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Alexandria Youth League urges city to fix field fencing, tighten parade approval process
Summary
Ally Hendrick of the Alexandria Youth League told the board that a hole in water-tower fencing remains unrepaired and that city parade procedures failed to notify police, fire and EMA for an April parade with about 400 participants; officials said the parade form goes to the police chief and noted EMA guidance triggers involvement for 500+ attendees.
Ally Hendrick, representing the Alexandria Youth League, told the Alexandria Board of Works that a hole in the water-tower fencing near the AIL softball diamond has gone unrepaired despite a March 31 report and a request that it be resolved by the league’s April 25 opening day.
“...we are serving over 350 registered players. 90% of that being Alexandria residents,” Hendrick said, adding that the fencing issue creates a safety concern for youth participants. She said she had reported the problem to City Hall by email and in person but that the fencing remained unrepaired as of the meeting.
Hendrick also criticized how the city handled parade approvals. She said the April parade covered about a 2.5-mile route with roughly 400 participants and an estimated 800 people along the route, and that police, fire and EMA were not adequately informed. "I was concerned coming up to intersections if there was a gap," she said.
City staff and council members explained the parade form routing and said the form is intended to go to the chief of police and that council review is triggered only if the chief objects. One official referenced EMA guidance saying events of 500 or more people should involve EMA, which would have qualified the parade for EMA assistance per that guidance.
Council and staff said they would review the parade form to remove confusing or incorrect fields (the commenter noted a form listing the wrong police chief and an unclear submission deadline), verify ordinance language against the form, and follow up with the mayor and EMA about procedural gaps. Staff offered to provide clearer internal routing and to confirm that department heads and emergency services are notified for large events.
Hendrick asked for a quality-control process so citizens’ reports are tracked and resolved; city staff said they would follow up and requested that citizens reach out with any additional questions.
