…most residents, workers, and visitors think of Downtown in a broader sense — including areas as far north as Dupont Circle, as far west as Foggy Bottom, and as far east as Capitol Hill. Only about half of the central city workforce is located within the city’s traditional Downtown.
[2]
ِِِA small portion of this area is known as the Downtown Historic District and was listed on the NRHP in 2001.[1]
Geography and subdistricts
The Washington, D.C. government does not officially define neighborhoods or neighborhood boundaries,[3] so there are varying definitions of which areas constitute Downtown D.C. or the central business district of D.C.
In a 2008 map, the city's planning department showed as existing Downtown areas a broad swathe of everything between Georgetown on the west and Union Station on the east, with a northern boundary of and Massachusetts Avenue, and a southern boundary, roughly, of E Street, thus including the West End, Foggy Bottom, Golden Triangle, Traditional Downtown, Chinatown, Mount Vernon Square, and Downtown East.[4]
This diamond-shaped area stretches from Union Station in the east, south to the National Mall, northwest past the White House to Washington Circle in Foggy Bottom and northeast to DuPont Circle. It includes not only the Traditional Downtown and the Golden Triangle (which is the southern part of DuPont Circle neighborhood), but also West End and Foggy Bottom.[2]
Traditional Downtown
The Downtown BID boundaries roughly conform with the more traditional definitions of Downtown and those of the Downtown Urban Renewal Action Area[5] and are:[6]
East: North Capitol Street, N.W. and Louisiana Avenue, N.W. (roughly Union Station), and the Capitol Hill neighborhood,
South: east of 6th Street, N.W., by Constitution Avenue, N.W. and the National Mall, and west of 6th Street, N.W., by Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. and Federal Triangle
West: 15th and 16th streets, N.W. (roughly, the White House grounds) – to the west of the White House is the Golden Triangle BID –
The Golden Triangle is an area defined by the Golden Triangle Business Improvement District (BID). It is part of a larger Downtown area according to The Washington Post and DC Department of Planning. The Golden Triangle boundaries are, very roughly:[7]
Northwest: New Hampshire Ave., N.W., and the DuPont Circle neighborhood,
Northeast: Massachusetts Ave., N.W., and the DuPont Circle neighborhood,
However, even as late as 2010, most of the core area tended to be empty of pedestrian foot traffic at night, except for streets immediately around theaters and restaurants.[8][13] Downtown D.C. has been adding residents, however, and pedestrian traffic at night is increasing. In 1990, the area had about 4,000 residents, but this had increased to 8,449 by 2010.[14] Such increases appear small, but are more significant than they seem because the city's height restrictions limit population density.[15] The completion of the $950 million CityCenterDC project in late 2013 is estimated to add another 1,000 or more residents.[14] One exception to the low nighttime foot traffic is Gallery Place, where large crowds gather day and night, especially after sporting events at the Capital One Arena.[12] Crime and street brawls increased in the area and its adjacent Gallery Place Metro station between 2008 and 2010, primarily due to the large groups of teenagers from across the metropolitan area gathering there.[12]
Capital One Arena (originally MCI Center, later Verizon Center), a major basketball, hockey, and events venue, opened on Mount Vernon Square in 1997.[16] It proved to be a major attraction, drawing more than 20 million visitors in its first decade of operation.[16]
Union Station anchors downtown on the east and besides serving as a hub for Amtrak, VRE and MARC suburban rail, Metro rail and buses, was also an important shopping and dining destination from 1988[17] until COVID-19 in 2020 foreced most tenants to close. As of 2022, authorities are considering plans for renovation and new construction over the railyards behind the station connecting it to the burgeoning NoMa neighborhood.[18]
Unlike other large cities in the U.S., Washington's downtown has a low skyline. With the advent of the skyscraper and the construction of the Cairo Hotel, residents were concerned that the city's European feel might be dwarfed by high-rise buildings. Congress therefore passed the Heights of Buildings Act in 1899, limiting any new building in Washington to a height of 110 feet (34 m). The act was amended in 1910 to allow buildings 20 feet (6.1 m) higher than the width of the adjacent street.[24]
Two business improvement districts cover the downtown D.C. area. The Downtown DC Business Improvement District (Downtown DC BID) is bounded by 16th Street NW, Massachusetts Avenue NW, and Constitution Avenue NW, and is funded by a voluntary tax provided by 825 businesses in the area.[30] The Golden Triangle Business Improvement District (Golden Triangle BID) is bounded by 16th Street NW, Massachusetts Avenue NW, 21st Street NW, and Pennsylvania Avenue NW.[30] Both BIDs work to enhance the diversity of business in their respective jurisdictions as well as the quality of life by providing directions for tourists, improving street and sidewalk cleanliness, and advising police about potential or existing problems.
^ abcdDavenport, Christian; du Lac, J. Freedom; Rosenwald, Michael S.; Schulte, Brigid; Shapira, Ian; Shin, Annys; and Sieff, Kevin. "Fights, Teens Among Challenges as D.C.'s Gallery Place Entertainment Area Matures." The Washington Post. August 13, 2010.
^"12-Story Building for District." The Washington Post. November 12, 1960.
^Hilzenrath, David S. "Building In Defiance of the Bust." The Washington Post. December 31, 1990; "Franklin Tower." Washington Times. January 17, 2000.
^Denby, Grand Hotels: Reality and Illusion, 2004, p. 221–222.
Bednar, Michael J. L' Enfant's Legacy: Public Open Spaces in Washington, D.C. Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2006.
Dempsey, John S. and Forst, Linda S. An Introduction to Policing. Clifton Park, N.Y.: Delmar Cengage Learning, 2012.
Dickey, Jeff. The Rough Guide to Washington, D.C. New York: Penguin, 2011.
Ford, Elise Hartment. Frommer's Washington, D.C., from $80 a Day. Hoboken, N.J.: Frommer's, 2004.
Gutheim, Frederick A. and Lee, Antointte J. Worthy of the Nation: Washington, D.C., From L'Enfant to the National Capital Planning Commission. Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2006.
Jabado, Salwa. Fodor's 2010 Washington, D.C. New York: Fodor's, 2010.
Manning, Peter K. "The United States of America." In Plural Policing: A Comparative Perspective. Trevor Jones and Tim Newburn, eds. New York: Psychology Press, 2006.
McGregor, James H. Washington From the Ground Up, Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2007.
Minetor, Randi and Minetor, Nic. Washington, D.C.: A Guided Tour Through History. Guilford, Conn.: GPP Travel, 2009.
Smith, Bruce R.; Pistolesi, Andrea; and Kelly, Michael T. Art and History of Washington D.C. Florence, Italy: Bonechi, 2007.