The future of Alexandria’s West End is being reevaluated with a series of open houses in the coming days.
City staff are working to update Alexandria’s long-term vision for the 1992 Alexandria West Small Area Plan and integrate it with the 2012 Beauregard Small Area Plan.
City Council directed staff last year to start updating the plans to include new policies on affordable housing, open space and “address current community needs and incorporate current City policies and best practices,” according to the city.
“We need more deeply affordable housing, current numbers/goals are not enough,” one meeting participant recently recommended.
“We need a more livable community, both in terms of quality of life and affordability,” said another.
The following open houses will include interactive stations to allow participants to leave feedback on land use, open space, mobility and sustainability in the West End, according to the city.
- Thursday, Oct. 26, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Ferdinand T. Day Elementary School (1701 N. Beauregard Street)
- Saturday, Nov. 4, from 1 to 4 p.m. at William Ramsay Recreation Center (5650 Sanger Avenue)
- Wednesday, Nov. 8 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Redella S. “Del” Pepper Community Resource Center (4850 Mark Center Drive)
“All are welcome to participate in these open houses which are free and open to the public,” according to the city. “We invite you to come to any or all three open houses to share your thoughts on the future of Alexandria West and hear about different concepts for open space, sustainability, land use, and mobility. Each open house will have the same general content.”
Many of the city’s proposals over the past year have included data on residents who are housing cost burdened (in gallery above).
According to the city, the updated plan will:
- Enable the 10-to-30-year-old land use plans to be updated comprehensively to address current community needs and incorporate current City policies and best practices
- Address the issue of housing vulnerability and affordability by leveraging housing resources, policies, and funding opportunities to meet this challenge; and
- Develop an approach to guide and shape future development and make expectations clear for the community, City and developers
The city anticipates releasing a draft plan in March/April, a community comment period next summer and then Council approval in September.
Below is a video update on the Alexandria West Planning Project.
Four male juveniles were arrested after a brief chase from a stolen car in the West End on Tuesday afternoon, prompting four schools to go on lockdown, according to the Alexandria Police Department.
The incident occurred at around noon near the 1400 block of N. Beauregard Street. Police recovered a handgun from one of the suspects, according to dispatch reports.
“While conducting the traffic stop, all individuals from the vehicle fled,” APD said in a release. “Additional Officers were dispatched to the area to locate the suspects. During the search, APD Officers found four juvenile male suspects and took them into custody. APD recovered one weapon.”
The charges against the minors include drug possession with intent to sale, a concealed weapons charge, illegal weapons possession, and other weapon offenses, according to APD.
Anyone with information about this incident can call the APD non-emergency number at 703-746-4444. Callers can remain anonymous.
The incident prompted four nearby schools to go into “secure the building” mode. Ferdinand T. Day Elementary School (1701 N. Beauregard Street), William Ramsay Elementary School (5700 Sanger Avenue), John Adams Elementary School (5651 Rayburn Avenue) and the Early Childhood Center (5651 Rayburn Avenue) went into “secure the building” from 12:15 to 12:35 p.m.
On Monday afternoon, three juveniles were arrested after an estimated 40 shots were fired. The shots were fired in an alleyway in the 1200 block of Madison Street, a block away from the Braddock Road Metro station, and no one was injured. Also that day, shots were fired at a Bradlee Shopping Center bus stop, which is near Alexandria City High School.
News Release:: The Alexandria Police Department Makes Arrest in Stolen Auto Case
On Tuesday, April 18, APD Officers attempted to make a traffic stop on a stolen vehicle from Fairfax County near the 1400 block of N. Beauregard Street.
Read more : https://t.co/OjySFEPAsi
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) April 20, 2023
Image via Google Maps
(Updated 2 p.m.) Four Alexandria schools went into “secure the building” mode earlier today after nearby police activity.
Alicia Hart, chief of facilities and operations for Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS), said Ferdinand T. Day Elementary School (1701 N. Beauregard Street), William Ramsay Elementary School (5700 Sanger Avenue), John Adams Elementary School (5651 Rayburn Avenue) and the Early Childhood Center (5651 Rayburn Avenue) were in “secure the building” status today from 12:15-12:35 p.m.
According to Hart:
Dear Families,
At about 12:15 p.m. today, four Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) were briefly placed in “secure the building” status in response to nearby police activity (unrelated to school operations). These schools are Ferdinand T. Day Elementary School, William Ramsay Elementary School, John Adams Elementary School and the Early Childhood Center. The Alexandria Police Department gave the all clear notification at about 12:35 p.m., and normal operations resumed at all four schools.
“Secure the building” means that the school day continues on a normal schedule inside the school but no one is allowed to enter or leave the school while the building remains secured. This step was taken as a precaution in response to an Alexandria Police Department (APD) notification of current police activity. An ACPS video provides more information on what happens when a school is placed in “secure the building” mode.
The safety and security of our students and staff are a priority for ACPS.
Alexandria Police spokesman Marcel Bassett said there was a moderate police presence in response to the recovery of a stolen vehicle. Four juvenile suspects were apprehended around 1400 Beauregard Street.
Three other schools were shut down earlier today thanks to a water main break.
Things are about to slow down in school zones.
The Alexandria School Board on Thursday (October 6) unanimously approved a resolution requesting a reduction from 25 miles per hour to 15 mph in school zones.
“We are really making our students and our community safe,” said Board Member Abdel Elnoubi, who wrote the resolution. “We’re helping save lives here.”
The resolution now goes to City Council for approval.
The following school zones have 25 mph speed limits:
- N. Beauregard Street — Outside the John Adams Elementary School, William Ramsay Elementary School and Ferdinand T. Day Elementary School zones
- Braddock Road from N. Beauregard Street to Quaker Lane — Outside Alexandria City High School’s Minnie Howard Campus school zone
- Seminary Road (Kenmore Avenue to N. Pickett Street) — In the Francis C. Hammond Middle School zone
- King Street — Alexandria City High School’s school zone
City Council will also review a plan to install Alexandria’s first speed cameras in school zones later this month.
The conversation over a speed limit reduction and cameras installation began after a nine-year-old girl was hit by a car and seriously injured just outside Jefferson-Houston Elementary School in March.
