Approval Delayed For Eastbanc’s 7-Unit Project on the Edge of Georgetown

• July 22nd 2016

by Nena Perry-Brown

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Eastbanc has long planned to replace the small gas station at 2715 Pennsylvania Avenue NW (map) with a five-story, mixed-use development. On Thursday night, the Zoning Commission (ZC) held a hearing on the planned unit development (PUD) application, and opted to defer voting on it until September.

The PUD would deliver seven residential units, averaging 2,000 square feet each, above a restaurant which will occupy the ground floor and cellar levels.

The most contentious part of the PUD application is the fact that the development site is less than half the land area required for a planned-unit development. After suggesting — and then withdrawing their suggestion — that the zoning regulations be amended to reduce the required minimum lot size, Eastbanc is now simply requesting that the Zoning Commission waive the lot requirements as they currently stand.

The development team has already secured support from the ANC 2E, District Department of Transportation (DDOT), and Citizens Association of Georgetown, among other entities. A series of conditions have also been negotiated, from LEED Gold certification and restrictions on the use of balconies to improvement of and ongoing maintenance on the adjacent park, which is controlled by the National Park Service.

DDOT has requested that Eastbanc take an array of measures to mitigate the effects of relief from required parking. While three parking spaces are required by-right, none will be delivered with the project.

While they opted not to vote yet, many of the ZC commissioners expressed concern about the requested penthouse relief and a disdain for the prominence of the chimney in the Eduardo Souto de Moura design, which extends four feet, ten inches above the penthouse level.

The Commission would like the development team to provide further support for or reconsider their requested penthouse relief, as well as provide further details on the planned improvements to the park.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/approval_still_pending_for_eastbancs_pennsylvania_avenue_pud/11501.