Photo by Terry McCombs on Flickr.

This summer, the DC Office of Planning further softened its ever-more-timid zoning update proposal, but there’s good news: some zoning commissioners don’t agree with the latest retreat. However, if they’re going to prevail, you have to trundle down to Judiciary Square one more time this coming Monday to speak at a hearing.

In July, the Office of Planning backed off on reducing parking minimums along busy bus corridors, and weakened proposals that would make it easier to rent out a carriage house on your property.

These revisions were the latest disappointments in a chain of compromises dating back to 2009, and were the final straw for many people who supported the zoning update as a serious tool in making DC more walkable and inclusive.

It’s not an episode of the Twilight Zone: there really is one more hearing on the long-running zoning update show, on Monday, September 8th, and this one’s really important.

Commissioners aren’t sure about OP’s latest retreat

OP’s latest changes were part of a big package of tweaks based on input from residents and the Zoning Commission. Some amendments made a lot of sense, but on these two, OP didn’t listen to the large numbers of residents — including many of you — who had testified in favor of key zoning update proposals during the last rounds of hearings.

But this time, some members of the Zoning Commission pushed back on the retreat. At a July meeting, Commissioners Marcie Cohen and Rob Miller both expressed skepticism about the changes. They wondered why, when DC is facing a growing shortage of accessible affordable housing, OP would back off a policy that would encourage more and cheaper housing options.

The other commissioners said they would listen to what the public had to say. Therefore, the hearing next week gives residents a chance to recommend two alternatives: OP’s proposed amendment, and the previous, stronger version. Even though evening hearings are easier for some people than others, the numbers of residents who speak up for each alternative may well determine which way the commission goes.

Reduced parking mandates and fewer restrictions on accessory units are creative solutions to create more mixed-income communities (and help existing residents affordably age in place), and the “alternative text” is a big step back forward after too many steps backward.

It’s been a long road

The pace of the zoning update process has been frustrating to many supporters. They worry that increased public participation (a good thing) is being misused by opponents as an excuse to delay the process indefinitely — or at least until the reform has been weakened enough to be ineffective.

But we really are nearing (if not already in) the homestretch of this process. And, after a series of compromises, there are finally signs that members of the Zoning Commission understand that we have an opportunity to create the framework for a more walkable and inclusive future DC in the face of our growing affordable housing crisis.

Please sign up to testify Monday evening. The hearing begins at 6:00 PM at One Judiciary Square / 441 4th Street NW, by the Judiciary Square Metro station. The Coalition for Smarter Growth has a streamlined sign-up tool to help you register to speak on Monday night.

While the process can seem daunting to those unaccustomed to sitting through long municipal meetings (which is probably a large majority of everyone reading this), it’s not that hard. Just write a short statement that will take no more than three minutes to speak out loud (slowly).

Say you support the “alternative language” that matches the September version of zoning update on parking around bus corridors and accessory apartments in carriage houses. Talk about where in the city you live and why these proposals matter to you. In fact, here’s a step-by-step guide to how to testify.

Then print out at least one copy to hand in (if you can) and bring it with you to the hearing. Wait until your name is called, come to the table, and when it’s your turn, say your piece.

If you’ve already testified before at one or many of the previous rounds of meetings and hearings, we know you’re probably sick of the zoning update by now. Still, this is a really important moment to make yourself heard. This hearing is covering a set of edits rather than the entire zoning update, and commissioners are not just going through the motions: they really want to hear whether residents prefer OP’s latest retreat or the last, somewhat more progressive proposal.