Content categorized as Development

Confusion mires Zoning Commission meeting about Barry Farm and residents’ right to return

Despite families leaving as early as 2012, redevelopment at Barry Farm continues to see delays, and former residents still are not sure whether – or when – they may be able to return.

DC removes Q St encampment while Ward 5 residents wait for more affordable housing

The Eckington property is supposed to be developed into affordable housing by Mi Casa, an affordable housing developer. In the meantime, the belongings of encampment residents were thrown away. 

What is DOPA? Inside the proposed changes to an unused program meant to preserve affordable housing

The DC Council has recently taken steps to establish a new plan for, and modifications to, the District Opportunity to Purchase Act (DOPA) to increase its utility and use.

Build-first redevelopment at Greenleaf Gardens may be moving out of reach

Redevelopment of the 15-acre Greenleaf Gardens housing community has been thrown into question now that developers have expressed doubts on whether new units can be built for the public housing residents before razing and redeveloping their current units.

DC’s proposed FY 2022 budget to increase funding for affordable housing

Highlights from Mayor Muriel Bowser’s proposed $17.5 billion budget, which allocates $505.1 million in federal aid to support development of affordable housing.

Bowser calls for $400 million investment in affordable housing

As part of her goal to construct thousands of new homes across the city by 2025, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is seeking approval from the D.C. Council to invest an additional $400 million into affordable housing over the next two years.

DCHA falls short on transparency in Barry Farm development

Inconsistent communications from the DC Housing Authority and other agencies continues to harm the community’s trust in Barry Farm’s redevelopment.

DC Council votes to advance Comp Plan amendment

In the first of two rounds of votes, the DC Council moved proposed revisions forward to the Comprehensive Plan, despite ongoing displacement and gentrification concerns.

Council advances Comprehensive Plan amid concerns of racial inequity

D.C. Council votes to advance the Comprehensive Plan amendment, despite concerns of exacerbating racial inequity.

Overloaded with landlords and real-estate developers, Bowser’s “Saving DC’s Rental Housing Market Strike Force” leaves out marginalized tenant voices

Tenant voices were conspicuously absent from the deliberation on recommendations that will affect the District’s most vulnerable renters’ ability to remain housed through the end of the pandemic and long after.

Housing Production Trust Fund could receive $263M windfall

The Housing Production Trust Fund will be potentially receiving $263 million this year, despite issues of transparency and the fund’s inability to create affordable housing for those who need it most.

Taking advantage of low-income homebuyers in DC — all the way to the bank

Nine women who used DC’s Home Purchase Assistance Program for first-time homebuyers are now forced into a lawsuit after a multiyear battle over poor construction and repairs of their homes.

Tenants at Marbury Plaza renew a decade-old rent strike as COVID-19 exacerbates a history of neglect

The D.C. Tenants Union partnered with tenant leaders at Marbury Plaza in Southeast D.C. to organize a rent strike and push the landlord and city government for repairs and rental relief.

An amendment 4 years in the making, with massive implications for affordable housing in DC, to be voted on in March

For years, the latest update to D.C.’s Comprehensive Plan has sparked unprecedented public engagement and contention. It is slated to be decided in March.

Protesters call for Biden’s domestic policy chief to cancel rent

Tenants from D.C., Maryland, and Virginia marched to the home of White House domestic policy chief Susan Rice on Jan. 23 and called on the Biden administration to include rent cancelation in the latest COVID-19 relief package proposal

New construction is not helping the poor

Joshua Faison on the need for more low-income housing.

Nonprofit explores what it will take to provide immediate housing for returning citizens

Nonprofit land developer Jubilee Housing has projects underway to provide affordable housing for returning citizens.

Budget for public housing repairs is not enough to address ‘extremely urgent’ conditions

Mayor Bowser’s budget has allocated funding to public housing repairs in response to a decade-long federal disinvestment. However, advocates argue that more money needs to be shifted to establish a recurring amount of funding for these repairs.

Franklin Park renovations begin, leaving some homeless residents unsure where to go

The redevelopment of Franklin Park has been planned for years. Due to past starts and stops, some residents thought it was only a rumor. But people were forced to leave on June 30 and a fence is being erected on July 1.

Bowser’s budget cuts funding for affordable housing. Advocates say DC’s Black residents will be left behind

The new proposed budget would not do enough to alter chronic homelessness and would disportionately hurt communities of color, housing providers said. They urged D.C. to restore funding by looking at other areas of the budget and increasing taxes on the wealthy.