by Lark Turner



A pop-up on Buchanan Street NW. A pop-up on Buchanan Street NW.

Councilmember Vincent Orange floated emergency legislation on Thursday that would ban all pop-ups and conversions in single-family and two-unit houses across DC.

The legislation is unlikely to go anywhere, Greater Greater Washington’s David Alpert points out in a scathing post, because the Zoning Commission, not the Council, deals with zoning issues in the city.

And the Zoning Commission has already taken action on pop-ups. On March 30, the Commission voted to reduce the allowable height in R-4 districts to 35 feet. The Commission’s vote is now undergoing review and will, in all likelihood, be made final soon. Orange’s legislation presents itself as a stopgap measure until the Commission’s changes are made final.

But his proposed legislation goes much further than the Zoning Commission’s changes. Orange would have DCRA stop issuing permits on conversions with three or more units and any pop-ups immediately, “to maintain the status quo until needed regulations are developed.” The councilmember makes no distinction between R-4 neighborhoods and other neighborhoods, meaning the prohibition would apply to all single-family and two-unit houses city-wide.

Orange’s proposals will be addressed in a council meeting on April 14.

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This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/councilmember_introduces_bill_to_ban_all_single-family_conversions_in_/9752