News

City Council OKs field lights and athletic expansion at St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes School

By James Cullum
Figure 6: Pavilion — people stand under a large covered outdoor space with brick columns, blue sky, and a distant building in the background.
Front elevation of a proposed single-story brick concessions building labeled 'Steve & Aggie’s', with a central service window and two side doors under a metal roof.
Architectural illustration labeled 'Figure 4: Proposed Bleachers' showing a long brick building with a proposed bleacher seating area along the front yard.
Proposed Moss Field map showing a football field inside a surrounding running track and a numbered site plan key of ten elements.
1/4

The Alexandria City Council unanimously and without discussion approved a sweeping plan to expand athletic facilities and field lighting to St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes School in the city’s West End.

Council approved the plan on Saturday (Oct. 17) to add a new 1,500-square-foot concessions building with bathrooms, bleachers, a 715-square-foot, open-air covered pavilion, a new 770-square-foot storage shed and press box as well as eight, 85-foot-tall field lights at the school’s Kelleher and Moss fields.

The following changes were approved.

  • The 1970s-era bleachers will be replaced with new bleachers, including a storage area and a press box (320 square feet), as well as new brick walls surrounding the seating area. The school is replacing the bleachers for aesthetic reasons, to increase leg room, and provide additional and more accessible ADA seats. The overall capacity will only increase by roughly two seats (1260 to 1262 seats)
  • The concessions stand will have room for concessions prep and sales. In addition to providing concessions service during athletic events, this building will also provide needed bathrooms and first aid space that is easily accessible by student athletes using the surrounding baseball, softball, and practice athletic fields
  • The one-air pavilion will provide space for visitors to congregate during games and provide a covered area for students during hot or inclement weather. The shed is replacing an existing 450-square-foot shed northwest of Moss Field. All new buildings will consist of the same brick veneer that is found throughout the campus on buildings, the baseball dugouts, pillars, and signs.

St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes School has been in Alexandria for more than 100 years. Currently, no sports activities or illuminated field events are held on the private school’s athletic fields after 6:30 p.m., according to its schedule.

Less than two miles away, Alexandria’s public high school has had stadium lighting for six years.

Field lights debuted at Alexandria City High School’s Parker-Gray Stadium in September 2021 following a renovation project. A 2018 vote by Alexandria City Council to add stadium lights diverged from a longtime pact residents claimed to have with the school system to not install lighting. Residents’ lawsuits were settled two years later, allowing the stadium renovation to proceed with the installation.

About the Author

  • Reporter James Cullum has spent nearly 20 years covering Northern Virginia. He began working with ALXnow in 2020, and has covered every story under the sun for the publication, from investigative stories to features and photo galleries. His work includes coverage of national and international situations, as well as from the White House, Capitol, Pentagon, Supreme Court and State Department. He's covered protests and riots throughout the U.S. (including the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol), in addition to earthquake-ridden Haiti, Western Sahara in North Africa and war-torn South Sudan. He has photographed presidents and other world leaders, celebrities and famous musicians, and excels under pressure.