Makeover USA: Short, 'Dowdy' D.C. Considers High Heels
The powers that be in Washington are typically, though certainly not always, wrestling with weighty issues.
Recently, they've also been debating height, and whether they prefer a stout, familiar dowager, or a taller, sleeker model.
Building heights, people: We're talking building heights in your nation's capital, where for more than a century the 1910 Building Height Act has kept the city's profile low.
Now, with the city's population expanding and space to build becoming increasingly scarce, discussion has intensified over whether to allow the city to soar higher.
Why Should You Care?
If you're one of the millions of Americans who have visited Washington — more than 16.8 million of you made the trek last year alone, a record — you've encountered a city that still looks a lot like the one envisioned by Maj. Pierre Charles L'Enfant in the late 1700s.
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