new in @ggwash.org : a follow-on to a post by @dennisjing.bsky.social, about how DC's current zoning is a continuation of DC's Jim Crow era housing policies. this is part of a bigger project (pieces forthcoming) that took me 9 months to complete. (cw: ugly language in the piece) more below🧵

In 1937, Federal Housing Administration undertook an ambitious national project: to survey America’s largest cities and racially profile every neighborhood. These racist neighborhood grades from the 1930s undergird the District’s zoning regulations today. Interactive map alert!

new in @ggwash.org: i FOIA'd the DMV and they sent me: * every residential DC address to which at least 1 vehicle is registered, as of January 2026 * the # of vehicles registered at each address the data has some limitations & issues, but looking at general trends, a few takeaways 🧵

i lit my hand on fire doing this project lol www.youtube.com/shorts/TsQBn...

super helpful summary of DDOT's long suppressed road pricing study

I'll be at the DC History Conference w/ a poster on DC's n'hood historic districts today from 12-2! (a preview of work soon tk to GGWash) Say hi! FWIW you don't need to preregister; you can just walk in (& it's free) Lots of cool research will be on display: conference.dchistory.org/register

from @dennisjing.bsky.social: "The District’s leaders and some of upper Northwest’s most vocal residents have peddled exclusion for generations" the draft FLUM doesn't do nearly enough to remedy historic and ongoing exclusion. OP should do better. (more tk on this soon, w/ geospatial analysis)

my cousin just bought Sail Solomons, a sailing school in Solomons MD. He needs help. If you wanna work w him, his email is below! He would be a great boss. Super experienced and organized. feel free to DM me w/ questions.

final plug for my Lanier Heights walking tour this sunday at 2pm w/ @dcyimbys.bsky.social 60+ ppl rsvp'd--join us! Claire's making lemonade @rashidaforward1.bsky.social will be there and also my mom, if u want to meet someone who's been struck by lightning actionnetwork.org/events/dc-yi...

This was also an odd window into the Caribbean cruise economy. The walkable mini town is surrounded by a fence and most of the biz are closed when a cruise ship isn't docked (tho we grabbed coffee at a nice cafe that was open all day for locals). When docked the ships belch exhaust over the town

was on vacation in the British Virgin Islands and walked to the cruise ship port in Road Town, Tortola. The cruise passengers are dropped right off into a miniature town in which cars are banned. Odd reminder that many Americans love walkable neighborhoods but think of them as a vacation thing

In other news: the draft FLUM is embarrassing. @opindc.bsky.social wants rents to be even higher & displacement to get even worse. they want our art scene to be off-duty consultants at a cocktail hour Presented by Mayor Muriel Bowser. Revive DC Punk--abolish parking minimums & allow 6plexes anywhere

all 4 of you who follow this account: I'm giving a walking tour of Lanier Heights w/ @dcyimbys.bsky.social in April. Join us! There'll be lemonade and maybe a prize or two: actionnetwork.org/events/dc-yi...

in @ggwash.org: DC's traffic camera program is way better than the alternative: cops writing speeding tickets research from @transportist.org among others (shout out to @tjl.bsky.social, who responded w/ thoughts & papers after i published a piece on this topic in 2024) 1/2

gr8 research by @pewtrusts.org (@alexhrwtz.bsky.social + Seva Rodnyansky), Bethel Cole-Smith + Daniel Muhammad, @evan-mast.bsky.social, Limin Fang + Emi Kim + @justintyndall.bsky.social Building housing ⬇️housing costs 4 people across the income spectrum (ty @tinysnekcomics.bsky.social 4 the comic)

Actual research and reporting from @peterodrigue.bsky.social, and a rant from me, about the likely end of the District's streateries, which is closely related to the fact that it is basically impossible to close a street to cars here: ggwash.org/view/101524/...

The District Department of Transportation has released concepts for the Columbia Heights crosstown bus priority project. Riders and residents should weigh in before December 5.

in @ggwash.org, Nora Brown (planning student at VaTech), my mom (landscape architect), and I imagined what Lanier Heights could look like in the future. Thanks to @imagineterrain.bsky.social & @dchistorycenter.bsky.social for sharing some neat neighborhood history. ggwash.org/view/100140/...

in @ggwash.org Deep dive on the history of my neighborhood, the choices some (predominantly wealthier) residents made to curtail new housing construction, and the way those choices have shaped Northwest DC. (Ty @imagineterrain.bsky.social for adding addt'l local history) ggwash.org/view/99768/h...

While the District’s population went up by 15% between 2010 and 2020, Lanier Heights’ population increased only 3%. A downzoning is a big part of the reason the neighborhood hasn't grown.

Adams Morgan was great. Thanks to new bus and bike lanes, it's even greater.

Columbia Rd Bikeshare stations seeing a 49% increase in ridership compared to they system's overall 35% increase is so validating. Columbia used to be so sketchy but the new bike lanes are a game changer for cross-town trips and heavy usage reflects this.

Jourdie stopped me on the street while i was doing a little transportation survey and several months later we cowrote this