Tuesday, May 14, 2013
WMATA's North Old Town bus depot starts to see movement in the transit authority's efforts to move it to Fairfax County.
Plans to move the Metro bus depot from North Old Town to Fairfax County are once again underway after several years of litigation appear to have come to a close. The Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority (WMATA) has been planning to move the depot, but a lawsuit by a homeowners association in Fairfax County clogged its progress. The case was ruled in favor of moving the depot, but the decision was appealed. In mid-April, the Virginia Supreme Court made a ruling allowing the bus depot to proceed with moving from its prime real estate location in one of the most expensive parts of Alexandria. Alexandria Mayor Bill Euille said he’s pleased that the depot will be moving from Old Town as he’s been advocating for that since he joined WMATA’s…
Saturday, May 11, 2013
The city and the developers of the Harris Teeter Development project are hosting a community meeting to discuss changes on Montgomery Street.
Learn about upcoming improvements to Montgomery Park in North Old Town as part of the Harris Teeter Development Project. The public is invited to attend an informational meeting May 22 at 7 p.m. It will be held onsite - rain or shine - at the Montgomery Park gazebo, 901 N. Royal St. The purpose of the meeting is to provide residents the opportunity to learn about upcoming improvements that are being funded and constructed by Buchanan Partners, who are the developers for the Harris Teeter Development project. City staff and the developer will be available to answer questions. Featured park improvements include realignment and expansion of the existing dog park, new dog park site furnishings, tree plantings and a new park access from Fairfax…
Monday, April 8, 2013
PCIA signs new 10-year lease with the help of realty adviser WLS.
PCIA, a trade group representing companies in the wireless telecommunications industry, recently signed a lease to remain in Old Town Alexandria. The group, represented by Washington, DC-based West, Lane & Schlager Realty Advisors, or WLS, has inked a new 10-year, 5,601-square-foot lease at 500 Montgomery St. in North Old Town. WLS also recently represented World Hope International, a Christian relief and development organization in a new 10-year, 3,888-square-foot lease at 1330 Braddock Place in Alexandria. For the quickest updates about Alexandria, Like Old Town Alexandria Patch on Facebook, Follow @alexandriapatch on Twitter and sign up for the free, daily email newsletter.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
North Old Town is the spotlight in Alexandria as part of the 80th Historic Garden Week in Virginia.
Eight of Old Town’s finest private homes and gardens will open their doors to the public as part of the 80th Historic Garden Week in Virginia. This year’s tour in Alexandria covers the northern part of Old Town and includes houses dating back to 1795. The homes on display April 20 will feature flower arrangements created by members of the Garden Club of Alexandria and the Hunting Creek Garden Club. All proceeds go toward the restoration of historic gardens and landmarks in Virginia. In addition to the homes and gardens listed below, participants of the garden tour may enter free of charge with a garden ticket the Lee-Fendall House Museum and Garden, Carlyle Historic Park and Lloyd House, American Horicultur Society at River Farm, George …
Monday, March 18, 2013
Police visited 40 stores and six arrests were made for selling alcohol to patrons under age 21.
Alexandria police in concert with informants visited several businesses throughout the city Thursday to find out if they would sell alcohol to patrons under age 21. The Giant Food store on First Street was among those shops that illegally sold alcoholic beverages, police said. Prior to the enforcement efforts, uniformed officers visited businesses throughout the city and provided education and awareness information for the businesses and their employees. Officers used confidential informants ages 19 and 20 to purchase alcoholic beverages from various locations. The informants were instructed to enter the businesses and attempt to purchase alcoholic beverages. If asked for identification, the informant showed the clerk their legal …
Monday, March 11, 2013
The city's Planning and Zoning Department held an informal meeting to present possible park designs and collect community input on potential park features.
City planners hosted an informal gathering over the weekend to gather input and offer information about a proposed park on the Wythe Street Post Office block. “The idea for this meeting is to get as many people in the neighborhood exposed to what is going on here,” said Planning and Zoning Deputy Director Karl Moritz, who was at the Saturday afternoon meeting answering community questions. The park was approved with the Braddock Road Metro Station Small Area Plan in March 2008 and in May 2010 the city purchased for $2.35 million with open space funds a property at 600 N. Henry St. as the first step in the park’s implementation process. At the time there was no available funding for park planning or construction, according to an Aug. 28, …
Monday, March 4, 2013
Planning Commission and then City Council are expected to address changes to zoning law that critics say could affect citizens' rights across the city.
A group of Alexandria civic associations is asking the city manager to defer action on an amendment that would change local zoning rules. They say proposed changes designed to move forward officials’ plans to redevelop the waterfront could blunt their ability to protest unwanted development near their homes anywhere across the city. City officials announced mid-February plans to introduce a new zoning text amendment that they say would allow the city to beat litigation related to implementing the city's waterfront development plan. • See: Alexandria City Council to Vote Once Again on Waterfront Plan Tom Soapes, president of the North Old Town Independent Citizens Civic Association or NOTICe, which signed the March 1 letter, told Patch "one…
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Independent Citizens Association asks City Council to fund revision of the neighborhood's plan, which has not been significantly updated since 1992.
North Old Town residents are pressing City Council to fund a revision of the community's small area plan while council is deliberating what to include in Alexandria's fiscal year 2014 budget. “As we understand it, the resources in the planning department are limited and there are other parts of the city interested in having their plans updated, too,” Tom Soapes, president of the North Old Town Independent Citizens’ Association of Alexandria, or NOTICe, told Patch. For more news about development in Old Town Alexandria, Like Old Town Alexandria Patch on Facebook, Follow us on Twitter and sign up for our free, email newsletter. Soapes noted that it has been more than 20 years since the North Old Town small area plan has seen any significant …
Monday, November 19, 2012
GenOn is aggressively disassembling its plant in North Old Town, but must wait for a company merger before making key business decisions.
GenOn is aggressively dismantling the Potomac River Power Generating Station in Alexandria but plans for its future are temporarily on hold until the firm completes its merger with Princeton, N.J.-based NRG Energy. When completed, the merger will create the nation’s largest electricity generator and include a portfolio of fossil, solar, nuclear and wind facilities. The deal is expected to close by the first quarter of 2013, according to an NRG news release. Phase One of the Potomac River plant deactivation is scheduled to be completed mid-2013 with Phase 2 beginning “in earnest” with completion of the merger, said GenOn Vice President for Asset Management Misty Allen on Thursday night. The company must complete a financial analysis of the …
As power company GenOn dismantles its plant in North Old Town, Pepco says it will remain and work on remediation efforts.
Power company Pepco plans to operate its substation indefinitely on its site in North Old Town so that it can serve customers in Washington, D.C., Maryland's Montgomery and Prince George’s counties as well as areas in Northern Virginia. It does not serve power to the City of Alexandria. “Pepco will continue to be a good neighbor. We will continue to have the substation and we’re working closely with GenOn on remediation,” said Wes McNealy, director of environmental services for Pepco parent company Pepco Holdings, at a Thursday night meeting. GenOn officially shut down its electricity generation operations Oct. 1. Pepco's substation was connected to the plant and it owns the land leased by GenOn. McNealy outlined for the North Old Town …
OT insider
8:24 pm on Tuesday, May 14, 2013
This (like the Harris Teeter site) is one of those head scratchers where I don't see how anyone who lives in OT North and deals with this every day has any other opinion than this is a great change. This site is a horrible, pollution-producing eyesore. I lived a half a block away from it for 14 years and always hoped this day would finally come. I can certainly see how some would debate retail vs… more ›