The District wants to pave thousands of temporary parking spaces on mostly industrial, privately owned parcels in Southeast and Southwest Washington to serve motorists who drive to the Nationals’ new ballpark.
The D.C. Zoning Commission on Monday is scheduled to hear testimony on an emergency request to establish up to 3,775 parking spots on 13 properties within walking distance of the stadium. According to the proposal, prepared by the D.C. Office of Planning, the District would build temporary lots that would remain available for up to five years after the ballpark opens.
But nearby residents are furious, fearing that the location of the new lots will force traffic onto their narrow neighborhood streets, trapping them in their homes on game days. They say they were promised that their streets “would remain clear,” said Andy Litsky, a Southwest advisory neighborhood commissioner.
“Our concern, our very, very strong concern, is we’ve got more than 5,000 people living south of M Street,” Litsky said. “To have all of this traffic run down Fourth street, which we consider our local street … we’re never going to get in and we’re never going to get out. And it’s going to happen 81 days a year.”
The planning office contends that the proposed locations are all “within easy and convenient walking distance of the ballpark.” Four of the lots are north of M Street, nine are south, and all but two are east of South Capitol Street. The largest of the proposed lots, which would have up to 950 spaces, would be situated at the Pepco substation at Half and S streets Southwest.
Most of the lots eventually will be developed into residential and office space, according to the planning office report, at which time “parking space within those developments will be available to ballpark patrons, much the same way Verizon Center patrons utilize parking in downtown office buildings.”
The agency said it normally wouldn’t support surface parking. But a parking shortage “could lead to illegal parking on streets and private property in the surrounding area, excessive ‘circling’ of drivers looking for parking spots, and potentially a negative impact on the short term success of this important District facility,” the report says.
