Alexandrians will see their taxes go up this year, with most of that going to help Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS).
The Alexandria City Council unanimously approved the FY 2025 General Fund Operating Budget at a quick meeting last night. The operating budget totals $926.4 million — a 4.8% increase over last year’s budget.
That budget included a 2.5-cent increase in the real estate tax, meaning the average single-family homeowner will pay $483 more than last year. The average condominium owner will pay $285 more this year than last year.
Mayor Justin Wilson noted in a newsletter that this marks the first real estate tax rate increase in seven years and follows a tax rate reduction three years ago.
The City Council approved a $14.3 million increase to the ACPS operating budget, including an additional $4 million added in the add/delete process.
Wilson said one common misconception about the budget process is just how much of the budget goes to education and other basic functions like public safety.
“This is my fourteenth and final budget,” said Wilson, who is not running for reelection as Mayor. “I had to admit, thinking through this process and thinking about what we’ve learned; one of the things I don’t think the community often understands is that two-thirds of this budget we just adopted is education, public safety, and debt service for infrastructure.”
Wilson said city leaders don’t have as much wiggle room as many in the city think when it comes to funding other priorities. Even the $14 million increase to the ACPS operating budget still falls short of the $21 million requested by the School Board.
“Two-thirds of this budget is in those policy areas alone,” Wilson said. “While we spend a lot of time talking about a lot of other things — what is ultimately moving the needle on revenue and expenditure pressures is the bread and butter of local government.”
After years of the city riding a boost from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), City Council member John Chapman also noted that this was the first year that well ran dry.
American Rescue Plan funding peppered the budget in areas like the Health Department, the Department of Community and Human Services, and the Sheriff’s Office.
“This is the first time ARPA funds were not readily available to close some gaps,” said Chapman. “Seeing how we deal with that — with programs started under ARPA coming to an end or finding an opportunity to reprioritize — that will be something the community will want to watch.”
Good Thursday morning, Alexandria!
☀️ Today’s weather: Expect a sunny day with highs nearing 90 degrees and a west wind blowing at 5 to 8 mph. Come Thursday night, the skies will be partly cloudy as temperatures drop to around 64 degrees. The calm wind will shift to a northeastern direction at 5 to 8 mph after midnight.
🚨 You need to know
Two people were hospitalized after a serious crash on the George Washington Parkway yesterday afternoon.
The crash happened around 5 p.m. on the George Washington Parkway near Daingerfield Island, WTOP reported.
One car overturned completely and the other suffered significant front-end damage.
WTOP reported that two people were taken to the hospital, one with injuries never considered life threatening, the other was initially considered critical but has since improved.
Just passed an accident on GW Parkway near Reagan Airport. Hope everyone is okay. pic.twitter.com/VABGkyb7iH
— Ahmad Shah Mohibi (@ahmadsmohibi) May 1, 2024
Image via Google Maps
📈 Friday’s most read
The following are the most-read ALXnow articles for Apr 26, 2024.
- Alexandria mayoral candidates Gaskins and Jackson reveal contrasting visions in ADC debate (1341 views)
- Notes: MS-13 leader sentenced to life in prison for series of murders in 2019 (1240 views)
- West End double homicide suspect claims self-defense, was found hiding naked under a bed (1221 views)
📅 Upcoming events
Here is what’s going on today in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
Address: 1465 N. Pegram Street
Neighborhood: Moore Hill Estates
Type: 6 BR, 5 (+1 half) BA single-family detached — 4,488 sq. ft.
Listed: $2,500,000
Noteworthy: Stunning contemporary on almost 1 acre and winner of the 2019 Award of Excellence!
Over $1M in top to bottom renovations in 2016; full pool and pool deck renovation along with modern interior/exterior paint in 2022; and recently all the cabinetry in the kitchen/bathrooms have been replaced. Entertainer’s delight with heated pool/hot tub, grill area and spacious patio. Plenty of nature and landscaping/hardscaping completes the perfect backyard.
Airy ML consists of a gourmet kitchen with GE Monogram SS appliances — commercial grade gas range/hood and double oven, wine cooler, beverage cooler, convection microwave, column built-in refrigerator/freezer, pot filler faucet, cold water dispenser, walk-in pantry, and center island with waterfall stone and cabinetry.
Main level study with granite wood FP — a spacious great room and dining area. Owner’s suite has a spa-like bath with a custom built closet that is sure to please the most discerning buyer. This smart home has inside/outside Sonos sound system; automated light controls by Lutron; internal/exterior cameras/security system; and connected pool and irrigation systems.
Other features include the custom cabinetry/millwork, Nanawalls; designer lighting, upscale fans and fixtures throughout the house. The UL consists of 3 bedrooms — one which is a second primary suite with a sizable walk-in closet, private balcony, and large BA. The LL has 2 bedrooms and includes an exercise room with rubber flooring and mirrors. Five of 6 BR are en-suite including the 2 primary suites and all bathrooms have natural stone flooring/counters.
There is also a built-in elevator shaft from the 4 car garage to the ML. This home also has a driveway that can accommodate 15+ cars-and is located less than 1 minute from 395 and close to shopping and INOVA.
Take a virtual tour today!
Listed by:
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[email protected]
(703) 216-3005
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Two of Alexandria’s three Democrat mayoral candidates sparred onstage Tuesday night, expressing vastly different ideas on how they would manage city affairs.
In the Alexandria Democratic Committee‘s debate hosted by Teo Armus of The Washington Post, Vice Mayor Amy Jackson and City Council Member Alyia Gaskins laid out their philosophies on governance, as well as some specifics on their visions.
The next mayor will have to contend with a host of issues, including rising crime, the city’s affordable housing crisis, residential taxes vastly outweighing underperforming commercial tax revenues and potential budget cuts from Richmond.
While they shook hands at the start and end, Jackson and Gaskins hardly looked at each other throughout the nearly two-hour event, despite standing about five feet apart. The debate was held in the auditorium of Alexandria City High School.
Protestors calling for a ceasefire to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas also briefly interrupted the final portion of the debate, but after five minutes allowed the candidates to make their closing statements.
Outgoing Mayor Justin Wilson watched the debate in the back of the auditorium with members of the School Board and told ALXnow that he will likely endorse a mayoral candidate before the June 18 primary.
Between now and then, there are a number of mayoral and Council candidate forums.
If you’ve had trouble getting a spot at Thompson Italian in Old Town, you could be in luck soon.
The acclaimed Italian restaurant could be getting a new third-floor expansion pending approval of a special use permit.
Thompson Italian, a Falls Church restaurant, expanded into the former Hank’s Oyster Bar location at 1024 King Street back in 2022.
A new special use permit filed with the City of Alexandria asks to expand the seating in the restaurant to the third floor. The new arrangement would add 62 seats to the third floor, along with some interior renovations on the floor to open up the new seating area.
With 89 current seats in the restaurant, the new expansion would nearly double the restaurant’s capacity.
The restaurant is open Monday-Thursday from 5-9 p.m., on Friday and Saturday from 4:30-10 p.m. and Sunday from 4:30-9 p.m.
Image via Thompson Italian/Facebook
A new tour will bring locals on a tour around the ‘Lost Buildings’ around the historic Black neighborhoods of the Berg and Parker-Gray.
The Berg is a neighborhood around North Pitt, North Royal and North Fairfax Streets. The neighborhood was founded by liberated Black families who moved to the neighborhood and sought the protection of the Union Army. Many were from Petersburg — thus “the Berg”. Many of the new Alexandria residents worked on the wharves and railroads during the Union occupation of the city.
Parker-Gray was a little to the west and took its name from the Parker-Gray School, which opened in 1920 and commemorated principals John Parker and Sarah Gray.
The neighborhood predated the name, though. Like the Berg, the neighborhood experienced a population surge during and just after the Civil War.
The tour, hosted by the Lee-Fendall House Museum (614 Oronoco Street) and Carlyle Historic Park, will take visitors on a tour to explore how the neighborhood changed and to discuss historic buildings that were not preserved.
“The City of Alexandria has seen older buildings and spaces being restored, preserved, and reused in different ways,” a release said. “However, there were many buildings that were not preserved. Explore the Berg and Parker-Gray neighborhoods of Alexandria and stop at locations where historic buildings once stood.”
The tour starts at the museum every Saturday in May, from 10 a.m. to noon.
Tickets are $20 and tours are limited to ten people.
This week’s Q&A column, sponsored and written by McEnearney Associates Realtors®, the leading real estate firm in Alexandria, is a bit of a departure from our usual format. To learn more about this article and relevant Alexandria market news, contact us at 703-549-9292. You may also submit your questions to McEnearney Associates via email for response in future columns.
Question: As a potential homebuyer or renter, what do I need to know about housing discrimination?
Answer: Have you ever felt discriminated against or “othered” when trying to buy a home, rent an apartment, or even stay at a hotel? If so, you may have been a victim of a violation of the Fair Housing Act. But what qualifies as a violation and how can housing providers ensure that they are not making decisions to restrict housing of a potential resident or customer based on a protected class?
Keith Barrett, Attorney and Founder of Vesta Settlements, recently held an overview for our McEnearney | Middleburg Real Estate | Atoka Properties Associates about Fair Housing, specifically ways in which discrimination is still prevalent in real estate and dwelling transactions and how agents should conduct their business to avoid violations and educate their clients about the law. “Every single person is protected by the Fair Housing Act even though its genesis came from protecting against racial discrimination,” Barrett shared.
Background on The Act
The Fair Housing Act was enacted in 1968 and amended in 1988 to “prohibit discrimination by direct providers of housing, such as landlords and real estate companies as well as other entities, such as municipalities, banks or other lending institutions, and homeowners insurance companies whose discriminatory practices make housing unavailable to persons of specific protected classes including: race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status and disability.” The Civil Rights Act of 1866 can also provide relief although its scope is limited to racial discrimination.
The Fair Housing Act covers most housing and in very limited circumstances the Act exempts “owner-occupied buildings with no more than four units, single-family houses sold or rented by the owner without the use of an agent, and housing operated by religious organizations and private clubs that limit occupancy to members.” In addition to homes, rental units, and land to be used for development, dwellings covered by Fair Housing may include nursing homes, hotels, dormitories, temporary migrant housing, and homeless shelters.
Federal laws provide the minimum level of protection while state and local governments can add further protections.
- DC’s Fair Housing protections include age, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, family responsibilities, political affiliation, matriculation, source of income, place of residence or business, status as a victim of an intra-family offense, sealed eviction record, and homeless status.
- Maryland’s additional protected classes are marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, and source of income.
- Virginia adds additional protections for elderliness (55+), source of funds, sexual orientation, gender identity, and military status.
- West Virginia’s additional protections include ancestry, age (40+), and blindness.
- Local jurisdictions within the D.C.-Metro area can include even more protections.
How The Act Combats Discrimination
“Overt discrimination is alive and well in the United States,” observed Barrett, citing several examples of cases of Fair Housing violations across a broad range of protected classes.
Barrett noted that following the law’s enactment most claims were about race, but currently, 53% of claims made were on the basis of disability, primarily in rentals. Many Fair Housing violations come from not making reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities, which can cover a wide range of physical, mental, and psychological conditions and may not often be outwardly visible.
At every level, Realtors® work with their clients and communities to educate housing providers and empower consumers to understand their roles and responsibilities in adhering to Fair Housing guidelines. Read more about those initiatives at the National Associations of Realtors® (NAR).
For guidance on Fair Housing Rights and Requirements, consult a McEnearney Associates Realtor® to help navigate your housing situations. We’re here to help!
If you would like a question answered in our weekly column or to set up an appointment with one of our Associates, please email: [email protected] or call 703-549-9292.
McEnearney Associates Realtors®, 109 S. Pitt Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. www.McEnearney.com Equal Housing Opportunity. #WeAreAlexandria
The suspect in a 2022 West End double homicide pleaded not guilty in court Monday morning, and claims that he killed two construction workers in self-defense.
Francis Deonte Rose admits to shooting and killing construction workers Adrian Dejesus Rivera Guzman, 48, and his stepson, 24-year-old Juan Carlos Anaya Hernandez, on the morning of July 16, 2022 in the northern section of the former Assembly Alexandria apartment complex in the 200 block of Century Place.
Guzman was shot in the head and died later at the hospital. Hernandez was shot in the left clavicle and died at the scene.
Commonwealth’s Attorneys Joseph Martin and Maana Parcham are seeking to convict the 29-year-old Rose for two counts of second degree murder, two counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony, as well as unlawful entry, property destruction and burglary.
Martin said that Rose’s crimes escalated from mere burglary to “an unspeakable event,” and that a water break for a group of nearby construction workers on a hot summer morning would “irrevocably change many lives.”
Rose didn’t react as photos of Hernandez’s body were published in the court record and shown to the jury on Monday in what is expected to be a week-long trial.
Moore admits that Rose was the shooter, but said there was no premeditation and that his client was acting in self-defense. He said that the Commonwealth’s assertion that the killings were carried out in cold blood can’t be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. He also said that Rose’s blood was found on the handgun, indicating evidence of a fight but not a deliberate act.
“Mr. Rose had been attacked by two individuals and a third was on the way,” Moore said, calling the incident “a tragedy.” Read More
Alexandria’s outdoor pools will open up later this month.
In a release, the City of Alexandria said all pools and the Potomac Yard Interactive Fountain will open on Saturday, May 25.
Recreation Parks and Cultural Activities (RPCA) is offering 15% off season passes for pools for residents from May 1 through May 31.
“All passes must be purchased in person at Chinquapin Park Recreation Center & Aquatics Facility (3210 King St), or at any of the City’s outdoor pools starting May 25,” the release said.
The outdoor pools around Alexandria are:
- Old Town Pool (1609 Cameron Street)
- Memorial Pool at Charles Houston Recreation Center (901 Wythe Street)
- Warwick Pool (3301 Landover Street)
