This plan splits Merrifield into 3 districts. Moving the District 14 boundary southward would exacerbate this problem, splitting a rapidly developing community into 4 districts.

I am opposed to splitting off two historically Black neighborhoods from the rest of Columbia Pike: Penrose and Arlington View. The Pike has a cohesive identity, and the neighborhoods along it should be kept in the same district.

Ms. Haddow's comment that my comments are related to the 45th primary are pure conjecture on her part and inappropriate for this forum. I live in the area about which I have commented and have had numerous discussions with neighbors. We do not like being separated from the MacArthur school precincts as that is where the kids in this neighborhood go to school and we have a community of interest with them. It's that simple.

Splitting house districts down King St effectively separates neighborhoods with shared interests and elementary schools. Specifically, the homes in the quandrant between King St and Braddock that is bordered by TImberBranch Parkway to the east. Those homes all send their kids to MacArthur elementary school, but they are separated from every other voting precinct related to MacArthur or the high school and lumped in the 45th at the Blessed Sacramant precinct with schools and neighborhoods they are not aligned with by being put in the 45th. The Eisenhower valley area outside the beltway should be redistricted into a Fairfax precinct, not an Alexandria precints. By pushing the 46th district a little bit east and north, we can also accomodate the Fairlington area's request to be placed in a district with more of Arlington and less of Alexandria, making for fairer representation.

While most of these districts are more compact that the existing 2011 districts, District 5 in Arlington continues to be a long uncompact district. The district seems to start (or end) in Crystal City but avoids including nearby neighborhoods like Aurora Highlands and Arlington Ridge. This district takes the two parts of Arlington furthest from each other (West Arlington and the Airport) and puts them in the same district. Why weren't all the neighborhoods east of 395 kept together? Why is Rosslyn not kept together with nearby Courthouse and Clarendon? I live in the far north-west part of this district and I can confirm Crystal City is not part of my "community of interest". Residents in Aurora Hills probably walk to Crystal City all the time. How are Aurora Hills and Crystal city not considered the same community? There is clear improvement since the last districts, just not with House District 5.

I don't get how Huntington has a community of interest with communities on the other side of the Beltway, which is a real dividing line that can be crossed at only a couple of places. We're much more focused towards the rest of south-of-the Beltway Alexandria.

The northeast line separating the 45th and 46th HoD districts should be at Braddock Road, not King St. That keeps communities together by schools.

The various maps of Alexandria for the 45th and 46th House districts all use King Street as a dividing line. That breaks up communities. King Street is NOT a dividing line in this community. A more sensible approach would be to make the dividing line at Commonwealth Avenue, pushing the 46th HoD district slightly east, picking up 2-3 precincts, all in Alexandria, and have the 45th HoD move further north into Arlington. The three Fairfax precints around Bellhaven/Eisenhower Avenue should remain with an entirely or at least predominantly Fairfax HoD district. The dividing line at the east should be EAST of the King St Metro, so the 45th HoD would begin at Diagonal Road. That is the precise line where the metro tracks run. The metro tracks effectively create the perfect line for distinguishing between the 45th and 46th HoD districts, with Commonwealth Avenue being the other line on the east side.

I urge the Virginia Redistricting Commission to avoid including Fairfax County in districts that are primarily Alexandria districts. Instead, include Arlington County areas to “fill out” Alexandria districts. There are a few reasons to take this approach: First, Alexandria and Arlington have recently worked closely on the Crystal City (Arlington County)/Potomac Yard (Alexandria) “National Landing” area where the Amazon Headquarters 2 and the new Virginia Tech Innovation Campus will be. The relationship between the two jurisdictions over this geographic area will continue for many years to come. The second reason is population size. Alexandria has a population of 159,467 and Arlington’s is 238,643. Fairfax at 1,145,670 is so much larger than either Alexandria of Arlington. Fairfax County’s challenges are more numerous and more complex. A delegate who represents both Alexandria and Fairfax County will likely have to spend a lot of time on Fairfax County issues although she/he represents only a very small number of Fairfax County constituents. Make the combination Alexandria-Arlington County, not Alexandria-Fairfax County. Finally, under no circumstances should a delegate or senator have to represent constituents in Alexandria, Arlington, and Fairfax County. That elected official will will have to split her or his time too many ways if she/he has to work with those three local governments’ legislative agendas.

Using Chain Bridge Road as a boundary between districts 6 and 15 would effectively divide the McLean community into two seperate districts. McLean should be considered a community of interest and kept in one single district.