Although designated as part of the George Washington Memorial Parkway, Washington Street in Alexandria still belongs to and is maintained by the City of Alexandria. In 1929, the city and the federal government entered into a memorandum of agreement (MOA). The MOA gave the federal government a permanent and irrevocable easement over Washington Street. It also called for the construction of roundabouts at both the north and south ends of Washington Street as transition points between the rural and urban sections of the parkway. Finally, the MOA required Alexandria to adopt zoning regulations so that construction along Washington Street would be "of such character and of such types of buildings as will be in keeping with the dignity, purpose and memorial character of said highway".