'Live Near Your Work' Program Targets Local Institutions

A new pilot program from the District Office of Planning (OP) seeks to partner with local institutions to encourage and reward employees who live near their place of work. "Live Near Your Work" (LNYW) is designed to reduce commuting times and save energy by offering matching homeownership grants to encourage employees to buy homes near their place of employment.

At a press conference Wednesday, Harriet Tregoning from the D.C. Office of Planning announced the initiative. The OP has committed an initial $200,000 to match employer contributions (up to $6,000 per participating employee) toward down-payment and closing costs when an employee purchases a home near their job or close to mass transit. 

OP is now seeking partner employers and Tregoning said institutions like universities and hospitals have worked in other cities that have similar programs.

"They represent a very significant employment sector in the District and a lot of their workers are actually quite distant from their places of employment and have a lot of difficulty getting to work at various times because of traffic or other emergencies," said Tregoning about hospitals and universities.

Georgetown University's media relations team could not immediately comment on their interest or knowledge of the program.

For the University, however, the program could be an additional outlet for addressing neighbor concerns over employees commuting to the University and the hospital. Employees are counted among the various ways the institutions add traffic and congestion to the historic neighborhood, according to neighbors speaking in opposition to the Campus Plan.

The OP released a Request for Applications (RFA) April 29 and is continuing to accept applications from interested employers for the first round through June 17. If three partners are not identified in the first round, the second round of applications will be due October 17.

According to the OP website, employers will be selected via a competitive application process based upon their ability to administer the pilot program, offer homebuyer education, and provide matching grants for their employees.

The program is focused on promoting homeownership in Wards 5, 7 and 8, but also applies to other wards if the employee moves within the District close to mass transit.

According to a release from the Mayor's office, the benefits to employers "include improved day-to-day on-time attendance, greater probability of attendance in adverse or emergency conditions, reduced need for employer parking, and the potential benefit of a healthier work force made up of employees who are able to walk or bike to work.

OP will hold a pre-application question and answer session with interested employers on May 24 at 2 p.m. The meeting will take place at 1100 4th Street SW, Suite E650, in the Large Conference Room.