Archive for 'Development'

Mayor: VDOT should have kept residents, city in the loop on looming Hunting Towers sale

Mayor: VDOT should have kept residents, city in the loop on looming Hunting Towers sale

By Derrick Perkins Mayor Bill Euille chided the Virginia Department of Transportation last week for keeping the potential sale of Hunting Towers under wraps. The mayor, like many residents, learned VDOT had selected a possible buyer [...]

Affordable housing developer secures city loan

Affordable housing developer secures city loan

By Derrick Perkins Alexandria City Council approved a $250,000 loan for an Arlington developer late last month, paving the way for the largest infusion of new affordable housing units in recent memory. The money will help [...]

Mayoral candidates clash over GenOn meeting

Mayoral candidates clash over GenOn meeting

By Melissa Quinn Mayor Bill Euille came under fire from rival Andrew Macdonald last week for discussing the future of the GenOn site with neighbors less than a day after it closed. Hosted by the North [...]

Displacement is essential to Beauregard redevelopment plan

Displacement is essential to Beauregard redevelopment plan

Following an exhaustive tug-of-war over waterfront redevelopment, city planners, residents and developers have begun a new battle for the future of Alexandria, this time in the city’s northwest corner: the Beauregard and Mark Center neighborhoods. In [...]

Where have all the bookstores gone?

Where have all the bookstores gone?

Frayed book spines with faded print protrude from the homey, white shelves of the Book Bank on upper King Street in Old Town, one of just three nonspecialty bookstores left in the city. It’s a business [...]

Nando’s chicken eatery eyes King Street location

Nando’s chicken eatery eyes King Street location

Goodbye Cajun fried chicken and hello Peri-Peri flavored poultry. The South Africa-based Nando’s, a restaurant chain trading heavily on the Portuguese-style, flame grilled chicken dish catching fire in the Washington region, wants to open their latest [...]

Gelato shop approved in old icehouse building

Gelato shop approved in old icehouse building

After icing the project to compromise with city preservationists and planners, city council candidate Boyd Walker gained approval to open a gelato shop at 200 Commerce St. in Old Town last week. Built in 1931, the [...]

On the waterfront, eminent domain option stays afloat

On the waterfront, eminent domain option stays afloat

City Councilman Frank Fannon raised eyebrows last week when he slammed the approved waterfront plan as having “endorsed the seizure of private property through eminent domain as an option.” Fannon, who cast one of two votes [...]

Opinion: Compromise over conflict

Opinion: Compromise over conflict

To the editor: Finally, a plan featuring countless hours of residents’ input, widespread support and numerous compromises — passed! Thank you to the city council members who voted in favor of the plan, including Mayor Bill [...]

Opinion: Andrew Macdonald is wrong; Mick Jagger is right

Opinion: Andrew Macdonald is wrong; Mick Jagger is right

To the editor: In response to Andrew Macdonald’s January 26 letter, “Waterfront plan approved long before city council voted”: Kudos to him for his fantastic work of fiction, contradiction and omission. I too was at the [...]