Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School won Board of Zoning Adjustment approval on May 20 to raise the South Campus enrollment cap from 130 to 150 students and increase faculty and staff from 26 to 37, subject to conditions including a transportation demand management plan and off‑site parking arrangements.

The school, which operates two DC campuses and is the only Jewish day school in the District, sought special-exception relief to allow the enrollment and staffing increase at its R‑1B South Campus at 4715 Sixteenth Street NW and a waiver of the required on‑site parking. The board approved revised conditions (exhibit 29A) largely reflecting the Office of Planning and DDOT recommendations and the ANC 4E unanimous support.

School leaders told the board they are not proposing construction; the request is for capacity and staffing. Head of School Deborah Scholnick Einhorn and counsel Jessica Bloomfield said most students arrive and depart by nine school buses, and the school has secured an agreement for 18 off‑site parking spaces at Nineteenth Street Baptist Church to supplement the seven on‑site stalls. The Office of Planning and DDOT reviewed the school’s transportation plan and recommended approval; DDOT requested continued coordination on bus pickup and drop‑off locations.

Board members focused most of the hearing on where buses would pick up and drop off students. The school prefers maintaining the long‑standing pick‑up on Sixteenth Street; DDOT prefers Decatur Street. The school presented two circulation diagrams (Sixteenth option and Decatur option) and said it would continue to coordinate through the public‑space process. The board’s approved conditions allow flexibility for pickup operations to take place on Sixteenth Street or Decatur Street, coordinated with DDOT, and require continued implementation of the TDM plan (with one school‑pool item removed at DDOT’s request).

The board’s decision incorporates these conditions, requires maintenance of the landscaped buffer and fence (the school said it will bring an over‑height security fence into code compliance), and keeps limits on outdoor play (maximum 60 students outside at one time, with limited exceptions for curricular activities). The motion to approve the application passed on a 3–0–2 vote, with Vice Chair Carl Blake making the motion and Board Member Krishan Smith seconding; Chairman Anthony Hood did not participate in the vote.

The school said the change is intended to allow it to say “yes” to families seeking places and to add staff to maintain low teacher‑to‑student ratios; leaders also described providing significant tuition aid and noted some families are federal workers affected by layoffs. Opponents at public comment urged stricter parking guarantees and earlier delivery of a long‑term off‑site parking plan. The board determined the proposed conditions and the TDM plan adequately mitigate neighborhood impacts and preserve the Office of Planning’s recommendation for approval.