The Alexandria City Council approved the following cases of interest during its final public hearing of the 2016-2018 City Council session on Saturday, December 15, 2018.
Potomac Yard Metrorail Station Revised Design
Council approved a Development Special Use Permit for a revised design of the Potomac Yard Metrorail Station, 2901 Potomac Avenue. The design features a single mezzanine from Potomac Yard to access station platforms. A second mezzanine at the end of East Glebe Road, which the station was originally proposed to include, may ultimately be reinstated thanks to state funding associated with the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus in nearby Oakville Triangle. If the entrance is restored, another DSUP approval would be required.
Greenhill/West Alexandria Coordinated Development District
Council approved a Coordinated Development District and related approvals for Greenhill/West Alexandria properties. The applicant, Greenhill Companies, proposes new mixed use development of a 15-acre area generally bounded by Van Dorn Street, Pickett Street, and Edsall Road in the city’s West End. The rezoning and development plan approved by City Council includes seven new development blocks, four new public streets, and “town green” park as the centerpiece of the development. The area could eventually include approximately 2 million square feet of development, including 223,000 square feet of retail with the rest comprised of multifamily residential, office, and parking. The development will have a maximum floor area ratio of 3.28, and maximum building heights of 85 to 170 feet. Specific buildings will require separate development special use permit approvals in the future.
Other Business
- Council approved a development special use permit for Braddock Gateway Phase III, profiled in detail in an earlier blog post.
- Council approved a development special use permit for a retail site pad at 2425 Eisenhower Avenue in Carlyle. The proposed building is anticipated to house additional retail and restaurants along the semicircular drive across Swamp Fox Road from the AMC Hoffman Center 22 movie theater and National Science Foundation headquarters.
- Council approved a special use permit for Lost Boy Cider to operate a production cidery at 317 Hooffs Run Drive in the Carlyle/Eisenhower East district. The Washington Business Journal profiled the business in a recent article.
- A proposed development special use permit to allow self-storage, commercial production/wholesale/repair, and (in phase 2) multifamily residential at 880 S. Pickett Street was deferred by the applicant, an affiliate of Public Storage, until March 2019 to allow additional time to work with neighboring landowners to address concerns regarding the proposal. At the Planning Commission meeting on December 4, 2018 many speakers said that the self-storage use is not consistent with the recently-adopted Eisenhower West Small Area Plan, and could jeopardize fulfillment of the plan as envisioned.
- Council approved a proposal to combine the new square under construction at the end of King Street with the existing Waterfront Park and keep the Waterfront Park name. The 2012 Waterfront Small Area Plan tentatively labeled the area Fitzgerald Square, but this name was never formally adopted by the city. Some sought to honor Colonel John Fitzgerald, the former Alexandria mayor and aide-de-camp of George Washington, by naming the square in his honor, but the City Naming Committee rejected the proposal given Fitzgerald’s ownership of enslaved persons.
The meeting was Mayor Allison Silberberg’s last as mayor. The new City Council, led by Mayor-Elect Justin Wilson, will be sworn in January 2, 2019 at TC Williams High School, with its first legislative meeting back at City Hall on January 8 and first public hearing on January 12.
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