Evening star., 1938-09-04
z0N|NG POWERS
HEARING IS DATED
Score of Proposed Changes
in Maps of D. c. to Be
Considered.
BY DON S. WARREN.

'NAA~SAs~~'
Regulations governing the powers
and procedure of the newly created
Board Of Zoning Adjustment, as we'll
as a score of proposed changes in the
zoning maps Of the District, will be
considered by the zoning Commission
at public hearing set for October 5
at the District Building, the agency
announced yesterday.
The proposed new regulations,
drafted by the zoning Commission
staff in consultation with the Office Of
the corporation counsel, are intended
to motivate the new act undermining
the zoning laws of the District, which
was adopted at the last session of
Congress.
Appointment of four of the five
members Of the adjustment board was
announced recently by the Commits
sioners. The fifth member, 1t was re-
vealed yesterday, will be Dean John r.
Lapham Of the School of Engineering
OF George Washington University, who
was named for a one-year term.
Theodore 1. Coe Member.
Other civilian members of the new
agency are Theodore T. Coe. chief of
the structural service division of the
American Institute of Architects and
president of the Washington Building
Congress, who was appointed for a
two-year term, and Harry Blake. a vice
president of the firm of Barber & Ross
and chairman of the Zoning Commit
tee Of the Board Of Trade, who was
appointed for a three-year term. The
other two members of the board are
Capt. Hugh P. Dram, executive officer
of the zoning Commission, and John
Nolen, jr., director of planning of the
National Capital Parks and Planning
Commission.
This board was created to hear ap-
peals from decisions by the District
inspector of buildings, the director of
inspection, the Office of the Zoning
Commission and the Commissioners
relative to details of zoning regula-
tions, with the intent of preventing
undue hardships in special cases deal
ing with specific requirements.
The Board of Adjustment is to meet
at least twice month on cases ap-
pealed from the various municipal
officers. and there may be an appeal
to the Zoning Commission itself from
rulings of the Adjustment Board.
Many Of the special powers hereto
fore granted to the District Commits
sioners by the zoning Commission,
now will be transferred to the new
Board of Adjustment. especially in
cases in which special permission is
required for certain property uses,
such as, gasoline stations.
10 Grants Proposed.
The proposed regulations to be con-
sidered at the October public hear
ing contain a list of 10 specific grants
of powers to the Board of Adjustment
Illustrative of the principles back of
these changes in procedure is one
which reads:
Where the boundary line of any
use district divides lot in a single
ownership at the time the boundary
line was or is fixed by the adoption |
OF any order or regulation (under the |
revised zonlng acts of the District), |
the board may permit a use author |
lied on either portion of such lot to
extend to the entire lot, but not more
than IS feet beyond the boundary
line Of the use district
As an illustration. it is said there
are certain lots which now are zoned |
half for residential use and half for
commercial use. Either half of such |
lot IS too small for either residential |
or commercial purposes The Zoning !
Commission has refused to change the
residential half of the lot to COM
mercial. by change in the zoning
maps, for fear it would have an ad-
verse effect on the neighborhood. But
the adjustment board could permit
commercial use on the residential |
half of the lot, without any change
in the zoning map, if it finds such
plan is necessary to prevent hard
ship on any individual property owner,
without doing wholesale damage to
the community.
Other Powers Proposed.
Among other powers proposed to
be granted to the Board of Zoning
Adjustment, are the following:
To permit. in the residential dis
trlct, education institutions if their
space and equipment may not be
readily convertible to business use,
if their operation would be impaired
by location on a business street, If
they have no articles of commerce
for sale and if they are not likely
to become Objectionable in a. resi-
dental district because of noise traffic
and number of students.
To permit phylanthropic and elee-
institutions in the residen-
tial districts, except in "a" restricted
areas.
To permit in the residential dis
tricts a public storage garage in an
apartment house when the vehicular
entrances and exits are so located
that dangerous traffic and other OBJ
jectionable features will not be Gre
ated; provided the floor area of such
a garage does not exceed one-fourth
of the total floor area designed for
or used by the tenants.
To permit in a residential district
the use Of vacant lot for the tenn
porary parking of motor vehicles, sub
ject to such restrictions and safe
guards as may, in the opinion of the
board, be necessary to protect the
residential property in the vicinity,
when such use is found to be rea-
sonably necessary or, convenient to
the neighborhood. and not to interfere
unreasonably with the most appropri-
ate use of neighboring property under
the 0oning plan.
Temporary Building.
To permit in residential district