Hunting Creek Area Plan SUPPLEMENT to OLD TOWN SMALL AREA PLAN

Hunting Creek Area Plan SUPPLEMENT TO OLD TOWN SMALL AREA PLAN

The City of Alexandria, Virginia Department of Planning and Zoning

OCTOBER, 2005 HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN

As adopted by Ordinance 4426 October 15, 2005

City of Alexandria Department of Planning and Zoning City Hall, Room 2100 301 King Street PO Box 178 Alexandria, VA 22313 (703) 838-4666 Acknowledgements

City Council Hunting Point Area Planning Advisory Group Mayor William D. Euille Lori Arrasmith-Quill Vice Mayor Redella S. Pepper Cyndy Kaufman Councilman Ludwig P. Gaines Gary King Councilman K. Rob Krupicka Frederick Kroesen Councilman Andrew H. Mac- Laura Lantzy donald, PhD Bryan O’Sullivan Councilman Paul C. Smedberg Lee Weber Councilwoman Joyce Woodson Yvonne DeBruyn Weight

Planning Commission Members of the Public Chair Eric R. Wagner While a number of members of the public regularly at- H. Stewart Dunn, Jr. tended advisory group meetings and contributed to dis- Donna Fossum cussion, the following individuals are recognized for Jesse Jennings their effort in providing specific assistance, advice and John Komoroske recommendations during the planning program. Richard Leibach Danny Abramson, Ardith Dentzer, Nicholas Martin, J. Lawrence Robinson Martha Paschal, Walter Webdale

City Manager’s Office Woodrow Wilson Bridge Project James K. Hartmann, City Manager Ronaldo “Nick” Nicholson, Bryan J. O’Sullivan, VDOT Philip Sunderland, Alex Lee, Potomac Crossing Consultants former City Manager Mark Jinks, Assistant City Manager for Fiscal and Financial Affairs Other City Departments Melodie Baron, Division Chief, Landlord-Tenant Relations, Office of Housing Department of Pamela Cressey, City Archaeologist Planning and Zoning Mildrilyn Davis, Director, Office of Housing Eileen Fogarty, Director Bob Eiffert, former Deputy Director, Office of Housing Kimberley Fogle, Division Chief, John Hall, Department of General Services Neighborhood Planning and Kirk Kincannon, Director, Department of Recreation, Community Development Parks and Cultural Activities Jeff Farner, Division Chief, Jim Maslanka, Division Chief, Transit Services, Depart- Development ment of Transportation and Environmental Services Pat Mann, Urban Planner Aimee Vosper, Landscape Architect Supervisor, Tom Luebke, former City Architect Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Ac- Peter Smith, Urban Planner tivities Reed Winslow, Woodrow Wilson Bridge Project Coor- dinator, Department of Transportation and Envi- ronmental Services

ii HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN Contents

Acknowledgements ...... ii Introduction and Summary...... 1 1.1. The Planning Area ...... 2 1.2. Issues...... 3 1.3. Guiding Principles ...... 4 1.4. Summary ...... 5 Existing Environment...... 7 2.1. The Planning Area ...... 7 2.2. History ...... 7 2.3. Existing Development ...... 10 2.4. Urban Design...... 11 2.5. Affordable Housing...... 15 2.6. Development Potential...... 17 2.7. Circulation...... 21 Plan Recommendations...... 25 3.1. Principles...... 25 3.2. Land Use and Land Development...... 27 3.3. Historic Resources ...... 30 3.4. Affordable Housing...... 31 3.5. Circulation...... 33 3.6. Natural Environment ...... 35 Implementation ...... 37 4.1. Land Use and Land Development...... 37 4.2. Historic Resources ...... 37 4.3. Affordable Housing...... 37 4.4. Circulation...... 37 4.5. Natural Environment ...... 38 Design Guidelines...... 39

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN iii FIGURES 1. Planning Area ...... 2 2. Historic Districts...... 8 3. Structures along Washington Street in Old Town ...... 12 4. Gateway Feature ...... 13 5. Gateway Section...... 13 6. Urban Deck Section...... 14 7. Urban Deck Plan ...... 14 8. 1999 Household Income, Hunting Creek Area...... 16 9. Resource Protection Areas and Wetland Mitigation Easements...... 19 10. Pedestrian Circulation...... 22 11. Existing Zoning and Recommended Zone Changes ...... 28 12. Parkway Landscape Buffer...... 42 13. Parkway Landscape Buffer Cross-section ...... 43 14. Parkway Landscape Buffer and Street Wall...... 43 15. Hunting Terrace Site Development Concept ...... 44 16. Landscape Concept for Washington Street and Parkway Landscape Buffer...... 45

TABLES 1. City Income, Sales Price and Rent Limits...... 15 2. Hunting Towers and Hunting Terrace – Summary of Applicable Development Standards and Guidelines...... 19

iv HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN Introduction and Summary 1.0

Visiting the Hunting Creek/Jones Point area is about as close as you can get to wild nature in Alexandria. Although the Beltway din sounds behind you, and cloudy plastic bottles “pook – pook” between the driftwood logs and poles lolling along the muddy banks, you can still see the eagles, ospreys and egrets hunting the Potomac waters here as they must have when the area’s first humans settled in along these flats more than a hundred centuries ago.

The Place. The shores of Hunting Jones Point and the open waters of the Creek and Jones Point are the south- Potomac on the right. Egrets and gulls ernmost extension of the City of Alex- are usually foraging in Hunting Creek, The Potomac shoreline at andria. They are where one enters the and eagles and herons are frequent Hunting Towers. City from the open spaces of George visitors to the flats of the Potomac. Washington Memorial Parkway trav- These waters and open spaces are the eling north from Mount Vernon. In the defining features of the planning area. mile before reaching Alexandria, on the Together with the Beltway to the north, right one passes Dyke Marsh, Belle Ha- these waters to the south form its ven Park and Marina, and the parklike boundaries. Without the water and the setting of the Potomac shoreline. On the connection to this chain of open space, left are the greens and fairways of the the Hunting Terrace and Hunting Tow- Belle Haven Country Club. The Mount ers apartments here would be much Vernon Trail parallels the roadway on like others built in the 1940s and 1950s the Potomac side, sometimes back in in Alexandria. the park and sometimes along the road. Joggers, walkers and cyclists are com- Small Area Plans. The City’s small area mon on this stretch, taking advantage plans establish the framework for the of parking provided near the marina. future physical development of the planning area their boundaries encom- The City is reached with the crossing of pass. The overarching purpose of plan- Hunting Creek on the stone Parkway ning this physical framework is to en- bridge. Its low walls reveal the shal- able the local society and economy to lows of Hunting Creek on the left and sustain a high quality of life for the

INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN 1 residents of each neighborhood and the of Transportation (VDOT), which has City as a whole. named the combined properties “Hunting Point on the Potomac,” tak- Plans provide a measure of certainty ing the name from Hunting Creek. The about the character and quality of the projects were purchased by VDOT in future that encourages and protects 2001, and approximately one-third of investment. Plans and their imple- the original residential units in each menting policies, guidelines, programs demolished, in order to permit VDOT and standards make it possible for the to construct the Woodrow Wilson community as a whole to sustain itself Bridge and related Route 1 interchange over time. Plans help protect things the improvements. community values and permit the community to achieve common goals in The northern boundary of the planning a way that would not be possible if area is the Capital Beltway. To the each property could be developed at south, the area extends to the Alexan- any time based on the latest whim of dria city limits on Hunting Creek. In- the current owner. cluding the Beltway right-of-way and the area that will be under the new 1.1. The Planning Area Woodrow Wilson Bridge, the planning area includes about 85 acres of land, of The planning area is occupied by Jones which the three residential develop- Point Park, the Capital Beltway and ments make up about 22 acres. Route 1 right-of-way, and three resi- South of the City is Fairfax County. In dential developments: Hunting Towers, the areas along the George Washington Hunting Terrace and Porto Vecchio. Parkway, Fairfax County has desig- Hunting Towers and Hunting Terrace nated the area for suburban residential are owned by the Virginia Department use at three dwelling units per acre.

Figure 1. Planning Area. The planning area is that area of Alexandria south of the Capital Beltway and east of U.S. Route 1.

2 INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN The area is developed as a park and chio is an established condominium golf course. Along the west side of the constructed in the 1980s that is ex- Parkway is Belle Haven Country Club. pected to remain. On the east side, owned by the Na- Both Hunting Towers and Hunting tional Park Service, is Belle Haven Park Terrace are of an age at which many and Marina, with the wetlands of Dyke structures become obsolete as a result Marsh south of the marina. of changing needs, tastes and economic conditions. They are at an age when 1.2. Issues major building systems often require significant maintenance or replacement The following principal issues were to remain functional and economical. raised during the planning process: While the physical structures are ap- Affordable Housing. The Hunting parently in good condition and have an Towers and Hunting Terrace develop- indefinite future life provided they re- ments now provide workforce housing ceive attention to some deferred main- for Alexandria. Rents in these projects tenance items and have regular main- are affordable to some households with tenance in the future, the characteristics household incomes below the median of the individual units and the building household income in the region. If ei- systems that support them make them ther project is demolished for new de- less desirable in the marketplace than new developments in similar locations velopment or converted to condomini- This stone bridge over Hunt- ums after being returned to private and of similar density. ing Creek on the George ownership as market-rate housing, the Because VDOT intends to sell these Washington Memorial Park- housing needs of many of the current way is the southern entry properties in 2005, their immediate fu- residents could not be met affordably in point to the City of Alexandria. ture depends on current local economic the replacement units. These units conditions and the intent and decisions would be expected to rent for substan- of the purchaser of the properties. Once tially more than their current rents, or sold, either or both of the properties to have sale prices that would not be may be maintained in their current affordable to many of the current resi- status, be refurbished or substantially dents. rehabilitated, or be demolished and An issue in part related to housing af- redeveloped. fordability is the relocation of existing Character of new development. The residents if either Hunting Towers or environment and location of the sites at Hunting Terrace is substantially reha- the entrance to Old Town and on the bilitated, converted to condominiums George Washington Memorial Parkway or redeveloped. While many renters make high density and high-rise devel- expect to be short-term tenants in a opment inappropriate. A lower physi- particular unit, some people in these cal form with emphasis on open space, projects have lived there for many views, and architecture appropriate to years. Particular concern was expressed the Parkway is more suitable to the lo- for senior citizen residents who may cal and historic context. have few options, and find relocation and locating suitable replacement units Historic resources. The preservation of a particular hardship because of age, our historic heritage is one of the City’s income or infirmity. most important goals. Historic architecture and urban structure define the Land use, density and intensity of new physical environment in historic areas development. Jones Point Park is of Alexandria and give it a uniqueness owned by the National Park Service that is genuine. The area is rich with and will remain in park use. Porto Vec-

INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN 3 symbols and lessons from significant Street, and the importance of Wash- people and events of the past. ington Street as a significant historic street in Alexandria’s Old and Historic The Old Town Small Area Plan, and the District. development standards of the Old and Historic Alexandria District, both of Thus this gateway must fill many roles, which encompass the Hunting Point and the character of the public gateway and Jones Point area, are intended to and the private gateway at its margins preserve as much as possible of this is of great concern to the City. Among character while providing for a vital the aspects of this gateway that are im- local economy in a modern metropoli- portant to the plan are the nature of the tan area. transition from the natural areas south of the City to historic Old Town, and The planning area is within the Old and the scale, character, design and use of Historic Alexandria District established buildings along the parkway. by the City to protect the historic character of Old Town and the George Open space and trails. The historic Washington Memorial Parkway. Mount Vernon Trail passes through the George Washington Memorial Parkway planning area. The City’s trails plan is a historic district listed on the Na- (Bicycle Transportation and Multi-use tional Register of Historic Places, and Trail Master Plan for Alexandria, Virginia, the character of development in the City of Alexandria Department of Rec- planning area is important to main- reation, Parks and Cultural Activities, taining the Parkway’s historic and me- 1998) calls for the ultimate location of morial character. the Mount Vernon Trail to be along the water side of Porto Vecchio and Hunt- The Jones Point Lighthouse and District ing Towers, continuing the connection of Columbia corner marker are on the to the Potomac that exists along the National Register of Historic Places and trail to the south. The temporary rout- the Virginia Landmarks Register. The ing of the trail along the water side of Hunting Terrace and Hunting Towers Hunting Towers presents an opportu- buildings in the planning area are more nity to implement this relocation on the than 50 years old; old enough to qualify Hunting Towers property while the for historic status. However, they do property is in public ownership. not have the historic architectural merit or association with historic events or people that of many of their contempo- 1.3. Guiding Principles raries in Alexandria and other parts of The guiding principles for the plan em- the Washington, D. C. metropolitan phasize protecting the best of the ex- area possess. They have been evaluated isting character of the Hunting Creek and found not to qualify for individual and Jones Point area, and taking ad- listing on the state or national registers vantage of opportunities for affordable of historic places. housing, open space and trails, and en- City Gateway. The Hunting Towers, hancement of the southern gateway to Hunting Terrace and Porto Vecchio Alexandria along George Washington properties are on a significant historic Memorial Parkway. The principles gateway to Alexandria. The gateway guiding the plan are: along the George Washington Memo- rial Parkway is particularly significant x Create and reinforce neighborhoods. because of the historic status of the Enhance the neighborhood character parkway, the memorial character of the within the planning area by design parkway, the open space character of that provides identity and encour- the south gateway on Washington ages community activities. Tie the

4 INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN area to nearby areas of Alexandria cies in the event existing structures are visually and physically. demolished or substantially changed in the future. x Retain established residential uses. The following are the principal plan x Retain and enhance the character of recommendations. The details of these Alexandria’s historic districts. recommendations are set forth in Sec- x Enhance and celebrate the historic tion 3, and the implementation meas- character of the southern gateway to ures are outlined in Section 4. the City along George Washington 1. Rezoning. Rezone the enlarged Memorial Parkway. Capital Beltway area to Utility and x Maintain the availability of afford- Transportation to reflect the change able workforce housing, and take in use. Rezone the small remainder advantage of opportunities to assure parcel now zoned for offices to resi- the continued availability of afford- dential use. No change to the zoning able housing for all economic seg- designation of the developed resi- ments of the community. dential properties is proposed. x Enhance the City’s waterfront by 2. Design Guidelines. Adopt design providing continuous public access guidelines for future development to along the entire length of the City’s implement the Washington Street Potomac River waterfront. Provide Design Guidelines of the Board of opportunities for the public to learn Architectural Review along Wash- about and to appreciate the historic ington Street through the planning significance and natural environ- area. ment of waterfront and wetland ar- 3. Landscape Guidelines. Adopt land- eas. scape guidelines so that the George x Enable convenient access for resi- Washington Memorial Parkway dents to and from work and neigh- edge through the planning area borhood activities by a choice of cir- maintains a consistent theme com- culation modes. In particular, pro- patible with the parkway and ap- vide convenient, safe and pleasant propriate to the gateway to Alexan- routes for pedestrians and bicyclists dria. to transit and to local destinations 4. Affordable Housing. Encourage the such as schools, local retail districts, maintenance of affordable workforce parks and recreational areas. housing in the planning area. Act to x Protect and enhance the natural encourage the acquisition of Hunt- habitat value of the City’s natural ing Towers or Hunting Terrace for open spaces. Provide visual and affordable housing by an affordable physical access to natural open housing provider, either in partner- spaces where access is consistent ship with the prior owner, or di- with protection of natural resource rectly if the prior owner does not values. purchase the property. 5. Trails. Obtain a trail easement along 1.4. Summary the water side of the Hunting Tow- ers parcel to provide a route for the The plan does not recommend sub- Mount Vernon Trail. If in the future stantial changes from the existing City major changes are proposed at Porto policy for the planning area. The plan Vecchio, obtain a similar easement recommends the adoption of specific to continue public access along the measures to implement existing poli- City’s Potomac River waterfront.

INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN 5 6. Natural Open Spaces. Encourage the development of visual and physical access to natural open spaces where access is consistent with the maintenance of natural open space values. Continue to work with the National Park Service to maintain Jones Point Park for its natural, historic and recreational value to City residents and visitors.

6 INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN Existing Environment 2.0

This section provides background on trict of Columbia. The Jones Point the existing conditions and current de- Lighthouse is the oldest surviving in- velopment policy in the planning area. land lighthouse in the nation. There are It provides the context and some of the a number of other historic features at rationale for the plan’s recommenda- Jones Point that are to be interpreted in tions. the plan for the park to be implemented after the Woodrow Wilson Bridge proj- 2.1. The Planning Area ect is constructed. The planning area has two important Great Hunting Creek is a landform that subareas: Jones Point Park and the is mentioned and mapped often in Hunting Towers/Hunting Ter- deeds and other historical records of Jones Point Lighthouse dates from 1856. On the lighthouse the area. race/Porto Vecchio residential area. grounds is the District of Co- Jones Point Park is owned by the Na- The area occupied by Hunting Towers, lumbia corner marker. tional Park Service and operated by the Hunting Terrace and Porto Vecchio City under a lease. was apparently once known as Broo- milawn Point. The Fireside Sentinel The Hunting Towers, Hunting Terrace (published by the Lloyd House, Alex- and Porto Vecchio properties are multi- andria Library) for July, 1987 has an family residential sites along the his- extensive review of its history. It re- toric George Washington Memorial ports that “situated below St. Mary’s Parkway and Mount Vernon Trail. Catholic Cemetery, [Broomilawn Point] The southern boundary of the planning encompassed about 22 acres and was area is established by the southern city bounded by Royal Street on the east, limits. One crosses this boundary as Great Hunting Creek on the south, and one crosses the stone bridge over Alfred Street on the west.” Hunting Creek. The point was reported to be a frequent destination for local residents who held 2.2. History picnics and barbeques there. Alexandria’s Old Town area has a rich Part of the site was leased in 1794 to history evidenced in a number of ex- Robert T. Hooe, Alexandria’s first isting structures dating from the mid- mayor. The Alexandria Gazette for 1700s through the present day. Ar- January 15, 1801 and July 6, 1802 report chaeological findings in the planning that Hooe had trouble with trespassers. area include evidence of prehistoric He purchased or constructed a tavern Native American occupation and ex- on the point sometime after 1800. The tend through recent industrial devel- farm and tavern were purchased by opment of the City’s waterfront. James Hewitt Hooe, a relative, at public auction after Robert Hooe’s death in Jones Point Park is the site of the Dis- 1808. trict of Columbia south corner marker from the period of 1791 through 1848 In the 1850s, the Manassas Gap Rail- when Alexandria was part of the Dis- road constructed a railroad cut sepa- rating the point from St. Mary’s ceme-

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 7 tery. This cut later became the location apartments in 1943. of the Capital Beltway. During the Civil War, the trees on the point were cut by HISTORIC DISTRICTS Union military authorities. Figure 2 below shows the historic dis- A brick works was constructed in part tricts in and near the Hunting Creek of the site in 1884, and a wharf for the planning area. Hunting Towers, Hunt- brick works in 1885. The Alexandria ing Terrace and Porto Vecchio are Gazette for September 16, 1893 reports within the boundaries of the City’s Old that the Alexandria Brick Company had and Historic District, established by the capacity to make 60,000 bricks a ordinance in 1946. Although these day, and employed 50 men. The brick structures are within the physical works remained in operation until boundaries of this district, they do not 1919, when a fire destroyed the engine share the predominate character of the house and sheds. The article reports no district, which has a two and three- other activity on the site until the con- story urban form with townhouses and struction of the Hunting Terrace small shops, most of which front di-

Figure 2. Historic Districts. Historic districts in the area near Hunting Towers and Hunting Terrace include the Old and Historic Alexandria District, the National Register Alexandria Historic District, and the National Register George Washington Memorial Parkway Historic District. The George Washington Memorial Parkway historic district includes only the Parkway right-of-way. The National Register Alexandria Historic District does not extend south of the Capital Beltway west of Royal Street, but does include Jones Point Park.

8 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN rectly on the sidewalk and form a con- Other notable garden apartment devel- tinuous street edge. These sites are in- opments in the area include the Buck- cluded in the historic district to protect ingham, Fairlington and Colonial Vil- the historic character of the George lage developments in Arlington Washington Memorial Parkway in any County, all listed on the Virginia future development or redevelopment Landmarks Register. of the sites. HUNTING TERRACE Hunting Terrace was developed in 1943-44 and Hunting Towers in 1950. Although apparently well maintained, While the structures are of the mini- Hunting Terrace does not share the mum age (50 years) to qualify them as character, the planning, the landscap- historic under the age criteria of na- ing or the environment of the much tional and state historic registers, des- larger Parkfairfax project. While the ignation of such recent structures to structures fronting on Washington registers of significant historic places Street have pitched roofs, the buildings normally requires association with a behind have flat roofs, detracting from historic person or event, or some spe- both the unity of the project and its cific cultural significance, such as ex- residential character. Landscaping is emplary architecture. minimal, with few large trees and a scattering of small shrubs found on the Hunting Terrace. Structures EXEMPLARY HISTORIC GARDEN grassy lawn. Overhead wires cross the facing Washington Street have pitched roofs, with portions of APARTMENT DEVELOPMENTS IN AND NEAR green spaces, and utility upgrades over the structures set back from the ALEXANDRIA the years have resulted in unsightly street. horizontal and vertical runs of pipe, For example, the Parkfairfax housing conduit and gutters along the brick ex- development in north Alexandria is terior of the buildings front and back. listed on the Virginia Landmarks Reg- The buildings are placed somewhat ister. Parkfairfax is a garden apartment randomly to fill the site, which has sur- district constructed between 1941 and face parking lots around the perimeter. 1943 by Metropolitan Life. These The buildings are substantially larger apartments were master planned with than those at Parkfairfax, with 210-foot- mostly four- to ten-unit two- and three- long articulated facades that step back story buildings on a curving network of to entry courts with multiple stairwells local streets, a number of common leading to the apartment units. Parking green spaces, and extensive landscap- in the courts of the buildings fronting ing. Gerald Ford and Richard Nixon on Alfred Street further detracts from and other well-known politicians the character of the street. There is little rented here in the late 1940s and early Hunting Terrace. Sparse land- exterior evidence of any feeling of 1950s. Parkfairfax was sold in 1977 to scaping and utility retrofits con- community in the Hunting Terrace PIA/IDI. Under the direction of IDI’s tribute to a low-budget aesthetic complex such as might be encouraged without attention to common Giuseppi Cecchi, the developer of Porto by an outdoor gathering or recreation uses or community activities. Vecchio, Parkfairfax was converted to space, organized landscaping, or gar- condominiums in a major rehabilitation dens. program. Over 80% of the existing residents at the time of the conversion pur- HUNTING TOWERS chased condominium units in the project. (Laura L. Bobeczko, A Study in De- The mid-rise Hunting Towers project is centralized Living: Parkfairfax, Alexandria, a simple brick-skinned reinforced con- Virginia. Historic Alexandria Quarterly, crete framed tower with a cruciform Spring, 1997, Vol. III, No. 6.) plan. Similar to Hunting Terrace, the site has little landscaping and few ma- ture trees, and is dominated by surface

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 9 parking. A swimming pool, picnic been damaged by the adjacent demoli- benches and barbeque grills are pro- tion or construction activities associated vided as a common recreation facility, with the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Re- but this project also shows little sign of placement Project” (p. 3-3). The report a spirit of neighborhood or community noted the need for a number of specific in the development or use of the repairs, primarily to prevent damage to grounds. the brick. This damage could ultimately result in structural problems with the In its assessment of historic resources brick veneer if the repairs are not made for construction of the Woodrow Wil- in the near future. son Bridge and related improvements, VDOT conducted a review of the The structural system of the buildings structures and in consultation with the is a cast-in-place reinforced concrete Virginia State Historic Preservation frame with brick veneer exterior and Office concluded that the buildings did masonry infill walls. Interior floors and not meet the standards of eligibility for roofs are of wood frame construction. individual listing on the National Reg- Floors are sheet vinyl in maintenance ister. While the City supported a find- areas and kitchens with ceramic tile in ing that the buildings were of historic entries, building hallways and apart- merit at the time, the documentation ment bathrooms. justifies a finding that the Hunting Ter- The buildings have a basement or crawl race project does not share some of the space with two floors of apartments key features that resulted in the nomi- above grade. Some of the structures nation of other structures from this era have a third level of residential units in to the State Landmarks Register and the part of the structure. Basements contain National Register of Historic Places. the mechanical room, electrical room, laundry room and storage rooms. The ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. two remaining buildings fronting Recognizing the high potential for Washington Street have pitched roofs, finding evidence of past human occu- while the three buildings behind have pation of the area, the City’s Zoning flat roofs. Ordinance requires archaeological in- Hunting Terrace is currently developed vestigations for projects that would as garden apartments in two- and include ground-disturbing activities in three-story structures with substantial the Hunting Creek planning area. grassy open spaces. The density of the Hunting Terrace property today is ap- 2.3. Existing Development proximately 16 dwelling units per acre based on the area of the site above the Hunting Terrace. Hunting Terrace, on high tide line, which defines the lot the west side of Washington Street, area in the City’s zoning regulations. Of consists of five apartment buildings the 7.2-acre area above the high tide containing a total of 115 residential line, approximately 15% is devoted to units. Structural and condition infor- structures, 20% to surface parking and mation provided here is based on internal circulation, 7% to a wetland Hunting Terrace Garden Apartments, Al- mitigation easement, and the remaining exandria, VA, Baseline Structural Assess- 58% to lawn, walkways and shoreline ment, prepared by Potomac Crossing areas. Using 1000 square feet of floor Consultants, dated November, 2003, area per dwelling unit to estimate the supplemented by field observations by total building area, the project has a City staff. The conclusion of this report floor area ratio (FAR) of approximately was that the structures “are in good 0.36. condition and do not appear to have

10 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN On the Hunting Terrace site, a substan- buildings, with 470 surface, 53 under- tial part of the parcel is below the high ground garage and 12 motorcycle tide elevation, and an additional area is parking spaces for both buildings. in the 100-foot resource protection area Units are organized in an equal-armed (RPA) buffer established by the Chesa- cross with central hallways in each peake Bay Protection Ordinance, re- wing, and an elevator lobby near the ducing the development potential of center of each floor. A total of 64 balco- that site well below the legal maximum nies exist in both buildings. Interior density. On the Hunting Towers and walls are finished with plaster, and the Porto Vecchio sites, development closer floors in the apartments are wood par- to the permitted maximum would be quet or wall-to-wall carpet, with ce- possible because nearly all of the parcel ramic tile in the bathrooms, and sheet Hunting Towers. Mid-rise brick area of these sites is above the high tide vinyl in the kitchens. in a parking field. line. Reconstruction of the existing The overall conclusion of the structural buildings would be possible under assessment report was “the structures code provisions permitting reconstruc- are in good condition and do not ap- tion of existing legal noncomplying pear to have been damaged by the ad- structures provided that the degree of jacent demolition or construction ac- nonconformity with current regulations tivities.” A number of minor repairs is not increased. were recommended in the short term in Hunting Towers. Hunting Towers in- order to prevent more costly deteriora- cludes two apartment buildings and a tion and damage to the structures. An garage. Structural and condition infor- overall cleaning, repairing and re- mation provided here is based on pointing of the brick veneer for the en- Hunting Towers Apartments, Alexandria, tire structure at a cost of over $400,000 VA, Baseline Structural Assessment, pre- was recommended within the next few pared by Potomac Crossing Consult- years in order to maintain the integrity Washington Street looking ants, dated November, 2003, supple- of the brick and prevent deterioration south from Wolfe Street toward mented by field observations by City and eventual spalling of parts of the Wilkes Street. Structures form staff. Each apartment building includes brick veneer. a street wall at the rear of the a sub-basement, basement, and eight sidewalk. Porto Vecchio. Porto Vecchio is a floors above grade. The sub basement midrise condominium development of contains the boiler room, electrical 170 dwelling units on a 4.8-acre site, room, and storage rooms. The base- constructed in the mid-1980s. The de- ment level is considered to be the velopment has a density of approxi- ground level of the building with mately 35 dwelling units per acre. apartments, business offices, laundry area, fitness room and storage rooms. The remaining levels are devoted to 2.4. Urban Design residential apartments. The parking Urban design, like architecture, is a garage is a one-level cast-in-place con- term applied both to a design discipline crete structure with continuous walls, and to a set of characteristics of a place. The Gunston Hall Apartments interior columns and slab ceiling and Architecture considers buildings. Ur- show the pattern south of floor. Wilkes Street. Here broad front ban design considers the physical form, setbacks and large open court- Each building is a cast-in-place rein- character, structure and function of the yards open the margins of the forced concrete framed structure with built environment of human settle- roadway and provide a spa- brick veneer exterior, masonry infill ments at the scale of the block, neigh- cious feel before one enters walls and cast-in-place concrete roof borhood, and district. the denser commercial district and floor framing. There are 248 effi- of Old Town a few blocks to the north. ciency, 212 one-bedroom, and 70 two- bedroom apartment units in both

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 11 It is urban design that gives Old Town’s cobbled townhouse streets their comfortable intimacy, and the Capital Mall its grandeur. The size of open spaces and the mass and scale of buildings, the character of architectural detailing, the rhythm of separate buildings, windows and doorways, the length and character of vistas and their margins and their terminations, the presence or absence of trees and grassy expanses all help define our response to these places. The figure at left shows the pattern of existing structures in the Old Town area along Washington Street from Hunting Creek north to Queen Street. South of Wilkes Street, the strong pattern of a nearly continuous wall of buildings at the street to the north be- gins to transition to a pattern of greater setbacks, greater separation between structures, and open spaces extending to the street. This pattern is particularly true of residential buildings. South of Franklin Street is a pattern of garden apartment buildings with substantial setbacks, some with deep indentations in the façades. The Hunting Terrace apartments, with their setbacks and center indentations, have a pattern at the street similar to these apartments just north of the Beltway. The Washington Street Guidelines of the Board of Architectural Review rec- ognize this transition and call for future development to reflect this character along Washington Street in the area from Wilkes Street to Hunting Creek.

Figure 3. Structures along Washington Street in Old Town. This figure shows the change in character of the street along Washington Street as one moves south from the center of Old Town’s commercial district at King Street. From Queen Street at the top of the figure to Wilkes Street near the center, buildings form a strong, continuous line along the street. At Wilkes Street and farther south, the streetscape transitions to one with larger spaces between structures and greater setbacks from the street.

12 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN The Hunting Towers and Porto Vecchio Figure 4. Gateway Feature. buildings, midrises set in asphalt and This illustration shows the landscaping proposed following the turf with no relation to the street except reconstruction of Washington as an access point for cars, are a com- Street between the Beltway and pletely alien building form in this set- Hunting Creek. ting, and have no counterparts in Old Town. The figure to the right shows the plan for the southern gateway to the City at Hunting Creek, together with the pattern of landscaping that ties this point on George Washington Memorial Parkway to the urban deck crossing the Beltway. On the following page are details of the urban deck, showing the way the deck protects pedestrians from the noise and disruption of the Beltway below. The view along the Parkway is emphasized, reinforcing the north- south connection between the planning area and Old Town. The figure below shows the landscape features of the gateway landscaping. These features are intended to link the gateway to Mount Vernon and the history of George Washington while they form an attractive entry to Alexandria from the rural and pastoral areas along the Potomac to the south.

Figure 5. Section through gateway landscape feature. This section of the proposed Washington Street entry feature shows the design of the City entry point with trees to be used in the design.

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 13 Figure 6. Urban Deck: Section. This illustration shows a cross-section through the urban deck over the Capital Beltway. just north of the planning area. Landscaping will take attention from the freeway barrier and emphasize the connection along Washington Street to Old Town.

Figure 7. Urban Deck: Plan. This drawing shows the concept for the urban deck as seen from above. The wide bridge and landscaping are intended to help mitigate the effect of the greatly increased separation of this area from Old Town to the north as a result of the roadway widening.

14 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN 2.5. Affordable Housing surance, are no more than 30% of household’s gross income. Ownership “Affordable Housing” means different housing is generally considered afford- things to different people. Some use the able by lenders if the cost of principal, term only to apply to housing that is interest, taxes, insurance, and, if appli- subsidized through tax credits, rent cable, condominium association fees, supplements or public ownership for does not exceed 35% of a household’s low and moderate-income households. gross income. Many lenders may accept Others apply it more generally to a higher percentage if there are com- housing that is available at a price that pensating factors. meets a typical household’s budget. The City of Alexandria’s Affordable Housing is generally considered “af- Housing Policy (November, 2002) ex- fordable” to a household if the direct presses the City’s specific affordable housing-related expenditures of the housing objective to achieve a broad household (commonly including utili- range of housing for households with ties for water, electric power, heating, incomes up to $53,580 for a four-person cooking and sewage disposal), and household. ownership costs such as taxes and in-

Table 1 City Income, Sales Price and Rent Limits (Effective February 25, 2004)

Income limits for City homeownership assistance programs

Maximum Gross Household Income Sales Price/Loan Limits Two or fewer persons Three or more persons New and Existing Construction $68,700 $79,500 $399,600

Income Limits, Set-aside Rental Unit Program (based on 60% of Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Area Median Income): Household Size Income Limit (as of 2/11/05) 1 $ 37,500 2 $ 42,840 3 $ 48,240 4 $ 53,580 5 $ 57,840 6 $ 62,160 7 $ 66,420 8 or more $ 70,740

Rent Limits, Set-aside Rental Unit Program (based on federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program rents allowed in the City for households at 60% of Area Median Income): Unit Size Gross Monthly Rent Limit (as of 2/11/05) Efficiency $ 937 One-bedroom $ 1004 Two-bedroom $ 1206 Three-bedroom $ 1392 Four-bedroom $ 1554 Five-bedroom $ 1714

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 15 Figure 8 1999 Household Income, Hunting Point Area Census 2000, by Block Group 140 $34,408 60% of DC Metro area median household income $57,347 median household income, DC Metro area 120

Washington-Patrick, Hunting 100 Terrace - Jefferson Hunting Towers, Porto Vecchio

80 $47,500 median household income for Hunting Towers and Porto Vecchio Census data for incomes below $10,000 and above $50,000 is 60 $56,806 median household income for reported in ranges of more than area west of Washington Street $5,000. The lines in these ranges were plotted by dividing the

Number of Households including Hunting Terrace households from the larger range 40 equally into $5,000 income ranges, yielding the stepped graphs shown here. Incomes greater than $200,000 were assigned to a $200,000 to 20 $300,000 income range for plotting.

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 00 00 0 0 ,00 ,00 0 0 ,00 ,00 ,00 ,00 ,0 ,00 ,00 ,00 ,000 ,0 5, 5, 5 5 $5,00 15,000 25 35 4 5 85 95 55 $ $ $ $ $ $65,000$75,000 $ $ 105 165 175 $ $115 $125,000$135,000 $14 $1 $ $ $185 $195,000$205,000 $21 Top of Income Range

The graph above shows the range of a bimodal distribution, probably re- 1999 household incomes in the census flecting in part the different income block groups including the Hunting distributions of the Porto Vecchio lux- Terrace and Hunting Towers projects. ury condominiums with a peak above For Hunting Towers, the census block the areawide median and the Hunting group includes only Hunting Towers Towers apartments with a peak just and Porto Vecchio. Approximately above 60% of the areawide median. three-quarters of the units in this cen- Approximately one third of the house- sus block group were in Hunting Tow- holds in the census block group had ers. For Hunting Terrace, the Hunting incomes lower than 60% of the are- Terrace site includes approximately awide median, indicating that if they one-quarter of the units in the block met other qualifications they would group. The area includes other apart- qualify for the City’s affordable hous- ments, duplexes and townhouses in the ing programs. area bounded by Washington Street on This analysis shows that Hunting Ter- the east, Patrick Street on the west, and race and Hunting Towers provide a Jefferson Street on the north. valuable resource of affordable housing The graph shows that of the households at rents that cannot be duplicated in living in the Hunting Towers block new construction projects except group, the median household income through subsidy. These units provide was somewhat below the median for what is traditionally called “workforce the region as a whole. The graph shows housing,” for moderate and middle-

16 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN income households in technical and An owner may demolish such struc- professional occupations, and for those tures if the City has denied approval of of low and moderate income in services demolition following appeal if the and a variety of entry-level positions. owner has made a bona fide offer to sell Both of these groups are increasingly the property at fair market value for a priced out of market-rate housing in specified period (one year for all prop- Alexandria by continued employment erties of substantial value) to someone growth and strong housing demand in who will retain the structure, and no the Washington, D. C. metropolitan contract for sale has resulted. region. The City recently denied a demolition permit for the Gunston Hall Apart- 2.6. Development Potential ments, a garden apartment just north of the Beltway along Washington Street. The development potential of a site un- This project was constructed a few der the City’s development regulations years before Hunting Terrace and was is determined by the size and condi- designed around a central open space. tions of the site and the limitations of Exterior features of the structures recall zoning and building regulations. the design of the Gunston Hall planta- Hunting Towers, Hunting Terrace and tion house. Porto Vecchio are zoned RC, High Den- Permitted density and intensity of de- sity Apartment, to permit up to 54.45 velopment. The City’s Zoning Ordi- dwelling units per acre and a floor area nance establishes limits on the total ratio of 1.25. The RC district normally density and intensity of development permits development with a height of permitted in each of the zoning districts 150 feet. However, because of the 50- established in the City. Development foot height limit in the Old and Historic standards such as height and setback Alexandria District and the develop- limits may prevent an owner from de- ment restrictions including parking veloping a property to the maximum requirements, setbacks, and open space density permitted by zoning. requirements, new development to the maximum permitted density is not Density of a site is the number of likely to be feasible if the existing dwelling units per acre of property. structures are demolished. Density is limited in the zoning ordinance by establishing a maximum Ability to redevelop. In the Old and number of dwelling units that may be Historic Alexandria District, demoli- constructed per acre of site, or by es- tion, modification or reconstruction of tablishing a minimum parcel area per existing structures requires the ap- dwelling unit. For the RC, or High Den- proval of the Board of Architectural sity Apartment, Zone, the maximum Review (BAR). The Board of Architec- density permitted for multi-family de- tural Review is charged with preserv- velopment is one unit per 800 square ing and enhancing buildings and feet, or 54.45 dwelling units per acre. neighborhoods with special historical, For townhouse development, the cultural, artistic and architectural sig- maximum density permitted is one unit nificance. In the case of sites with per 1600 square feet, or 27.22 units per structures that contribute to the char- acre. acter of the historic district, therefore, the development potential of the site Intensity of Development. Intensity of may be limited by the requirement to development of a site is described by preserve existing structures. Floor Area Ratio, or FAR, the ratio of building floor area to parcel area of the site. For example, a building which has

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 17 100,000 square feet of floor area con- peake Bay Protection Act. RPAs are structed on a site with an area of 50,000 buffer zones along shorelines and wet- square feet has a floor area ratio of 2.0. land areas in which development of If the same site were developed with structures or impervious surfaces is only 25,000 square feet of floor area, the severely restricted to protect the natural floor area ratio would be 0.5. The RC features and functions of shoreline ar- zone permits a maximum FAR of 1.25, eas. Resource protection areas are or about 1,000 square feet per dwelling found along the Hunting Creek and unit at the maximum permitted den- Potomac shorelines throughout the sity. planning area. Development standards. While the Open Space. Development in the RC density and intensity of development zone requires 40% open space, or 320 standards establish upper limits on the square feet per unit for multi-family number of dwelling units and floor development and 800 square feet per area that can be developed on the site, unit for townhouses, whichever is projects must also comply with devel- greater. opment standards that limit height of Noncomplying Structures. Noncom- structures, require setbacks from prop- plying structures are structures that erty lines, require parking and open were legal at the time of construction space areas. These development stan- but do not meet standards for height, dards are found in the requirements for floor area ratio or other standards the zone and in the regulations of the adopted after construction. The City’s Old and Historic Alexandria District. zoning ordinance permits the recon- Building Height. Among the specific struction of noncomplying structures if limitations that apply to the Hunting the density, height and floor area ratio Towers, Hunting Terrace and Porto are not increased or the degree of non- Vecchio properties is a 50-foot height compliance with current regulations is limit established by the City’s height not otherwise increased. The Hunting districts. The height district supersedes Towers and Porto Vecchio structures the height that is otherwise permitted are noncomplying with respect to the by the RC zone designation. current height limit. Setbacks. For multifamily structures, MARKET DEMAND the RC zone requires a side yard setback of 16 feet or 1/2 of building A 2004 study of development markets height, whichever is greater, and a rear in Alexandria conducted to provide yard setback of 8 feet or the building background information for evaluation height, whichever is greater. For town- of potential changes to the City’s Af- house end units, the minimum side fordable Housing Policy found that the yard setback is the greater of 8 feet or new development markets for town- 1/3 of building height. These setbacks houses and condominiums were strong, are from the property line. No front but that office and apartment develop- yard setback is required by the zoning ments were in general not feasible in ordinance, though BAR guidelines for Alexandria in the speculative market- this portion of Washington Street call place. for front setbacks. While individual owners, businesses or Resource Protection Areas (RPAs). organizations may have strong incen- Resource Protection Areas are estab- tives to locate in a particular area of the lished in the City by the Chesapeake City of Alexandria, and may have proj- Bay Protection Ordinance, enacted un- ects constructed to suit, there is little der provisions of the Virginia Chesa- market demand for new apartment or

18 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN Figure 9. Resource Protection Areas (RPAs) and Wetland Mitigation Easements. This figure shows the approximate location of resource protection areas and wetland mitigation easements on a 2004 aer- ial photograph of the Hunting Towers, Hunting Terrace and Porto Vecchio sites. Resource protection area locations are based on a 100-foot buffer from shorelines and wetlands. The actual locations must be determined through field surveys to identify the limits of wetland areas in the wetland mitigation sites and the location of the shoreline. New construction of structures or impervious surfaces is generally pro- hibited within RPAs. Wetland mitigation easements must be maintained in a way to that sustains wetland quality.

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 19 Table 2 Hunting Towers and Hunting Terrace Summary of Site Characteristics, Applicable Development Standards and Guidelines

Site Characteristics and Potential Development Hunting Terrace Hunting Towers Site Area (total/above 3’ elevation) 12.5/7.3 (estimated)1 11.8/10.0 (estimated)1 Existing dwelling units 115 530 Existing density, units per acre, based on estimated site area 16 53 above high tide level 54.45 units/acre multi- 54.45 units/acre multifamily Maximum permitted density family 27.2 units/acre town- 27.2 units/acre townhouse house 397 multi-family 544 multi-family Maximum permitted dwelling units 198 townhouse 272 townhouse Floor Area Ratio, estimated based 0.36 1.22 on 1000 sq ft per dwelling unit 454 surface, 53 garage, Parking provided 138 surface (507 total auto) +12 motorcycle 1. Estimated based on interpolation between 2-foot contours in City GIS supplemented by VDOT 2-foot contours and estimate of probable additional area below 3 feet elevation in wetland mitigation areas. Precise determination of the location of and area within the 3- foot elevation line would require a site survey.

Permitted Height: 50 feet maximum

Setbacks Required: Front yard none Side yard townhouse: greater of 8 feet or 1/3 height Multifamily: greater of 16 feet or 1/3 height Rear yard 8 feet or building height Open Space: Multifamily: greater of 320 sq. ft. per unit or 40% of lot area Other residential: 800 sq. ft. per unit Off-street parking: Single-family dwellings: 2 spaces/unit Multifamily dwellings: Efficiency, one-bedroom unit 1.3 spaces per unit Two-bedroom unit 1.75 spaces/unit Three-bedroom unit 2.20 spaces/unit Parking spaces 9 feet x 18.5 feet, aisles 22 feet wide + 15% visitor parking spaces

Washington Street Design Standards o Traditional building character, compatible with and similar to buildings found on Washington Street in commercial or residential buildings of historical architectural merit. o Appear to have footprint of no more than 100 feet x 80 feet as viewed from public right-of-way. o Larger projects should preserve or replicate the pattern of mid-block alleys. o Pattern of 20-foot to 40-foot building bays.

Washington Street Guidelines o This sector of Washington Street is largely residential in nature with considerable setbacks from the roadway. Projects are specifically encouraged to retain the open feeling of the area. . . o Spacing Between Buildings . . . For example, in this sector, it is appropriate to have a considerable separation between buildings.

20 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN office development for the general maximum density permitted by zoning leasing market. from being achieved in a practical plan for redevelopment of either the Hunt- Real estate markets are cyclical, and it is ing Terrace or the Hunting Towers likely that office and apartment devel- sites. opment will become feasible in the future. Apartment demand is suppressed Thus the development potential of the by the recent sustained period of un- Hunting Terrace site is substantially usually low interest rates on mortgages. greater than its current density, while This low interest translates to a low cost the development potential of the of purchasing at high prices that en- Hunting Towers site is likely to be at courages new construction of owner- most approximately the same number ship housing and limits demand for of units as now exist on the site. A pur- rental housing. Current housing market chaser would be expected to have more conditions have resulted in the conver- to gain from redeveloping the Hunting sion of a number of apartment projects Terrace site than redeveloping the in the area to condominiums, and have Hunting Towers site. The purchaser’s limited new applications for apartment decision would likely then be based on construction, particularly in the last whether the value added by redevel- two years. opment or rehabilitation, determined by expected rents and operating costs Based on inquiries received by the Vir- or by expected sales prices, would jus- ginia Department of Transportation tify the cost of the proposed develop- (VDOT), interest has been expressed in ment. acquisition of Hunting Terrace primarily for redevelopment, while interest in 2.7. Circulation Hunting Towers has been primarily for conversion to condominiums. Washington Street is the only roadway providing vehicular connections to the Site Development Potential. The expe- project site both to the north and to the rience of VDOT is consistent with the south. Access to properties on the west Planning and Zoning Department’s side of Washington Street is provided investigations of the development po- by Alfred Street and by Terrace Road, tential of the sites. Although a detailed which operates as a frontage road along site design was not prepared and tested the Hunting Terrace property. Terrace against the City’s development stan- Road provides layby parking for up to dards and all criteria that might be four buses beginning and ending their used in evaluating a development pro- schedules at this point and a conven- posal, potential site layouts based on ient location to turn around. Emer- patterns of recent development showed gency access to the planning area is that substantially more apartments or available under the Woodrow Wilson condominiums than are there today Bridge at Royal Street in the event that could be developed on the Hunting Washington Street is blocked. Terrace site if demolition of the existing structures was approved by the Board MOTOR VEHICLES of Architectural Review. Washington Street is classified as a With 530 existing dwelling units, the major arterial through Alexandria, and Hunting Towers site is currently devel- provides important regional connec- oped at nearly the permitted maximum tions for Alexandria and the area of density in the RC zone. The 50-foot Fairfax County along the Potomac height limit, open space requirements River east of Richmond Highway (U.S. and other development limitations such Route 1). It has a 2004 traffic volume as the BAR guidelines may prevent the estimated by VDOT at 28,000 vehicles

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 21 per day (average weekday daily traffic, PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION or AWDT) at the south city limits of Bus transportation is provided to the Alexandria in the planning area. The planning area with stops southbound volume at Duke Street is estimated at on Terrace Road and northbound on 32,000 vehicles per day, and by King Washington Street by DASH and Street the volume has risen to an esti- WMATA buses. mated 37,000 vehicles per day. DASH route 4 provides weekday Washington Street has two moving morning and evening peak period lanes in each direction through the service via Braddock Road Metro Sta- planning area, with left-turn lanes tion to the Pentagon and hourly service northbound and southbound at Alfred all day Sunday. Street at the south entrance to the Hunting Terrace site and the entrance WMATA routes 9B, 10A and 10E, and to Porto Vecchio. Parking is not per- 11Y serve Hunting Towers. Route 9B mitted along Washington Street terminates at Hunting Towers and through the Planning Area. Two sig- serves the Crystal City Metro station nalized intersections with Washington via Washington Street and Jefferson Street are provided to serve the plan- Davis Highway. Route 10A originates ning area. Just south of the Capital at Hunting Towers and serves the Beltway, the intersection of the South Pentagon. Route 10B originates at Street, the access road to Hunting Tow- Hunting Towers and serves the Ball- ers, is signalized. A second signal is ston Metro station in Arlington via provided at Alfred Street opposite the Shirlington. Route 11Y is a limited peak entrance drive to Porto Vecchio. period express service originating south of Mount Vernon and connecting North of the planning area through Old to downtown Washington, D. C. with a Town, Washington Street has three stop at Hunting Towers. lanes in each direction. Parking is pro- hibited on one side of Washington Metro Rail stations are beyond the limit Street during morning and afternoon of a typical walking commute from the peak commuting hours, providing a planning area, but good bus service is third moving lane in the peak direction available to the Braddock Road Metro that operates as a high occupancy vehi- station from the planning area in peak cle (HOV) lane. commute periods. The nearest Metro Rail stations are at King Street (Blue By comparison, Route 1 at the south Line and Yellow Line, 1.75 miles), city limits has an AWDT of 72,000 vehi- Braddock Road (Blue Line and Yellow cles per day, including substantial traf- Line, 1.9 miles), Eisenhower (Yellow fic on Route 1 headed to and from the Line, 2.25 miles) and Huntington (Yel- Capital Beltway that does not continue low Line, 2.25 miles by car or 1.75 miles north into Alexandria. Route 1 is di- on foot or by bicycle via planned multi- vided into a one-way couplet on Patrick use trail). Street and Henry Street through Old Town from Wilkes Street to the Monroe PEDESTRIANS Avenue Bridge. VDOT reports a volume of 44,000 on the couplet at King Sidewalks are provided on both sides Street as traffic leaves Route 1 onto the of Washington Street to the north of the Beltway and into Old Town. By the planning area. Once the reconstruction northern city limits, traffic on Route 1 of the overcrossing of the Beltway is has increased to 63,000 AWDT. completed, a substantially improved pedestrian connection will be provided across the Beltway to Old Town. The

22 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN Figure 10 Pedestrian and Bicycle Circulation

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 23 connection, shown in Figure 7 on page feeling that this island of development 14, will have substantial landscaping is part of the City of Alexandria, and and sufficient width to significantly will encourage people to walk or bicy- reduce freeway noise experienced by cle to their destinations in Old Town pedestrians making the crossing, al- and beyond. though the sidewalks are proposed to be relatively close to the moving lanes BICYCLES on Washington Street. The planning area is an important con- The raising of the grade of Washington nection point for bicycle trails. The Street south of the Beltway to provide Mount Vernon Trail runs from Mount for the original construction of the Vernon to Roosevelt Island along Capital Beltway, and the additional George Washington Memorial Park- raising for the recent Beltway widening way. The trail takes quieter streets for the Woodrow Wilson Bridge proj- through Alexandria’s Old Town to ect, have created an obstacle to pedes- avoid urban traffic. A pedestrian/ bicy- trian movement between Washington cle trail is to be constructed between Street and Hunting Towers and the Virginia and Maryland across the Po- north buildings of Hunting Terrace. tomac on the north span of the new This photo of the north end of Steep landscaped slopes and retaining bridge. This route will connect to other the Hunting Towers site walls along Washington Street mean trails at the Washington Street crossing. shows how the raising of the pedestrians walking to Old Town now The City’s trails plan calls for the grade of Washington Street, must walk a substantial additional dis- first to create the Beltway Mount Vernon Trail to run along the tance out of their way to reach Wash- crossing, and more recently water side of the Hunting Towers and ington Street. for the new design of the Porto Vecchio properties. During the Woodrow Wilson Bridge ap- Additional pedestrian connections to Woodrow Wilson Bridge construction, proaches, has changed the parkway character and cre- the north and east are provided under the trail has been routed temporarily ated an obstacle to pedestrian the Woodrow Wilson Bridge at Royal along the water side of the Hunting movement between resi- Street. To the west, a pedestrian and Towers site. The temporary alignment dences and the sidewalk. En- bicycle connection will be provided and the current ownership of Hunting trances to buildings are set far along the south side of the Route 1 Towers by VDOT provide an opportu- back from the sidewalk at Hunting Towers, in an auto- ramps to reach Route 1 in Fairfax nity to make this connection on the oriented site layout. County. Hunting Towers property. The Mount Vernon Trail provides a pedestrian and bicycle connection to the south on the east side of Washing- ton Street. No sidewalk or paved trail is provided on the west side of Washing- ton Street or George Washington Park- way south of Hunting Terrace, though there is space for people to walk on the shoulder and the margins of the roadway. Because pedestrian destinations on this side of the roadway are few and distant, there is little pedestrian traffic on the west side of Washington Street south of Hunting Terrace. Pedestrian connections to shared activities help to define neighborhoods. Maintaining good pedestrian connections is important to maintaining the

24 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN Plan Recommendations 3.0

This section details the planning prin- pleasant pedestrian connectivity ciples for the plan, and outlines the throughout the planning area and to City’s long-range land use, design, Old Town to encourage walking for transportation and housing objectives recreation, for convenient access to for the planning area. transit, and as a means of access to local activities and land uses. Elimi- 3.1. Principles nate the obstacle to pedestrian circulation that has resulted from the Create and reinforce neighborhoods. raising of the grade of Washington Street by raising the grade of adja- x Create a greater feeling of neighbor- cent areas as properties are redevel- hood identity and neighborliness oped. within the planning area. Promote neighborhood identity by improving Retain existing residential uses. internal connections and encourag- x Protect residences from impacts of ing development of common activity inappropriate or intrusive nonresi- spaces. When sites are redeveloped, dential uses. encourage owners to provide usable common open space areas, gather- x Ensure new development is com- ing places, and uses that encourage patible with neighboring residential shared activities. Through such uses. physical features, encourage neigh- x Protect existing affordable housing borhood activities and events that stock. promote local identity and uniqueness and provide opportunities for x Discourage development of non- regular interaction of neighborhood residential uses in the planning area residents. that do not primarily serve residents and waterfront, trail and park visi- x Better integrate the planning area tors. into the character of the City and the George Washington Memorial Preserve existing historic scale and charac- Parkway through such means as ter of the Old and Historic Alexandria Dis- landscaping character and transi- trict and the George Washington Memorial tion, building design, and building Parkway. and streetscape scale. In future de- x Follow the Washington Street Stan- velopment, ensure that the area ap- dards of the Old and Historic Alex- pears less isolated and becomes andria District in the architectural more a connected part of Alexan- design and character of redevelop- dria. ment or public improvements. x Strengthen the connection of the x Ensure that site planning and street- planning area to Old Town by pro- scape in future development in the viding a continuous pedestrian con- planning area respects the character nection. Provide convenient and envisioned in the Washington Street

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT 25 Guidelines of the Board of Archi- Enhance public access to and enjoyment of tectural Review. Provide for an ap- waterfront areas. propriate transition from the rural x Acquire land or easements to com- and pastoral character of the Park- plete the public trail system along way to the south and the Old Town the City’s waterfront. area to the north as envisioned in these guidelines. x Encourage development of usable public open spaces and water view Enhance and celebrate the historic character corridors in new development and of the southern gateway to the City along redevelopment. the George Washington Memorial Park- way. x Provide interpretive exhibits to enhance public awareness and enjoy- x Complete the improvements envi- ment of the waterfront’s historic and sioned in the Southern Gateway natural areas. Plan. Enable convenient access to and from the x Enhance the gateway character be- Hunting Creek and Jones Point areas by a tween the urban deck and south choice of circulation modes including gateway by appropriate landscaping automobiles, public transportation, bicy- within the right-of-way and on pri- cling and walking. vate property between these features. Adopt landscape guidelines x Provide convenient, safe and pleas- for the public and private spaces ant routes for pedestrians and bicy- along the parkway to encourage de- clists from their residences to transit velopment of a unified parkway de- and to local destinations such as sign. When properties redevelop, schools, local retail districts, parks encourage owners to bring adjacent and recreational areas. areas up to the grade of Washington x In development or redevelopment of Street to improve pedestrian con- large sites, ensure that a connected nections and restore the image and network of pedestrian and bicycle feeling of the broad parkway con- circulation ways is provided that en- tinuing to the urban deck. courages access by residents and Maintain the availability of affordable visitors by means other than the workforce housing, and take advantage of automobile. opportunities to assure the continued avail- x ability of affordable housing for all eco- Ensure continued public pedestrian nomic segments of the community. and bicycle access under the Woodrow Wilson Bridge at Royal x Take immediate action to evaluate, Street and public connections from encourage, and if feasible provide this link on the north and south for the acquisition of a substantial sides of the bridge as a critical link- number of the dwelling units in the age in the pedestrian and bicycle cir- Hunting Towers or Hunting Terrace culation network of the City and the projects for subsidized affordable region. housing. x Work with Fairfax County and the x Encourage the continued availability National Park Service to encourage of quality affordable workforce development of a pedestrian and bi- housing at Hunting Towers and cycle connection along the west side Hunting Terrace through continued of George Washington Parkway maintenance, rehabilitation or rede- between Alexandria and Belle Ha- velopment. ven Road. When this connection is available, provide a sidewalk ap-

26 LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN propriate to the parkway landscape courage the redevelopment or major design from Alfred Street to the rehabilitation of the Hunting Terrace or south City Limits on the west side of Hunting Towers projects in the near Washington Street. future. The plan‘s recommendations for changes in land regulation are intended Protect and enhance the natural habitat to reflect the new transportation use of value of the City’s natural open spaces. the widened Capital Beltway, to retain Provide physical and visual access to natu- residential use in areas now used for ral open spaces where access is consistent residences, and to encourage redevel- with protection of natural resource values. opment in a way that is consistent with x Continue to work with the National the character of the George Washington Park Service to use and maintain Memorial Parkway. Jones Point Park for its natural, his- Figure 11 illustrates the existing zoning toric and recreational value to City in the planning area and adjacent areas residents and visitors. of Alexandria. Recommended changes x Provide visual and physical access to zoning for the planning area are il- to Jones Point Park, waterfront ar- lustrated. These changes are as follows: eas, and conservation easement ar- x For those land uses to be within the eas where such access is consistent Beltway and Route 1 rights of way, with conservation of natural re- change the current zoning to UT, source values. Ensure that such ac- Utility and Transportation from RC cess is provided in future develop- and OCM (50). ment or redevelopment of properties adjacent to these sites. Provide in- x For those areas outside the proposed terpretive information appropriate Beltway right-of-way that were pre- to the setting to increase public viously zoned OCM (50), Office awareness and appreciation of the Commercial Medium, rezone to RC, natural environmental features of high density apartment, the same as the sites. the adjacent residential zoning at Hunting Towers. x In any redevelopment in the planning area, encourage the recovery of In addition to these zoning changes, Resource Protection Areas (RPAs) specific design guidelines and a land- that have been paved or developed scape concept are proposed for devel- in the past so that they may be re- opment of properties along George turned to open space use as natural Washington Parkway in the planning open space features for watershed area. The primary purpose of these protection, wildlife habitat and rec- guidelines is to implement the Wash- reation. ington Street Design Guidelines of the Board of Architectural Review with specific recommendations for these 3.2. Land Use and Land Devel- sites. opment The existing Waterfront Park and Rec- The widening of the Capital Beltway reation (WPR) zoning for Jones Point has substantially modified the planning Park should be retained. area since the previous plan for the area was adopted. The planning area is currently fully developed. However, the economics of the housing market and the age of the existing structures may combine to en-

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT 27 Figure 11 Existing Zoning and Recommended Zone Changes

28 LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN the surrounding neighborhoods in Old CREATE AND REINFORCE NEIGHBORHOODS Town inappropriate. The plan proposes to create and rein- Maintaining residential use means force neighborhoods in the planning protecting residential uses from ad- area by promoting a pattern of devel- verse effects of the traffic on the Belt- opment that encourages common uses way and George Washington Memorial and activities, and connects and relates Parkway. Both the George Washington to adjoining areas of Alexandria. Memorial Parkway and Capital Belt- The widened Beltway and its related way produce traffic noise and disrup- ramps, frontage roads and noise barri- tion that need to be considered in de- ers form a 700-foot barrier between the sign of adjacent residences. In particu- residential areas south of the Beltway lar, new development or redevelop- and the community center for this ment of residential uses should con- neighborhood in Old Town. Overcom- sider traffic noise and external noise ing the increased isolation resulting barriers in site design and building de- from this separation is a challenge the sign. Among the principles of design in plan addresses through quality pedes- a roadway noise environment are: trian connections and design for ex- x Use sound insulating windows, pressing the linkage and common char- doors, and exterior walls; baffling of acter between the planning area and ductwork, and other methods of re- Old Town to the north. ducing transmission of high exterior Given this barrier, it is important to noise levels into dwellings. make the pedestrian connection as x Use patio door designs that provide strong as possible and to provide a secure closures to eliminate noise clear, consistent and pleasant pedes- pathways. trian connection between Old Town and the planning area. x Orient noise-sensitive rooms away from noise sources. RETAIN EXISTING RESIDENTIAL USES x Use sound-absorbing interior mate- The Hunting Towers, Hunting Terrace rials and finishes. and Porto Vecchio projects are all residential uses. Minor commercial activi- x Orient buildings to protect outdoor ties including a convenience market are open spaces from noise effects. located within the projects, but these While landscaping that hides noise uses are intended to serve primarily sources has a psychological effect that those who live within the residential can reduce annoyance compared to that developments and those passing by or of unshielded sources, landscaping of visiting for other reasons, not as desti- less than 100 feet of heavy vegetation nations that draw others into the area. has little effect on measured noise lev- The construction of the Woodrow Wil- els. Trees above a noise barrier actually son Bridge and related improvements scatter noise, resulting in a small but has reduced the land area devoted to measurable increase in noise levels residential uses in the planning area immediately behind the barrier. and has increased the separation of the residential areas from the areas of Old LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT Town to the north. Both of these factors RECOMMENDATIONS make the development of commercial 3.2.1. Rezone areas within the Capital uses beyond those supported by the Beltway right-of-way to UT, Utilities immediate residential areas or at most and Transportation, consistent with their use as roadway.

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT 29 3.2.2. Rezone those remainder areas x Spacing Between Buildings. . . . For designated for office development to example, in this sector it is appro- RC, High Density Apartment, consis- priate to have a considerable sepa- tent with the zoning of adjacent resi- ration between buildings. dential uses. The existing structures at Hunting 3.2.3. Adopt design guidelines for fu- Towers and Porto Vecchio are not con- ture redevelopment of the properties sistent with these guidelines or the along Washington Street to provide standards of the Old and Historic Dis- common features and common areas trict. However, future development or that encourage shared activities and redevelopment (except as a replace- create a neighborhood. ment of an existing noncomplying structure) of these sites would be re- 3.2.4. Adopt design guidelines for fu- quired to return to this more pedes- ture redevelopment of the areas along trian-friendly scale and character of Washington Street that protect residen- development. tial uses from noise and other adverse effects of traffic on the Capital Beltway Although the buildings at Hunting Ter- and Washington Street, and take ad- race are not consistent with the Wash- vantage of views and natural open ington Street Standards of the zoning spaces that contribute to the unique ordinance, they do reflect the more character of this area. open character called for in the Board of Architectural Review guidelines for 3.3. Historic Resources this sector of Washington Street. Specific design guidelines are recom- PRESERVE EXISTING HISTORIC SCALE AND mended for the Hunting Towers and CHARACTER Hunting Terrace sites to implement the Washington Street Guidelines for these The Old and Historic Alexandria Dis- sites if they are redeveloped in the fu- trict regulations including the Wash- ture. ington Street Standards that apply to the planning area call for development These guidelines set forth such condi- compatible in scale and character to tions as setbacks from Washington those areas of Washington Street north Street, landscaping along the Parkway, of the Beltway in Old Town. location of surface parking, frontage roads, and physical and visual access to The Washington Street Guidelines of open space. the Board of Architectural Review provide additional direction with respect WASHINGTON STREET ENTRANCE to the transition between Old Town GATEWAY and the more rural areas along George Washington Memorial Parkway south The City and the Virginia Department of Hunting Creek. These guidelines call of Transportation have agreed to a plan for the following pattern of develop- for development of the Washington ment that differs from that in other Street south entrance gateway to the parts of the Old and Historic District: City as part of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge project. The City should imple- x Scale and character. This sector of ment those portions of the gateway Washington Street is largely resi- plan within its responsibility. dential in nature with considerable setbacks from the roadway. Projects HISTORIC RESOURCES RECOMMENDATIONS are specifically encouraged to retain the open feeling of this area. . . . 3.3.1. Adopt site planning and design guidelines for the planning area along

30 LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN George Washington Memorial Parkway are likely to continue to provide afford- that implement the Washington Street able workforce housing unless a new Guidelines of the Board of Architec- owner undertakes major rehabilitation, tural Review. condominium conversion or redevelopment. 3.3.2. Work with the National Park Service to protect and interpret the The City’s affordable housing programs historic resources of Jones Point Park. include a variety of strategies and programs for preserving existing afford- 3.3.3. Construct the proposed gateway able housing and providing affordable landscaping along Washington Street. housing in new construction. The Alex- 3.3.4. Adopt design guidelines for andria Housing Development Corpo- gateway landscaping along the Hunt- ration (AHDC) has recently been estab- ing Towers and Hunting Terrace prop- lished to purchase, rehabilitate or con- erties to continue the gateway theme struct affordable housing in the City. between the urban deck and Hunting Creek. In redevelopment of properties A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY AND CHALLENGE along the George Washington Memo- The fact that the Hunting Towers and rial Parkway, bring areas adjacent to Hunting Terrace projects are currently the roadway up to the grade of the in public ownership and are to be sold parkway where it has been raised to presents an opportunity to convert at cross the Capital Beltway, restoring the least some of the residential units to parkway character to these areas. guaranteed affordable housing for low and moderate income households. 3.4. Affordable Housing However, the current intent of VDOT to sell the units in 2005 means the win- The plan’s recommendations for af- dow of opportunity is a small one. Be- fordable housing in the planning area cause the property is surplus from a are intended to preserve existing previous condemnation, the prior workforce housing and to provide owner has right of first refusal if the some long-term affordable units for property is sold rather than transferred low- and moderate-income households. to another state agency. The Hunting Terrace and Hunting After the initial sale to a private owner, Towers developments provide housing the range future options for affordable at rents affordable to households with housing will be narrowed in a subse- incomes substantially below the me- quent transfer, since tax credits for dian household income for the region. some types of projects are not available Rents were kept at their 2001 levels for for properties that have been sold in the prior tenants during the construction past 10 years except by a public agency. period through the first quarter of 2005 as a result of an agreement with VDOT. The options available to the City to ob- Rents may be raised after this date by tain affordable housing through this VDOT or by a new owner once the sale include: projects are sold. x Partner with the prior owner to pur- By virtue of their age, design and chase the projects at the time of ini- amenities provided, these projects can- tial offer by VDOT, based on a plan not command the rents or purchase that provides for affordable housing. prices of newly constructed housing of x If the prior owner does not purchase similar size and location. Although the projects, purchase the projects rents in the projects will probably be for resale to a partnership including raised in the near future, these projects an affordable housing provider.

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT 31 x If the prior owner does not purchase stantial savings, households in this in- the projects, partner with an afford- come range must typically look to more able housing provider to purchase distant suburbs for affordable housing, the projects and develop an afford- particularly if they seek townhouse or able housing component. single-family detached units. x If the prior owner does not purchase If the Hunting Terrace or Hunting the projects, work with local afford- Towers projects are converted to con- able housing providers to develop a dominiums, some residents are likely to partnership to purchase the projects. qualify for City assistance in financing the purchase of their unit. x Work through the development pro-

cess with a purchaser who redevel- SUBSIDIZED HOUSING ops one of the sites to ensure that affordable housing is provided. The City operates a number of programs that help make housing more The following discussion provides available to low- and moderate-income background on these options. households seeking housing in Alexan- dria. In addition, the City provides AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN NEW support to the Alexandria Housing De- CONSTRUCTION velopment Corporation (AHDC), a re- In new construction projects, the City’s cently established nonprofit corpora- Affordable Housing Policy calls for a tion that funds affordable housing con- voluntary $1.00 per square foot contri- struction and rehabilitation. bution to affordable housing programs. In addition to these programs, the Al- Developers are encouraged to provide exandria Redevelopment and Housing on-site affordable housing as part of Authority (ARHA) operates public this program. Recent increases in de- housing for low-income households, velopment costs and housing prices and the federal government provides have increased the cost of providing tax credits for affordable housing con- affordable housing, so the $1.00 per struction and supplemental housing square foot contribution provides the payments to low-income households City with far fewer affordable housing through the Section 8 program to help units than anticipated when the target meet housing needs that are not met by contribution amount was established. the normal housing construction mar- The program is currently under review ket. with the objective of providing more affordable housing units. Many new affordable housing construction or rehabilitation projects are Alexandria’s assisted rental housing the product of multiple programs, stock is typically available to house- commonly including tax credits, other holds meeting federal income criteria federal subsidies, local housing pro- (currently not exceeding $58,000 for a grams and donations. These combined four-person household). A number of funding sources permit non-profit and apartment projects in the City provide for-profit affordable-housing develop- rental housing affordable to the higher ers to compete for land and existing income households in this group. housing units with market-rate housing Based on current housing prices, only developers in the right circumstances. older condominiums and a very few The right circumstances may exist in older, small duplex units provide own- the case of Hunting Towers for a non- ership housing at prices considered profit housing developer or partner- affordable to those at 60% to 120% of ship. Through AHDC or another af- median income. Unless they have sub-

32 LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN fordable housing developer, alone or in dominiums. Current tenants must also partnership with a conventional hous- be offered the exclusive right to pur- ing developer, a mixed-income project chase their units at the publicly offered involving the rehabilitation of Hunting price for at least 60 days. In addition, Towers could be feasible. Conversion of the City has a voluntary program of the existing project to condominiums, small relocation payments in the case of with reservation of a substantial frac- condominium conversions. tion of the units as affordable for sale or rental units, is one method by which an AFFORDABLE HOUSING affordable housing developer could RECOMMENDATIONS provide affordable housing. 3.4.1. Retain housing as the primary use While a similar program could work at of the existing residential areas in the Hunting Terrace, the more likely reuse planning area. of the Terrace, according VDOT’s right- 3.4.2. Attempt to obtain a substantial of-way manager, is redevelopment for number of affordable housing units in new housing. The current zoning and the planning area by working with development standards applied on the VDOT, the prior owner of the Hunting Hunting Terrace site would permit de- Towers and Hunting Terrace Proper- velopment of substantially more ties, the Alexandria Housing Develop- apartment or condominium units than ment Corporation, other non-profit currently exist on the site. In today’s housing providers, and for-profit market, either a condominium or housing developers as appropriate to townhouse redevelopment of the site is preserve existing units or provide af- likely to yield more value to a new pur- fordable housing if either of the projects chaser than continued operation of the is substantially rehabilitated or rede- site’s 115 apartment units or develop- veloped. ment of new apartments. 3.4.3. In order to retain affordable and In a project in which the existing workforce housing in the City, the City buildings are demolished and new may consider a zoning text amendment housing constructed, only a very few or zone change to allow additional affordable housing units are likely to be height and density with setbacks ap- provided under the City’s affordable propriate to the project and the site, housing policy. and in conformance with the Board of Architectural Review’s Washington RELOCATION Street Standards and Guidelines, with Federal relocation payments are not SUP approval, if the project provides required to owners or tenants who may for extraordinary affordable housing, be dislocated indirectly when a public including but not limited to the acqui- agency sells a project like Hunting sition by the City, or by a nonprofit Towers or Hunting Terrace to an owner housing corporation, of units at the who later chooses to modify or demol- project. ish the project. If federal, state or local government funds are used in the con- 3.5. Circulation struction or conversion, relocation payments may be required. Circulation recommendations of the plan focus on strengthening pedestrian Some protection for tenants, in the form connections within the planning area of extended notice to tenants and small and from the planning area to Old moving expenses payments, is pro- Town, linking the Mount Vernon Trail vided by state law if owners choose to along the water side of the Hunting convert an apartment building to con-

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT 33 Towers property, and ensuring con- ington Memorial Parkway for 18 miles venient access to public transportation from Mount Vernon to Roosevelt Is- in the planning area. land. The City’s trails plan calls for ultimate alignment of the trail along the The Hunting Terrace, Hunting Towers water side of the Porto Vecchio and and Porto Vecchio sites are located on Hunting Towers properties. The own- George Washington Memorial Park- ership of the Hunting Towers site by way, a designated arterial roadway VDOT and the temporary location of providing excellent regional access. the trail along the water to avoid con- However, the planning area has no al- struction provides a unique opportu- ternate public access in the event that nity to permanently relocate the trail to this route is congested or obstructed. A Metro bus waits at Hunting the water side of this parcel. Terrace Each site currently has direct access to the roadway. The City is currently working with VDOT to provide for an easement for Hunting Terrace is entirely served by the trail, and to work out the details of surface parking, while Hunting Towers any changes required to wetland miti- has limited garage parking, and Porto gation for the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Vecchio provides nearly all its parking project that may result from the per- in a ground-level garage beneath the manent alignment of the trail through structure. this area. The economics of new development Any future redevelopment of these mean that future development or rede- sites should provide for the location of velopment of the sites will be served the trail on the water side of these primarily by structured parking, properties. The trail should be designed probably beneath residential units. and landscaped in a way that clearly delineates the public trail easement PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION The construction alignment of area from the private areas of the prop- the Mount Vernon Trail is in the location sought in the City’s Both DASH and the Washington Met- erty. Excellent examples of how public long-range trail plan. ropolitan Area Transportation Author- ways can be related to private devel- ity (WMATA) provide regular bus opment in waterfront areas are pro- service to the sites with stops on Ter- vided along other sections of Alexan- race Road southbound and Washington dria’s waterfront. This area is one of the Street northbound. Hunting Towers is few remaining gaps in a continuous the terminus of a number of bus routes, waterfront trail system that runs from and the continued availability of a place the north to the south end of Alexan- for buses to turn around and lay by at dria. the beginning of their next run is important to providing good public CIRCULATION RECOMMENDATIONS transportation service to the planning 3.5.1. Acquire an easement for the area. Any redevelopment in the area Mount Vernon Trail on the water side should retain this capability by retain- of the Hunting Towers property. ing a bus stop and layby area along Washington Street or by providing a 3.5.2. Limit access to properties from separate bus turnaround. Bus shelters Washington Street south of the Capital The Mount Vernon Trail crosses should be provided at both bus stops to Beltway to existing signalized intersec- Hunting Creek on the parkway bridge south of Porto Vecchio. encourage transit use. tions and a single bus access point on each side in order to minimize inter- MOUNT VERNON TRAIL ruptions of arterial traffic and pedestrian ways. The Mount Vernon Trail runs continu- ously along or near the George Wash-

34 LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN 3.5.3. Provide a strong and continuous 3.6.3. Provide visual and physical ac- pedestrian-oriented streetscape and a cess to Jones Point Park, waterfront ar- strong pedestrian connection between eas, and conservation easement areas the planning area and Old Town using where such access is consistent with sidewalks, landscaping, street trees, conservation of natural resource values. and street design and crosswalk mate- Ensure that such access is provided in rials to create a pleasant pedestrian ex- future development or redevelopment perience. of properties adjacent to these sites. Provide interpretive information ap- 3.5.4. In site design guidelines, empha- propriate to the setting to increase pub- size convenient pedestrian connections lic awareness and appreciation of the within sites, to pedestrian corridors and natural environmental features of the to public transportation. Raise the sites. grade of areas adjacent to the Parkway to the grade of the Washington Street sidewalks where the grade of the parkway has been raised to cross the Capital Beltway, to eliminate the obstacles to pedestrian movement caused by this grade difference. 3.5.5. If the Hunting Terrace site is redeveloped, ensure that a suitable bus turnaround is provided in the planning area for bus lines that now use the Ter- race Road bus stop to turn around.

3.6. Natural Environment The natural environment of Hunting Creek and the Potomac shoreline is the most important character-defining feature of the planning area that distin- guishes it from other areas of the City. Natural environment recommendations focus on protecting and enhancing that environment and making it more a part of the experience of living in and visiting the planning area.

NATURAL ENVIRONMENT RECOMMENDATIONS 3.6.1. In design guidelines, emphasize natural open space features and connections to them as an important theme of development. 3.6.2. In design guidelines, emphasize public physical and visual access to natural open space areas where access is compatible with retention of open space and habitat values.

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN LAND USE AND LAND DEVELOPMENT 35 Implementation 4.0

The following actions are recom- 2. Adopt a zoning text amendment to CMO – City Manager’s mended to implement the plan’s rec- implement the landscape concept Office ommendations. Agencies involved in outlined in Section 5 to provide con- implementation are identified, with the tinuity of landscape from the gate- OH – Office of Housing lead agency shown in bold type. way at Hunting Creek to the urban deck over the Capital Beltway. Im- BAR – Board of Architec- tural Review 4.1. Land Use and Land Devel- plement these guidelines in future public or private development in the RPCA – Department of Rec- opment planning area. (P&Z, T&ES) reation, Parks and Cultural 1. Rezone the planning area as out- Activities lined in Figure 11. (P&Z) 4.3. Affordable Housing 2. Adopt a zoning text amendment to T&ES – Department of 1. Work with VDOT, the prior prop- Transportation and Envi- implement the design guidelines of erty owner, non-profit housing pro- ronmental Services Section 5 as redevelopment takes viders and potential for-profit de- place in the planning area. Design velopers to take advantage of the guidelines should ensure that rede- opportunity to provide affordable velopment in the planning area en- workforce and low- and moderate- courages development of a local income housing as a permanent use neighborhood, provides strong con- in the planning area. (CMO, OH, nections to nearby areas of Alexan- P&Z) dria and to community facilities, provides visual and physical access 2. Work with lenders, owners and ten- to natural open space areas, and re- ants to provide information on the spects the historic character of the City’s homeownership programs to George Washington Memorial enable tenants to purchase their Parkway. (P&Z, BAR) units if the apartments in the planning area are converted to condominiums. (OH) 4.2. Historic Resources 1. Adopt a zoning text amendment to 4.4. Circulation reflect the design guidelines of Sec- tion 5 as they implement the Wash- 1. Acquire an open space and trail ington Street Guidelines of the easement along the shoreline of Board of Architectural Review for Hunting Towers to provide a water redevelopment of the sites along side alignment of the Mount Vernon Washington Street in the planning Trail. (RPCA) area. Through these guidelines, 2. In the event of future development work with owners to ensure that or redevelopment of Porto Vecchio, future redevelopment respects the obtain a similar easement to provide historic and memorial character of a shoreline alignment of the Mount the George Washington Memorial Vernon Trail at Porto Vecchio. Parkway and the southern gateway (RPCA) to Alexandria. (P&Z, BAR)

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN IMPLEMENTATION 37 3. Protect public pedestrian and bicycle access under the Woodrow Wilson Bridge at Royal Street as critical local and regional connections in these circulation systems. (T&ES) 4. Provide an enhanced pedestrian- oriented streetscape and a strong pedestrian connection between the planning area and Old Town to reinforce the connection of the planning area to the rest of the City. (T&ES, P&Z) 5. Include the requirement for a bus turnaround in design guidelines for the Hunting Terrace site. (P&Z, T&ES) 6. Provide bus shelters at the bus stops on Terrace Road and Washington Street in the planning area (T&ES).

4.5. Natural Environment 1. Adopt a zoning text amendment implementing design guidelines for the planning area to retain and enhance physical and visual access to natural open space features of the area in any potential redevelopment. (P&Z, BAR) 2. Encourage recovery and enhance- ment of resource protection areas (RPAs) in any future redevelopment in the planning area (P&Z, T&ES) 3. Continue to work with the National Park Service to manage Jones Point Park for its historic, cultural, natural environmental, and recreational value to the community, the region and the nation. (RPCA)

38 IMPLEMENTATION HUNTING CREEKAREA PLAN Design Guidelines 5.0

specifically provided for herein shall be WASHINGTON STREET HUNTING CREEK constructed within the Parkway Land- AREA DESIGN GUIDELINES scape Buffer.

PURPOSE. The purposes of the Wash- SITE ACCESS. Access through the Park- ington Street Hunting Creek Area De- way Landscape Buffer buffer to adja- sign Guidelines are to (1) protect, en- cent parcels should be limited to exist- hance and restore the historic character ing signalized intersections and a bus of the margins of the George Washing- access way on each side in order to ton Memorial Parkway at the southern minimize the visual effect of interrup- gateway to the City of Alexandria from tions in the landscaped buffer and rows Hunting Creek to the Capital Beltway of street trees, and to minimize inter- in accordance with the agreement be- ruptions to pedestrian travel along the tween the City and the Nation al Park parkway. Service, (2) preserve the views and LANDSCAPING. Any development plan connections to the natural environ- shall provide for the regrading and mental features that are uniquely im- landscaping of the Parkway Landscape portant to the character of this part of Buffer and areas between the buffer Alexandria, and (3) encourage the de- and structures closest to Washington velopment of a stronger sense of neigh- Street to provide a continuous broad borhood and a stronger relationship to parkway appearance. This area shall be nearby areas of Alexandria through landscaped with appropriate design strong linkages and compatible design and plant materials. The area between as sites are redeveloped. the roadway and buildings closest to APPLICABILITY. These guidelines apply Washington Street shall be raised to to all property adjoining Washington approximately at the grade of the side- Street south of the Capital Beltway in walk on Washington Street between the the City of Alexandria. They supple- intersection at the entry drive to the ment and implement, but do not re- Porto Vecchio and the urban deck over place, the Washington Street Guidelines the Capital Beltway on both sides of of the Board of Architectural Review Washington Street. and the Washington Street Standards of Landscaping shall be provided in the the Old and Historic Alexandria Dis- Parkway Landscape Buffer in accor- trict. dance with the concepts illustrated in PARKWAY LANDSCAPE BUFFER. A Park- the Landscape Concept for Washington way Landscape Buffer is established Street and Parkway Landscape Buffer, along Washington Street extending 80 Figure 16. feet from the right-of-way of Washing- Variations to the landscape plan to ton Street, or 140 feet from the center- provide for appropriate site access for a line of Washington Street, whichever is specific development plan may be ap- closest to the centerline of Washington proved by the Director; however, only Street. No structures other than those one vehicular access point through the

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN DESIGN GUIDELINES 39 Parkway Landscape Buffer in addition tions and convenience within the plan- to those at the existing signalized inter- ning area and between the planning sections just south of the Capital Belt- area and nearby areas of Alexandria way and at the entrance to Porto Vec- TRANSIT STOP AND LAYOVER AREA. A chio shall be permitted between Hunt- transit stop and layover area shall be ing Creek and the Capital Beltway. retained within the Parkway Landscape The key concepts of the landscape plan Buffer on the west side of Washington are: Street, or in an alternate location within the property approved by the Director. x A wide, landscaped setback on A city-approved shelter for transit rid- each side of Washington Street. ers shall be provided conveniently lo- x A continuous row of large street cated to the transit stop and layover trees (shade trees) along Washing- area. ton Street, with a continuous row of The roadway within the transit stop ornamental trees behind, to define and layover area shall be set back no the line of the street and establish a less than 24 feet from the Washington strong visual impression of passage Street right-of-way, and shall have a and arrival as one enters Alexan- curb-to-curb width no greater than 24 dria from the south. feet. Access to the transit stop and lay- x A planted gateway median. over area may be provided through the Landscape Buffer Area. Such access x Raising the grade of the landscaped shall have a maximum width of 24 feet buffer area and adjacent areas be- curb-to-curb at the pedestrian crossing tween the landscaped buffer and and shall provide one-way entry to the structures along the roadway to site only from Washington Street. approximately the grade of the Washington Street sidewalks. Exiting from the transit stop and layover area and from the property on the x A street wall generally at the loca- west side of Washington Street shall be tion of the front setback, with ar- only at the location of the existing sig- ticulation of building fronts and nalized intersections serving Hunting substantial spacing between Towers and Porto Vecchio. buildings in the street wall in accordance with the Washington SITE DEVELOPMENT GUIDELINES AND Street Guidelines for the area, to STANDARDS. Site development is gov- define the parkway boundary and erned by the Washington Street Guide- separate the open space character lines of the Board of Architectural Re- of the parkway from the develop- view and the Washington Street Stan- ment area along the margin. dards of the Old and Historic Alexan- dria District. These additional design The intent of raising the grade to that of guidelines in the Hunting Creek Area the roadway is to provide and restore a Plan provide specific guidance to im- broad, parkway appearance to the plement the Washington Street Guide- margins of the Parkway entering Alex- lines for the area south of the Capital andria, particularly where the grade of Beltway. the roadway has been raised higher than its historic level in order to cross SITE DEVELOPMENT FOR HUNTING the Capital Beltway. Raising the grade TERRACE SITE. On the west side of of this area will serve to maintain and Washington Street, a public street or restore the character of the Parkway, public access easement shall provide and will remove obstacles to pedestrian access along the south side of the de- access, improving pedestrian connec- veloped part of the site as shown in the

40 DESIGN GUIDELINES HUNTING CREEKAREA PLAN Hunting Terrace Site Development Concept, Figure 15. No structures for human occupancy other than accessory structures for maintenance, enhance- ment and interpretation of wildlife habitat areas, wetlands and resource protection areas shall be permitted south of this street. The intent of this requirement is to maintain public visual and physical access to natural habitat areas along Hunting Creek.

SURFACE PARKING. Surface parking shall not be permitted between Wash- ington Street and those structures on the site that are closest to Washington Street and generally aligned with Washington Street.

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN DESIGN GUIDELINES 41 Figure 5.1. Design Guidelines – Access points and bus stop

Figure 12. Parkway Landscape Buffer. An 80-foot setback from the property line provides a parkway buffer that permits the character of the entry gateway landscaping to carry through the site to the urban deck over the Capital Beltway. This setback imple- ments the theme of the Board of Architectural Review’s Washington Street Guidelines for the area south of Wilkes Street.

42 DESIGN GUIDELINES HUNTING CREEKAREA PLAN arkway cross-section Design Guidelines – South Roadway

Figure 13. Parkway Landscape Buffer Cross-Section. In order to establish a broad parkway character for Washington Street, the guidelines call for raising the grade of the area between Washington Street and the closest buildings to that of the Washington Street sidewalk. At the north end of the site, the site elevation is now 8 to 10 feet below that of the sidewalks on Washington Street on both the Hunting Terrace and Hunting Towers properties. This significant difference in grade has resulted from the raising of Washington Street to cross the Capital Beltway. This introduced grade difference substantially detracts from the historic character of the parkway and disrupts pedestrian access to Washington Street, to transit and to the rest of Alexandria.

Figure 14. Parkway Landscape Buffer and Street Wall. This figure shows the concept of an interrupted street wall along the front setback line. All areas between the first structures and Washington Street should be brought up to the approximate grade of the street and landscaped in a way consistent with the Gateway Landscape Concept (Figure 16). Surface parking is not permitted between Washington Street and the first row of structures along Washington Street as shown by the shaded area in the figure.

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN DESIGN GUIDELINES 43 Figure 15. Hunting Terrace Site Development Concept. This figure shows the principle for location of development in relation to the south access street. A public street or public access easement on the south side of the developed portion of the site separates the open space from structures and protects public visual and physical access to open space areas.

44 DESIGN GUIDELINES HUNTING CREEKAREA PLAN Design Guidelines – PFigure 5.4. Land- scape Guidelines

Figure 16. Landscape Concept for Washington Street and Parkway Landscape Buffer. The landscape concept for the gateway along Hunting Towers and Hunting Terrace provides for a continuous tree row in addition to street trees in the wide parkway setback on each side of Washington Street to carry the entry point landscaping between the gateway entry feature just north of the Hunting Creek Bridge to the urban deck over the Capital Beltway. Setting bus stops behind the street tree line provides greater continuity to the tree-lined parkway edge.

HUNTING CREEK AREA PLAN DESIGN GUIDELINES 45 City of Alexandria Hunting Creek Area Plan