Seems to me that this amendment simply provides new grounds for another lawsuit. This still is Virginia isn't it? Changing the law to stop a lawsuit seems to me would not fly in the Virginia Supreme Court since the lawsuits it's trying to eradicate were filed beforehand.

Too weak to say so yourself, William? You are a coward and your post is reprehensible. Hansen should report it to APD as a threat.

"Andrew Macdonald, a former vice mayor who ran a failed campaign for mayor last year largely built on opposition to the city’s waterfront proposal, told the commissioners (blah, blah, blah)"

"Wager later said the waterfront was discussed at great length ahead of the November 2012 election. 'We all know the results of that election,' he said."

nuff said.

Commissioners mocked me when I suggested a compromise on the waterfront - pretty sad. Wagner mocked Connie Ring when he indicated that it was absolutely not the intent of commissioners and council men/women in previous years to allow for a protest against one type of rezoning but not another. It is absolutely an assault on property owners rights (www.whatsreallynext.com for more on that). Both actions taken by the Planning Commission are un-American for seeking to deny the waterfront citizens due process while taking away property rights from all Alexandrians (many who are completely unaware of the implications). One person appropriately described this behavior as being "third world." I couldn't agree more....

I missed that comment but it must have been pretty bad if Drew sent it to the commissioners. Calm down, people. Threats are not the way to go. Just keep protesting and filing lawsuits. No matter what the city says or does, you can always protest and sue. You might not make it far in court, but you can always file. It's called the Laywers Rights To Work Act, and I support that.

This nonsense has gone on long enough. Minority rights guarantee you access, not results. The endgame is clear: the only question is how much time and money the opponents are going to waste.

@OT Insider - I suspect the number of "straight ticket" Democratic voters in November's election who knew or cared about city issues would only be a small percentage. We got a one party council because of Obama's victory (and the cynical movement of the election to November by losing Democrats in the previous Council), not because of the true representation of city-wide concerns. If the people were accurately represented in the city, it wouldn't be a one party council.

When will these 18 opponents, their threats, their harassment, and lawsuits etc. ever go away and STOP victimizing an entire community, the majority? This is the privileged entitled generation. No one has ever told these people NO and they will not accept NO. The well heeled and polished ladies of the me generation. They knock on doors making outlandish claims....it is unbelievable what some people will stoop to? And now some stupid website...really? If you don't like what is going on here so much MOVE. Go Away. These people complain and complain...file law suit after lawsuit. They only show up when there are cameras there take their pictures and promote themselves. They do nothing else in this City. They don't volunteer.... NOTHING...no civic service, no community boards, no voluteerism.....Here is what is WWW.REALLYNEXT dot com -- Please move and if you are so disturbed by more acres of park land, a continual promenade from North Old Town to Jones Point, an Art & History walk, and 300 hotel rooms. For the betterment of the community...do us a service...Go!

I first attended a Planning Commission in the mid 1980s because land directly across the street from the house I owned then was being redeveloped. I have attended many since then. Last Tuesday was by far the worst meeting I have ever attended. There have been plenty of meetings where I was on the losing side, but no meeting like this one where the Chaiman and some members of the Commission continuely demonstrated disrespect to those testifying by talking with each other through their remarks and in many cases arguing with those remarks after the speaker's three minutes were up. Speakers of course were not allowed to answer.

As for volunteering, since my retirement I have spent six years tutoring public school children, three years on the board of the Alexandria United Way Chapter, one of those as chairman of the subcommitte which awards grants, and I am currently on the Archeology Commission. Many of the people I have met for the first time during these last two years are also engaged in demanding volunteer work.

Minus You Katy of course....! We will keep you. The others can go.

And you don't go knocking on people's doors in Old Town like some do....constantly harassing people telling them their neighbors will ostacize them from the community if they don't sign their petition......

Actually, I am seriously considering leaving. I am not wealthy. The assessment on my small house plus the probable increase in the property tax rate make living here much too expensive and outweigh most of the good things this city offers. It's funny really, since I came here in the early 80s, every new development was going to solve any financial problems the city might have. None of them ever did.

But the doyennes of Old Town create jobs! Who else shops at all those boutiques, goes to all those spas, lunches at all those restaurants, etc.? If they all moved away who would be left to protect such sacred spots as the place where George Washington's horse once peed?

I do not live in Old Town. Since I am not close enough to walk to them, I don't go to the restaurants and shops except rarely. I can not find parking. It will be the lack of parking that will destroy Old Town. The shops and restaurants can not survive just on the patronage of those near enough to walk to them.

Yea Katy, it really does come down to parking. There are numerous "small area redevelopment plan" going on throughout the city. Every single one has taken a density level of say 4 houses to 20 townhomes, a warehouse to 50 plus townhomes or condos and with every new development parking continues to get worse in said part of the city. Everyone is only caught up with their own little nook and cranny within the city, but when you all start driving and walking around the city limits like I, then you won't come across as hypocritical. I easily drive 35 miles a minimum on our city streets and do a fair amount of walking in different quadrants as well. The Waterfront is a wonderful plan on paper, but nothing more. Even in 5 years, and should the city budget hit the $750,000,000 mark, they'll still be saying there is no money for anything

Parking doesn't get better when you privatize the waterfront by only allowing Townhouses and their driveways.....OR mixed use of stores with condos above and parking only for residents. The other options have NO PARKING. So I guess you are saying because the parking isn't exactly meeting the oppositions demands the waterfront should be privatized to condos and townhomes. Listen, until you people have a better solution or a plan that includes ALL of your outlandish unrealistic demands please take your opposition to a new community. Most of us deal in reality, not Never Never land, or the generation of me, and if it's not my way I throw a fit and sue everyone.

Old Town -- It's so crowded; nobody goes there anymore!

I think Mess is really Yogi Berra - it is nice to see some humor in this string.

My only question for Gina is, are you on a developers payroll. In the end, I will look forward to doing a large dog group walk on the new waterfront. You missed my point or perhaps it was on a different article posting. The Hotels at Robinson North should never have been an issue, I only take issue to Robinson south. As for the "Art League warehouse," I have to admit that is a parcel hard to argue against. In the end, when I moved to the city in'94, the talk was always to have a continuos walkway from Tidelock Park to Windmill Hill Park/Jones Point. When I saw the model a couple of years ago, where was the boardwalks around the hotels.

Ugh, where were the boardwalks around the hotels. They appeared to be on the street side and not the river side, like Ford's Landing OR Potomac Crossing. And there are more than 17 people oppossed to the plan, they are just the most vocal and at the forefront of the opposition. I have lived on Route 1 at Henry, Rosemont, Northeast Old Town, and currently near the Landmark Mall.

Thanks, followed the plan and went to a few meeting up to a year or so a go. I know the plan called for more promenade, a larger Marina area which I thought would be a nice addition and could potentially allow the Old Town Art Festival thingy to be moved to the Marina. Somewhat like Santa Barbara, Ca does on Sundays during their sidewalk arts sale along the beach on Cabrillo Bl. Spring to fall. Regardless of the assumed outcome, personally I think Union and Lee streets south of King should be changed to oneway streets to allow more parking and or north/south bound bike lines. On Union Stree it would likely allow widening of the sidewalks on a few blocks vs. This silly plan the city is pushing for 100 S. Union St.

What???? That is what is already being done w/ the Union St corridor plan --- widening sidewalks will
happen well before the WFP is implemented. Check please!

This is from some great reporting by Derrick Perkins in this weeks' Alex Times:

"After hours of renewed debate about the much-maligned waterfront redevelopment plan, longtime planning commissioner Stewart Dunn stepped down from the podium, grabbed a microphone and circled a model of the city’s future Potomac shoreline."

"'I want to point this out: When you look at this [plan] you hear the horrors that have been presented by the waterfront plan as it now stands, but as you look at this it’s hard to see those,' said the normally subdued Dunn. 'What we have here is we’re going over the same arguments we were going over before. … As far as compromise — we hear about this compromise — as far as I can see the compromise has been all one way.'"

Frankly Mr. Dunn has far more experience on city planning issues than anyone opposed to the WFP. I trust his judgement.

Can we now please start redeveloping the Del Ray area?! The single family homes are wasting space suitable for high density development!

Alexandria needs more hotels and high rise condo buildings and Del Ray is a prime location for it.