School Staff Recommends New Measures to Ease Traffic Concerns at Seminary Hill School Project

(Updated 10/31/19) Alexandria City Public Schools are moving forward with plans to use Patrick Henry Elementary School as swing space with some new aspects that aim to ease concerns about traffic

By September 2020, ACPS plans to have to schools open on the lot where the former Patrick Henry Elementary School currently sits (4643 Taney Lane). The plan use the former Patrick Henry building for Douglas MacArthur students while the Douglas MacArthur school is under construction, with the new temporary school called Douglas MacArthur on Taney Avenue. The school will remain there until the new Douglas MacArthur opens in 2023.

The plans have controversial in the past, with some nearby residents expressing concerns about the new levels of traffic the schools would bring to the nearby two-lane Latham Street, and Peacock and Polk Avenues.

“It was adversarial before the vote, but after everyone has shown up to these meetings trying to find solutions and figure out how best to make this work,” staff said at a meeting last Thursday. “I think it’s been helpful and a lot of that collaboration is happening.”

The project will include staggered start times for the two schools, with the Douglas MacArthur School opening and closing a half-hour after Patrick Henry Elementary to safely allow bus traffic from one school to exit before the other arrives. ACPS currently faces a bus driver shortage, as noted by almost daily warnings on the school system’s website, staff said the schools will ultimately have to look for additional contractors.

School staff also recommended a two-way circulation system at the school’s single, central loop. Parents dropping off or picking up children at Patrick Henry would travel counter-clockwise at the outer level of the circle while pick-up or drop-off for Douglas MacArthur would run clockwise at the inner ring of the circle.

Approval for the use of the existing Patrick Henry facility as swing space, while construction is underway on the new facility, is scheduled to go before the City Council for approval next month. The Douglas MacArthur design kickoff meeting is planned for tomorrow (Tuesday) at 6 p.m. at Douglas MacArthur Elementary School (1101 Janneys Lane).

Image via Alexandria City Public Schools