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For Immediate Release |
Lisa MacSpadden |
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NCPC Comments on St. Elizabeths East Campus Water Tower Plans |
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Washington, DC – At its monthly meeting today the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) commented favorably on concept plans to locate a 175-foot-tall, two million gallon water tower on the St. Elizabeths East Campus with two exceptions. The Commission did not support an architectural screen structure surrounding the water tower, nor did it support an underground 2,200-square-foot District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority Museum at the site. The proposed composite tower will serve both the East and West campuses of St. Elizabeths, as well as Lower Ward 8, which currently has insufficient water pressure for residents and fire and public safety measures. After analyzing viewshed impacts on four potential sites on the St. Elizabeths East Campus, the DC Water and Sewer Authority (DC WASA) chose a location adjacent to the John Howard pavilion site that is away from Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue and the historic buildings on the campus. The proposed plans also include rain gardens, a scenic overlook, a walking path, and a solar panel array. The Commission also heard three information presentations. The first was an update on the Base Realignment and Closure related projects at Fort Belvoir, Virginia where more than 18,000 personnel will relocate by September 2011. The second presentation was on Washington as Commemoration, a joint NCPC and National Park Service study examining the themes represented in Washington’s commemorative landscape. Targeted for completion in late summer, the study’s first phase—a draft searchable database—will be available Monday, February 8 on NCPC’s website for public review and comment on. The final information update was about CapitalSpace, a joint initiative by NCPC, the National Park Service, and the District of Columbia to provide a unified vision for Washington’s parks and open space. In October the Commission authorized release of the draft plan for public review, and anticipates reviewing the final CapitalSpace plan for adoption in March. The Commission takes no action on information presentations. This month’s agenda also included five consent calendar items (no presentations given): master plan modifications for Building 17 at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland; concept designs for replacement of the Main Naval Exchange at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland; preliminary and final site and building plans for Southeast Quadrant Development at the Food and Drug Administration Headquarters, White Oak Campus, in Montgomery County, Maryland; preliminary and final site and building plans for phase two of the southeast parking garage at the Food and Drug Administration Headquarters, White Oak Campus, in Montgomery County, Maryland; and concept designs for a perimeter/secondary containment fence and lower zoo gateway at the National Zoo in Washington, DC. The National Capital Planning Commission is the federal government’s central planning agency in the District of Columbia and surrounding counties in Maryland and Virginia. The Commission provides overall planning guidance for federal land and buildings in the region. It also reviews the design of federal projects and memorials, oversees long-range planning for future development, and monitors capital investment by federal agencies. |
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