Office of Zoning
 



Zoning Commission

The Zoning Commission (ZC) is an independent, quasi-judicial body. Created by the Zoning Act of 1920, as amended, the ZC is charged with preparing, adopting, and subsequently amending the Zoning Regulations and Zoning Map in a means not inconsistent with the Comprehensive Plan for the National Capital area. Three members of the ZC are residents of the District of Columbia appointed by the Mayor and confirmed by the Council. The fourth member of the ZC is the Architect of the Capitol (or his/her representative). The fifth ZC member is the Director of the National Park Service (or his/her representative).

The ZC members are as follows:

Public Hearings and Meetings are held primarily on Monday and Thursday evenings at 6:30 p.m. at 441 4th Street N.W., Washington, DC 20001 in Room 220 South. Visit "How to Reach Us" on the DCOZ website for detailed directions.

Please note that Public Hearing Notices for all cases before the ZC are published in the District of Columbia Register.

The ZC Schedule and Agenda are available under the "Calendar" function of the DCOZ website.

For more information on ZC-related items, please see the links below:


Map Amendments

All applications for building permits are reviewed by the Zoning Administrator (ZA) in the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) for compliance with relevant zoning regulations. Upon such review, the ZA may determine that a project conflicts with existing regulations (i.e. land use(s), height, density, bulk, etc.) permitted by the zone district covering the site. In such cases, the affected property owner may seek permission from the ZC to develop the proposed project by filing a map amendment application. Map amendments may also be initiated by petition from the public, including public agencies such as the Office of Planning.

Text Amendments

Applications to change the text of the Zoning Regulations may be filed with the ZC. A text amendment changes the development standards in one or more zone districts.

Air Rights Development in Public Space

Requests for renting or using the space above or below streets and alleys in the District of Columbia, under specified conditions, are referred to the ZC by the Building and Land Regulation Administration within DCRA. The ZC follows the map amendment process when reviewing applications for air rights development.

Planned Unit Development (PUD)

The ZC hears and decides requests for special multi-purpose projects referred to as Planned Unit Developments (PUDs). A PUD is a planning tool which allows a developer greater flexibility in site planning and building design. This flexibility permits the developer to incorporate amenities in the project that exceed those that could have been achieved under the general provisions of the Zoning Regulations. When a project is designated as a PUD, the ZC usually mandates the development of standards specifically tailored to the project.



Accommodation of Persons with Special Needs [X]

District government agencies provide auxiliary aids/services or language interpretation/translation when and as necessary to ensure that communication with individuals with vision, hearing and speech disabilities and/or limited English proficiency is as effective as communication with non-disabled individuals and/or English-speaking individuals. Persons with disabilities and persons needing language interpretation to participate in hearings and meetings held by the Zoning Commission (ZC) or the Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA), or to communicate with the DC Office of Zoning (DCOZ), should contact Sara Bardin at (202) 727-5372, sara.bardin@dc.gov, or visit the Office at 441 4th Street, NW Suite 200-S, Washington, 20001, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Please provide at least one week's notice to DCOZ to guarantee the best possible customer service.

Anthony J. Hood [X]
Anthony J. Hood
Chairman
(Term Expiration: February 3, 2010)

Anthony J. Hood has served on the Zoning Commission since 1998 and has served as Chairman since 2007. He is the Chief of the Printing and Mail Management Section, Facilities Operations Branch, of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, DC. Currently, Mr. Hood serves as the President of the Woodridge Civic Association and the Woodridge Civic Fund. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Bryant Park Homeowners Association and is a Member of the 5th District's Citizens Advisory Council and the Bryant/Channing Streets Orange Hat Patrol. Mr. Hood is both a life-long member and Deacon of the Greater First Baptist Church of Washington, DC and resident of Ward 5. He has a Bachelor of Science in Printing Management from the University of the District of Columbia and was educated in the District's Public Education System.

William Warren Keating , III [X]
William W. Keating, III
Vice-Chairman
(Term Expiration: February 3, 2011)

William Warren Keating, III, has served on the Zoning Commission since 2009. Mr. Keating is the President of Urban Service Systems Corporation, a waste, transportation, and construction Services Company based in Takoma Park, DC. Prior to joining Urban Service, Mr. Keating was a Vice-President with the AmeriChoice Health Services unit of United Healthcare. Mr. Keating has a Master of Business Administration from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Arts from Dartmouth College.

Konrad W. Schlater [X]
Konrad W. Schlater
District Resident Appointee
(Term Expiration: February 3, 2013)

Konrad W. Schlater has served on the Zoning Commission since 2009. He is a Project Manager at William C. Smith + Co (WCS), a multidisciplinary real estate firm based in Washington, DC. Prior to joining WCS in 2008, Mr. Schlater served as a Special Assistant to the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development and was responsible for the day-to-day management of numerous large-scale public-private partnerships. He served earlier as a Presidential Management Fellow at the U.S. Department of Housing and Development, where he focused on policy development for public housing and other urban policy issues. Mr. Schlater holds a Master in Public Policy from the Harvard John F. Kennedy School of Government with a focus on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Wisconsin.

Michael G. Turnbull [X]
Michael G. Turnbull, FAIA
Architect of the Capitol Designee

Michael G. Turnbull has served on the Zoning Commission since 2005 and is the Assistant Architect of the Capitol (AOC). The Office of the AOC is responsible to the United States Congress for the maintenance, operation, development, and preservation of buildings and more than 450 acres of land throughout the Capitol complex. He is the senior executive overseeing the Modernization of the Supreme Court of the United States and instituted the AOC's first best practices initiative aimed at improving project delivery of capital projects which included a major reorganization of the AOC's divisions involved in design and construction. Prior to joining the AOC, Mr. Turnbull served as the Director of the Department of Design and Construction at the Art Institute of Chicago, one of the nation's premier fine art museums and schools of art. Mr. Turnbull is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, a licensed architect in DC, Virginia, Maryland, and Illinois, and a member of the American Planning Association and Lambda Alpha. He received his Bachelor of Architecture, a five-year professional degree, from the University of Illinois in Chicago.

Peter G. May [X]
Peter G. May
National Park Service Designee

Peter G. May has served on the Zoning Commission since 2007 as the National Park Service (NPS) Designee, and previously served as the Architect of the Capitol Designee from 2001 - 2004. He is the Associate Regional Director for Lands, Resources, and Planning with the National Capital Region of NPS. Prior to joining NPS, Mr. May was Deputy Director of Operations in the District of Columbia's Office of Property Management, Project Administrator with the Architect of the Capitol, and an architect with Weinstein Associates Architects and Quinn Evans | Architects. Mr. May is a Board Member of the Capitol Hill Community Foundation. He formerly served on the District of Columbia Public Schools Modernization Advisory Board and Committee of 21. Mr. May has a Master of Architecture from the University of Maryland and a Bachelor of Arts from Georgetown University.