Land swap bill aims for Poplar Point road

Summary#

B26-0845, the Poplar Point Acquisition and Disposition Approval Act of 2026, is an introduced bill that would authorize specific District land transfers and an acquisition. It does not amend the federal 2006 law that governs the transfer of Poplar Point to the District; the stated goal is to help meet that law’s conditions and enable future use of the land. The bill is not law, and its passage is uncertain.

  • The Mayor could transfer about 12.5 acres at Poplar Point to the Navy and a separate half-acre parcel to a developer, subject to the transaction terms described in the bill and its attached term sheet.
  • The Mayor could acquire Square 5860, Lot 1041, from CQ Metro Land LLC, which the term sheet says would allow the District to build an entry road from Howard Road into Poplar Point.
  • The term sheet describes a related exchange: RB WNY LLC would give up its option on 12 acres at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling (JBAB), and the Navy would transfer control of that land to the National Park Service (NPS) for new NPS facilities.
  • The term sheet says Poplar Point development is restricted until the new NPS facilities are built and ready for use. The bill gives the Mayor 10 years from its effective date to make the authorized property transfers.
  • The bill authorizes these land transactions; it does not itself build the road or NPS facilities, transfer all of Poplar Point to the District, or approve development.

What it means for you#

  • District residents: The bill does not directly change residents’ rights, taxes, or access to existing services. It would allow land exchanges intended to support a new road entrance and future development; those outcomes are not guaranteed by the bill.
  • District government and taxpayers: The Mayor could make the listed property transfers and acquire Lot 1041. The District would also need to fund and build replacement facilities for NPS under the term sheet before the land can be developed.
  • NPS and the Navy: The term sheet describes the Navy transferring control of 12 acres at JBAB to NPS for replacement facilities, and the District transferring about 12.5 acres at Poplar Point to the Navy.
  • The developers: The term sheet describes RB WNY giving up its option on the JBAB land and the District transferring Poplar Point land to the Navy, for a separate transfer to RB WNY. It also describes CQ Metro Land transferring Lot 1041 to the District in exchange for a half-acre Poplar Point parcel. These further transfers depend on final transaction documents and stated conditions.

Money#

The fiscal impact statement says funds are sufficient in the FY2026 revised budget and FY2027–FY2030 financial plan to implement the bill, but the full cost of the NPS facilities is not known.

  • The District’s capital plan includes more than $28 million through FY2029 for environmental assessments at Poplar Point and design of the new NPS facilities.
  • The budget does not include construction funding for those facilities; the fiscal impact statement says the need will be known after design is complete.
  • The bill and supplied materials do not state cash prices or property valuations for the exchanges. No publicly available information.

What is unclear#

  • The supplied materials do not include the full current text of the D.C. law that the bill would override for these transfers, so its effect compared with all current-law requirements could not be verified.
  • The term sheet says it is not legally binding. The final transaction documents, parcel boundaries, and how the exchanges will be carried out are not included.
  • The bill refers to Council approval if substantive business terms change, but the supplied bill text does not include the section describing how that approval would work.
  • The costs of constructing the NPS facilities, and the value of the land being exchanged, are not stated.
  • The term sheet gives target closing dates and lets Redbrick extend them within limits or end the agreements. It is unclear whether the transactions will close.

Case for#

  • The federal 2006 law makes relocation of NPS facilities a condition of making Poplar Point available for development. The land exchange is designed to provide a site for those facilities.
  • Allowing the District to obtain Lot 1041 in exchange for a Poplar Point parcel could provide land for a new road entrance, as described in the term sheet.
  • The bill would give the Mayor a 10-year period to complete the authorized transfers, rather than requiring the transfers to happen immediately.

Case against#

  • The District would need to fund and build the replacement NPS facilities, but the construction cost is not yet known and is not included in the budget.
  • The bill authorizes transfers involving public land, but the supplied materials do not provide property valuations or cash terms to show how the exchanges compare in value.
  • The land transactions depend on several steps, approvals, and final documents. The bill does not ensure that the exchanges, road, or NPS facilities will be completed.
  • The term sheet describes a transfer from the Navy to a developer after the District transfers land to the Navy. The supplied materials do not explain the terms of that separate agreement.