City Council Tuesday night approved significant zoning changes to allow for more diverse housing development in Alexandria.
Tuesday night’s City Council meeting went late into the night as city staff answered questions from about how zoning changes would affect properties and neighborhoods – but City Council ultimately passed the Zoning for Housing and Housing for All initiatives.
Mayor Justin Wilson noted that the reason for the discussions and debates is because so many people are struggling to afford to live in Alexandria.
Wilson also noted that there is a significant generational divide on this issue, which is rare. "There are certainly exceptions on both sides, but it was stark." Younger residents seemed more in favor of the Zoning for Housing / Housing for All changes as the "American Dream" of owning a home seems more out of reach. Nearly 60% of Alexandria residents are renters.
What is Zoning for Housing/Housing for All?
The city defines the initiative this way:
"Zoning for Housing is a comprehensive proposal of zoning reforms with the goal of expanding housing production and affordability and addressing past and current barriers to equitable housing access. Housing for All is the equity component of Zoning for Housing and will explore the extent of past discriminatory housing policies and their continued impact, especially on people of color and/or low-income. This initiative will also focus on how Alexandria can help ensure residual effects of past exclusionary housing provisions are identified and addressed in new policies under Zoning for Housing through the setting of equity goals and metrics for those policies."
According to a City staff report, affordable housing is a significant problem in Alexandria, with about 19,000 households “paying more than the federal government indicates they should for housing, leaving little in their household budgets for necessities.”
With Alexandria’s population on an upward trajectory, “The longstanding imbalance between housing supply and demand, exacerbated by stagnating wage growth particularly in low to moderate-wage sectors, is a key factor underlying the high cost of housing, imperiling our ability to grow an economy that depends on a diversity of skillsets. The Zoning for Housing/Housing for All Initiative can assist in meeting these needs,” city staff note.
In 2021 and 2022, city council voted to pass three initiatives designed to expand housing opportunities — the Accessory Dwelling Unit program (January 2021), the Co-Living program (January 2022), and the Auxiliary Dwelling Unit program (July 2022). Nine other initiatives were joined together into the Zoning for Housing/Housing for All package — those are what city council voted on Tuesday evening after months of research, debate and public input.
Many of those who are in favor of using zoning tools to create the opportunity for more diverse types of housing in Alexandria argue that the changes are needed if there’s any hope of there being enough affordable housing in Alexandria. Many of those who are against the changes say the zoning changes amount to too much, too fast without adequate input from residents and research. Further, they argue that creating housing for more residents could make Alexandria too crowded and generally unlivable.
The complete staff report explaining all the changes that were proposed, including staff recommendations, is available here.
After the vote, Council Member Alyia Gaskins requested that to move forward, the council should ensure it has the "Housing for All" component is properly understood and supported, including with proper outreach and a dashboard to track relevant progress.
Voting, Outreach and Amendments
Council Member Amy Jackson brought up concerns about communication with residents and asked why the city of Alexandria didn’t we send out a mailer to all residents, similar to how the city does for leaf collection — particularly for the benefit of older residents and non-English speaking households. “I think we’ve missed a huge opportunity to hear from even more people,” Jackson said, calling the diversity of the city a strength.
Council Member Canek Aguirre noted that the city should have considered sending a mailer, but the amount of outreach on this issue was “extensive” and residents have some responsibility themselves to stay informed and engaged.
City staff noted that there were significant outreach efforts designed to facilitate discussions, not just provide information. “In terms of the quality of the input that we’re getting, I’m confident that we got a wide range of diverse viewpoints, and that is, itself, a measure of how well we did with our engagement,” Karl Moritz, director of Alexandria's Dept. of Planning and Zoning, responded.
In response to inquiries by Council Member Sarah Bagley, city staff said they have not sent mailers to communicate with residents about two other large scale zoning changes — the Hilco project in Old Town North and the Landmark Mall redevelopment. There were more than a dozen meetings in addition to community engagement efforts regarding Zoning for Housing/Housing for All.
Council Member Kirk McPike thanked residents who participated in the process of considering the zoning changes. “Whether you agree [or not]... you were heard, you were listened to, and I value the opinion of every Alexandrian on matters such as these.” McPike said the decision to pass the zoning changes was a vote to keep Alexandria a livable place for residents and make it more livable to future residents.
Council Members Aguirre and Gaskins also spoke at length, noting the seriousness of the vote and the issues surrounding zoning, affordable housing and managing growth in a rapidly changing city. "I have a lot on my mind, but at the same time I'm also proud and happy with where we're ending tonight," Gaskins said.
Council Member Sarah Bagley noted that younger generations are focusing more on climate change, but the housing zoning changes are done with this in mind by focusing housing around transit and sustainable growth.
Council Member John Chapman said he has never been a fan of "allowing the market to be the market" because of how unaffordable Alexandria has become for middle-income and working class residents. He said he'll be looking at what comes from the city's investment in making the zoning changes, and also having conversations with other jurisdictions about stepping up their efforts in affordable housing. "It should not be the 'inner cities' in the region that are doing the heavy lifting" for housing affordability. "There are other jurisdictions... that have not stepped up to the plate."
Vice Mayor Amy Jackson said she was overwhelmed by the genuine-ness of comments from Alexandria residents. "It shows that Alexandrians want progress. They want to be able to say we are a completely inclusive community," she said.
Vice Mayor Amy Jackson made a motion to remove the text amendment regarding changes to single-family zoning changes to defer it for another vote, but that motion failed. The proposed changes to single-family zoning had drawn significant attention from residents, but city staff expects that less than 1% of single-family homes in the city may be redeveloped as a result of the zoning changes.
Alexandria’s city council vote came just a few months after Arlington County voted on zoning changes to allow for more “missing middle” housing — which have more units than single-family homes but fewer than large multifamily developments, such as townhomes, duplexes, triplexes and quads.
A group of single-family residence homeowners in Arlington filed a lawsuit against Arlington County that will go to trial in the coming months. The trial focuses on a variety of alleged failures by the Arlington County board regarding economic studies, advertising the proposed changes and other issues.
