Good morning, Alexandria! Today is Thursday, June 12, the 163rd day of 2025. There are 202 days left in the year.
☀️ Today’s weather: Sunny, with a high near 94 degrees. Calm wind becoming southwest 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. There is an Air Quality Alert in effect for today. Mostly cloudy tonight, with a low around 71 degrees. South wind around 6 mph.
🚨 You need to know
ALXnow and its sister sites are among the most-read online local news publications in all of Virginia.
According to an analysis done by ARLnow of web traffic data for selected publications, ARLnow is the No. 3 most-read, non-broadcast local news website in the state, while FFXnow, which covers Fairfax County, is No. 4. ALXnow, which covers Alexandria, also cracked the top dozen publications.
Only the Virginian-Pilot in Hampton Roads (No. 1) and the Richmond Times-Dispatch (No. 2) had more readership than ARLnow and FFXnow.
ARLnow’s analysis of web traffic was conducted over two weeks in May and June using the data provider SimilarWeb. “We looked at major publications on a city-by-city and county-by-county level, plus looked at major regional and statewide news sources. The time frame examined was February to April 2025,” ARLnow shares.
Excluded were sites associated with broadcast stations and publishers that do not primarily focus on local news in Virginia and/or have no specific web address associated with just local news within Virginia.
The chart above contains a sampling of sites the analysis examined, omitting some outside of the top 12 for data readability purposes.
Despite headwinds for the news industry that have caused readership to drop at many publications, ARLnow, ALXnow, and FFXnow have generally gained readership on a year-over-year basis, spurred at least in part by bolstered editorial staffing and Local News Now’s acquisition of the Gazette-Leader newspaper last year.
What else to know
🤷 The Alexandria City Council has mixed feelings about serving as a cosigner for the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s plan to keep its senior residents in the city.
🎉 Cue up Alice Cooper. Today is the last official day of the 2024-2025 school year for Alexandria City Public Schools!
🇺🇸 There’s an opening ceremony planned for The Wall That Heals at the George Washington Masonic National Memorial at 5:30 p.m. today, followed by a candlelight event at 9 p.m. to raise awareness about Agent Orange. The Wall That Heals will be open around the clock through Sunday and free for anyone to visit during its time in Alexandria.
🎤 Bring your concerns, ideas, gripes, questions, and compliments (it’s possible, right?) about Alexandria to the Alexandria City Council Town Hall at Charles Houston Recreation Center Gymnasium this evening from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
⌛ The School Board has a meeting this evening at 6 p.m., at which they are expected to make their final decision on redistricting.
👉 On tap this weekend -> Jazz Fest, Del Ray Vintage & Flea Market, Pride Market & Drag Show, and more. Weekend Roundup
📈 Wednesday’s most read
The following are the most-read ALXnow articles for June 11, 2025.
- Report: ICE preparing to deploy tactical units to Northern Virginia and four big cities (7681 views)
- Asana puts 21 Old Town properties on the market (2263 views)
📅 Upcoming events
Here’s what’s happening today in Alexandria.
- 6:00 pm: Plein Air Painting Showcase at Nepenthe Gallery
- 6:00 pm: Happy Hour Concert Series at Carlyle Crossing: Rock Creek Kings
- 6:30 pm: Metropolitan School of the Arts 2025 Spring Production: ECHO
Things To Do
- All Day: The Wall That Heals on display at George Washington Masonic National Memorial
- 11 a.m.: Alphabits A to Z Dance Party at Kate Waller Barrett Branch Library
- 11 a.m.: Creating with Collage at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library
- 2 p.m.: American Style Mahjong – Learn and Play at Kate Waller Barrett Branch Library
- 2 p.m.: Summer Film Series – “Brutalist” at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library
- 2 p.m.: Old Town North Farmers’ Market at Montgomery Park
- 5:30 p.m.: Proud History Hangout at Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum
- 6 p.m.: Happy Hour Concert Series at Carlyle Crossing: Rock Creek Kings
- 6 p.m.: Plein Air Painting Showcase at Nepenthe Gallery
- 6 p.m.: Suncatcher Workshop at Port City Brewing Company
- 6 p.m.: Summer Soiree Under The Stars at The Alexandrian Hotel
- 6 p.m.: Bestselling Author John Gilstrap Interview at Elaine’s Restaurant
- 6:30 p.m.: Metropolitan School of the Arts 2025 Spring Production: ECHO at Rachel Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center
- 6:30 p.m.: Succulent & Sangria Workshop at PlantHouse
Live Music & Entertainment
- 219 Restaurant: Mike Kelley & Friends at 9 p.m.
- Alexandria Bier Garden: Trivia at 7:30 p.m.
- Aslin ALX: Trivia at 7 p.m.
- Augie’s Mussel House: Live music at 5 p.m.
- Beeliner Diner: Bingo at 7 p.m.
- Carlyle Crossing: Happy Hour Concert Series: Rock Creek Kings at 6 p.m.
- Galactic Panther Art Gallery: Rap is Poetry Open Mic Night at 8 p.m.
- Hops N Shine: Trivia at 6:30 p.m.
- Laporta’s Restaurant: Ken Kilpatrick Trio at 6 p.m.
- Lena’s: Gigi MacLaughlin & Isabella Perazzo at 6 p.m.
- Lost Boy Cider: Trivia at 7 p.m.
- Murphy’s Pub: Pat Garvey at 8:30 p.m.
- Rock It Grill: Karaoke at 9:30 p.m.
- The Birchmere: Robert Glasper at 7:30 p.m.
- The Little Theatre of Alexandria: The Play That Goes Wrong at 8 p.m.
- The Study at Morrison House: Live Piano Music at 6 p.m.
City of Alexandria Events & Public Meetings
- All Day: ACPS Teacher Work Day
- All Day: ACPS End of Quarter/Last Day of School for Students
- 8:45 a.m.: Supplemental Retirement Plan Pension Board
- 8:45 a.m.: Fire and Police Officers Pension Plan Board Meet
- 3 p.m.: VIRTUAL: Commission on Aging Health Committee
- 4 p.m.: VIRTUAL: Commission on Aging
- 5 p.m.: ACAP’s Community Meeting
- 5 p.m.: ACPS Strategy & Accountability Committee Meeting
- 5:30 p.m.: Proud History Hangout
- 6 p.m.: City Council Town Hall
- 6 p.m.: ACPS School Board Meeting
- 7 p.m.: Beautification Commission Meeting
Organizing an event? Submit your event to ALXnow’s Event Calendar.
