ANC: Delay Parking Pass Program

Georgetown's Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) wants the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) to reconsider plans to distribute one visitor parking pass to every household in the District, deferring instead to a more tailored plan for Georgetown.

Under the new plan, the pass will be valid for one-year; effective Oct. 1 through September 30, 2014.

Georgetown had been in the process of developing a custom parking system for the neighborhood with DDOT officials prior to DDOT's announcement about the city-wide plan. There were two meetings in Georgetown earlier this year and another had been planned for the fall until DDOT's policy came out. 

The policy was a "surprise" to Georgetown and the decision was made, said Commissioner Ron Lewis. "without really acknowledging how far along we were in custom designing some parking arrangements."

The Georgetown parking working group knew of the one-placard per household policy in other neighborhoods, but opposed having it in Georgetown. 

Several commissioners believe the placards would lead to further congestion for residents looking for parking near their homes. 

"The blanket pass sounds great when you hear about it the first time, but when you think about it, it really creates more problems in terms of parking congestion than we have already," said Commissioner Tom Birch.

The ANC will send a written request to DDOT, asking that the agency create a more tailored program from Georgetown that "takes into account the congested nature of our parking availability."

Read more:

• New Parking Pass Program Roils Ward 2 Officials