Located in northwest Washington between 16th Street and Georgia Avenue, the 113-acre Walter Reed Campus was one of the most famous military facilities in the United States. Its hospital opened its doors in 1909 to ten patients, and fourteen years later Gen. John J. Pershing signed the order creating the Army Medical Center. In 1951 the complex of 100 Georgian style buildings was designated the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. In its more than 100-year history the location provided medical care for members of the U.S. military and their families along with elected leaders, including members of Congress, the Vice President and President.
Walter Reed was closed in 2011, and its functions were transferred to and combined with the Bethesda National Naval Medical Center. Subsequently, the Walter Reed campus was divided into two major sections, with 67.5 acres transferred to the District of Columbia and the remainder to the Department of State for development of a Foreign Missions Center. In 2016 Congress approved transfer of two buildings and 12 acres for use by the Children’s National Medical Center.
The Committee of 100 seeks the preservation and rehabilitation of the site’s historic structures for appropriate reuse while ensuring that new development is compatible with the historic buildings and site. The Committee has been involved in many significant activities that have taken place since the closing of Walter Reed, including support of the landmark designation of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center Historic District, which is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places; participation in numerous consultations on the site’s development, including a ,master plan for the site; and testimony before the DC City Council and regulatory agencies overseeing the site’s development.
Development of the DC portion of Walter Reed under a long-term lease will include residential, retail and commercial uses, as well as space for medical research and public parkland. Individual development projects are now moving forward, with one historic building renovated for use by two charter schools that opened in 2016. The Committee of 100 will continue to monitor activities and offer recommendations as the site is developed in future years.
C100 letter to Marcel Acosta, NCPC, commenting on the proposed design for the FEMS Engine 22 on the Building 18 site of the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC).
We participated as a consulting party on the draft programmatic agreement the Army negotiated with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and the DC Historic Preservation Office under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. We also attended numerous meetings concerning the reuse plan and small area plan. We testified on the District’s Walter Reed Small Area Plan before the HPRB in 2012 and the DC Council in 2013, and on the Walter Reed Text and Map Amendments before the DC Zoning Commission on the in April 2015. We have reviewed the materials provided in the application and the staff report by Tim Dennee.
The Committee of 100 on the Federal City (C100) is pleased to submit comments (and recommendations) regarding the proposal of the Children’s National Medical Center (CNMC) to acquire 13.2 acres [Buildings 54, 53, 52 and 3].
Although the Committee of 100 is sympathetic to the inherent tension in creating a diplomatic enclavewhile also providing a sufficiently secure and decorous environment for the diplomatic community, the Committee is seriously concerned that the apparent strategy of DOS is to create a blank slate for foreign mission development opportunities at Walter Reed.
The Committee of 100 is greatly distressed also to learn that the plan anticipates substantial demolition of most of the historic buildings on the portion of the campus that is going to be used for the new Foreign Missions Center. This seems to counter one of statements made by a State Department representative who said, “We are committed to protecting historic resources.” The devil is, as the old saying goes, in the details.
The historical importance of the site and designated features should be acknowledged and upheld throughout the redevelopment process. The Committee of 100 has commented on this subject previously and was a consulting party in the 106 process.
First, we want to stress that this site has great local as well as national historical significance. Second, the historical significance of WRAMC site is not limited to its function as an Army medical hospital and research facility that opened in 1909. Third, we wish to acknowledge and thank Tim Dennee, HPO architectural historian and preservation planner who has worked both thoughtfully and diligently with the Army, ACHP, and consulting parties on historic preservation issues at Walter Reed and to develop the programmatic agreement.Fourth, as Mr. Dennee’s report notes, there are also other historic properties that will be transferred to the Department of State on about 43 acres on the west side of Walter Reed.
The Committee appreciates the opportunity to state some concerns relating to the intention of the Department of State (DOS) to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement on the DOS proposal to obtain from the U.S. Army 43.5 acres of the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC) to redevelop as a Foreign Missions Center (FMC).
For most part, we are very pleased with the changes that have been made to the PA. The April 27, 2012 version incorporates many suggestions that we made to the November 3, 2011 draft and includes other improvements. We especially appreciate the additional inclusions of consulting parties in reviewing future plans and programs, and understand that this includes organizations and individuals who are interested but not necessarily signing as concurring parties.
