City Council moves new King Street pedestrian zone forward

Updated 7:45 p.m. — Christopher Ziemann, division chief for Department of Transportation & Environmental Services, said in an email:

What City Council approved last night was not the pedestrian zone directly. This requires an ordinance change, which requires a public hearing. That Council approved last night was the first reading of the item and to set it for public hearing on April 23. On the 23rd, there will be a public hearing on the topic, which will most likely involve a presentation, discussion, questions and public comments.

Alexandria’s City Council approved first reading of the temporary closure of the unit block of King Street and a block of the Strand to vehicle traffic, with a full hearing planned later this month.

The full public hearing is scheduled for Saturday, April 23.

If approved, the closure is set to last for three months, from Memorial Day to Labor Day, with staff checking in on local businesses and monitoring pedestrian traffic over that time to gauge the impact. The pilot follows a similar path to the closure of the 100 block of King Street, which was made permanent last year.

The new zone will bring outdoor dining to the sidewalk and parking areas if the restaurants get permits. Deliveries and loading will be shifted to Union Street. Movable barriers and movable bicycle racks will also be set up on the block.

The block had been the endpoint for the King Street trolley, though that was changed to the block outside City Hall after the closure of the 100 block.

In one of our recent unscientific polls, 40% of respondents they wanted the pedestrian zone to be expanded for a few more blocks, but not for the whole of King Street to be turned into a pedestrian zone. Around 33% said they wanted everything up to the King Street Metro station to be converted into a pedestrian zone.