Opinion ID: 1955145
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Feasibility of Amenities

Text: The Committee of 100 contends that the Mayor's Agent's decision was not based on substantial evidence that the housing and day care proposals proposed by S.J.G. were feasible. [11] In this court the District states that, in view of the need for further proceedings in connection with the covenant, there should be an on-the-record examination of the economic feasibility of the residential and day care proposals. Indeed, the District maintains that the permanence of the housing and day care services is an integral part of the complete project and that a finding of economic feasibility is appropriate, if not mandated, particularly since market forces alone are generally unlikely to produce such results. The Committee of 100 views this as a concession that the Mayor's Agent's decision is not supported by substantial evidence. For purposes of this proceeding so do we. As the Committee of 100 points out, while S.J.G. tried in a general way to show that these amenities were desirable, . . . it submitted nothing to show that they could be successfully marketed or maintained in a way that would advance the goals attributed to them. The proposals for residential housing and day care were not a part of S.J.G.'s original proposal. S.J.G. presented no witnesses regarding the economic feasibility of housing at the site, which the Comprehensive Plan targets for complete development ... as the major center of office development in Downtown, In addition, S.J.G. presented no witnesses regarding the kind of housing that would be provided, although a goal of the Comprehensive Plan is to protect and enhance the historic quality of the 15th Street Financial District. 10 D.C.M.R. § 931.1 (1987). The Mayor's Agent's determination that demolition was necessary required findings in some greater detail as to the amenities that were said to be of special merit, see M.B. Associates, supra, 456 A.2d at 346. These issues must be addressed as part of the contested case proceedings for determining whether to approve the application for demolition. D.C. Code §§ 5-1004, 1-1509(a).