Duke Street plan takes shape ahead of Feb. 25 community meeting
20-year vision for 3.5-mile corridor focuses on affordability, small business, and green space
City planners gave the City Council an update Tuesday night on the Duke Street Land Use Plan, a 20-year vision for the 3.5-mile corridor stretching from the King Street Metro to the Fairfax County line.
The next community meeting is scheduled for Feb. 25 at the George Washington Masonic National Memorial.
The corridor is home to 130 small businesses and 6,620 rental units—60 percent of its housing stock— of which 100 percent is affordable to households earning up to 80 percent of the area median income. About 35 percent of the corridor’s population is foreign-born.
Staff have engaged roughly 1,500 stakeholders through more than 40 pop-up events, three community meetings, and an open house since the process launched in June 2025. More than 1,700 poll responses have been collected, including from 77 business owners.
Four themes emerge
The draft plan organizes the corridor into four theme areas:
Opportunity: Sites with potential for reinvestment and redevelopment, including Alexandria Commons and the city campus at Duke Street and Wheeler Avenue
Affordability + Growth: Rental housing areas to be retained for existing affordability, with regulatory tools to ensure long-term affordability
Small Business: Concentrations of existing commercial uses, including the Shoppes at Foxchase
Civic + City Campus: City-owned land, including the 55-acre city campus and ACPS transportation facility
Councilman John Chapman, who has lived along the corridor for much of his life, urged staff to explore the ACPS bus barn site as a public-private partnership rather than a straight city investment.
“I was at a meeting yesterday with a school board member, and he was talking about needing almost $40 million for a facility,” Chapman said. “I’m not very interested in funding that. I would rather explore opportunities.”
Community priorities
Community feedback has consistently emphasized six themes:
Concerns about traffic, safety, and congestion
Desire for bike, transit, and pedestrian improvements
Concerns about loss of housing affordability
Desire to keep neighborhood-serving retail and businesses
Desire to prioritize green space
Interest in expanded and improved amenities
Staff said residents at every meeting have emphasized keeping grocery anchors at Fox Chase and Alexandria Commons, even if those centers redevelop.
“I think the community has been really clear at every single meeting — we can’t lose our grocery stores,” staff said.
Chapman raised concerns about traffic congestion in the eastern section of the corridor, noting that commercial rents are among the lowest in the city, partly because drivers pass through without stopping.
“I have not been impressed by the level of priority that we give that,” Chapman said. “I think we have to be honest with the residents that are there and those that hopefully intend to be there.”
Green space and retail gaps
Mayor Alyia Gaskins asked staff to identify opportunities for additional green space, noting that while parkland exists near Cameron Station and Holmes Run and in the eastern part of the corridor, there’s a gap in the middle.
Staff said the “opportunity” sites flagged for redevelopment are prime candidates for new parks.
“One of the things we heard from the community is there’s a lot of parkland near Cameron Station, Holmes Run and also in the eastern part of the corridor, but not in the middle,” staff said. “One of the things we are really focusing on in these opportunity sites is to make sure when redevelopment happens we’re getting new parks.”
Gaskins also noted the lack of walkable retail destinations in parts of the corridor — a concern echoed earlier in the meeting during the economic development report, when Councilman Chapman flagged the West End retail gap as “almost a red flag.”
Timeline
The draft plan is expected to be released for public comment in September, with a public hearing tentatively scheduled for December. Staff said more check-ins with council are planned before the plan is finalized.
Community meeting details
When: Tuesday, Feb. 25, 7-8:30 p.m.
Where: George Washington Masonic National Memorial, 101 Callahan Dr.
Format: Open house with staff before and after a 7:30 p.m. presentation. Virtual attendance available via Zoom.
Zoom: Register at zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_oXkLkPkXQZeEVILpqin0ow
Light refreshments and interpretation in Spanish and Amharic will be available. For other languages, contact Christian Brandt at christian.brandt@alexandriava.gov by Feb. 18.
The location is accessible via DASH Routes 30, 31, and 102 and the King Street Metro.