The Office of Planning recommended clarifying that limited front-setback relief should be available by special exception for certain additions and for new dwellings on substandard lots, while preserving the variance standard for new houses on conforming lots.

Mister Lawson told the commission that the front-setback rule (created by ZR16) establishes a range for where a front façade may be placed based on the prevailing block face. "OP is proposing to clarify that the special exception relief pursuant to the normal special exception criteria from the front setback provision would be permitted for an addition to an existing building or for a new dwelling on a substandard lot," he said, adding that the change aligns the treatment of front-setback relief with other siting-related provisions such as rear and side yards.

ANC representatives and civic groups pushed back sharply. Carol Grunewald, ANC 3/4G commissioner, said her Single Member District opposes the proposed change for R zones because making relief easier to obtain "could result in more facades moving forward on a block and ... front setback creep, altering the uniform street wall over time." Commissioner Elizabeth Nagi, testifying in a personal capacity, urged the commission to retain the variance standard, calling the proposed switch "a seemingly benign change" that could have "enormous potential consequences for the look and feel of our neighborhoods."

Meg McGuire of the Committee of 100 said the variance standard better protects neighborhood character because it requires a showing that there is no reasonable use of the property without relief, while special exception criteria are more flexible. OP acknowledged the concern and suggested the commission could consider a compromise approach (for example, a graduated approach where limited special-exception relief is permitted and variance is required beyond a threshold) if the commission preferred a more cautious path.

Commissioners asked staff for case-history details; Lawson said some earlier BZA cases had been reviewed as special exceptions for front setbacks but later were interpreted as variances because of wording differences. The commission did not vote on the proposal and will consider public comments and the OP record further.