Mark your calendars, the Del Ray community is planning to open some of the neighborhood’s iconic homes and well-kept gardens to the public.

On May 9, the Del Ray Citizens Association is scheduled to host the 2020 Del Ray House and Garden Tour. There are 10 homes on the list this year, ranging from a cottage that was one of the first homes built in Del Ray.

The home receiving top billing this year is a renovated American Foursquare — a type of house popular for middle-class families in the beginning of the 20th century and associated with the Colonial Revival movement, according to the Del Ray Neighborhood Residential Pattern Book.

Tickets for the tour go on sale starting Wednesday, March 11 for $30, with the price going up starting April 1. The biennial event raises funding for The Scholarship Fund of Alexandria, with a goal of raising $1,000. Any proceeds beyond the scholarship go towards the beautification of the neighborhood and public art.

“The tour is a wonderful reflection of Del Ray’s diversity as well as an opportunity to see the work of local architects and builders,” a press release for the event said. “Join us to get an inside look at living in Del Ray and to gather ideas on paint colors, tiles, decorative hardware, bath and kitchen fixtures, and much, much more.”

The tour is self-guided and runs from 11 a.m.-5 p.m.

Staff photo by Jay Westcott