As part of a study into potential changes to D.C.'s Height of Buildings Act requested by Congress, the results of an economic feasibility analysis were presented this week. Relaxing limits would create jobs and several thousand new housing units.
"Today, a preliminary economic feasibility analysis was released, and it confirms what you would expect: Boosting the height limit, even to between 130 and 160 feet total, would incentivize developers to add on to existing buildings and construct taller new ones," reports Lydia DePillis.
"The city’s Office of Planning Director Harriet Tregoning, while professing a love for the city’s current graceful proportions, made the economic case in a presentation of the study’s results. 'If we were to continue to grow at our current pace, well before 20 years from now, we would exhaust the capacity of our city to accommodate the population growth that would be coming to the city,' she said."
"What would all this look like? The Washington City Paper has the boards where D.C.’s Office of Planning presented what the city might look like with a little room to grow."
FULL STORY: Study: Raising D.C.’s height limit would help city, not cause world to end

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series
The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.

Texas Bills Could Push More People Into Homelessness
A proposal to speed up the eviction process and a bill that would accelerate enforcement of an existing camping ban could make the state’s homelessness crisis worse, advocates say.

USGS Water Science Centers Targeted for Closure
If their work is suspended, states could lose a valuable resource for monitoring, understanding, and managing water resources.

Driving Equity and Clean Air: California Invests in Greener School Transportation
California has awarded $500 million to fund 1,000 zero-emission school buses and chargers for educational agencies as part of its effort to reduce pollution, improve student health, and accelerate the transition to clean transportation.
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