The Alexandria City Council received concerning projections about potential federal workforce reductions and their economic impact on the region during Tuesday’s legislative meeting.
The council heard presentations from Clark Mercer, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG), and Jill Kaniff, Senior Regional Demographer for the Northern Virginia Regional Commission (NVRC), who outlined potential consequences of federal job cuts.
The council also approved and adopted the 2025 City of Alexandria Emergency Operations Plan, which outlines how the city will respond to emergencies and disasters.
Marc Barbieri, Emergency Management Coordinator, presented the 174-page document that describes roles and responsibilities during emergencies, lines of authority, resource management, and communication protocols.
“The plan is a well thought out product and I think the plan will move us forward and guide our emergency preparedness activities for the coming four years and give us a good foundation on which to build,” Barbieri said.
Two major changes from the previous plan include the incorporation of FEMA Community Lifelines, which identify eight critical areas communities need during emergencies, and a shift in leadership for mass care operations from Recreation, Parks, and Cultural Activities to the Department of Community and Human Services.
The council also received the Fiscal Year 2025 second-quarter capital projects status report, which tracks 97 major infrastructure projects across the city.
Daphne Kott, the Project Director with the Department of Project Implementation, presented the report generated through the city’s AlexPM project management system.
“AlexPM enables project managers to identify project trends early, allowing them to take proactive measures rather than reacting to issues as they arise,” Kott explained.
The report shows that 54% of projects are on or ahead of schedule, while 46% are behind. Only 4% of projects are considered over budget. The total planned budget for all reported projects is $1.12 billion, with 19% expended so far.
Vice Mayor Sarah Bagley praised the city’s infrastructure map, which allows residents to track projects throughout Alexandria.
“For all those that are responsible for creating the site and then backfilling the data that it’s displaying, I think it’s a really, you know, kudos to everyone involved because I haven’t been able to break it yet,” Bagley said.
The council also issued proclamations recognizing Women’s History Month and Virginia Flood Awareness Week.
During the Women’s History Month proclamation, Councilwoman Jacinta Greene highlighted the contributions of women to Alexandria’s history.
“When I think about the Marianne Van Landingham, the Patsy Ticers, Rosa Byrde, people that have done advocacy in the city, we are just, you know, second to none when it comes to women really getting in the trenches and doing the work for making Alexandria a better place for women,” Greene said.
For Virginia Flood Awareness Week, Councilman John Taylor Chapman emphasized the importance of the city’s flood mitigation efforts.
“I do want to give a thank you to the manager and the staff for being supportive of making a permanent committee,” Chapman said, referring to the Stormwater Advisory Committee. “Being open and accepting of that and having a permanent committee that is going to work through, let’s be honest, decades of work that we need to do in this city is incredible feat that we are going to undertake.”
Council members also provided updates from various boards and commissions, including transportation initiatives, economic development plans, and community events.
Mayor Alyia Gaskins announced her first Mayoral Youth Forum will take place Saturday, March 29 at 9:30 a.m. at City Hall for young people ages 14 to 18.
“We had a planning meeting with young people who were interested in supporting and I think we had 40 help plan this event and so it’s really, really exciting,” Gaskins said.
The council will hold a town hall meeting on Saturday, March 29, at 1 p.m. at the Del Pepper Community Resource Centre.
