D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 10-A, § 908
908.1 The District’s streets are more than just spaces for transportation: they are also spaces that the public inhabits, where residents, workers, and visitors alike can participate in urban life. While streets must bring people to their destinations, they also serve as the community backdrop of the District, where neighbors mingle, children play, and culture and ideas are exchanged. The physical design and layout of a city’s streets directly impact the human experience of the public realm in a variety of ways: the design of a tree-lined residential street can foster casual conversations between neighbors, whereas the bustling pace of a retail corridor can encourage patrons to pause at a sidewalk café or to window shop while passing through. As shown in Figure 9.13, currently 25 percent of the District’s retail corridors lack the pedestrian infrastructure of wide sidewalks, plentiful street trees, and minimal mid-block curb cuts to support enhanced pedestrian comfort and urban life. It is critical to focus on creating streets that are comfortable, walkable, interesting, and safe for pedestrians.
908.2 Figure 9.13: Pedestrian Comfort of the District’s Main Streets
908.3
Commercial streetscapes should be designed to be comfortable, safe, and interesting to pedestrians. At a minimum, commercial corridor sidewalks should
be designed with clear, direct, accessible walking paths that accommodate a range of pedestrian users and facilitate a sense of connection to adjacent uses. Where width allows, corridors should have a generous presence of shade trees and café seating areas, as well as bicycle facilities. In areas with large pedestrian volumes, streetscapes should provide seating, drinking fountains, publicly accessible restrooms, and other infrastructure that supports increased frequency and duration of walking.
Neighborhood streetscapes should be designed to visually reflect the character and level of intensity of the adjacent land uses. For instance, narrow sidewalks may be appropriate for narrow streets with low-scale buildings, while sidewalks with more trees and vegetation may be appropriate for large-scale development. Pedestrian-oriented lighting should be designed to enhance walkability for all users, as well as visually reflect the character of neighborhood.
Co-locate multiple forms of transportation amenities such as bus shelters and bikeshare stations to better integrate them into a complete streetscape design. Design access for delivery trucks, valets, and rideshare services within the street and not at the expense of the pedestrian sidewalk or bike lanes.
Public spaces, such as parks and plazas, should have entry points that create clear and porous visual and physical connections to the adjacent public realm. Where possible, coordinate streetscape designs to create a continuous experience between parks and streets. Limit the installation of tall fences or grade changes that create boundaries between parks and public rights-of-way. Public gathering spaces should be incorporated directly into the streetscape through pedestrian amenities, such as benches, public art, spacing of shade trees, and gardens.
Incorporate urban design strategies as part of pedestrian and cyclist safety improvements at key neighborhood intersections. As appropriate, incorporate placemaking improvements such as installation of curb bump outs, raised crosswalks, artistic crosswalk markings, special paving, and other means of placemaking-oriented traffic calming.
Curb cuts should be avoided on streets with heavy pedestrian usage and minimized on all other streets. Where feasible, alleys should be used in lieu of curb cuts for parking and loading access to buildings. Curb cuts for individual residences should only be allowed if there is a predominant pattern of curb cuts and driveways on the block face.
908.9 Policy UD-2.1.7: Streetscapes That Encourage Activation Design new streetscape projects with public spaces that can be flexibly programmed to enhance public life with short- or long-term uses throughout the year to meet the needs of a wide variety of community members. Such spaces can be sites for creative placemaking efforts, block parties, festivals, markets, pop-up retail, or food trucks.908.10 Policy UD-2.1.8: Special Streetscape Design Guidelines Create tailored streetscape guidelines for new neighborhoods or large sites undergoing redevelopment to promote interesting pedestrian experiences and a unique and consistent design for the public realm.908.11 Action UD-2.1.A: Retail Ceiling Heights Develop zoning regulations to require higher first-floor ceiling heights in new buildings along main streets and other commercial/mixed-use areas.908.12 Action UD-2.1.B: Streetscape Design by Neighborhood Type Review current District-wide streetscape design regulations and policies to prioritize the pedestrian experience. As necessary, develop a typology for basic streetscape design standards that meet the unique needs of various types of neighborhoods in the District, including the downtown business district, commercial areas, and high- and low-density residential neighborhoods.908.13 Action UD-2.1.C: Standards for Street Furniture Produce standards for street furniture in public spaces, such as benches, trash cans, and bike racks, that designate spacing, layout, and other characteristics to promote socialization and interaction, as well as public health and well-being.908.14 Action UD-2.1.D: Public Space Permitting of Street Furniture Explore process improvements to the public space permitting process to reduce the time and complexity of reviewing and approving District-standard street furniture.908.15 Action UD- 2.1.E: Public Restrooms in Streetscapes Map the location of publicly accessible restrooms in the District and develop location recommendations for the installations of new restrooms. Investigate opportunities to install attractive, clean, and safe standalone public restrooms that are accessible at all hours.908.16 Action UD-2.1.F: Sidewalk Widening Conduct a corridor study to investigate widening sidewalks through a variety of means including the establishment of building restriction lines, reducing cartway width, or pedestrian bulb-outs.
Establish a pilot initiative to enhance roadway safety through placemaking at intersections at three locations. Incorporate green infrastructure, low-impact design, and public life design principles.
Study and develop design guidance for how public spaces can be managed and designed to be more resilient during times of natural, security, and public health emergencies.
SOURCE: District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984, effective April 10, 1984 (D.C. Law 5-76; 31 DCR 1049 (March 9, 1984)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984 Land Use Element Amendment Act of 1984, effective March 16, 1985 (D.C. Law 5-187; 32 DCR 873 (February 15, 1985)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1989, effective May 23, 1990 (D.C. Law 8-129; 37 DCR 55 (January 5, 1990)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1989 NCPC-Recommended Amendments, and Closing of Public Alleys in Square 669, S.O. 88-452, Act of 1990, effective May 23, 1990 (D.C. Law 8-132; 37 DCR 2213 (April 6, 1990)); as amended by District Government Land Use Temporary Amendment Act of 1994, effective October 1, 1994 (D.C. Law 10-190; 41 DCR 5360 (August 12, 1994)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1994, effective October 6, 1994 (D.C. Law 10-193; 41 DCR 5536 (August 19, 1994)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984 Land Use Amendment Act of 1994, effective March 21, 1995 (D.C. Law 10-235; 42 DCR 30 (January 6, 1995)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 1996 effective April 18, 1996 (D.C. Law 11-110; 43 DCR 530 (February 9, 1996)); as amended by Second Technical Amendments Act of 1996 effective April 9, 1997 (D.C. Law 11-255; 44 DCR 1271 (March 7, 1997)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 1998, effective April 27, 1999 (D.C. Law 12-275; 46 DCR 1441 (February 19, 1999)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 1999, effective April 12, 2000 (D.C. Law 13-91; 47 DCR 520 (January 28, 2000)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2006, effective March 8, 2007 (D.C. Law 16-300; 54 DCR 924 (February 2, 2007)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 2008, effective March 25, 2009 (D.C. Law 17-353; 56 DCR 1117 (February 6, 2009)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2010, effective April 8, 2011 (D.C. Law 18-361; 58 DCR 908 (February 4, 2011)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2021, effective August 21, 2021 (D.C. Law 24-20; 68 DCR 006918 (July 16, 2021)).