the Neighborhood Design Center
Project No. 3732

Greater Oxon Hill: Supporting Community Development Through Façade Improvements

Bordered by Washington, DC and the Capital Beltway, Forest Heights in Southern Prince George’s County is a hub that serves visitors who come to shop, dine and worship. The Neighborhood Design Center partnered with Greater Oxon Hill CDC to create a more inviting commercial area to enhance community and future economic development. Through an engaged community design process, NDC designed various facade and landscaping improvements for business owners.

What We Did

  • Research
  • Façade and streetscape improvements
  • Community Engagement
  • Project Management

Partners

  • Greater Oxon Hill CDC

Supporters

  • State of Maryland - Department of Housing and Community Development

The Challenge: transform a suburban thoroughfare to an urban boulevard, making businesses more visible and accessible

The businesses along Livingston Road and MD Route 210 in Forest Heights’ commercial area include a vibrant mix of restaurants, shops and churches. The Greater Oxon Hill CDC envisioned creating a space that serves the community’s needs while reflecting and enhancing the vitality of the existing businesses.

Their vision is part of a long-term plan to make public realm improvements to the area to promote pedestrian safety, enhance area aesthetics, and support business growth to transform the MD 210 corridor from a suburban thoroughfare to an urban boulevard, making businesses more visible and accessible.

Supporting Black businesses is key to addressing systemic inequity in the United States.

Why it’s important: confronting significant disparities enhances Black businesses and advances the overall health of the neighborhood.

A Brookings analysis points to the devaluation of commercial properties in Black neighborhoods, leading to significant fiscal consequences for Black communities. The study found that in majority-Black ZIP codes, devaluation results in aggregate wealth losses of $171 billion for retail real estate. 

The analysis states: “The commercial real estate (CRE) market [in Black communities] is relatively small compared to housing. However, because individual CRE assets are large and more valuable per square foot, their health can have an outsized influence on the well-being of a community.”

Confronting the significant disparities and systemic inequities responsible for devaluing Black communities presents a multi-faceted challenge, necessitating investment in the commercial areas of these neighborhoods. While seemingly small against the backdrop of the size of the challenge, the facade improvements enhance Black community businesses, contributing to the broader goal of advancing the overall health of the neighborhood.

An overhead map showing the five businesses selected to participate in the facade improvement program.
An overhead map showing the five businesses selected to participate in the facade improvement program.

Proposed paint palette for façade improvements with directions on what should go where, plus sample planters showing placement of low-maintenance selections, including little bluestem, creeping phlox, and blazing star.
Proposed paint palette for façade improvements with directions on what should go where, plus sample planters showing placement of low-maintenance selections, including little bluestem, creeping phlox, and blazing star.
Slide 1 of 6
Before and Afters — current façades on left, proposed improvements on right.
Before and Afters — current façades on left, proposed improvements on right.

The Future

Along with Greater Oxon Hill CDC, the team organized a stakeholder meeting with businesses, property owners, and local government leaders to discuss the initial design ideas for the façade program and how it plays a role in the development of a future Greater Oxon Hill.

With the finalized designs complete, Greater Oxon Hill CDC is working with business owners and subcontractors to begin implementing many of the design ideas. While not all elements of the vision were attainable through a facade improvement program, the CDC is working on new funding sources to support larger-scale landscape design improvements, parking lot redesigns, and other elements identified in the vision.