Board of Architectural Review

News

Basilica of St. Mary bridge and expansion designs move forward

By Vernon Miles
Basilica School of Saint Mary redesign, via City of Alexandria

The Basilica of Saint Mary in Old Town is looking for city permission to make some expansions to the church grounds and make parts of the property more accessible.

The designs for a new bridge are headed to review at the Board of Architectural Review on Wednesday, July 21, as part of a broader process of adding to the Basilica School of Saint Mary. The church is hoping to add a new new library and media center to the campus, and install a connecting bridge that will help make the different parts of the facility more connected.

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Opinion

Poll: Do you call it the ‘Parker-Gray’ or ‘Braddock’ neighborhood?

By Vernon Miles
A trail near the Braddock Road Metro Station in Alexandria (staff photo by James Cullum)

Within the rather obscure confines of the Board and Architectural Review staff report this week resurfaced a long-simmering discussion: what is the cultural identity of the Parker-Gray neighborhood in 2021.

For years a historically Black neighborhood, Parker-Gray draws its name from the the Parker-Gray School that educated the city’s Black children when the the city’s school system was still divided by segregation.

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News

New Parker-Gray development pushed to veer away from Old Town aesthetics

By Vernon Miles
Proposed 805 N Columbus Street development (image via City of Alexandria)

(Updated 5/20) A stretch of vacant land and parking lots in the Parker-Gray could soon become a five-story, multi-family residential development with a redesign meant to evoke the neighborhood’s unique heritage.

The development is headed to its second Board of Architectural Review (BAR) meeting tomorrow (Wednesday). The building underwent a slight redesign after a February meeting when the board scolded the architect for trying to make an industrial waterfront-style building in lieu of respecting the historically Black neighborhood’s own unique — and distinctly not Old Town — aesthetics and style.

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News

Local Business in Hot Water with City Architects After Unauthorized Paintjob

By Vernon Miles

A Parker-Gray business could have to un-paint their property after an unauthorized paint-job over a building’s historically significant architecture.

A commercial building at 1000 Queen Street may have looked significantly whiter late last year after the applicant, Anchor Property Services, painted over the existing yellow-brick exterior with a white coat of paint.

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News

Contested Parker-Gray Townhouse Returns to City Tomorrow

By Vernon Miles

Density is forcing some Alexandrians to get closer to their neighbors than they might want: creating some tension as a new townhouse on a vacant lot returns to the Board of Architectural Review tomorrow (Thursday).

The BAR is scheduled to review an application to turn lots 1413 and 1415 Princess Street — which have sat undeveloped since 1893 — into a pair of townhouses. Staff reviewed the application and endorsed much of it, but the project still generated concern over its proximity and scale compared to some surrounding buildings.

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News

Old Town Parking Garage to be Replaced With Townhouses

By Vernon Miles
101 Duke Street (rendering via Eleventh Street Development LLC)

(Updated 1/6/21) A brick parking garage at 101 Duke Street, planted squarely in the heart of Old Town, could be redeveloped into six new townhouses.

At a Board of Architectural Review meeting scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 21, a development proposal by Cummings Investment Associates Inc. is docketed for a concept review.

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News

Building Next to Old Town Theater to Receive Restorative Facelift

By Vernon Miles
Current brick exterior of 815 King Street (photo via Google Maps)

With the Old Town Theater getting a makeover as a Patagonia, the building next-door could be getting a visual overhaul as well.

According to an application headed to the Board of Architectural Review next month, 815 King Street owner Asana Partners is hoping to restore the building’s original limestone facade — at least in color.

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News

New Report Highlights History of Clashes Between Civil Rights and Historic Preservation in Alexandria

By Vernon Miles

In a Board of Architectural Review meeting earlier this week, local historic preservation consultant John Sprinkle shared some research from an upcoming book about the intersection — and sometimes fiery conflict — between the city’s efforts at historic preservation and the Civil Rights movement.

“From Historic Preservation to Neighborhood Conservation: Displacement, Urban Violence, and Architectural Survey in Alexandria, Virginia” details how, over the last fifty years, the city’s efforts at historic preservation have sometimes been at odds with efforts at preserving affordable housing in and around Black neighborhoods.

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News

New Parker-Gray Development Raises Architectural Crowding Concerns from Neighbors

By Vernon Miles
1415 Princess Street (photo via Google Maps)

Old Town neighbors raised eyebrows at a proposed development at 1415 Princess Street that staff said would fit all the zoning requirements, but still puts nearby residents in a tight bind.

Viewed from the street, 1415 Princess Street appears to be a house-sized vacant lot on the largely residential street in the Parker-Gray neighborhood. But the empty space at 1415 Princess Street is actually part of a three lot segment, two of which came forward to the Board of Architectural Review as part of a proposed development that would rub right up against the front doors of neighboring homes.

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