(Updated at 5 p.m.) There’s no official word yet, but multiple sources have told ALXnow that British clothing and accessories retailer FatFace is looking at moving into the former Old Town Trading Post at 128 King Street.
A local commercial real estate source told ALXnow that FatFace is looking at moving into the location. Another source said FatFace was considering a lease but may not have signed one yet.
The City of Alexandria is once again preparing to shut cars out of the end of King Street and convert it into a pedestrian-only walkway.
A plan is currently in the works to close the 100 block of King Street to car traffic on weekends to turn the area near the waterfront into a pedestrian boulevard. At the Waterfront Commission meeting yesterday (Tuesday), city staff presented the timeline for when that closure could happen.
Improvements and changes are coming to the Waterfront Park over the next few weeks.
Mirror Mirror, the circular art exhibit currently on display in the park, had originally been scheduled to remain on display through the end of next month, but at a Waterfront Commission Meeting on Tuesday staff said the installation will be removed the first week of November.
The Air Traffic Control Association has just landed a 10-year lease for a new location at King Street Station (225 Reinekers Lane).
The nonprofit, professional association — not to be confused with the D.C.-based National Air Traffic Controllers Association labor union — focuses on “progress in the science of air traffic control and the preservation of a safe flight environment.” The move puts the headquarters just blocks away from the prior headquarters at 1101 King Street.
Pacers Running is looking to downsize its flagship store at 1301 King Street within the next year.
The store was the regional specialty running retailer’s first and in 2010 the business actually expanded into building next door. With advances in technology, however, Pacers CEO Kathy Dalby says the store has more space than it needs.
Car-Free Block of King Street Planned — “Members of Alexandria’s City Council Wednesday night OK’d a proposal by City staff to begin laying the groundwork for a pilot program that will see a part of lower King Street closed to cars on weekends, beginning in April. The pilot project would close the 100 block of King Street to traffic on weekends through October.” [Alexandria Living Magazine, Patch]
For Sale: Historic House With Notorious Past — “The nonprofit organization that owns the site of one of the most notorious slave pens in the nation has put the building and its basement museum up for sale, after struggling for years to pay for the mortgage, property taxes and repairs. Freedom House, a registered National Historic Landmark in Alexandria, Va., is being advertised as an office or residential property priced at $2.1 million.” [Washington Post, WTOP]
A set of surface parking lots in the heart of Old Town could become a new set of retail and residential buildings — with no public parking lost.
The Planning Commission voted last night to recommend approval of the sale of 912, 916 and 920 King Street, along with 116 S. Henry Street just around the corner, to local investment firm Galena Capital Partners, LLC for $5.3 million.
A new Vietnamese restaurant, Pho Nam, could be opening at 606 King Street next month.
The restaurant owners are planning to open the doors at some point in November, according to staff at the restaurant’s Maryland location.
A new apartment complex is scheduled to open in the West End later this year, with a Harris Teeter and a Silver Diner location coming down the road.
Array at West Alex is a mixed-use development at 3445 Berkeley Street — the very northwest tip of the city at the intersection of N. Beauregard Street and King Street, near the Fairlington neighborhood.
A year after Augie’s Mussel House opened for a few months as a pop-up at 1106 King Street, the restaurant is back with a permanent opening planned for Monday, Oct. 7.
“We’re ready,” said Rocky Martin, general manager for the restaurant. “When you come in, try the mussels with all of the different sauces.”
