Waterfront Plan Archive

Page updated on Dec 9, 2015 at 11:40 AM

 

Archive Materials from the Waterfront Planning Process (April 2009-present)

 

Virginia Supreme Court Rejects Waterfront Opponents' Appeal

The Virginia Supreme Court has ruled that a major legal challenge by three plaintiffs to the City's approved Waterfront Small Area Plan is moot. The challenge stems from an attempt by the group to appeal the Waterfront Text Amendment to the Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA)—an attempt that was rejected by Planning and Zoning Director Faroll Hamer. The plaintiffs appealed to the Alexandria Circuit Court. The Circuit Court dismissed the case on the City's motion, and the group then appealed the matter to the Virginia Supreme Court.   

January 21, 2012 City Council Public Hearing

City Council adopted the draft waterfront small area plan dated July 2011, incorporating the recommendations from the Planning Commission and the Waterfront Work Group and City staff has outlined in the  memo (Staff Report) dated January 17, 2012 , as an amendment to the  City's Master Plan  and a text amendment to the  Zoning Ordinance Section 5.500 of the W-1 Waterfront Mixed Use zone , request the City Attorney to prepare the necessary ordinance and direct staff to proceed with implementation planning as directed in the report, with the following amendments: 1. on page 122, add a new sentence at the end of Parking recommendation 4:34 (d), which states: Testing and monitoring the effect of waterfront development on residential parking areas, with the understanding that additional protective measures should be taken to protect those residential areas. Add a new sentence to read: New residential parking controls, such as restricting parking to permit holders after 6:00 p.m., should be considered an implementation priority. 2. Add language to both the permitted and the special use lists in the W-1 zone: Uses that foster art, history and cultural awareness through increased understanding and training, such as museums, schools and cultural institutions. Any use over 5,000 square feet requires a special use permit. 3. add the word "preferably" in Recommendation 3.69 regarding eminent domain. 4. that it limit to two hotels in the whole waterfront plan, with a total limit of 300 rooms with 150 rooms per hotel in the entire W-1 zone. 5. to add specificity to the language so each parcel has the height limits clearly stated in the master plan.  

  1. Waterfront Small Area Plan and Text Amendment 
  2. Waterfront Small Area Plan - Highlights of the Planning Process 
  3. May 14, 2011 City Council Questions and Staff Responses 
  4. January 6, 2012 Joint Worksession Staff Memo 
  5. Complete List of the Work Group's Recommendations 
  6. Comparison Matrix - Draft Plan and CAAWP Report 
  7. Proposed Changes to the Draft Waterfront Plan to Update References to the GenOn Potomac River Generating Station 

Updated Draft Waterfront Plan
This document reflects updates to the first draft, released February 28, pursuant to approval of the Planning Commision. All discussions taking place on the plan as of September 2011, including those of the Waterfront Plan Work Group, were in reference to this document.

January 10, 2012 City Council Worksession

Waterfront Plan Work Group (WPWG)
The WPWG was an 8 member citizen advisory group, formed to identify consesus areas and to identify, categorize, and narrow differences on the concerns raised by residents over the plan.

Fall/Winter 2012 Analysis of Report by the Citizens for an Alternative Alexandria Waterfront Plan ( CAAWP)

June 11, 2011 City Council Worksession

On Saturday, June 11, 2011 the City Council held a public worksession on the draft Waterfront Small Area Plan.  In response to staff's presentation, the City Council shared comments and questions.

May 14, 2011 City Council Hearing

On Saturday, May 14, 2011 the City Council held a public hearing on the draft Waterfront Small Area Plan.  Following a staff presentation and public testimony, the City Council shared comments and questions and requested staff to respond in a Work Session.  The comments and questions have been documented in a May 23, 2011 Memorandum from Faroll Hamer, Director, Planning and Zoning Department.  The City Council Work Session on the Waterfront Small Area Plan is confirmed for Saturday, June 11, 2011, 9:30 am in the City Council Chambers, City Hall.  Staff will return at that time with responses to the comments and questions.

May 3, 2011 Planning Commission Hearing

On May 3, 2011, the Planning Commission voted 6-1  to pass the Waterfront Plan and associated Text Amendment. There were minor changes requested in the action to reflect the desire for boutique hotels and the final vision for the area in and around the foot of King Street, among other changes as reflected in the May 3rd memorandum. 

May 3, 2011 Planning Commission Memorandum

The May 3rd memorandum to the Planning Commission outlined responses and changes recommended to the Plan following questions, testimony and letters generated for the April 5th waterfront public hearing.    

The changes recommended by the staff were based on comments, presentations and testimony at the April 5 hearing.  In addition, new information concerning the Old Dominion Boat Club discussions is included, but as these discussions had not been completed there is no specific staff recommendation for their implementation, other than that the Planning Commission acknowledged the discussions and the possibility of an agreement with the ODBC in the future.  For these reasons, the Planning Commission decided not to take additional testimony at the May 3 public hearing.

 Download the memorandum 

(It has come to our attention that some may have difficulty viewing the development table in the memorandum. This table was first posted in the  April 5 Staff Report, and can also be downloaded as a  single page. Staff apologizes for any inconvenience in your review of the materials.)

 

Planning Commission Public Hearing, May 3, 2011 

Planning Commission Public Hearing, April 5, 2011 

City Council Worksession, February 8, 2011 

Old and Historic District - Board of Architectural Review , February 1, 2011 

Planning Commission Worksession, February 1, 2011 

Old Town Civic Association, January 12, 2011 

Waterfront Community Open House and Meeting, Monday December 13, 2010 

Art on The Waterfront - Update Meeting and Presentation, Monday, June 21, 2010 

History Night - Update Meeting and Presentation, Tuesday, June 15, 2010 

Waterfront Concept Plan Community Meeting Presentation, Monday, May 3, 2010 

Potomac Waterfront Flood Mitigation Study, Tuesday, March 16, 2010  

Art Night, Monday, March 8, 2010 

Marina Night, Thursday, January 28, 2010 

History Night, Thursday, January 14, 2010 

City Council Worksession, October 27, 2009 

Old and Historic District - Board of Architectural Review, October 21, 2009 

Planning Commission Worksession, October 6, 2009 

Community Meeting at the Torpedo Factory, September 29, 2009
The meeting at the Torpedo Factory included a brief presentation of proposed guiding concepts for the waterfront plan and key ideas for subareas developed from the initial community meetings and tours. Following the presentation, attendees visited displays of each of the principal waterfront subareas and placed "like" (green) and "dislike" (red) stickers on images representing ideas for these subareas. Representatives of Robinson Terminal and the Food Court staffed displays showing ideas for the future of these facilities, and active discussion continued around the boards until 9:00 p.m.

Field Trip to New York City, August 5, 2009
The Alexandria Planning Commission made a one-day bus trip on August 5, 2009 to New York City. The trip included visits to Battery Park City, the High Line and to Bryant Park, considered among the most successful public spaces in the country. Battery Park City is a series of exceptionally well-designed public spaces linked along a waterfront, and it offers lessons in incorporating public art, ferry and terminal operations, utilization of open space, and connectivity along the waterfront.

Community Planning Charrette - Saturday, June 27, 2009
Almost 100 members of the community participated in the City's Waterfront Planning Charrrette on Saturday, June 27.  The morning session consisted of a series of presentations outlining existing conditions, such as environmental constraints, historic resources, shoreline conditions, flooding issues, economics and demographics. The afternoon session provided an opportunity for the community to break into small groups and collaborate on developing a vision for the waterfront by exploring the various themes identified in the morning session.

Walking Tour - June 24, 2009 

Waterfront Boat Tour - May 30, 2009 

Public Forum #2 - April 30, 2009 

Public Forum #1 - April 23, 2009 

 

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