Zoning Commission takes proposed action on Donahoe PUD for 4201 Garrison Street; moves project forward with conditions

A divided-panel Planned Unit Development (PUD) application to redevelop a parking lot at 4201 Garrison Street NW advanced toward final approval on proposed action, the Zoning Commission said July 2025. The commission voted 5-0-0 to take proposed action on case no. 24-12, Harrison Wisconsin Owner LLC, authorizing a related map amendment to rezone portions of Square 1666 (Lots 809 and 810) to the RA-3 zone to permit a new apartment building.

The project would replace a surface parking lot that contains a 705-foot television tower and build a roughly 126-unit, all-electric residential building with 82 parking spaces and 42 bicycle parking spaces. The applicant has committed to provide 33% of units as affordable: 13 units through Inclusionary Zoning (IZ) at 50–60% of median family income (MFI) and 29 additional units at or below 80% MFI through the District’s HANTA program, plus two three-bedroom IZ units at lower MFI levels. Architect Sarah Alexander described the design as “a series of smaller, more sensitively scaled buildings that knit together” to step the massing down toward adjacent single-family homes.

Why it matters: The Office of Planning (OP), the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) all filed supportive reports; ANC 3E voted unanimously to support the application and signed a memorandum of understanding with the applicant. OP found the FAR and height proposed are consistent with Comprehensive Plan and the Wisconsin Avenue Development Framework when viewed through the PUD balancing test. OAG said the scale of the affordable housing proffer “significantly outweighs the PUD’s requested development incentives.” DDOT recommended approval subject to two public-space conditions the applicant accepted.

Key benefits and commitments - Affordable housing: The applicant committed to…