It’s been an intense week in Alexandria. Here’s a look at our top stories.
Our most-read story is on a woman found dead outside her apartment during an eviction process on Wednesday, Aug. 19. The Alexandria Sheriff’s Office reported on social media that deputies were conducting an eviction at an apartment at 400 Madison Street at around 9 a.m., when they found the adult woman dead outside the building. The woman’s identity and the circumstances surrounding her death have not been released.
Our second most-read post is ALXnow’s exclusive story on the City Council calling for an investigation after Erik Johnson, the CEO of the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority (ARHA), was found to be living in a public housing property that he manages. Johnson confirmed on Wednesday that he and his family moved into a property on Cook Street in July.
Johnson, who started in the job 11 months ago, said that he was alerted that living on the property was an issue by a member of the ARHA Board of Commissioners, which put out the following statement:
The Board of Commissioners recently became aware that our CEO, Erik Johnson, moved into an ARHA property without required approvals or knowledge by the Board. We have taken immediate corrective action and told Mr. Johnson to vacate the property immediately.
The Board is now reviewing this matter to confirm appropriate accountability and to reinforce our commitment to the highest standards of governance. We will work expeditiously and deliberately to determine our future course of action. Throughout this process, our priority remains serving the residents of the City of Alexandria and advancing our housing mission.
Immigration enforcement in Alexandria’s Chirilagua neighborhood was resoundingly criticized by Alexandria’s elected leaders, making for the third most-read post this week. On Monday, Mayor Alyia Gaskins spoke at a protest following the arrest of 15 construction workers on Florence Drive. The following day, ICE arrested two more people in the area.
“The men who were taken today, who were kidnapped today, they were not strangers,” Gaskins told dozens of demonstrators. “They are our neighbors. They are someone’s parent. They are someone’s son, someone’s brother, cousin, friend.”
ALXnow has reached out to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to request the release of the identities of the individuals arrested.
It’s restaurant week in Alexandria! The 10-day culinary event, hosted twice a year by Visit Alexandria since 2009, will feature multi-course prix fixe dinner menus priced at $30, $40, or $50 per person.
Find out all you need to know about this culinary experience and more by checking out our comprehensive listing of weekly events.
The most-read stories this week were:
- Woman found dead during eviction process in Alexandria (18588 views)
- Alexandria council member calls for investigation into housing authority CEO living in public housing (17963 views)
- Community leaders condemn ICE arrests of construction workers in Alexandria’s Chirilagua neighborhood (11800 views)
- Alexandria police searched for 2 suspects in S. 28th Street shooting that injured 1 (10819 views)
- Federal agents return to Chirilagua, arrest individual at bus stop day after construction worker detentions (5821 views)
- Congressional candidate alleges wrongful arrest by Alexandria sheriff’s deputies (3836 views)
- Pedestrian injured in Old Town crash Thursday morning (3131 views)
- Family member launches GoFundMe for man who died in Alexandria police custody (2607 views)
- Alexandria housing authority tenants protest poor conditions, delayed repairs (2574 views)
Have a safe weekend!
