To the editor:

According to the Alexandria Waterfront Plan, the City of Alexandria parking lot opposite Chadwicks Restaurant on Strand Street adjacent to the Potomac River is to be converted into a park. However, this lot currently holds 50 vehicles and is the only public parking available in this area.

Visitors to Old Town’s waterfront have no choice other than to park in this lot. In addition to our visitors, a large number of employees at the many waterfront restaurants in that area will need to find parking spaces, which will be most likely in the residential parts of Old Town.

This decision ultimately impacts visitors, restaurant patrons, hospitality and restaurant workers and residents in this part of Old Town. A wise move would be to revisit the original decision and provide a strategically balanced solution for all stakeholders.

-Townsend A. “Van” Van Fleet, Alexandria St. Vincent de Paul Society