The Alexandria Board of Architectural Review held a concept review Wednesday night for the renovation of City Hall and Market Square Plaza, a project that aims to modernize the facilities while preserving historic elements of the landmark building.
The City of Alexandria presented plans that include a detailed restoration of the 1871 historic portion of City Hall, a redesign of Market Square, and modifications to the 1961 addition, including a new fifth floor.
“This is an exciting moment,” said Jeremy McPike, Director of General Services for the city. “Every 60 years this building has been through reimagination, re-envisioning based on lifespan. And so this is one of our moments to figure out the right components and features and elements for this facility.”
The project team conducted extensive community engagement with more than 40 meetings and outreach events to inform the design process.
“We wanted to hear from residents because this project combines two really central key elements to Old Town and Alexandria as a whole,” McPike explained.
The presentation began with a historical overview by Sarah Vonesh, Director of Preservation Planning with EHT Traceries, who detailed the building’s evolution since its construction in 1871-1873.
“The existing National Register nomination was prepared in 1984, and that identified a period of significance of 1871,” Vonesh said. “Through our research and analysis, we felt like this was insufficient in recognizing the building’s early and important role as the multifunctional civic core of Alexandria.”
The team recommended expanding the period of significance from 1871 to 1945, encompassing the design and construction of the building as well as its operation as a multifunctional civic hub.
Michael Bjornberg, senior historic architect with Leo Daly, outlined the preservation approach for the 1871 building, which includes repointing and cleaning the masonry, matching the original roofs in design and pattern, replacing windows with historically accurate configurations, and reinstating the original color palette.
“What we see as the opportunity moving forward is what we have learned from the past, what we’ve learned about the history of this building, an opportunity to rehabilitate the structure for many generations to enjoy and appreciate,” Bjornberg said.
Irena Savakova, global design principal with Leo Daly and design lead for the project, presented the proposed modifications to the 1961 addition and Market Square Plaza.
The design introduces full-height glazed “hyphens” to visually separate the 1961 addition from the historic portion, a new building entry with canopy, and a fifth floor addition set back from the southern edge of the building.
“We need to create that sense of openness, arrival sequence, and kind of a welcome for the citizens, not only just the tourists that are visiting, and create that synergy with Market Square,” Savakova explained.
The Market Square redesign replaces the current large fountain with a smaller water feature that can be turned on and off, allowing for more flexible use of the space. The plan includes a permanent stage with shade structure, terraced seating, and improved accessibility.
Board members provided feedback on the concepts, with several expressing concerns about the fifth-floor addition and the proposed entrance design.
“I think the fifth floor will be important not to have that fifth floor addition extend much beyond the 1871 Empire Building,” said board member Theresa Del Ninno.
Board member Robert Adams suggested that the entrance needs more work: “The entrance has always been an interesting element. I’m proposing, what if something was taller? It was two stories tall. It was a portico or some kind of classical element in the Colonial Revival vernacular.”
Several board members also questioned whether the modern elements of the Market Square design complement the historic building.
“The building is very formal, very kind of traditional and symmetrical. The new one that is proposed is very modern and it’s very active,” noted board member Nastaran Zandian. “I think it needs to be a little bit more responsive to the building.”
Public comments echoed some of these concerns. Gail Rothrock, representing the Historic Alexandria Foundation, questioned the need for a fifth floor and expressed concern about the proposed bump-out on Fairfax Street.
“I just think this is a very incongruous imposition. It just doesn’t. It just is incompatible with the historical structure,” Rothrock said of the fifth-floor addition.
Yvonne Callahan, president of Old Town Civic Association, praised the public engagement process but also expressed concerns about the fifth floor and the entrance design.
“The one rendition that you can kind of see the idea right here, but the entrance to me showed three, two sets of three, three arches each and a square perpendicular shaped entrance, which frankly looked like the entrance to a shopping centre,” Callahan said.
Board Chair Andrew Scott summarized the feedback, noting that the board appreciates the restoration work on the 1871 building but has concerns about the modifications to the 1961 addition.
“I think having barring the ability to put a spaceship in the middle in lieu of what’s there, I think it’s going to be hard to do small interventions of a third style, because we already have two styles,” Scott said.
The project team will incorporate the board’s feedback and return for another concept review before seeking formal approval. No vote was taken at this meeting, as is standard for concept reviews.
Those interested can watch the meeting below or here; the discussion on this item starts at approximately 49 minutes and lasts for approximately two hours.
