Trump administration says DC height limits don't apply to federal projects

The National Capital Planning Commission, a federal body tasked with assessing the planning issues around monuments such as materials, placement and pedestrian safety, approved preliminary plans for President Donald Trump's proposed 250-foot arch, prompting questions about whether D.C. height limits apply to federal projects.

As Rachel Treisman explains for NPR, the commission "promised to revisit the height question" at its next meeting. Will Scharf, chair of the commission, said he doubts whether the 1910 Height of Buildings Act applies to federal construction, despite a long-held policy by the commission that upheld it. The Department of the Interior's Office of the Solicitor submitted a memo saying the act is "just a local zoning ordinance and does not apply to the United States.'"

According to the planning commission's general counsel and secretariat Meghan Hottel-Cox,, "If the HBA no longer applies to federal property in the District, it could fundamentally reshape the city's architectural fabric, the balance of local vs. federal authority, and the visual character of the nation's capital."

Washington D.C.'s height limits arose from concerns in the 1890s about tall buildings blocking light and air, as well as building safety. Congress passed the first HBA in 1899, revising it in 1910 to remove an exemption for federal buildings.