A group in Chevy Chase DC is applying for historic preservation status (again), which would require meeting a series of specific criteria to be approved. Like every place, Chevy Chase DC has history. But it doesn’t clear the bar laid out by the law.
Advocates for historic districts often claim that historic status does not meaningfully increase the costs and hassles of homeownership. Wood siding has entered the chat.
The Board first considered Colony Hill’s application at their January 28 meeting, starting with presentations from the applicants and HPO staff making the case in favor. That case was oriented around three of the District’s legal criteria for registration.
DC Criterion B: History - The bulk of the application makes the case that the neighborhood deserves designation because it represents the national and local trend of developers building more car-oriented, suburban communities in the 1930s.
DC Criterion D: Architecture and Urbanism - The application also describes the properties in the neighborhood as good examples of the popular Colonial Revivalism style that were accompanied by well-considered landscaping to create a picturesque suburban aesthetic.