With the City of Alexandria returning to regulating on-street retail and restaurant uses, including adding a price tag for the benefit, the City Council is also scheduled to review a few changes to make the process a little less onerous.
At a meeting scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 11, the Council is set to take a look at some changes to reduce redundancies and streamline the process for businesses hoping to make use of sidewalk and street space.
The first change is that businesses can open not only in front of their own location but can make use of space in front of a neighbor’s business or restaurant — provided obviously that they get permission from that business or restaurant.
Alexandria also had some fairly restrictive requirements about types and numbers of outdoor seating, which the new ordinance does away with: the only requirement being compliance with the statewide building code. The only remnant of that requirement is that the sidewalk can’t be used as storage for seating. The ordinance also gets rid of a restriction on outdoor dining between Thanksgiving and March.
Because many of these uses are being added to much older developments, the ordinance also includes a change that the outdoor dining must adhere to the city’s outdoor dining design guidelines. On-street retail or restaurant space only has to go to the Department of Transportation and Environmental Services or the Board of Architectural Review if the outdoor additions penetrate the sidewalk.
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St. Paul’s Episcopal Preschool, a play-based, half-day preschool in the heart of Old Town, Alexandria has limited openings for the ’23-’24 school year.
SPEP offers:
- 18 month old – Kindergarten classes
- Full day Kindergarten option (3 days/week)
- Early Care
- Transportation (ages 3+)
- Weekly Field Trips (ages 3+)
- Financial Aid available
Monarch Montessori School located in the heart of Del Ray is enrolling children 6 weeks to 6 years of age for our half day and full day program.
Our hours of operation are 8:00 AM to 5:30 PM, Monday-Friday. Monarch Montessori School is open year round, with intermittent breaks.
Children engage in self-directed, self-initiated activities under the guidance of a trained Montessori teacher. Classroom sizes range from 8-12 students. Our robust curriculum includes botany, sensorial activities, the social graces, culture, math, science, practical life, geography, music appreciation and language arts.
You’ll get half off of the registration fee when you register and begin care with us before April 30, 2023.
Del Ray Dog Fest & Yappy Hour
The 1st Annual Del Ray Dog Fest is a fun outdoor event that will include dog-centered activities, dog menu items, live music, vendors and food on Sunday, April 2 from 11am- 3pm at the George Washington Middle School parking lot.