At its public meeting on November 30, 2023, the DC Zoning Commission voted (4-0-1) to take final action to approve UDC’s Lamond-Riggs Campus Plan (2023-2033) (Zoning Commission case no. 23-16). The (-1) is a vacant seat. The campus is located at 5171 South Dakota Avenue NE in Riggs Park. UDC’s campus plan website is https://www.udc.edu/campus-master-plan.

Formerly known as the Bertie Backus campus, the Lamond-Riggs campus houses the university’s community college program and a few workforce development programs. UDC plans to gradually increase student enrollment at the campus from roughly 1,800 students currently to 3,000 students.

Phase 1 of the campus development plan will involve renovating the existing buildings on the campus. Phase 2 will involve constructing a new wing on the campus. Currently, there is not funding for Phase 2 activities. UDC will have to provide notice and return to the Zoning Commission before proceeding with construction of the new wing.

UDC’s hearing presentation contains the most up-to-date renderings and other nuggets of the planned renovation and expansion: UDC Lamond-Riggs Campus Plan Hearing Presentation.

On December 1, 2023, UDC issued a statement about the campus plan approval, stating in part:

The approved plan features five key changes to the Lamond-Riggs Campus, implemented in two phases:

1. Modernize and upgrade existing academic buildings and facilities
2. Strengthen enrollment opportunities and welcome an increase in students, faculty and staff
3. Promote the University’s distinct identity and wayfinding for public use of campus
4. Implement on-site urban design improvements along campus frontages
5. Construct a new wing to increase programs and provide an open-space courtyard for improved green landscaping and sustainable features

Questions about the campus plan may be directed to Avis Russell, UDC General Counsel, at avis.russell@udc.edu or Javier Dussan, UDC Vice President, Facilities and Real Estate Management, at javier.dussan@udc.edu.

Public Hearing

The Zoning Commission held a virtual public hearing on the plan on October 30, 2023.

DDOT Report
The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) submitted a pre-hearing report stating that DDOT did not object to the plan with several conditions. DDOT requested that UDC develop a Transportation Demand Management (TDM) plan and a Performance Monitoring Plan (PMP). DDOT requested that UDC enroll students in Metro’s U-Pass program, that UDC address campus parking rates and enforcement mechanism, and that UDC provide covered or indoor bike parking for some of the bike spaces.

Office of Planning Report
The DC Office of Planning (OP) also submitted a pre-hearing report that recommended approval of the plan with the condition that maximum student enrollment be capped at 3,000 students and faculty capped at 118 faculty. OP requested that UDC work with the Office of Historic Preservation to document the history of the Bertie Backus Middle School to determine whether the school building is eligible for inclusion in the DC Inventory of Historic Sites and the National Register of Historic Places. The school, built in the 1960s, was named after educator Bertha Arabella “Bertie” Backus. OP’s report included comments from other agencies such as the DC Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE), which had several comments about the operation of the food hub at the campus.

ANC 5A Letter in Support
ANC 5A submitted a letter in support that outlined several areas of concern based on input from residents (including myself) regarding the Transportation, Sustainability, Campus Relations, and Community Character elements of the plan.

UDC Lamond-Riggs Campus Plan Hearing Presentation
UDC presented its plan. New UDC president, Dr. Maurice Edington, attended the hearing and gave brief remarks. The zoning commissioners asked several questions (some of which residents previously asked UDC).

• Vice Chair Robert Miller asked about UDC’s response to DOEE’s comments about the food hub. UDC said they are working with DOEE.
• Commissioner Joseph Imamura asked why UDC plans to rebuild the parking lot on Galloway Street with new vegetation for Phase 1 and then seemingly plan to remove that newly planted vegetation in order to rebuild the parking lot again for Phase 2. Why not just construct the Phase 2 parking lot. UDC noted that there is not funding for Phase 2 and that they do not know when Phase 2 will be built. They said they are not planting trees in the Phase 1 parking lot islands that will have to be removed, but more so shrubbery.
• Commissioner Imamura asked UDC to clarify the plan for the chain link fence along Galloway and along South Dakota. Commissioner Imamura suggested using environmental design to define the campus edge rather than a fence. (Aside: I noted during my oral testimony that UDC would want a way to prevent people from accessing the parking lot without permission after hours and on weekends so that the people who decide to leave empty bottles and trash along the parkland do not decide to take their activities to UDC’s campus).
• Commissioner Tiffany Stidham asked about any plan for a shuttle to the metro station or other means of encouraging students/faculty not to drive to campus and also for safety reasons for late-night classes. After Phase 2, the parking lot on Galloway will eventually have just 100 parking spaces for cars and UDC plans to have up to 3,000 students and 118 faculty going to the campus. UDC said they did a survey (presumably during the pandemic) and that the survey did not indicate demand for a shuttle.

In addressing requests by the ANC and residents, UDC noted several times that as a public university, its plan is constrained by funding that has to be approved during the city’s budget process.

DDOT gave a super short presentation as did OP. UDC stated that they were working with DDOT about which conditions would become final. UDC agreed to OP’s conditions. ANC 5A did not have a representative at the hearing.

By the time it was time for public testimony (myself), everyone was ready to call it a day. My written and oral testimony focused on (among other things):

1. The need for the campus plan to accurately reflect the state of food hub operations and include UDC CAUSES recently developed 5-year food hub strategic plan. Apparently this 5-year plan (which was not available to the public before the hearing) details changes to the food hub that CAUSES officials say are required by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which provides a portion of funding for the food hub. At an open house in October 2023, CAUSES officials said that Dept. of Ag wants UDC to focus on small farmer entrepreneurs. CAUSES officials said that is why the community garden was removed from the campus.
2. UDC’s need to work with DDOT to address the cluster that is the South Dakota Avenue/Hamilton Street NE intersection sooner rather than later, especially considering UDC is planning to relocate loading access to the Hamilton Street side of the campus.
3. UDC’s need for an actual community engagement plan, starting with an up-to-date campus plan website.
4. A need for the plan to address the role of the community college and campus in the workforce development ecosystem, particularly given the planned departure of the Department of Employment Services (DOES) from the campus.

Campus Naming

In between all of the presentations and reports, Zoning Commission Chair Anthony Hood mentioned more than once that he wants UDC to rename the campus after William Spaulding, the first person to represent Ward 5 on the DC Council following Home Rule. William Spaulding also has ties to UDC. Chair Hood said that he was sure that other people had mentioned this idea to President Edington, but President Edington said he was not aware of this desire. So that is apparently something brewing by folks that we might hear about in the future.

(Aside: UDC’s former president, Ronald Mason, Jr. is responsible for the campus name change, which was approved by university trustees in April 2023. He thought it was important to have a new name to reflect the community college rather than the old name of the middle school. Former President Mason decided to name the campus after the neighborhood in which it sits, just like UDC’s main Van Ness campus. The existing building on the Lamond-Riggs campus is still named the Bertie Backus building).

The Zoning Commission asked UDC to submit a post-hearing statement to address the testimony of the ANC (and myself). UDC also had to outline what conditions the university and DDOT agreed on for the preliminary order.

Zoning Commission Meeting & Decision

UDC Post-hearing Statement
UDC submitted a post-hearing statement. The submission includes UDC’s TDM plan, which they say is approved by DDOT. It also includes further revisions to sections of the campus plan.

ANC 5A Response to UDC Post-hearing Statement
ANC 5A submitted a response noting that UDC’s post-hearing statement did not address all of the ANC’s concerns.

At the public meeting on November 30, the Zoning Commission decided it was satisfied with UDC’s updates and responses to OP, DDOT, DOEE, and the ANC. Chair Hood said he was sure that UDC would work with residents on better communication and work on issues related to the food hub. He also mentioned one more time for good measure that he wants to see the campus renamed after Mr. Spaulding. Vice Chair Miller chimed in to say he worked with Mr. Spaulding on the council and that he too thought it would be a fitting name. (Aside: It is always interesting to see what Chair Hood decides to expound on extemporaneously during hearings).

UDC Proposed Draft Order
The Zoning Commission still needs to issue a final order. UDC submitted a proposed draft order outlining several conditions. UDC’s proposed conditions copied and pasted below:

Campus Plan Term

1. The Campus Plan shall be valid for a period of 10 years.

Enrollment

2. For the duration of the 2023 Plan, the maximum enrollment on the Lamond-Riggs Campus shall not exceed 3,000 students and 118 faculty.

Further Processing

3. The University may construct the proposed Wing D as described in the 2023 Plan, subject to further processing review and approval pursuant to § 210 of the Zoning Regulations:

a. The location shall be within the area identified on (Ex. 3 and 2H2-2H3) of the University’s June 21, 2023 Campus Master Plan submission;

b. The number of stories, gross floor area, and lot coverage shall be generally consistent with the development summary indicated in the University’s June 21, 2023 Campus Master Plan submission;

4. The University shall provide the community with notice and an opportunity to review the proposed design of the new wing at least 60 days prior to filing of the application for further processing:

a. Notice of the University’s intent to file the application (“Notice of Intent”) shall be provided by U.S. Mail to ANC 5A and all owners of all property within 200 feet of the campus. In addition, the Notice of Intent shall be provided by U.S. Mail to all residents within approximately one block of Square 3757, Lot 802. The Notice of Intent shall state that the University intends to file an application to secure further processing approval to construct the new wing on University property, and shall provide the maximum square footage, description of common areas, and planned pedestrian and vehicular circulation adjacent to the new wing. In addition, the Notice of Intent shall provide a website address (URL) where more information about the proposed wing may be found, and the contact information (name, phone, and email) for a University representative that can be contacted for additional information. Finally, the Notice of Intent shall indicate the date, time, and location of the Preliminary Design Review meeting described below; and

Student Conduct

5. All students at the Lamond-Riggs Campus shall be required to comply with the University Code of Conduct.

6. The University shall use disciplinary intervention for acts of misconduct committed by students (i.e., ‘violations of the Code of Conduct) in the surrounding community (which shall mean within one mile of the University), even if the students are not in properties owned or controlled by the University. The University shall act on incident reports submitted by persons including residents, ANC 5A, community associations, tenant associations, building management, the University’s Office of Public Safety and Emergency Management, and the Metropolitan Police Department.

7. The University shall establish and maintain a relationship with the Metropolitan Police Department to secure referrals on all reports of complaints, infractions, or arrests of University students. The University shall maintain a log of all referrals received and all actions taken.

Transportation and Parking

8. The University shall manage its on-campus parking supply and encourage all students, faculty, staff, and visitors to use transit and other alternatives to single-occupancy vehicle through the implementation of the TDM and PMP measures detailed in Exhibit 24 which reflects all of the commitments made by the University.

9. The University shall encourage all visitors attending special events on campus to use transit or park in University or other area parking facilities. The University shall work with area institutions and commercial parking operators as well as use attendant parking to provide additional parking as needed during these events.

10. The University shall direct all construction traffic to avoid routes through the adjacent residential neighborhoods through contract provisions or similar mechanisms.

Community Outreach

11. University representatives shall attend ANC 5A’s monthly meeting, providing updates on the 2023 Plan process and continuing a line a communication between University leadership and community members and stakeholders.