Zoning Commission approves PUD modification to convert Judiciary Plaza office to about 500 apartments

The District of Columbia Zoning Commission on March 23, 2026 voted 5-0 to approve a planned-unit development modification that will convert a large office building at 455 5th Street NW (Judiciary Plaza) into roughly 500 residential units, including 39 inclusionary zoning (IZ) units set at 60% of median family income.

Chair Anthony Hood opened the virtual hearing and read the case as Z.C. No. 78-17A, noting the commission would follow the hearing order set out in the regulations. The applicant team — represented by Lee Templan of Goulston and Stores and Peter Armstrong of the Georgetown Company — described the proposal as an office-to-residential conversion intended to revitalize an underused downtown asset.

“[W]e are excited to share an exciting office to residential conversion and a vision for the redevelopment of this part of Judiciary Square,” Peter Armstrong said, summarizing the project’s goal to bring residents and economic activity to downtown.

Design and public benefits

Architect Megan Mitchell (Eric Colbear Associates) explained key design moves: carving four light courts into the long 400-by-115-foot structure to improve daylight and air, preserving the existing structural grid to limit…