D.C.'s Reluctance To Update Building Height Limits

This column from The Washington Post examines the city's general opposition too revising its building height restrictions -- limits that have been in place for nearly 100 years.

1 minute read

May 29, 2007, 12:00 PM PDT

By Nate Berg

"Whenever anyone suggests revisiting the District's building height limits, the almost universal response is that heights permitted by zoning laws are both sufficient and sacred."

"Let's face it: Washingtonians continue to believe strongly not only that height limits are sacrosanct, but also that any attempt to change them is heresy."

"Yet do we have to be so dogmatic and dismiss completely even the possibility of prudent height exceptions? Why assume that we are incapable of preserving the dominant low-rise character of Washington while allowing taller buildings in well-chosen places?"

FULL STORY: There's Nothing Sacred About the Building Height Limit

Saturday, May 26, 2007 in The Washington Post

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