Monday, May 13, 2013
Mayor Bill Euille says there is a chance to fix an issue caused by a misunderstanding between city staff and council during the budget approval process.
Alexandria City Council eliminated the mechanism of set-aside funding for affordable housing and open space acquisition when it adopted its fiscal year 2014 budget last week in a move that is being chalked up to miscommunication between city staff and council. • See: Alexandria, Your Average Tax Bill Is Increasing $314 “If this was a misunderstanding or miscommunication, we still have a chance to go back and fix it,” Mayor Bill Euille said Friday. “We’ll have more conversations about this at Tuesday’s meeting.” The city takes a percentage of the real estate tax rate for both affordable housing and open space funds. Throughout budget work sessions, some councilmembers expressed a desire to move away from dedicated funding mechanisms, …
Monday, May 6, 2013
City Council unanimously adopts $624.8 million operating budget for fiscal year 2014.
Alexandria City Council unanimously adopted Monday evening a $624.8 million operating fund budget for fiscal year 2014 and an increase of $314 to the average residential real estate tax bill. The city’s real estate tax rate is increasing 4 cents to $1.038 per $100 of valuation and the vehicle personal property tax is increasing to $5 per $100 of valuation. While councilmembers noted the tax rate increase is substantial—it is the maximum increase they voted to advertise in March—Mayor Bill Euille noted Alexandria has the second-lowest tax rate in Northern Virginia behind Arlington County. • See: Alexandria Council Advertises 4 Cent Increase to Real Estate Property Tax Rate Increasing the tax rate by 4 cents was "nothing anyone on this dais …
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Alexandria Vice Mayor Allison Silberberg casts the lone dissenting vote; residents asked for more affordable housing.
The Alexandria City Council paved the way for large-scale redevelopment of the Beauregard corridor on Saturday by approving rezoning to implement the Beauregard Small Area Plan, with Vice Mayor Allison Silberberg casting the lone dissenting vote. Silberberg argued that the plan, which calls for the city to subsidize the rent for 800 units of long-term committed affordable housing, didn’t provide enough affordable housing given the displacement of thousands of low- to moderate-income residents to make way for upscale condos and apartments. Nine people spoke in favor of providing more affordable housing in the Beauregard plan during a public hearing before the council vote. Meadowbrook Apartments resident Veronica Calzada broke down sobbing…
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Members say they want to keep pool open through at least summer 2013, but creation of a new competition-size pool seen as priority in Alexandria's aquatics master plan.
Members of Alexandria City Council expressed a desire to keep Warwick Pool open at least in the short term as it pursues the construction of a new competition-size pool at Chinquapin Recreation Center during a budget work session last week focused on the city’s aquatics master plan. City Manager Rashad Young proposed to close Warwick Pool, one of two large outdoor pools in Alexandria, as part of his fiscal year 2014 city budget plan. The move would save the city $92,000—the cost to staff and operate the pool this spring and summer—in general operating funds for FY14. • See: Future of Warwick Pool Hangs in the Balance • See: City Manager Proposes $626.6 Million Operating Budget The pool needs more than $6,000 in repairs just to reopen this…
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Council's Saturday action on two amendments enables further implementation of the city's Waterfront Small Area Plan designed to revive the riverside.
City Council voted 6-1 Saturday afternoon to allow new kinds of development along the Alexandria waterfront and allowing the city to curb litigation currently stalling the city’s plans to redevelop its riverside. Council also voted 6-1 on an amendment clarifying a part of the zoning code governing property owners’ protest petitions. Deputy Director of Planning and Zoning Karl Moritz explained Saturday that the text amendment “is needed to implement elements of the small area plan such as permitting hotels.” The newly adopted text amendment would allow hotels under certain circumstances, permit cultural institutions and offer rules governing size and height of new development.’ It also would allow structures 5,000 feet or larger that “…
Thursday, March 14, 2013
If adopted at the maximum rate, the real estate property tax would result in the average Alexandria residential tax bill increasing up to $314.
Alexandria City Council unanimously voted Tuesday to advertise the maximum residential and commercial property tax rate at $1.038 per $100 of valuation for fiscal year 2014, an increase of 4 cents from the prior year but down from an initial recommendation of a 5.5-cent hike. Council can settle on any rate at or below $1.038 as it works through the budgeting process, which is scheduled to end with adoption on May 6. The tax rate on motor vehicle property is proposed to increase from $4.75 to $5 per $100 of assessed value. The rate on business equipment and other types of vehicles is not proposed to change. In its budget guidance for City Manager Rashad Young, council asked for an optional 3-cent hike to offset cash capital investments on …
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Measure offers City Council's support for private fundraising efforts aimed at preserving the building, but also reiterates that the city will not purchase the structure.
Alexandria City Council adopted a resolution Tuesday night offering its support for private fundraising efforts aimed at preserving the Carver Nursery School building and also reiterating that the city will not be a purchaser of the property. “There are some beginnings of some fundraising efforts in the community to purchase the property, unfortunately those are very tardy efforts,” said Councilman Justin Wilson, who created the resolution with Councilman Paul Smedberg. “But I think the city wants to show support for those efforts but also simultaneously convey that the city will not be the purchaser of last resort for this property as we move forward.” Local preservationists worked frantically over the last several months to circumvent …
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Joint Long-Range Educational Facilities Program Group seeks to help the city determine just how big the public school system is getting.
City Council last fall formed the Joint Long-Range Educational Facilities Plan Work Group to help tackle the pressing problems of the public school system’s long-term enrollment growth and other issues. “The reason we created this group was that for years we’ve had this discord on what the numbers are — the schools had a projection for an enrollment estimate and the city had another view of it,” said City Councilman Justin Wilson, who is a group member. “The result has been inaction. We’ve kind of sat and we’ve had both sides pointing fingers. …There’s a desire to bring the two organizations together, agree on numbers and find a solution.” In October 2012 there were more than 13,000 students in Alexandria City Public Schools, up from the …
Monday, February 4, 2013
Planners now eye mid-2017 opening date for station.
Elected officials serving on Alexandria’s Potomac Yard Metro Implementation Work Group continued to express their commitment to building a Metro station at Potomac Yard during a meeting last week at City Hall. The group received an update on the progress of an ongoing Environmental Impact Study (EIS) required to build a station. The city will determine a locally preferred alternative between three station designs and locations later this year. A no-build option remains in play, but officials underscored the importance of a station in developing Potomac Yard and the city’s economy. “If we don’t make it happen here, [the development] is going to go elsewhere [in the region,]” said Mayor Bill Euille, who sits on the group with Councilman …
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Pilot program will take 10 to 12 public parking spaces away from public use.
Alexandria City Council unanimously approved a pilot program Tuesday for on-street carsharing in the Carlyle and East Eisenhower area. The program will take 10 to 12 parking spaces away from public use so Hertz can set up its carsharing vehicles in the area. The company will pay the city $1,500 per space annually. The program was approved for two years, at which point city staff will return to council with data and other considerations. Mayor Bill Euille called the program “a move in the right direction and long overdue.” Zipcar currently operates 16 carsharing vehicles in off-street spaces in private parking facilities and at Metro stations primarily in the Old Town area. The area for the pilot program was chosen because of its density …
Drew Hansen
12:52 pm on Wednesday, May 15, 2013
I was at the meeting last night and the issue of the set-asides was not discussed. I believe they will pick it back up at the June public hearing when the ordinance is scheduled to be codified. more ›