1703.1 The principal policies and objectives for the Downtown Shopping (SHOP) District, or Retail Core, derived from the Comprehensive Plan, are to:

1. (a) Create the most concentrated area of retail, service, arts, and arts-related uses in Downtown, in excess of one floor of these uses, with the greatest retail concentration oriented to F and G Streets, N.W.; and
2. (b) Strengthen the character and identity of the Downtown Shopping District by means of physical design standards that ensure the following:
3. (1) New buildings constructed to the property line and primarily oriented to the street rather than to internal spaces;
4. (2) Continuous retail, service, and entertainment uses on the ground level of buildings, with ample display windows and frequent store entrances to the outdoor pedestrian circulation system; and
5. (3) A pedestrian environment with ample sidewalks interrupted by a minimum of vehicular driveways, especially along F and G Streets.

1703.2 The provisions of this section apply to the general area identified in the Comprehensive Plan as the Downtown Shopping District or Retail Core, comprising Squares 223, 224, 225, 252, 253, 254, 288, 289, 290, 319, 320, 321, 345, 346, 347, 375, 376, and 377. This area is bounded by H Street and New York Avenue, N.W., on the north; E Street and Pennsylvania Avenue on the south; 9th Street on the east; and 15th Street on the west.

1703.3 Each new or altered building that faces or abuts a public street shall devote all of the ground floor leasable space to the retail and service uses listed in § 1710 or the arts and arts-related uses listed in § 1711; provided:

1. (a) The gross floor area devoted to the retail, service, arts and arts-related uses listed in §§ 1710 and 1711 shall be no less than 0.5 FAR on the ground floor;
2. (b) Not more than twenty percent (20%) of the required gross floor area on the ground floor shall be occupied by banks, loan offices, other financial institutions, travel agencies, or other transportation ticket offices, prepared food shops, fast food establishments, printing or fast copy services, newsstands, dry cleaners, or any combination thereof;
3. (c) This ground floor use requirement shall not apply to a building that is devoted entirely to hotel or apartment house use or to a church or other place of worship; and
4. (d) In the applicable sector of the Downtown Arts District, that is, Squares 254, 290, 321, 347, 377, 376, and 375 (south of G Place), uses that are listed in § 1711 shall comprise not less than fifty percent (50%) of the gross floor area required to be devoted to preferred uses.

1703.4 A building that provides gross floor area for preferred uses as required by § 1703.3 and that includes any of the bonus uses indicated in this subsection, may count the gross floor area devoted to such use or uses at the bonus ratio indicated for the purpose of earning bonus density:

	Gross floor area devoted to the bonus use		Proportionate number of square feet of additional gross floor area earned for on-site or off-site development
(a) Department Store;	1	to	3
(b) Anchor store having 60,000 sq. ft. or more of gross leasable area. A complex of two (2) or more anchor stores in a single building that accommodates a total of at least 90,000 sq. ft. of gross leasable area devoted to anchor stores and, if present, legitimate theater;	1	to	2
(c) Anchor store having 25,000 sq. ft. to 59,999 sq. ft. of gross leasable area; and	1	to	1.5
(d) Movie theater; performing arts space; small, minority, or displaced business; and other uses listed in §§ 1710 and 1711 in excess of the 0.5 FAR equivalent required by § 1704.3, not to be counted in addition to other bonus floor area earned from this subsection, and not applicable to department store sites regulated by § 1702.5	1	to	1

1703.5 In the ARTS District sector of the SHOP Subarea, as identified geographically in § 1703.3(d), and in Square 346, a building shall be eligible for the bonuses specified in paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of § 1704.6.

1703.6 If a building in the SHOP District uses bonus density, the maximum permitted FAR shall be 10.5 for a building permitted a height of one hundred thirty feet (130 ft.) and 9.5 for a building permitted a lesser height.

SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 38 DCR 612, 619 (January 18, 1991); as amended by: Final Rulemaking published at 43 DCR 597 (February 9, 1996); Final Rulemaking published at 44 DCR 4527, 4529-30 (August 8, 1997); and Final Rulemaking published at 47 DCR 9741-43 (December 8, 2000), incorporating by reference the text of Proposed Rulemaking published at 47 DCR 8335, 8474-75 (October 20, 2000); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 54 DCR 9393, 9399 (September 28, 2007); as corrected by Errata Notice published at 58 DCR 4314, 4315

(May 20, 2011).