Author: Katie Taranto

Katie Taranto is a reporter at ALXnow. She previously covered local businesses at ARLnow and K-12 education at The Columbia Missourian. She is originally from Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania.

Around Town

Old Town Books celebrates seven years of business with specials tomorrow

By Katie Taranto
Old Town Books owner Ally Kirkpatrick (courtesy of Old Town Books)

Book specials, prizes and a kids’ storytime are coming to Old Town Books tomorrow (Saturday) as the local shop celebrates seven years in business.

The independent bookstore at 130 S. Royal Street first got its start as a pop-up business in 2018. The shop “never un-popped,” owner Ally Kirkpatrick told ALXnow.

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News

St. Rita’s 5K returns tomorrow, prompting some Potomac Yard road closures

By Katie Taranto
St. Rita Catholic School 5K (photo via Saint Rita Catholic Church/Facebook)

The annual St. Rita 5K returns tomorrow morning (Saturday), leading to some road closures in and around Potomac Yard.

The annual road race raises funds for St. Rita Catholic School’s classrooms, teachers and appreciation events for educators. The morning kicks off with a 1K “fun run” race at 8 a.m., before the main 5K race at 8:30 a.m. near George Washington Middle School at 1005 Mount Vernon Avenue.

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Around Town

‘Bienvenue Beaujolais’ wine tasting returns next week with Sister City Committee

By Katie Taranto
The 2024 Beaujolais Nouveau celebration in Alexandria (via Alexandria-Caen Sister Cities/Facebook)

Alexandria will celebrate its international sisterhood with Caen, France, next week during a “Bienvenue Beaujolais” wine tasting fundraiser.

Guests at the cultural, culinary evening can expect guided wine tastings and French cuisine to commemorate Beaujolais Nouveau Day, an annual celebration of the year’s first release of the red wine.

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Around Town

Alexandria Weekend Guide: Ice & Lights reopening, ‘Mega Trash Bash’ and more

By Katie Taranto
Ice & Lights: The Winter Village At Cameron Run in 2021 (staff photo by James Cullum)

This November weekend in Alexandria brings dozens of activities, from concerts and holiday-themed events to local tours and free movie screenings.

Returning on Saturday is the annual Ice & Lights village display at Cameron Run Regional Park, offering festive, seasonal scenery (the ice skating component, meanwhile, returns Nov. 28). If you’re feeling extra cheery, the Eisenhower Partnership is showing “Elf” for free on Saturday night.

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Around Town

Adoptable Pet of the Week: Estelle, the ‘pocket of sunshine’

By Katie Taranto
Estelle (courtesy of the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria)

Meet Estelle, a playful pup and “awesome companion” at the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria who is ready to find her fur-ever home.

The “tail-wagging pocket of sunshine” is three years old, weighs 41 pounds and “loves to run and play with her squeaky toys,” according to an AWLA volunteer.

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News

Health Department issues rabies alert after fox tests positive near Rosemont

By Katie Taranto
The entrance of the Alexandria Health Department (Credit: Alexandria Health Department)
The entrance of the Alexandria Health Department (courtesy of the Alexandria Health Department)

The Alexandria Health Department is issuing a warning to residents after a fox spotted near Rosemont over the weekend tested positive for rabies.

The now-deceased fox came into contact with a person and a dog near Rosemont on Sunday, Nov. 9, according to AHD. In a release today (Thursday), the department said it is working with the exposed parties on “safe next steps” and warning of “an increased risk of rabies exposures in the community.”

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News

Officials break ground on railway improvement projects at Alexandria Amtrak station

By Katie Taranto
Officials toss ceremonial dirt at a groundbreaking at the Alexandria Amtrak station (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

City leaders and various transportation officials broke ground yesterday (Wednesday) on a bundle of improvement projects at Amtrak’s Alexandria Union Station.

Four upcoming projects seek to expand passenger and freight rail service at Alexandria Union Station at 110 Callahan Drive, while improving safety for passengers and the city. The projects coincide with VPRA’s Transforming Rail in Virginia (TRV) initiative, which aims to expand the state’s rail service by separating passenger and freight trains and building new infrastructure.

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News

Mayor Gaskins, City Council ask sheriff to cease voluntary inmate transfers to ICE

By Katie Taranto
A letter signed by 26 local organizations and leaders demanding Sheriff Sean Casey end voluntary collaboration with ICE was delivered to the Alexandria Sheriff's Office on Tuesday. (Courtesy ICE Out of Alexandria)

Mayor Alyia Gaskins and the City Council are calling on the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office to stop transferring inmates to immigration enforcement unless required by law.

Following months of pressure from activists critical of Immigration and Customs Enforcement — including a protest during an Oct. 18 public hearing — Gaskins and the Council publicly asked Sheriff Sean Casey to stop transferring Alexandria inmates to ICE custody via the agency’s detainers and administrative warrants.

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News

Increased disability transit fares and food truck enforcement up for Council review tonight

By Katie Taranto
DOT is the City of Alexandria's paratransit program, which is a specialized transportation service for residents and visitors who cannot use fixed routed public transit due to their disability. (via City of Alexandria)

City Council will consider fare increases to its disability transit program and changes to food truck parking enforcement at a meeting tonight (Wednesday).

Up for vote is a resolution that would increase some paratransit fares by $1 and create a new $2 “peak-hour” surcharge for some trips. The Council will also complete a first read of an ordinance that would shift how the city enforces parking for food trucks.

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News

Northern lights could return to N. Va. skies tonight after Tuesday auroras

By Katie Taranto and The Associated Press
The northern lights fill the sky behind the Saint Joseph the Woodworker Shrine Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025, near Valley Falls, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Solar storms brought colorful auroras to unexpected places last night (Tuesday), and there could be more to come across the D.C. area this evening.

Space weather forecasters confirmed that storms reached severe levels Tuesday, triggering vibrant northern lights as far south as Kansas, Colorado and Texas. In Virginia, residents posted about aurora sightings from northern localities like Arlington and Vienna, and out west in Rockingham County.

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News

New city assessment deems West End watersheds ‘vulnerable’ to flooding

By Katie Taranto
Holmes Run (Staff photo by Jay Westcott)

A new flooding assessment and map have identified watersheds in the West End as some of Alexandria’s most vulnerable flood zones.

Areas considered most at-risk of flooding include the Potomac waterfront, Four Mile Run and Hooffs Run — as well as new additions like Holmes Run, Cameron Run and Backlick Run, according to a map shared by Flood Resilience Plan (FRP) project leaders at a meeting Monday night.

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