City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: JUNE 4, 2026
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
THROUGH: JAMES F. PARAJON, CITY MANAGER
FROM: LEAH RILEY, DIRECTOR, TRANSPORTATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES
DOCKET TITLE:
TITLE
Consideration of a Resolution to Support Grant Applications to the Virginia Department of Transportation for FY 2033 - FY 2034 SMART SCALE projects. [ROLL-CALL VOTE].
BODY
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ISSUE: Consideration of a resolution to support Grant Applications to the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) for FY 2033 - FY 2034 SMART SCALE projects.
RECOMMENDATION: That the City Council:
1. Authorize the submission of up to $35 Million in SMART SCALE applications from the City of Alexandria; and
2. Authorize the City Manager to execute all necessary documents that may be required.
BACKGROUND: In 2014, HB2 was signed into law and in June 2016, the program was renamed SMART SCALE. SMART stands for System Management Allocation of Resources for Transportation and SCALE stands for the six-road project scoring attributes: Safety, Congestion Mitigation, Accessibility, Land Use, Environmental and Economic Development. State law assigns different weights to factors based on a project's location within a region of the Commonwealth. In Northern Virginia, factors are as follows: congestion mitigation is the highest weighted factor at 45%; accessibility at 25%, environmental quality at 10%, safety is at 15% and economic development at 5% each. The goal of SMART SCALE is to ensure the Commonwealth invests limited tax dollars into projects that meet critical transportation needs. The Commonwealth will make awards in June 2027 for projects scheduled for implementation in FY 2033 - FY 2034. To date, the City and DASH have been awarded approximately $154 million in SMART SCALE funding for projects (Attachment 2).
DISCUSSION: Based on the guidelines and c...
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