Table of Contents
Two new administrative special use permit applications opened for public comment Monday in Alexandria, including a Washington-area congregation seeking to cover its Potomac Yard storefront windows with graphics and a childcare center looking to consolidate its operating permits.
Church wants window graphics exceeding city's 20% coverage limit
Waterfront Church DC, which leases space at 3000 Potomac Ave. in the city's Coordinated Development District No. 10, is seeking approval to install interior-mounted window graphics across its storefront glazing on both the Potomac Avenue and Dogue Street sides of the building. The graphics would cover more than 20% of individual window panes — the threshold beyond which city zoning rules require a special use permit.
According to application materials filed Feb. 10, the proposed signage is non-illuminated, static and installed on the interior side of the glass. The church describes the graphics as fully removable and notes that no exterior structural modifications are involved. Mockup renderings submitted with the application show imagery promoting the congregation's "Potomac Yard Campus" and a summer 2026 launch, with the words "Find Hope Here" featured prominently across multiple windows.
The building's Potomac Avenue frontage spans approximately 108 linear feet, while the Dogue Street side measures roughly 36 linear feet. No tenant signage currently exists at the space.
The church, a nonprofit religious organization, holds services Thursday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. and Sunday mornings from 10 a.m. to noon. Garrett Tanner filed the application on behalf of the congregation. Public comments are due March 26.
Childcare center seeks to merge two permits into one
The Abracadabra Child Development Center is asking the city to consolidate two existing special use permit approvals into a single permit and update its drop-off and pick-up plan. The center occupies a roughly 4,000-square-foot space at 700 Commonwealth Ave. and 6 W. Masonic View Ave., a property owned by Baptist Temple Church and zoned R-5 residential.
Applicant Christal Everette described the request as a merging of the two addresses into one school operating under a unified permit. The center has 22 on-site parking spaces and an additional 40 off-site spaces in a commuter lot directly across Commonwealth Avenue. Shrubbery and fencing are already in place as a buffer from nearby residences. Public comments are due March 17.
