Alexandria Residents Weigh in on Zoning Reform

Residents of Alexandria, Virginia are divided in their opinions of a proposed rezoning plan released by the city in September. As Margaret Bartel and Morgan Baskin explain in DCist, the plan, Zoning for Housing, is designed to spur housing production and increase affordability through reforms that include permitting fourplexes in single-family zoned neighborhoods and promoting transit-oriented development (TOD). While some residents think the plan is moving too quickly and limits public input on projects too severely, others say the plan isn’t nearly ambitious enough to curb the region’s housing shortage.

According to the article, during a public meeting on Thursday night, “Many questions appeared to press the city to consider broader reforms.” However, other residents said the process was rushed and asked for more time to consider the various proposals. “This was the last in a series of community meetings designed to familiarize residents with the plan, answer questions, and receive feedback ahead of consideration of the policy by the Planning Commission and the City Council.”

The city claims the plan, if fully implemented, could create up to 2,838 new housing units over the next decade, still falling short of the city’s goal to add 3,000 units by 2030. “Opponents of the zoning plan have pointed out that the city has overseen the creation of 11,000 housing units in the last decade, with about 40,000 more considered in small area plans–the guiding long-term vision for specific neighborhoods–mostly near transit.”

Other critics say the plan does little to address affordable housing. “Just how many of the roughly 2,800 additional new units created under Zoning for Housing in the next decade will be committed affordable homes — or even attainable ones — is less clear.”