Planning History

As a wartime capital, Washington's population grew dramatically during and after the Civil War, from 75,000 to 130,000. It was a place of refuge for many African-Americans, particularly following President Lincoln's 1863 Emancipation Proclamation. During the war the federal government constructed a 37-mile circle of fortifications, including 68 forts and 93 detached batteries, for the capital's defense. The McMillan Plan later proposed turning these defenses into a system of public parks that are known today as the Fort Circle Parks. NCPC acquired much of the land connecting the major parks.

After the Civil War, Washington's infrastructure was in sad shape, and did not keep up with growth. President Grant appointed Alexander Robey "Boss" Shepherd as governor to oversee improvements to the Territory of Columbia (then, the combined cities of Washington and Georgetown and the County of Washington). During his tenure, hundreds of miles of sewers, water mains, gas lines, sidewalks and paved roads were completed, the Washington Canal covered, and street trees planted. Controversy led to the creation of a three-commissioner government, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers assumed responsibility for infrastructure.

Congressionally legislated, the Permanent System of Highways was intended to create an orderly framework for development beyond the L'Enfant City as Washington continued to grow. Frederick Law Olmstead, Sr. contributed to this plan.

The tradition of protest marches on Washington and the National Mall began with Coxey's Army. They have since grown in number and size. Protests and demonstrations for causes such as women's suffrage, voting rights, war protests, and civil rights continue.

The U.S. Congress authorized dredging of the Potomac River and reclamation of the Potomac Flats. Potomac Park was constructed on reclaimed land.

Senator James McMillan established the Senate Park Commission to restore the grandeur of L'Enfant's vision. The McMillan Plan, released in 1902, made a distinctive imprint on the city's architecture and public spaces, particularly in the National Mall's open greenway, the monumental core of federal buildings, and the comprehensive public park system.

Passed by Congress, the act was key in establishing the national capital's horizontal character by setting maximum building heights generally controlled by street widths. The height limit on residential streets is 90 feet. Height limits on commercial streets is the width of the adjacent street plus 20 feet, with a general maximum height limit of 130 feet (except for 160 feet along portions of Pennsylvania Avenue).

Congress created the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts to function as the guardian of the McMillan Plan. The Commission remains today as a sister organization to NCPC, and it reviews proposed designs for new or renovated federal buildings, memorials, coins, medals, and some privately owned land in Washington (under the Shipstead-Lucy and Old Georgetown Acts) with a focus on design and aesthetics.

Wars continued to shape the city's built environment. Following the United States' entry into the war in 1917, construction of the Main Navy and Munitions Building in 1918 on the National Mall to provide temporary quarters for the military. The buildings remained until 1970.

The 1926 Public Buildings Act authorized construction of the 70-acre complex of buildings known today as the Federal Triangle. Construction of 10 buildings, including the U.S. Department of Commerce, IRS, U.S. Department of Justice, and the National Archives, continued through 1938.

Creation of planning bodies at the county and state level, including the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, established by the state in 1927 with authority in both Montgomery and Prince George's Counties. These federal and state agencies worked together on planning initiatives throughout the following decades.

The National Capital Park and Planning Commission issues the Plan for Potomac River Parks, covering the area from Mount Vernon to Great Falls.

The Capper-Cramton Act authorized NCPPC to acquire land for a regional park and parkway system, including coordinated acquisition of stream valley parks with Maryland and Virginia planning authorities. Funds from this act acquired land for the George Washington Memorial Parkway, an extension of Rock Creek Park into Maryland, and an extension of the Anacostia Park System.

New Deal federal programs sought to address unemployment and poverty, and the federal workforce in Washington grew. The ideas of Rexford Tugwell, an advisor to President Roosevelt, led to the development of Greenbelt, Maryland.

Congress funded the plan, initially authorized in 1929, which instructed the modernization plan of the National Mall in accordance with the L'Enfant and McMillan Plans and modifications recommended by the NCPPC. Resulted in the National Mall as we know it today.

President Roosevelt decides to construct a new federal airport at Gravelly Point, between the 14th Street Bridge and Alexandria, Virginia. The airport opened for passenger service on June 16, 1941.

Construction of the Pentagon, the U.S. Department of Defense headquarters, began in 1941 (in September, prior to the U.S. entering the war in December) and lasted until 1943. At 6.5 million square feet, it is one of world's largest office buildings. The wartime economy brought thousands to Washington.

This act began the process of urban renewal in the city. Renewal plans ultimately cleared 400 acres in the city's southwest quadrant that resulted in the development of new apartment buildings and federal offices, but at the cost of the forced removal of 23,500 people and the destruction of numerous historic buildings.

Washington's population peaked at just over 800,000. Government jobs and the Great Migration from the South attracted African-Americans, and Washington became a majority black city from the 1950's through 2011.

NCPPC produced the Comprehensive Plan, primarily covering the District of Columbia but also addressing regional issues. The National Capital Regional Planning Council, a federal agency that operated between 1952 and 1966, issued a "Regional Development Guide" in 1966. NCPC issued drafts of new Comprehensive Plans in 1965 and 1967.

Freeway planning followed the increasing use of private cars, and the Eisenhower Interstate Highway System brought funding and additional impetus. The Capital Beltway made its first formal appearance on regional planning documents when it appeared on maps and in a one-sentence reference in the Comprehensive Plan.

Redevelopment Land Agency invitation to developers to submit plans for Southwest Washington began the process of land assembly, building demolition, site preparation, and land disposal that resulted in the displacement of thousands of Washingtonians and the destruction of numerous historic structures.

New federal campuses were located in suburban Maryland and Virginia, consistent with private sector campuses, the new highway systems, and Cold War concerns about nuclear attack that promoted dispersal of federal facilities into the region. Coincided with a post-war suburban residential boom, made possible by the automobile.

One of the important early steps in the future Metro system's development was the congressionally directed Mass Transportation Study conducted by NCPC. Begun in 1955, the resulting A Transportation Plan for the National Capital Region recommended, among other things, the creation of a 33-mile rapid transit system.

NCPC and the National Capital Regional Planning Council produced the influential Year 2000 Plan, proposing a model for long-term regional growth. M-NCPPC then incorporated and expanded on this recommended model in its own comprehensive plan, titled "On Wedges and Corridors." Central Washington is the region's focus and developed corridors separated by wedges of open countryside extend out, linking major development centers.

Completion of the I-495 Capital Beltway when its final Maryland segment opened to traffic on August 17, 1964. The Southeast Freeway, including the section planned as I-295 to Pennsylvania Avenue, was built in the late 1960s. Plans for other Interstates in Washington were canceled in 1977 after much opposition

The assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led to widespread rioting in Washington and major damage to the U Street, NW and H Street, NE corridors.

In preparation for the nation's Bicentennial, on behalf of the National Park Service Skidmore, Owings and Merrill prepared master plans for the National Mall. This resulted in the development of Constitution Gardens, locations for new museums, and plans for Pennsylvania Avenue.

Congress passed the International Center Act, leading to development of the Center on a 47-acre site in Northwest Washington that formerly housed the National Bureau of Standards. The U.S. Department of State developed it into a campus for foreign embassies that formally opened in 1972. The People's Republic of China embassy, completed in 2008, occupied the last available site.

Established in 1972 with a goal to "develop Pennsylvania Avenue in keeping with its historical and ceremonial role," the corporation oversaw the redevelopment of the avenue into a grand urban boulevard. Congress dissolved the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation in 1996 and delegated responsibility for the avenue to NCPC, the General Services Administration, and the National Park Service.

Pressure had built for home rule in the District of Columbia, including reconsideration of the appropriateness of NCPC's role as Washington's local planning agency. The federal Home Rule Act of 1973 designated the District of Columbia's elected mayor as the planner for the District government, a power exercised through the DC Office of Planning. NCPC's role was re-defined to focus primarily on federal property in Washington and the region.

During the 1950s, NCPPC and NCPC studies demonstrated the need for a regional mass transit system, leading to the federal authorization of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority in 1965. Construction on the Metrorail system began in 1969, and in 1976, the first Red Line segment opened to the public from Farragut North to Rhode Island Avenue.

The late 1960s/early 1970s saw construction of several major federal offices downtown, including buildings for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (1968), Federal Aviation Administration (1963), FBI (1974), Hirshhorn Museum (1974), U.S. Department of Labor (1975), and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (1976).

The memorial design, initially controversial, proved to have a lasting influence on commemorative form. Other war memorials followed on the west side of the Mall, including the Korean War Veterans Memorial (1995) and the World War II Memorial (2004). NCPC reviewed all these projects.

Passed by Congress, the act specifies the requirements for the development, approval, and location of new memorials and monuments in the District of Columbia and its environs.

Initiated in 2000, the 30-year, $10 billion Anacostia Waterfront Initiative is transforming the shores of the Anacostia River into a world-class waterfront. Led by the District of Columbia government and embraced by 19 regional and federal agency partners, the study area straddles the Anacostia River and stretches from the Tidal Basin to the city's northeast border. AWI promises a clean river environment, new parks and other recreational facilities, more job-creating commercial centers, revitalized residential neighborhoods, and multi-modal transportation options. NCPC is an active participant, and the agency's Legacy Plan and 1999 Washington Waterfronts report sparked interest in a connected, renewed waterfront.

Congress amended the Commemorative Works Act to establish a Reserve, or "no-build" zone (highlighted in red), on the National Mall. In response to this expanded reserve, in 2006 NCPC formally removed four sites from future consideration for new commemorative works.

The Base Realignment and Closure action significantly affected the Washington region. U.S. Department of Defense facilities moved out of leased space, primarily in northern Virginia. The Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington closed and its functions relocated to Maryland and Virginia. Several installations, such as Fort Belvoir, received significant growth, new facilities such as the ICC-B in Bethesda, were built, while others were closed.