Testimony before the Hon. Phil Mendelson, Chairman, Committee of the Whole, & Hon. Wendell Felder, Subcommittee of on Local Business Development
RE: Joint public hearing on the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Redevelopment: Robert F. Kennedy Campus Master Plan Small Area Plan Amendment to the Future Land Use Map of the District Elements of the Comprehensive Plan, PR26-0810
By Cheryl Cort, DC and Prince George’s Policy Director, Coalition for Smarter Growth, Sept. 30, 2026
Please accept these comments on the housing and mobility components of the draft RFK Campus Master Plan on behalf of the Coalition for Smarter Growth (CSG). CSG advocates for walkable, bikeable, inclusive, transit-oriented communities as the most sustainable and equitable way for the Washington, DC region to grow and provide opportunities for all.
We appreciate the revisions to the draft plan which addressed some of our concerns.
Affordable housing: The document addresses our request that the income targeting be explicit. The revised draft confirms that the 30% affordable set aside of the total 6,500 new homes will be split between 30% and 60% AMI.
Transit: The document has improved in its references to the Gold Line. It builds out the need, provides for dedicated bus lanes from Benning to the stadium, and clarifies the stadium armory Metro station improvements. It is well connected to the work WMATA is doing. Our outstanding transit/transportation concerns are:
- Funding for final design, engineering, and construction of Gold Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service. The council and Mayor must make the commitments to this BRT project to ensure the transit service is functioning by opening day.
We support the Gold Line plan and see its future benefit to serve a major transit corridor across the city, but the commitment to the BRT line seems uncertain – far less certain than the construction of giant parking garages.
- Decision on location of transit plaza and inclusion and funding for it in the redevelopment plan remains a major gap. We reiterate the need for clarity around the location and function of a transit plaza, and the funding for its operations. The plan’s language states that WMATA recommends a site north of C Street and that the BRT line “could be supported by a multimodal transit plaza on the site.” This is a very passive way to talk about planning a future transit line and transit plaza essential to provide the transportation capacity for major events.
Below please find our more detailed comments.
Affordable housing
CSG supports the overall commitment to 6,500 new homes, of which 30% will be affordable. We appreciate that the plan now explicitly states the income targeting of 30% AMI and 60% AMI.
CSG supports the plan’s phasing commitment for affordable units, that “To ensure the construction of affordable units keeps pace with market-rate units, the provision of affordable units should be phased so that no less than 30 percent of residential units built at any time are affordable, and the zoning for the campus should ensure compliance with this requirement.” We expect these commitments to be met.
Transportation for a transit-first stadium
Planned Stadium-Armory Metro station upgrades are critical
We commend the DC and WMATA commitments to upgrades to double the capacity of Stadium-Armory Metro station for $300 million. We appreciate that these Stadium-Armory Metro Station improvements will include elevators, escalators, stairs, mezzanines, and an expanded north entrance. These improvements will help distribute crowds for orderly, efficient, and safe station operations. These upgrades will be crucial to the success of the stadium as well as improved service for existing residents and future development.
Gold Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT): DC government must commit to funding final design, construction and operations
We strongly support the planning and full implementation of the Gold Line BRT line as a central component of the transportation strategy which relies on transit to provide the largest mode of access. The Gold Line BRT is needed to provide a fast, reliable, high-capacity connection to the Red Line at Union Station in Phase 1. This is to be center-running, dedicated bus lanes on H Street/Benning Road NE to deliver capacity, convenient, and competitive travel time to Union Station for transfers to the Red Line, Amtrak, MARC, and VRE. The Gold Line-Union Station connection would reduce pressure on Stadium-Armory Metro station, served by the Orange/Blue/Silver lines, and replace and improve on the discontinued DC Streetcar.
We commend DC’s $5 million allocation for the 30% Gold Line design. However, deeply concerning is that no funds are identified for the final design, construction, or operations of the Gold Line. DC must identify and program all necessary funding by spring of 2027 to be ready for opening day in 2030.
Transit Center: show the site and bus priority lanes, and articulate the DC government and Master Plan commitment to implementing it
We are greatly concerned about the vagueness of commitment to the Transit Center in this land use master plan. The Transit Center is essential to attracting and efficiently boarding post-game riders on the Gold Line.
Per the Master Plan:
“WMATA’s RFK Campus/Kingman Park Transit Improvements Study recommends a transit plaza to be located north of C Street NE. The plaza will have access to dedicated bus lanes and other priority infrastructure that link RFK to Union Station. The final location and design of bike and bus transit facilities will be determined through future feasibility and engineering studies.” (p. 108)
The Transit Center must be shown as a specific site and design concept in the Campus Master Plan. The plan must clearly commit to the Transit Center and the street design with bus priority lanes connecting to Benning Road to ensure high-performance BRT that achieves the needed ridership and reliability. This Master Plan should state that the DC government and this Master Plan are wholly committed to the Transit Center — not just mention that WMATA has made recommendations for a transit station.
Transit street connection KC-A between C Street NE & Benning Road NE
We support the concept of KC-A as a newly designed street between C Street NE and Benning Rd NE. The roadway is to support a new dedicated transitway, separated bike lanes, travel lanes that could be converted to parking lanes during lower-volume uses, and wide, tree-lined sidewalks.
Other Mobility Recommendations
Vehicle Parking
This stadium should be a transit-first stadium. This means giving priority to the modes used by the largest share of fans to access games — via Metrorail and Metrobus, along with bicycling, and walking. Motor vehicle parking should be limited. The Master Plan should minimize surface parking as much as possible, make the pause on a third parking garage permanent, and focus on improving access to the area by improved transit, bicycle networks, bicycle parking, and an enhanced walk environment.
Bike network
We agree with the analysis and recommendations that WABA has provided. Bicycling has great potential to supplement transit access to the stadium if the Master Plan can provide high-quality bicycle facilities including protected bike lanes, convenient bike routes, and convenient, secure, high-capacity parking. The District must create safe cycling connections to areas surrounding the RFK Campus in time for the expected 2030 stadium opening. The District must provide fully protected bikeways across the Anacostia River along Pennsylvania Ave SE, East Capitol St, and Benning Road NE, as shown in the RFK Campus Context Plan, with fully protected bikeways extending into Wards 7 and 8 along those major arterials. Bike share and bike parking are essential, including bikeshare docking stations and bike-valet for events.
Serving a neighborhood
While much of the planning is focused on the stadium and what happens when an event occurs, the District needs to ensure that the existing and new neighborhood can function at all times. For example, significant amounts of bus service will need to operate in the new mixed-use districts every day with or without a game. This bus service needs to be able to get through all day, every day. Similarly, bicycle and walk access should be supported every day.
Thank you for the opportunity to comment.