Thursday, November 22, 2012
Council opts for nautical fence but puts emphasis on replacing unstable bulkhead.
Alexandria City Council overturned a decision by the city’s Board of Architectural Review on Saturday, approving the construction of a nautical post and rope fence at Windmill Hill Park as opposed to a BAR-endorsed split-rail fence. The fence would be designed to prevent park visitors from walking on an unstable and deteriorating bulkhead along the Potomac River. While council sided with the petitioners, the discussion in City Hall focused more on the state of the bulkhead and what needs to be done to replace it. Council ultimately opted to expedite analysis for design and funding the bulkhead project ahead of upcoming budget discussions for the new council that will be sworn in on Jan. 2, 2013. “We need to protect the public,” Vice Mayor …
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Windmill Hill Park
501 S Union St, Alexandria, VA
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Friday, July 27, 2012
Plans for a hotel on the city's riverside were met mostly with criticism, but also many suggestions for improvement at Wednesday night's Board of Architectural Review work session.
The Board of Architectural Review for the city’s Old and Historic District on Wednesday night listened to a bevy of opinions and suggestions about a proposal to build a 121-room hotel on the riverside. Of the 27 public commenters, 23 criticized the plan generally for what they characterized as its large size and density, but for other reasons too. Rust Orling is the architect of the project at 220 S. Union St. proposed by developer Carr Hospitality. It has the challenge of honoring the city’s guidelines asking that these waterfront developments reflect the area’s historic warehouse district without making the building look too much like a boxy, dense warehouse. “This portion of the waterfront needs to be porous—not private enclaves,” said …
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Andrew Macdonald says the city once again has failed to ask local residents what they want a redeveloped waterfront to look like.
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Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Some things never seem to change. By pushing the Board of Architectural Review to hold what is just an “informal hearing” on a proposed hotel at the foot of Duke Street in Old Town, City Hall is making it clear, yet again, that the end justifies the means. The end is a spot or spots along the Potomac where developers can put up one or two “boutique-ish” hotels with splendid river views. City planners and their political allies have been hell-bent since the start of the waterfront planning process several years back on finding a way to get property owners to agree to a zoning change that would permit waterfront hotels where none are currently permitted. They had NO trouble convincing property owners like the Washington Post Co, who wants …
OT insider
8:28 pm on Sunday, November 25, 2012
The opposition wasn't very well organized. You really should have focused more on the Democratic primary. Once your candidates (except one) lost the election was a fait accompli. And the simple fact is that the waterfront plan really isn't that much of an issue outside of Old Town. If it is, you're on the wrong side of it, based on both the primary and the general election. more ›