OUR VISION
We are residents of Chevy Chase DC who demand a community-driven comprehensive planning process for any redevelopment of upper Connecticut Avenue. We seek: (1) truly affordable housing (including family-sized units) to welcome a diverse mix of new residents (including lower-income individuals and families); (2) infrastructure that scales up as population grows; (3) a pedestrian-friendly, small-business-centered commercial corridor; and (4) new construction that complements the historic architecture of Chevy Chase DC.

AN URGENT PROBLEM
The DC Council is about to approve changes in DC law that will squander our opportunity to advance equity aligned with affordable housing production, ignore current and future infrastructure needs of Rock Creek West, and endanger our small business community.

We ask that, immediately:
1. The DC Council not approve any density changes to the Future Land Use Map for upper Connecticut Avenue in the Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2020 (B24-01) until a community-driven Small Area Plan has been approved by the Council;
2. The DC Council restore to the Act the planning and development priorities in the Rock Creek West Area Element of the current Comprehensive Plan, to ensure that infrastructure keeps pace with population.

And, subsequently:
1. The DC Office of Planning conduct an inclusive, responsive, and transparent Small Area Plan process as per the February 22, 2021 resolution of Advisory Neighborhood Commission 3/4G, to include visual simulations of proposed changes;
2. City agencies optimize production of affordable housing by developing property that the City already owns and purchasing additional property at current market prices in our Rock Creek West area;
3. The DC Council preserve existing affordable housing, whether naturally occurring or rent-controlled, in the planning area.

CONCLUSION:
To date, the City has relied upon developers to remake neighborhoods. The rationale is affordable housing, but the result is 5333 Connecticut Avenue, a building of 261 apartments, of which only 19 are affordable and few are sized for families. Developer-driven planning is top-down and narrow in focus. Community-driven planning is ground-up and holistic, addressing overcrowded schools, public transportation, traffic, parking, pedestrian safety, small businesses, public spaces, and the architectural fabric of the neighborhood. We ask residents of Washington DC who live in the Chevy Chase, Barnaby Woods, and Hawthorne areas specifically to sign this petition to support truly comprehensive, community-driven planning.