D.C. Reveals Vision For RFK Campus With Up To 6,500 Homes

New details have emerged on what the massive mixed-use development surrounding D.C.’s future football stadium will look like. 

The city on Tuesday released its draft master plan for the 180-acre campus along the Anacostia River, set to be anchored by a 70,000-seat stadium for the Washington Commanders.

The plan, which was designed after just over a year of feedback sessions, divides the RFK campus into six districts with distinct purposes. The community has until Aug. 14 to submit feedback.

“We are taking another step forward in our promise to District residents and businesses — to plan not just for a world-class stadium, but for a community-centric 365-day campus that will drive growth for years to come,” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said in a release. “Now, let’s work together toward the final goal — to finalize a plan rich in amenities like housing, parks, and entertainment.”

The D.C. Office of Planning is expected to make adjustments to the master plan based on public feedback. But Planning Office Director Anita Cozart told Bisnow the overarching vision should largely remain the same.

“We think we captured the major thrust of what people want to see,” she said.

Three of the six districts — the Kingman Commons, the Riverfront District and the Plaza District — are imagined to consist of between 5,000 and 6,500 homes, 30% of which would be affordable, and a mix of other uses. 

The Stadium District, the acreage immediately surrounding the Commanders' stadium, is envisioned to act as an activated public gathering space for game days and other entertainment uses. 

There is also a recreation district, which would preserve and expand upon the open sports field spaces at the site while adding in some retail uses. 

The Anacostia Commons, a narrow stretch immediately adjacent to the Anacostia River, will be protected from commercial development. It will house parks, public trails and aquatic recreational programming.

The legislation that transferred the 180-acre site from the federal government to the District mandates that 30% of the site is preserved for parks and open spaces. 

Commercial development at RFK would be concentrated in the three residential districts, which together would span just over 61 acres. The Riverfront District would have the densest development, the plan says, with around 3,100 homes, 500 hotel rooms and 92K SF of retail across 19.4 acres, as well as a new parking garage on Independence Avenue. 

The Plaza District, which would be a five-minute walk from the existing Stadium Armory Metro station, places a focus on an activated public streetscape. That district would include around 2,200 homes, 700 hotel rooms and 150K SF of retail across 18.7 acres. The neighborhood is a good candidate to expand food access “by elevating food oriented businesses, grocery opportunities, and creating flexible community serving places such as outdoor markets,” the plan says.

Kingman Commons, adjacent to the existing historic houses that make up the Kingman neighborhood, is pitched for up to 1,300 homes with a parking garage and public-use sports complex. The plan attempts to integrate this area with the existing neighborhood through design and density. The plan says that it could also include a grocer, if one isn’t in the Plaza District. 

The master plan says 1,759 participants took part in D.C.'s outreach programming, which included eight focus groups, five interactive workshops and open houses, two site walks, and five community meetings and town halls.

Preliminary feedback during these sessions included desires to bring community amenities missing from the area like pharmacies, childcare facilities, clinics and grocery stores. Participants also focused on making sure the new development would align with the historic surrounding neighborhoods, that views of the Anacostia River would be maintained, and that natural features would be incorporated into the plan. 

Participants also voiced concerns about “development density and its impact on traffic, environmental sustainability, and parks and open space,” as well as “mixed sentiments about building heights,” according to the plan. 

Another point of tension was around how the two above-ground parking garages planned to service the stadium would “impact the look and feel of the neighborhood,” the plan says. 

The D.C. Office of Planning is attempting to mediate concerns about the garages by reimagining their design, Cozart said. Those structures are now going through a National Capital Planning Commission review, along with the stadium itself. 

Cozart said the Office of Planning expects to submit a revised master plan to the D.C. Council in early fall and hopes the body will approve it by the end of the year. The site would then go through a zoning process.

Solicitations for developer proposals would likely be released at the end of 2027 or early 2028, Cozart said.

The Washington Commanders are putting up $2.7B to build the football stadium, while D.C. has allocated $1.1B for infrastructure and the sports complex. 

UPDATE, JUNE 30, 5:40 P.M. ET: This story was updated with information from the D.C. Office of Planning.