Cemetery the districts largest planned-development and could help fit streetcar service into the M M M M M ST metro lines waterfront parkFederal Center SW IVY sites, yet conditions strongly constrained mLK right-of-way in downtown ELY PL MA I NE Potomac Ave AV discourage walking to it from the nearest anacostia in ways that benefit businesses and E M M Metro station 695 Streetcar station metro station, anacostia. a future spur or loop institutions there. these strategies include 295 Park/open space directly serving Poplar Point would dramatically Navy Yard Water Waterfront-SEU creating alternate traffic routes, such as Fort Dupont Park M improve access toM site by the shannon Place se or Poplar Point; East Potomac Park public transit and make i-295 a creating a one-way couplet for the Y FW less-daunting barrier. by shifting VE streetcar using shannon Place se NA IA ST CA YL Pentagon CO PE MA development from auto-oriented O and limited development-parcel NN NA TO R A SY PO RD M L to transit-oriented form, the AN area together with mLK;Vand/ IA GOO AV Anacostia Park D HO spur or loop option would also or routing streetcars throughE PE R D W ST provide powerful support for V ST Poplar Point between Good hope Pentagon City SU HOW ITL AR SU AN M Poplar Point to succeed as a and howard roads instead ofITLA D D ND Poplar Point P RD M KY RD major mixed-use development on mLK. applying one or more and a park/recreation Crystal City of these strategies would avoid STANTON RD M destination for the entire district. removing on-street parking and M new development value created loading spaces on mLKvital to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport by streetcar service would likely anacostias principal commercial M Naylor Road justify the cost of the modest district to create streetcar stops. M route extension.
capturing added vaLue through aLternate routing
8TH ST
CONSTITUTION AVE
Poplar Point
MI NN
current proposed streetcar route possible alternative path of the route
ES O
17TH ST
TA AV E
R NO
C TH
AR
VE AA LI N O
Downtown Anacostia
D RI GE RD
44TH ST
IA AV E
18TH ST
VI RG
IN
MK ST M I ST M
L ST
TR IN
WH ITEH UR
Farragut North
W NE
R YO
VE KA

395
Anacostia Park
SHERIF
G ST
M F ST
M Judiciary Square M
H ST Union Station
VE DA AN
BENN ING R D
Minnesota Ave
EAST CAPITOL ST
Ben
UC NT KE
BR
BE AU
KE YE
HA M
BU
CAN AL S T
RO C
M.L.K. JR. A VE
25TH ST
27TH ST
AV E
OK
OV ER LO
S XA TE
E AV
KY
EM
E AV
AL RI
Y PK
E BRANCH AV
W BO
IO OH
OR M
S RI
DR
MALCOLM X AVE
Congress Heights E A AV AM LAB A
MIS
AVE IPPI SISS
RD
R
W HE
SO
EL E
TH
ER
E AV
Southern Avenue
RD
ATLANTIC ST
CHESAPEAKE ST
34TH ST
NT AV E
BR EN TW
NS BU R
1ST ST
VE RM O
9TH ST
ID
LIN CO KE LN RD NI LW OR TH AV E
11TH ST
IA
R ST
15TH ST
NORTH CAPITOL ST
W ES T
NT AV E
24TH ST
20TH ST 19TH ST
22ND ST
21ST ST
7TH ST
35TH ST
NORTH CAPITOL ST
23RD ST
2ND ST 33RD ST
12TH ST EXPY
3RD ST
8TH ST
4TH ST
6TH ST
24TH ST
20TH 17TH ST ST 19TH ST
22ND ST
21ST ST
18TH ST
M
23RD ST
7TH MI ST NN ES OT AA VE
12TH ST EXPY
3RD ST
HA M
RO C
L ST l st
Clarendon East Potomac Park
1st st se
BU
M M
4TH ST
Pentagon
BE AU
HA M
Crystal City
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Pentagon City
25TH ST
CAN AL S T
RO C
BU
KE YE
agon City
streets sW, Arlington Cemetery if justified by WY F E e IA M AV av buzzard Point ST C C CO MA ma A TO to AN development po PO value. OO G in Anacostia Park Buzzard D HO P Point either case, E RD W ST HO V ST SU routes and ITL WA R AN M D D R operations PK D Y should STANTON RD conveniently connect buzzard Point to both Pentagon M downtown and the former st. elizabeths site.
A NA 2nd st sW Cana
27TH ST
and north to INDEPENDENCE AVE D C ST Lenfant Plaza EN R M M M BOW M M Federal Center SWor, preferably, NA M ST YL IVY PE O MA NN R I NE Potomac Ave to the national SY RD AV LV E AN M 695 IA mall and AV E 295 downtown. Navy Yard Waterfront-SEU these M M M SU ITL AN East Potomac Park connections DR D would improve VE CA access, MA A TO AN PO particularly for visitors, an important GOO target market for planned hotel, retail, and Anacostia Park D entertainment uses. Naylor Road W
M M
L'Enfant Plaza
6TH ST
BE AU
KE YE
8TH ST
BR
2ND ST
M M
51ST S T

M M M
50TH ST
BR
SOUTH CAPITOL
M
MALCOLM X AVE Congress Heights CityE CrystalA AV BAM ALA
V ST
ST
ST
MM
IPPI
M
Southern Avenue Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport VE A
STANTON RD Suitland
AVE
M M
TR IN
M M
W ES T
44TH ST
VI RG
G ST
15TH ST
IA AV E
18TH ST
11TH ST
RG
9TH ST
IN
VE RM O
M M
1ST ST
TR IN
49TH ST BR EN TW
capturing added vaLue through aLternate routing M ST
D Deanwood AN ISL DE added opportunity through capturing added value through O W Anacostia Farragut North U ST RH AT L ST current proposed Park streetcar route alternate routing: adding Ebuzzard Point alternate routing: relocating theTstreetcar RD ST SHERIFF R U Street/African-Amer Civil War Memorial/Cardozo K ST SI Shaw-Howard U D 395 possible alternative AVE I ST E access along 1st street se and Potomac from maine avenue sW to Water street sW path of the route ORK DR H ST RESERVOIR RD R ST WY BENN Gallery Pl-Chinatown NE avenue se/sWUnion Station would expand streetcar would improve access to the largeMinnesota Ave mixed-use ING R metro lines D PE E Q ST AV Dupont Circle D FL F ST access to nationals Park and to development development proposed for Water street, as well NN ST Judiciary Square AN OR P ST YL M Metro station ID R E ST MA planned along half and 1st streets se. it would as to public waterfront areas, with negligibleA AVE Streetcar station D ST N ST Park/open space also connect future development in buzzard A AVE impact on route length. Water M ST Federal Triangle IN WH CONSTITUTION and RO Benning Road ITEH Point to the storesAVE restaurants nearCtheL Farragut North A URS L ST 66 TH T FW The Mall OR sole stadium. this route couldY serve as N the through Kcapturing added value T ST EAST CAPITOL ST Smithsonian 395 S B VE I ST Vaccess to alternate K A R phasing: the southwest IR O INDEPENDENCE AVE H ST GI Stadium-Armory EW Y Gallery Pl-Chinatown NI N Union Station AA buzzard G ST Point Waterfront development project appears likely L'Enfant Plaza C ST VE VE DA F ST Judiciary Square AN or it could to start before Phase 3 streetcar construction ST Rosslyn L Federal Center SW IVY ELY PL RY E ST E MA MA supplement a begins for this segment. the project ST S AV I NE Potomac Ave D would AV T XA E 695 FITCH S TE second route benefit from coordinated inauguration of Federal Triangle Court House CONSTITUTION AVE R 295 along 1st, streetcar service east to nationals stadium-navy CA TH Navy Yard Waterfront-SEU Fort Dupont Park The Mall OR N canal, and 2nd yard metro Smithsonian
N ST
IDA DA VE
AV E
ck
re
RD
FL O
RID A
Buzzard Point
ek P
ST
VI RG
Dupont Circle
Q ST
PE NN
IN
AV E
AV E
DR
Shaw-Howard U
T ST
VE L
AN
CALVERT ST
k ar
L CO
A BI UM
RD
13TH ST
BL AD E
U ST
CATHEDRAL AVE
SE TT S
R AV H E
OD
E IS
KR D
oc
HU
D LAN
S SA BRYANT C
E AV
VE
PA R
IRVING ST
MONROE
R ST
S AM AD
CL E
O KENY
N ST
N SHERMA
12T H ST
GEORGIA
LL MI RD
FOXHALL RD
N MICHIGA
AVE
AVE
AVE
FRANKLIN ST
NEW JER SEY AVE
EUCLID ST
NL TU R AW
M ST Southwest Waterfront M BRYANT E AV
ST D 37TH
C WIS
ON
NEW
SIN
JER
AVE
SEY
AVE
D RI
GE
RD
UC NT KE
KY
M EM O AL RI Y PK
E AV
E BRANCH AV
U NT KE
EM
AL RI
Y PK
IO OH DR
OR M
S RI
RD
IO OH DR
OR M S RI RD
34TH S
NT AV E
NORTH CAPITOL ST 23RD ST 22ND ST
20TH ST 19TH ST
21ST ST
15TH ST
35TH ST
33RD ST
18TH ST
W ES T
7TH ST
20TH ST 19TH ST
22ND ST
21ST ST
3RD ST
4TH ST
6TH ST
8TH ST
18TH ST
7TH ST
M M
23RD ST
M M
24TH ST
M
M
12TH ST EXPYTR IN
2ND ST
IDA DA VE
M M
VI RG
IN
IA
RD
2ND ST
12TH ST EXPY
6TH ST BR G
BE AU
KE YE
HA M
RO C
MA I NE
IVY
CAN AL S T
East Potomac Park
MI NN
Arlington Cemetery
BR G
D R
L'Enfant Plaza
C ST
ES O
17TH ST
INDEPENDENCE AVE
295
Waterfront-SEU Stadium-Armory
M ST

695
BU
M M
M
VE CA
Navy Yard
TA AV E
E IS OD N AVE W U ST RH MICHIGA AT D A FRANKLIN ST ER AV T ST BI U Street/African-Amer Civil War Memorial/Cardozo M SI Shaw-Howard U E M LU D O EUCLID ST CALVERT ST O E NT C DR AN RESERVOIR RD rk R ST Pa A k AV ee r PE Q ST C ST E Dupont Circle NN ck BRYANT E o FL R AV ST OR D P ST I DA LAN IS AV E E W U ST added opportunity throughHOD added opportunity through N ST R AT ER T ST U Street/African-Amer Civil War Memorial/Cardozo M ST alternate routing: tight turning geometry alternate routing: introducing a one-way SI Shaw-Howard U WH D ITEH Farragut North E URS L ST DR and traffic congestion at 14th and f streets couplet can avoid impacts on the constrained 66 T FW R ST K ST Y nW both make persuasive arguments for right of wayEalong 7th street nW and expand 395 PEI ST Q ST AV Dupont Circle NN VI RK FL ST H YO GI OR identifying an alternate route,Rsuch as 15thD streetcar access toST P ST W Gallery Pl-Chinatown NI I A NE Union Station AA AV E VE G ST E street and Vermont avenue to thomas circle. a broader corridor. AV N ST F ST ND Judiciary Square Rosslyn LA RY this alternate a couplet could E ST M ST MA WH D ST ITEH Anacostia Farragut North would also follow 9th st and URS L ST Park 66 T FW Federal Triangle Y CourtK ST House INA improve rail constitutionAVE CONSTITUTION avenue OL E 395 I ST AV AR K VI HC OR RG transit access H ST nW between f and RT WY The Mall BENN Gallery Pl-Chinatown IN NO Minnesota Av NE ING R IA Union Station Smithsonian D AV E for blocks 7th for southbound AV E G ST Clarendon F ST ND Judiciary Square INDEPENDENCE AVE Rosslyn LA Y located further streetcars, with E ST AR L'Enfant Plaza C ST M Arlington Cemetery D metrorail fromST northbound service ST VEFederal Center SW IVY AA Federal Triangle stations. AVE using 7th to f streets IN MA CONSTITUTION I N E R OL Potomac Ave AV CA E nW. TH 695 R The Mall EAST CAP NO T Smithsonian BS
LIN CO LN
VE RM O
RD
AN
RD
9TH ST
BR EN 15TH ST TW O O D RD
35TH ST 11TH ST VER MO NT ST 33RD AV E 9TH ST
NORTH CAPITOL ST
NS BU R
1ST ST
M M
24TH ST
M M M M
TR IN
AV E
BL AD E
3RD ST
8TH ST
4TH ST
AV E
Potomac Ave
ELY PL
BE AU
KE YE
Waterfront-SEU
M
CAN AL S T
Pentagon
HA M
BU
East Potomac Park
M
VE CA MA TO PO Crystal City
Navy Yard

295
MA TO PO
E AV AS IA X T TE COS A AN
GOO
W ST
Fort Dupont Park
Anacostia Park
RO C
Pentagon City
V ST
27TH ST
Pentagon
O AC AN
Anacostia Park
Y FW TIA S
NA YL O
RD
PE NN S
Pentagon City
V ST
PE R D W ST HO SU W Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport ITL A A N RD D PK RD Y
GOO
D HO
YL VA NIA
AV E
STANTON RD
SU ITL A
ND
RD
STANTON RD
Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | 61 Congress Heights A AV BAM MALCOLM X AVE ALA
UTH CAPITOL ST
Crystal City
25TH ST
Naylor Road
IDA DA VE
KY
D HO
W ES T
M 14th Street/F Street M NW

ON SIN
1ST ST VI ST A ST
VE L
M
11TH ST
BR EN TW
13TH ST
TS
KR D
AV E
CL E
IRVING ST
D LAN
O KENY
oc
E AV
N ST
re
ek
ST BRYANT
RD
Pa
rk
LIN CO
PA R
CALVERT ST
MONROE ST
NT AN
7th Street/F Street NW

RD G
VI RG
IN
IA
AV E
S AM AD RD LL MI RD
R ST
NL R AW
N SHERMA
DA TA KO
12T H ST
GEORGIA
ST D 37TH
E AV
AVE
AVE
C WIS
R AW
NEW
ST D 37TH
JER
AVE
SEY
AVE
C WIS
ON
NEW
SIN
JER
AVE
SEY
AVE
W
UC NT KE
EM
E AV
AL RI
D RI
Y PK
GE RD
UC NT KE
KY E AV
PE
E BRANCH AV
IO OH
OR M S RI
DR
RD
IO OH DR
OR M
S RI
RD
KA NS AS A
AV E
W ES TE R
Rock Creek Park
AD O
AV E
NE BR A
AV E
NE W
RI VE R
SK A
RD
NE AN
CO L
FESSENDEN ST
LI N
HA MP SH
KENNEDY ST
IR E
AV E
S RIGG RD
OU
RI A VE
OR
INO ILL IS E AV
GALLOWAY ST G Fort Totten
5TH ST
46TH ST
16TH ST
EN
Fort Totten Park
AV E
BL AG
N CO VE TA I CU CT NE
11TH ST
RESERVOIR RD
23RD ST
12TH ST EXPY
Court House
Federal Triangle
3RD ST
The Mall
Clarendon Arlington Cemetery
M M
G
MA I NE
Smithsonian
M
W M
AV E
L'Enfant Plaza
Federal Center SW
C ST
S IVY
6TH ST
295
4TH ST
INDEPEND

695
RG
8TH ST
CONSTITUTION AVE
2ND ST
streetcar access to the hospital center, a major employment destination, PE Q ST Dupont Circle NN FL could translate into earlier demand elsewhere in the district for housing. it ST OR P ST M I DA AV would further benefit columbia heights and adams morgan, high-density E N ST M neighborhoods that would see significant benefit from the new service. M M ST WH Iaccelerated construction would also help free up critical capacity in metros TEH Farragut North URS L ST 66 TF Mamong Woodley Park, columbia core by WY allowing inter-line connections K ST E 395 AV M I ST M VI heights, and brookland-cUa stations. the segment also offers the chance to RK M RG H ST YO W Gallery Pl-Chinatown IN NE IA Union Station add a streetcar-maintenance facility on metrorails red Line near brooklandAV M M E G ST M F ST Judiciary Square cUa, which could serve Phase 1 and 2 segments along Georgia avenue, U Rosslyn E ST M M street, florida avenue and/or 14th street nW. M D ST
35TH ST
9TH ST
E IS OD W U ST RH AT ER T ST added opportunity through alternate phasing: building this U Street/African-Amer Civil War Memorial/Cardozo SI Shaw-Howard U D E segment earlier than Phase 3 could offer multiple benefits. Providing earlier DR R ST
1ST ST
VE RM O
NT AV E
added opportunity through alternate routing: eliminating F M OR UPSHUR ST TD the route split planned on irving street/michigan avenue nW/ne in favor of TILDEN ST R a single route through or along the south side of the hospital campus would provide convenient access for employees andSvisitors while eliminating the metro lines PORTER ST M PRI G Cleveland Park need for about one mile of double track, a savingsNofR$25$40 million. the D M Metro station M A consolidated M routing would remain OTIS PL Streetcar station S MACOMB ST S Park/open space AC PA sufficiently close to the mcmillan HU RK Water SE RD ON S T TT sand filtration site to encourage CATHEDRAL AVE KENY S AV CL IRVING ST development there. Less E EV M EL N AVE AN convenient access to the streetcar MICHIGA RD D A AV BI M from the armed forces retirement UM E L EUCLID ST CALVERT ST C home campus may be acceptable, O rk Pa ek given the modest quantity and longre C ST k BRYANT oc R term nature of potential development there.
14TH ST
VAN NESS current proposedST streetcar route possible alternative path of the route
Van Ness-UDC
Washington Hospital Center

E AV
WEBSTER ST
A W IO
SR TE BA
BUCHAN
CK RMA CCO NM VE JOH IA
AI W HA
PARK PL
34TH ST
13TH ST
N RE
OR
TAYL
O HAREW
RD
ER WARD
OD R D
S AM AD
ST
N SHERMA
GEORGIA
LL MI
RD
LIN CO LN
NORTH CAPITOL ST
33RD ST
15TH ST
7TH ST
24TH ST
20TH ST 19TH ST
22ND ST
21ST ST
18TH ST
FOXHALL
AVE
AVE
RD
FRANKLIN ST
NL TU
RD
R AW
VE DA LAN
ST D 37TH
C WIS
ON
NEW
SIN
JER
AVE
SEY
AVE
EM O AL RI PK
EN
Park
16TH ST
E SARG
A W IO
BL AG
s-UDC ST
RA NC
D SR TE BA
HR
BUCHANAN ST
NT RD
E AV
AI W HA
YB
PIN E
14TH ST
N ST
FO RT D
TAYLOR ST
RANDOLPH ST Prince George's Plaza
O HAREW
Cleveland Park
NG
RD
PARK PL
SPR I
KA NS AS AV E
CALVERT ST
ek Pa rk
NE W
NT AV E
BR EN TW
VE RM O
11TH ST
IA
DR
9TH ST
SI D
NORTH CAPITOL ST
24TH ST
20TH ST 19TH ST
22ND ST
21ST ST

13TH ST
GEORGIA
23RD ST
18TH ST
7TH ST
ST
12TH ST EXPY
RD 3RD ST
4TH ST NS BU 6TH ST RG RD
8TH ST
NT AV E
BR EN TW
1ST ST
VE RM O
BL AD E
ES O
11TH ST
EM
17TH ST
9TH ST
VI RG
NORTH CAPITOL ST BU C KE YE D R
W ES T
BR
BE AU
N ST
HA M
M M
ST
Waterfront-SEU
CANT ALI S RN IT A D DA VE
East Potomac Park
RO C
OR WY
M M
H ST Union Station
27TH ST
VE KA Pentagon

395
Anacostia Park
49TH ST
Navy Yard
KE NI LW
RID A
ST
AV E

295
OR TH
FL O
AV PE E
NN

695
AV E
IN
AIN E
AV E
MI NN
Potomac Ave
S XA TE
IA
M
Deanwood
Fort Dupont Park
E AV AC OM BENN T ING R PO D VE
R SHERIFF RD EN Y Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system BOW | 63 FW NA TIA YL OS PE O AC NN R Minnesota Ave AN SY RD LV
51ST S T
T FITCH S
TA AV E
50TH ST
LIN CO LN
2ND ST
RD
44TH ST
VI ST A
49TH ST
TR IN
PARK PL
IDA DA VE
KE NI LW
W ES T
capturing added value through M M alternate routing: this route along south N ST I NG M Deanwood RD M E Mt. dakota avenue ne to a terminus at fort Lincoln M ST AV D Rainier AN Brookland-CUA OTIS PL Anacostia Farragut North SL I would reachPark large parcels of underdeveloped L ST 66 M DE MONROE ST SHERIFF RD MK ST HO R land that the districts comprehensive Plan has 395 VE T M I ST M KA VI M KENYON S OR RG H ST designated for high-density housing and largeWY BENN Gallery Pl-Chinatown IN Minnesota Ave NE ING IA Union Station M AV G ST scale RD retail. fort Lincoln could provide a more VE M M E DA M F ST N Judiciary Square N AVE LA MICHIGA compelling terminus for the rhode island avenue RY E ST FRANKLIN ST M MA Fort M D ST segment than mount rainier. Given its lower-density Lincoln O CLID ST NT VE M AA AN MFederal Triangle development patterns and significant grades, fort IN CONSTITUTION AVE A OL Benning Road AV AR M E Lincoln itself offers only modest opportunity for M HC NT ST BRYA E RT V The Mall EAST CAPITOL ST NO D A Smithsonian streetcar-related redevelopment, butTindustrial LAN BS E IS M OD INDEPENDENCE AVE parcels along south dakota avenue hold very M RH MStadium-Armory L'Enfant Plaza C ST T ST ardozo strong potential. this alternative also offers the opportunity to create a Shaw-Howard U M Federal M SW Y ST M M Center IV ELY PL M streetcar-service facility. M VE
O HAREW
JER
RID A
ST AV RANDOLPH ST E
OR TH
FL O
VI RG
Dupont Circle
15TH ST
Q ST
TAYLOR ST
PE NN
AV E
UPSHUR ST
FO RR ST TD R
IN
AV E
Shaw-Howard U
T ST
BL AD E
TE R
BA U Street/African-Amer Civil War Memorial/Cardozo WEBSTER ST
1ST ST
NS BU R
oc
M Metro station
RD
re
RD
LIN CO LN
HA MP SH
RD
metro lines
VI ST A
KENNEDY ST
IR E
current proposed streetcar route possible alternative path of the route
ST
13TH ST
AV E
MIS SO U
RI A VE
Brookland-CUA added opportunity through M MONROE ST PA RK alternate routing: due to congestion RD T ON S KENY and one-way travel on columbia road IRVING ST east of 16th street nW, additional routes M N AVE West Hyattsville D D MIC IGA in theHarea, such as harvard street, R R FRANKLIN ST IA RIGGS M B M should be considered for streetcar MO LU EUCLID ST NT CO GALLOWAY ST GALLATIN ST AN operation. this could also reduce impacts MFort Totten A AV M T Son neighborhood parking, and spread E Fort Totten BRYANT E AV Park ND streetcar benefits across a broader A ISL D DE U ST ES R M M BUCHANAN ST corridor. HO R T
OTIS PL
Columbia Road NW M
RD
OD R D
I BLA RR D
ER WARD
U SO
AVE E GEORGIA AV N ER N AVE SHERMA ST EA
TH
S AM AD LL MI RD
DA
ST
TA KO
12T H ST
E AV
INO ILL
E AV
W M
5TH ST
IS
E AV
E SARG
A W
NT RD
AI W HA
Fort Lincoln
NEW
SEY
RD
ER WARD
AVE
OD R D
U SO
TH
DA
LA
ST
TA KO
N SHERMA
O
12T H ST
E AV
AVE
AVE
D RI
GE
RD
UC NT KE
KY
NEW
E AV
AL RI Y PK
JER SEY AVE
E BRANCH AV
E AV
43RD ST
Silver Spring
W ES TE R
Friendship Heights
41ST ST
MCKINLEY ST
M M
MILITARY RD
Rock Creek Park
SE RD
capturing added value through alternate routing: a major employment and residential center, silver spring makes a more compelling origin and destination for Silver Spring FESSENDEN ST RI VE streetcar trips than takoma Park. terminating the Georgia M Silver Spring M R RD avenue nW segment at takoma requires riders to transfer to the metrorails red Line to travel on to silver spring. MTenleytown-AU ALBEMARLE ST adding silver spring expands opportunities to increase housing and commercial values and attract neighborhoodKALM IA RD oriented infill development along Georgia avenue. the VAN NESS ST route also creates synergies between silver spring and the mixed-use redevelopment planned at Walter reed medical center. finally, the streetcar could make a direct connection PORTER ST to marcs brunswick Line at silver spring, linking Walter M M Takoma Walter reed and the rest of the Georgia avenue corridor to M Reed Army AS Medical SA counties northwest of the district. these benefits could well Center C HU ASPEN ST SE justify the costs of the 1.5- to 2-mile extension, which would TT CATHEDRAL AVE S require funding from the state of maryland. AV
NE BR A
AV E
R y
AV E
LI N
SK A
NE AN
AV E
46TH ST
Van Ness-UDC
TILDEN ST
AV E
RA NC
34TH ST
MACOMB ST
M M
AL AS KA
HR
Cleveland Park
PIN E
YB
CL E
Wisconsin Avenue NW M
RD
VE L
AN
AV E
M
oc k C re
CALVERT ST
Pa rk
KA NS AS AV E
AV E
ark
HA MP SH
metro lines ST KENNEDY

M Metro station
AV E
current proposed streetcar route MIS possible alternative SO UR path of the Iroute AV
NE W
35TH ST

5TH ST
IS E AV
24TH ST
14TH ST
VI RG
IN
M
23RD ST
PA R
NG RD 64 | StratEgiES and toolS For optiMizing land uSE iMpactS Brookland-CUA OTIS PL MONROE ST
PARK PL
SPR I
RANDOLPH ST
M
Court House
Rosslyn
IA AV E
22ND ST
G ST
20TH ST 19TH ST
21ST ST
capturing added value through alternate routing: this proposed route would run from K street nW to the friendship heights metro station, with a potential spur West Hyattsville along reservoir road nW to Georgetown University and S RD RIGG M its hospital. the strongest case for streetcar service along GALLOWAY is GALLATIN ST this corridor ST the connection it would provide to existing MFort Totten jobs and the addition of Georgetown University to the citys Fort Totten Park transit network. Job growth will not match the systems top D corridors but projected job growth and population density SR BUCHANAN ST TE BA are comparable to rhode island avenue. benefits do not now appear as strong as those in some other corridors and FO RT alternate routes. DR TAYLOR ST
E AV
ek
CO L
OR
W AT ER
AD O
IR E
SI D
U Street/African-Amer
RESERVOIR RD
DR
Dupont Circle
AV E
16TH ST
BL AG
WH ITEH UR
33RD ST
EN
Georgetown University
P ST
ST F W

66
ST WE C BEA HD R
LA
N CO
VE TA I CU CT NE
N RE
OR
S AM AD LL MI RD
FOXHALL
I BLA RR D
N ER ST EA
NL TU R AW
ST D 37TH
INO ILL
C WIS ON SIN AVE
E SARG
A W IO E AV
NT RD
N JOH
AI W HA
A CK OR M M CC E V IA
O HAREW
RD
ER WARD
OD R D
U SO TH DA
ST
KO
5. strategies and tools for optimizing land use impacts

Thoughtful District development policy, infrastructure planning and funding strategies are vital to achieving 5a Maximizing land use benefits, minimizing implementation costs the streetcars potential benefits. The District already employs several potentially
effective development tools, in some cases as a partner with other entities, that could effectively enhance the development benefits from streetcar service. Further planning should address the ability of the streetcar to reinforce the effectiveness of each of these tools particularly for areas in which the District seeks to encourage and shape investment. aximizing the cost-effectiveness of the streetcar depends on pursuing policies that reap the greatest benefit from new streetcar-related investments in development and infrastructure, and on funding strategies that make implementation possible. This is a preliminary assessment; further analysis of specific conditions and locations along the streetcar corridor is needed. DDOT is developing a thorough funding plan to determine the most effective funding tools for the District.
To identify areas where anticipated development pressures might most merit updated development tools, the study team performed a development-capacity analysis for all the streetcar corridors. Available development capacity under current zoning was determined for all parcels within a quarter mile of the proposed streetcars lines and then compared against ten years of potential residential and commercial development attracted by the streetcar. Map 5 highlights the areas where development capacity is low compared to predicted demand.
Potential develoPMent tools
The District can create or call on several entities to encourage development along the streetcar corridors: Tax-increment financing districts, special assessment districts These tools can help finance street infrastructure and/ or other public investments that support development by increasing development capacity, providing better pedestrian connections to existing neighborhoods and development, and encouraging greater investment by developers.
NE W
BL A
Local/business improvement districts (bids) Expanding existing BIDs or encouraging formation of new ones along the streetcar corridors bolsters private-sector resources that can assist with marketing, tenanting, managing local services, and/ or other functions that support existing and new developmentmagnifying the streetcars ability to attract new investment and vitality.
M
MAP 15 Potential Development Pressures

CHES TNUT
AV E
ST
AVE
ORE GON
PIN
5TH ST
LA U
EY
ES
BR
ASPEN ST
9D
RE
R TE
AN
LS
E AV
CH
MCKINLEY ST
MILITARY RD
AV E
AV E
AD
13TH ST
KENNEDY ST
KA N
SA
Rock Creek Park

LO R
UR
I AV
SA VE
9C
CO
IL LI
MIS SO
AS
S RIGG
KA
RD
NE BR
EA VE
LIN
NE
AV E
AN
SH
AV E
AV E
AN
HA
ALBEMARLE ST
AR K
EN
DECATUR ST
Fort Totten Park
S TE BA
As increased development occurs within the streetcar corridors, development capacity limitations under current zoning could constrain future projects (areas highlighted in red). Updated zoning and design guidelines should be considered in these areas as appropriate enable Maryland to streetcar driven reinvestment to best support community goals.
M
S EA TE R N E AV
AL A
SK
RD
AH UT E AV
SA
MP
IR
VAN NESS ST
16TH ST
AVE NEVADA
IR BLA
A BE C H D R
RD
NO IS E AV
GALLOWAY ST
GALLATIN ST
SA RG
CO
RD
BUCHANAN ST
ENT RD
NN EC
IO W
FO R TD
JOHN
NO RE RD
TIC
E AV
AII W HA
UT AV E
TILDEN ST
MCC ORM
NORTH CAPITOL ST
24TH ST
21ST ST
20TH ST
Joint development agreements, publicprivate partnerships Cooperative agreements among property owners, developers, and/or government agencies can spell out approaches to complex development projects, improving the Districts ability to influence the mix of uses, scale, character, and other qualities in new development. The Property Acquisition and Disposition Division and other agencies This District entity can aggregate, land bank, and offer for redevelopment strategic parcels that advance planning goalsan especially effective way to insure that the streetcars potential to attract investment translates into projects that benefit particular neighborhoods and commercial districts. The effectiveness of these entities as tools for promoting development can vary widely, depending on context. Phase II of this study will examine which combinations of these and other tools make the most sense for each streetcar corridor and its unique redevelopment opportunities.
14TH ST
TAYLOR ST
BUNK
E AV
ER HI LL
RD
PARK PL
PORTER ST
SP RI
NG
9B
M
OTIS PL
RD
RANDOLPH ST
ACK
HAREW OOD RD
RD
WA RD
M
MACOMB ST
34TH ST
N KLI
GLE
RD
PA R
KR
C
GARFIELD ST
S ST
AV E
VE R
9TH ST
11TH ST
GT ON
R ST
15TH ST
35TH ST
28TH ST
ECKIN
33RD ST
ES
P ST
30TH ST
NT
ID
CANAL RD
AD
M ST L ST
EL LO
AV E
VIR
18TH ST
GIN
22ND ST
19TH ST
4A
M
WHITEHURST FWY
K ST M M I ST
M
TR IN
7TH ST
IA
AV E
G ST
4B M
4C
M
E ST
23RD ST
EX PY
M
E A AV
10TH ST
2ND ST
12TH ST EXPY
8TH ST
INT ER
E 66 STAT
M
The Mall
N DIA INM
4TH ST
E ST
D ST
C ST
CONSTITUTION AVE
6TH ST
NO
H RT
O AR
A LIN
E AV
5D
EAST CAPITOL ST
44TH ST
F ST
5A
H ST
5B
MA
RY
N LA
VE DA
Anacostia Park
MO
KE N
BE NN ING RD
6B
W NE
T AV V E
ILW
N ST
6E
5C
OR TH
YO
RK
IR
AV
SHERIFF RD
AV E
Q ST
IN
IA
AV E
RESERVOIR RD
AA VE
6D
PL
FL O
RID
BL A
TT S
6C
MO
T ST
DE
SE
U ST
1ST ST
NT
BR E
NS
SA C
6A
O RH
DE
BU R
AV E
NT
AS
ND IS LA
AV
oc
RD
BRYA NT
ST
7A
RD
re
ek
Pa
rk
LINCO
CALVERT ST
8B
LN RD
AV E
EUCLID ST
9A
7B M
NT AN
AV E
VIS
M 8A
FRANKLIN ST
TA
ST
LE V
CATH ED
EL AN
RA L
IRVING ST
AV E
8C M
KE NY
ON ST
MIC
HIG
E AV M AN
8E
12TH ST
SO H UT
ER ST
A AD M S M IL L RD
MONROE ST
DA KO TA E AV
GEORGIA AVE
8D
7C
SHERMAN
17TH ST
DR
IN
AS
CANA L
3B
OH
M TO PO
AC
27TH ST
Less than 50% 50% to 100%

M
E AV
A AN
S CO
Anacostia Park
V ST
GOOD
W ST
2A
HOPE RD
NA YL O
25TH ST
% oF avaiLabLe capacitY under exiSting zoning required For neW deveLopment (20-Year eStimate)
IA L PK Y
TB
EA S
INTE
M
RS TA TE 69 5
2C
BRANCH AVE
FW Y
BR
MIN
EM
NE SO
M
W
M
IV Y
3A
M AIN E E AV
ST
TA AV E
3D M
ELY PL
AM
BE
M
ST
CH
East Potomac Park
3C
T IA
AU
Fort Dupont Park
2B
R
TEX AS
AVE
RO
Virginia
M Metro station
SOUTH CAPITO L ST
M Streetcar station Park/open space Water
1A 1D
MALCOLM X AVE
29 5
RS
TA TE
OVERLOOK AVE
% OF AVAILABLE FAR REQUIRED FOR NEW DEVELOPMENT

CHESA PEAKE ST
N ST GALVESTO
IN
TE
INS
DR
PKY
HE RD
BL U
EP LA
SHEP
TU W NLA RD
AVE
37TH ST
Analysis of development capacity only includes parcels larger than 10,000 square feet. Excludes all properties with historic structures or within historic districts. % of FAR needed (20 year estimate)
Less than 50% 50% to 100%
WIS
noteS
CO NS VE IN A
EY JE RS NEW AV E
49TH ST
ST
CENT RAL AVE
RID
INDEPENDENCE AVE
G E RD
N KE TU CK VE YA
RD
PE N NS
W BO
EN
RD
YLV AN
IA
AV E
more than 100%

M
1B
HO
AR D
RD
M O RR
SU IT
LA
IO DR
HA LL EY PL
ND
RD
1E
IS
RD
SU
N R D
AN ST TO
IT
LA N
PK
M
AMA AV E
1C
AL AB
SIS MIS
PI SIP
E AV
SO
TH
ER
E AV
Maryland
HE
EL ER
RD
0.25 0.5
ATLANTIC ST
1 Miles
Streetcar Segments Streetcar Stations
66 | StratEgiES and toolS For optiMizing land uSE iMpactS
Parks and Open Space Metro Stations
Over 100%
* Analysis of floor area ration (F.A.R.) only includes parcels larger than 10,000 square feet. M ** Excludes all properties with historic structures or within historic districts
Potential land use and DESIGN-GUIDANCE TOOLS
coordination with other infrastructure investMents
Streetcar planning presents an opportunity to refine zoning and other tools the District already employs to manage development and promote design quality. As with the potential development tools, reviewing and finetuning can help insure that streetcar-related development reinforces the quality and character of neighborhoods and commercial districts, takes full advantage of increased development potential, and moves the District toward its employment and fiscal goals. Changes in allowable densities to allow welldesigned, potentially higher-density developments in streetcar corridors where appropriate (see Map 5).
Coordinated planning of transportation and infrastructure investments will make the streetcar more cost-effective. Phase II of this study will address this coordination in more detail.
STREET INFRASTRUCTURE DDOT achieved major cost savings by including two
streetcar segmentsH Street/Benning Road NE and Firth Sterling Roadas part of already planned street improvements. Any potential changes in the phasing of other segments should follow this model, taking into account and aligning with future plans for infrastructure investment.
Recommendations for changes in land WALkABILITy use mix to make the most of new transit service and Because the streetcar will be useful only if people can add flexibility in responding to market demand. safely walk to its stops, implementation plans must take full account of the convenience and safety of pedestrian networks. Specifically, many locations will require Mandatory inclusionary zoning (Miz) to upgraded sidewalks, improved crossing treatments, specify a share of new construction that is affordable and pedestrian-friendly development. According to the to households with low to moderate incomes. The Districts 2009 Pedestrian Master Plan, pedestrians worry District adopted an inclusionary zoning ordinance in most about the safety of crossing streets, and the plan 2009. recommends crossing improvements near transit stops. Development of design guidelines to ensure high design quality throughout all streetcar corridors. BUSES WMATA recently introduced a Priority Corridor Network (PCN) for its highest-performing local bus routes, which many of the streetcar corridors overlap. The PCN program aims to improve bus travel times, reliability, capacity,
and system access.1 Developing the streetcar system to complement rather than compete with the PCN program will ensure that streetcars increase overall transit service along each corridor. In particular, many Metrobus lines extend to destinations outside the District, and it will be important to maintain these transit connections. The design of streetcar and PCN bus facilities should be coordinated to allow for seamless transfers between the two networks and to take maximum advantage of infrastructure investments. This includes designing stops that both buses and streetcars can share; coordinating other transitpriority treatments, such as signal priority and transit-only lanes; and integrating fare structures and ticketing.
challenges identified in section 3a. To make bicycling a convenient extension of streetcar trips for more people, the proposed streetcar system should provide secure bike storage and bike-share facilities at every stop.
CAR SHARINg
It will also be important to build connections between the streetcar system and car-sharing programs. Integrating these programs will not only improve mobility and options for residents, but will also reinforce the Districts goal of fostering sustainable transportation.
5b Funding
DEVELOPMENT-DRIVEN FUNDING MechanisMs
Streetcar service will complement Washingtons growing range of transportation choices. BICyCLINg Transit and bicycling complement each other in two important ways: bicycling can serve as an extension of the transit trip and transit can provide an alternative to the bicycle trip. Many existing or proposed bicycle routes in the District follow proposed streetcar corridors, highlighting the need for careful coordination of both systems. This includes addressing the bicycle/streetcar
1
Federal funds, which can cover up to 50% of a systems cost, are a common funding source for large-scale transit projects. Some communities prefer to find other sources to avoid the expense, delay, or uncertainty a federal application can introduce. Benefits from real estate investment spurred by the streetcar could fund roughly 40% to 60% (and possibly more) of the streetcar systems projected $.5 billion completion cost. Of a variety of local private- and public-sector funding tools that systems across the country have used, three appear particularly promising for the District based on this studys analysis of the streetcars potential land use benefits.
Municipal funds repaid through increased property tax revenue. This approach capitalizes on the growth
The PCN program includes a significant investment by WMATA in methods to help buses tavel more efficiently and cross intersections with minimal delay, including queue-jump signals, transit-signal priority, and bus-only lanes
in property taxes (and/or related revenues from
fees) that occurs as a result of streetcar investment: over time existing property appreciates in value and development adds new properties to the tax rolls. Tax-increment financing (TIF) is a common form of this approach, although other models exist. Under TIF, a municipality obtains near-term capital funding by floating bonds that are repaid over time from the increased revenues. As an example, a 5% to 7% appreciation of the roughly $00 billion in aggregate property value that exists today along the streetcar corridors would add $5 to $7 billion in value. If half of the tax revenue produced by this new value were dedicated to streetcar-bond repayment, approximately $300 to $400 million worth of bonds could be sold. An equally reasonable scenario projects the addition of $5 to $8 billion worth of new development attributable to the streetcar over a tenyear period. Half of the added tax revenue this development generated would support the sale of another $300 to $500 million worth of bonds. Together, these two sources could generate roughly $600 to $900 million of bond-backed FIGURE 11 Buzzard Point: 20102020 funding to Fair Share oF deveLopment Streetcar impact reaLized vaLue help pay for Office square feet 1,534,000 1,882,650 construction of the FAR foot value $20 $40 Value $30,680,000 $75,306,000 $44,626,000 system.
Cost to develop the streetcar segment Internal rate of return
Source: W-ZHA, Inc.
Direct payments from developers or property owners who stand to see a return on their investment. This approach recognizes that
individuals with large land holdings may see a business advantage in funding streetcar segments that connect their property to the larger transit network and thereby substantially increase development potential on their parcels. Buzzard Point, Poplar Point, and NoMa are areas where such an approach could make a measurable difference in property value. As Figure 11 shows, a reasonable scenario in Buzzard Point would involve streetcar services doubling the value of certain parcels from $20 to $40 per developable square foot. At the same time, by making the area more accessible and reducing parking requirements, the streetcar would increase feasible development from over .5 to nearly .9 million square feet. Together, these two changes would create additional value worth nearly $45 million. The possibility of realizing significant new value from the new transit system would represent a compelling incentive for some developers to contribute to the cost of building it.
Payments from business improvement districts (BIDs) or other local organizations that stand to see a return on their investment. Business and
$12,050,000 14%
property owners within organized areas may find their interests served by directing a portion of their BID contributions toward streetcar implementation costs. Such contributions could extend streetcar service to their area sooner than scheduled, delivering
earlier financial returns that justify the investment. This funding approach would prove effective, for instance, on K Street through contributions from the Downtown, Georgetown, and/or NoMa BIDs.
iMProved eligibility for federal funding The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced in
New Startsprovides up to a 50% federal match for
rail transit projects.

Small Startsprovides up to $75 million of federal
funding for projects with total capital costs of $250 million or less. Very Small Startsprovides federal funding for projects with a total capital cost of $50 million or less. A full description of the process and criteria for seeking FTA funding appears in the Transportation Analysis appendix, which also evaluates how well the Districts streetcar project aligns with the current FTA selection criteria.
early 200 that it plans to revise its funding guidelines by expanding the primary criteriacost and time savedto include consideration of land-use-related contributions to livability, such as expansion of economic development opportunities and environmental benefits. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood pledged that a more expansive approach to project proposals will work to promote livability rather than hinder it. Details of the change are not available at the time of this writing, but it appears likely that it will improve chances for streetcar projects to receive funding. The impacts of streetcars are often more evident in livability issues than in traditional transit-evaluation criteria. The streetcars ability to generate value that can be tapped to help fund the system is important because the FTAs discretionary Section 5309 Capital Investment Program, the primary source of federal funding in support of rail transit investment, can provide only a portion of the systems development costs:
6. next steps
he Office of Planning commissioned this study to gauge the nature and extent of land use impacts associated with reintroducing streetcar service into the District. The studys fundamental finding is that the streetcar represents an effective strategy for advancing many of the Districts core economic and social goals. The streetcars benefits would extend, to varying degrees, to each of the streetcar corridors. Increased real estate values and other financial benefits associated with the system can be tapped to help fund the systems construction. At the same time, the findings also indicate that the streetcar will pose manageable challenges. Integrating land use considerations into the next stages of planning will play a critical role in achieving the streetcars full potential. The study provides a clear outline of benefits and challenges, and in the process establishes the value of additional analysis. Further work can more clearly define the metrics associated with each of the findings, including the extent to which real estate and other financial benefits could help fund system construction. Further study can also more precisely project the impacts on each corridor and on other parts of the District. An assessment of regional economic
development trends would more fully establish the extent to which the streetcar would make the District a more competitive place to live, work, and invest. The District can also explore the kinds of policies and initiatives that would maximize benefits and mitigate and manage challenges that arrive with the streetcar. This study and the work that follows create an essential foundation for broad and informed community dialogue. This dialogue is critical to compete for federal funding and to meet the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). More important, the dialogue that this study supports will enable the community to participate in tailoring the streetcar to the unique characteristics and aspirations of every District neighborhood.
Community dialogue and targeted technical analysis are critical next steps toward unlocking the opportunities of the streetcar.
how to reach us
1100 4th Street, SW, Suite E650 Washington, DC 20024 planning@dc.gov Phone: 202-442-7600 Fax: 202-442-7638 TTY: 311

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Streetcar Land Use Study

district of columbia phase one

Streetcar Land Use Study

Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | i

ii | Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system

Harriet Tregoning Director, Office of Planning

iv | Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system

Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | v

vi | Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system

Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | 1

FIGURE 1 Early Studies

Vision, Strategy and Action Plan

1999 2001 2002

WMATA WMATA WMATA

WMATA, DDOT WMATA, DDOT

DCs Transit Future (DCAA) System Plan

Source: http://ddot.dc.gov/DC/DDOT/On+Your+Street/Mass+Transit+in+DC/DC+Streetcar/DC+Transit+Future/ DC+Transit+Future+System+Plan+-+Planning+Process

FIGURE 2 Methodology Overview

Methods of real estate analysis

Projected streetcar impact area Timing

Zoning changes Quality-of-life impacts analysis

ReSIDenTIAl MARkeT POTenTIAl

Transportation impact analysis

Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | 3

MAP 1 Proposed And Historic Streetcar Routes

VAN BUREN ST UNDERWOOD ST

UNDERWOOD ST TEWKESBURY PL TUCKERMAN ST

DAHLIA ST HIG HLA ND

Rock Creek Park

POWHATAN PL PEABODY ST ONEIDA PL

the districts suitability for streetcar service

BRO AD BRA NCH RD

FESSENDEN ST EVERETT ST ELLICOTT ST

Fort Totten Park

CLERMONT DR HALF PL 1ST PL

VEAZEY ST VAN NESS ST UPTON ST

PKY PINEY BRANCH

EAST EXECUTIVE AVE MADISON PL

RST VIRG INIA I PL ATE AVE 695

A AVE LIN RO CA AMES PL

GALES PL GALES KRAM ST ER ST ROSE DALE ST ROSE DALE F ST ST

JAY ST LEN BU RR OU HAYES ST

EADS ST DIX ST CLAY ST

KE NIL KE WO NIL WO RTH RT AV E H AV E

NI NG DOUGLAS ST ST MO NT CHANNING ST AN A AV E BRYANT ST

ISAAC HULL AVE

East Potomac Park

MALCOLM X AVE PARKLAND PL RALEIGH ST

PI SIP SIS MIS

ER ST INT AT ER E 295 ST AT E 295

SOUTH CAPITOL TER

Park/open space Water

SOUTH CAPITOL TER

ESTE R ST ESTO N PL LVE STO N ST

NNE CO CUT CTI

ACK AVE ORM RICO N MCC JOH

RD LL MI CE AVE UNT ER PI EMO ROS

RD PL RY ATO R PL ERV OPE DEK HUI

Fort Dupont Park

ST CARPENTER HIGH WOO D DR

Back to the Future: The Districts First Streetcar System

Land Use PLan for the district of coLUmbia streetcar system | 5

Defining Premium Transit