The City Proposes Incentive for Diverse Housing
The Office of Planning wants more housing for families, so it's proposing an incentive for developers in the Southeast Federal Center Overlay Zone, reports Greater Greater Washington. The proposal would let developers make taller buildings with a higher FAR if 8% of that extra space goes to three-bedroom units. This makes the project more profitable for the developer because there’s more space to sell or lease, and it promotes more diverse housing sizes while boosting housing altogether. Supplying more three-bedrooms is good because the demand is still higher than supply for smaller housing. With smaller apartments in greater demand, developers have less reason to construct larger apartments. But in order for neighborhoods to have diverse family types, there has to be diverse housing. Who knows? Maybe incentives could work in other parts of DC also. [GGW]
