20-Unit Mixed-Use Building Proposed for 16th Street Planned Parenthood Site

• September 2, 2014

by Lark Turner

Red Multifamily Development plans to build a 20-unit mixed-use building at 1108 16th Street NW (map), the current site of Planned Parenthood, which is moving near Union Market.

The building is being proposed by Red along with Planned Parenthood, and the developers of the property will have to get approval from the Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) for the project to move forward. The design will require approval from the Historic Preservation Review Board.

Four of the building’s eight floors will be commercial space; the other four will be dedicated to residential units. Each will have a little more than 18,000 dedicated square feet of space in total.

To add office space in the area, the developers need a special exception. The developers won’t provide more than the current number of parking spaces on site, though the addition will require 14 when completed. The BZA will also need to grant relief for a courtyard that doesn’t meet minimum size requirements.

The developers say their building should be granted relief in part because of its proposed size, which is diminutive in comparison to its neighbors.

“The Applicant is proposing a height, bulk and use that is consistent with the SP-2 Zone District and its immediate neighbors,” documents filed with the BZA read. “In fact, the properties to the west … far exceed the height and bulk that is being proposed in this case.” To help justify its request for parking relief, the developer cites the property’s proximity to multiple forms of public transportation and commercial parking lots.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/20-unit_mixed-use_building_proposed_for_downtown_site_of_planned_parenthood/8917