City Manager Mark Jinks says that his proposed fiscal year 2021 budget will be deeply impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and predicts that proposed capital investments will take a hit.
“There will be notable changes in the budget, probably I would suspect capital investments,” Jinks told ALXnow. “We’ve got projects related to city facilities, school facilities that we could do differently. Maybe we talk to Arlington about how the Glebe Road Bridge could stay up as it is for another year. Maybe it can’t.”
That could mean also mean postponing a renovation of City Hall and the construction of the expanded T.C. Williams High School campus.
The plan to construct Douglas MacArthur Elementary School is still on track, but when asked about the T.C. expansion, Jinks said, “We’ll see.”
Jinks added, “We know that next year we’ll have revenue losses, because once we get through this pandemic, and then they start to ramp up, businesses will reopen and people will get comfortable about spending again, and then we’ll get back to our normal revenue total.”
On Saturday, the city declared a state of emergency over the pandemic. There are four positive cases in the city and one Alexandria resident infected in New York City.
The city manager’s proposed $2.1 billion, fiscal year 2021-2030 Capital Improvement Program covers city and school system improvements, including the $122 million waterfront plan, the eventual renovation of city hall, $7.5 million for bridge repairs and refurbishments, $17.6 million to support Metro’s capital improvements and $30.5 million toward flood mitigation along the waterfront.
“The dollar total of the budget is going to need to change substantially,” Jinks said. “There’s a new reality. Hopefully, in a couple of months, everybody has taken really proper precautions, sanitized as best we can and don’t spread it, hopefully, contain it within that timeframe. In the meantime, the four functions of city government — police, fire, the jail and emergency communications are all operational and we’re all taking precautions.”
City council on March 11 capped the real estate tax rate for this year’s budget at $1.155 — potentially a 2.5 cent tax increase for residents. That means they will be unable to raise taxes above that amount in this budget cycle. City Council will adopt its budget on April 29.
On Wednesday night, the Council directed Jinks and his staff to prepare suspending the city’s dining and transient lodging tax penalties.
Mayor Justin Wilson has been in city government for more than nine years, and has talked with his regional counterparts about comparing the economic impact of COVID-19 to federal sequestration and the 9/11 attacks — put together.
“It’s absolutely surreal. I mean, this is something that we never imagined,” Wilson told ALXnow. “I think we imagined it, but just watching it play out in real time, it’s just been… Sometimes I feel like it’s a nightmare. And then, you know, you wake up.”
Recent Stories
The YMCA in Del Ray (420 E Monroe Avenue) is temporarily closed after a medical incident. Alexandria Fire-EMS are on the scene assisting a woman who went into cardiac arrest…
Alexandria Congressman split his votes on security funding bills for U.S. allies over the weekend. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) voted for bills to aid the defense of Ukraine, which is under Russian invasion,…
The Alexandria Police Department is investigating the theft of more than $50,000 worth of luxury handbags stolen from two consignment shops in the city. On Jan. 26, the owner of…
A little over two years after it opened, Foxtrot in Old Town is closed — swept up in a series of closures affecting all locations in the Washington D.C. area….
For many remote workers, a messy home is distracting.
You’re getting pulled into meetings, and your unread emails keep ticking up. But you can’t focus because pet hair tumbleweeds keep floating across the floor, your desk has a fine layer of dust and you keep your video off in meetings so no one sees the chaos behind you.
It’s no secret a dirty home is distracting and even adds stress to your life. And who has the energy to clean after work? That’s why it’s smart to enlist the help of professionals, like Well-Paid Maids.
Monarch Montessori School is now enrolling infants, toddlers and three year-olds for its full-time Montessori program. We offer a seamless enrollment process which involves submitting an application for review, paying the enrollment fee and submitting the remaining enrollment materials before your proposed start date.
At Monarch Montessori School, we aim to provide an authentic Montessori learning experience. At our Alexandria location, we currently have 8 openings in our Primary classroom (ages 3-6), and 6 openings in our Toddler classroom. Additionally, there are 3 infant openings at this time.
Our first floor space is an open concept. Infants and toddlers share the same large classroom. Children ages 3-6 are in two classrooms on our second floor. Each classroom has one lead and assistant guide. We offer a year-round program, with intermittent breaks for Spring Break and Winter Break.
Scholarship Fund of Alexandria Annual Gala & Auction
Do good while having a good time at the Scholarship Fund of Alexandria’s 38th Annual Gala and Auction at the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center. The fun begins with a 2-hour open bar reception while mingling with 499 other Alexandrians who
