Author: Vernon Miles

Vernon Miles is the ALXnow cofounder and editor. He's covered Alexandria since 2014 and has been with Local News Now since 2018. When he's not reporting, he can usually be found playing video games or Dungeons and Dragons with friends.

News

80’s stars Chris Isaak and Rick Springfield close out Birchmere’s 2022 lineup

By Vernon Miles
Chris Isaak (image via The Birchmere)

The “Wicked Game” and “Jesse’s Girl” stars from the 1980’s are headlining at the Birchmere as the Arlandria music venue winds down its 2022 calendar.

Toward the end of November, Chris Issak is bringing a Christmas Tour to the Birchmere. The $115 show is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 28, and features music from a Christmas album that came out earlier this month.

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News

UPDATED: District Biscuit Company coming to Arlandria

By Vernon Miles
(image via District Biscuit Company/Instagram)

(Updated at 5:35 p.m.) District Biscuit Company, a local farmers market favorite, could be opening a brick-and-mortar location in a former restaurant space on the Arlandria/Del Ray border.

The biscuit company has filed an application to open at 3401 Mount Vernon Avenue, formerly Silpancho’s House. The prior restaurant, which focused on Bolivian cuisine, has been closed since January, according to the application.

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Opinion

Poll: Do you support Alexandria’s guaranteed basic income program?

By Vernon Miles
Money on a table (staff photo via Vernon Miles/ALXnow)

Alexandrians making less than half of the region’s area median income could qualify for a new program that will give them $500 per month with no strings attached.

Those living alone and making less than $49,850 per year are eligible, with the income scaling up based on the size of the household.

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News

New Duke Street development replacing car dealership with affordable housing

By Vernon Miles
Witter Place (Community Housing Partners (CHP)

The Beyer Land Rover dealership at 2712 Duke Street could soon be replaced with a new 94-unit affordable housing development (item 9).

The project, Witter Place, is being put together by Community Housing Partners (CHP). The Virginia-based non-profit has worked in affordable housing development since 1975, but this is CHP’s first project in Alexandria.

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News

Alexandria lowers speed limits on major West End streets

By Vernon Miles

The City of Alexandria announced today that drivers will need to go a little slower in the West End.

City Manager James Parajon said, following the unanimous recommendation from the Traffic and Parking Board, speed limits on a handful of corridors on the West End — including some major ones like North Beauregard Street, Seminary Road and King Street — will be reduced by around 10 miles per hour.

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News

Potomac Yard Metro station hits major milestone after earlier plans derailed by delays

By Vernon Miles
Train going through Potomac Yard Metro station (image via WMATA/Twitter)

After a series of delays, there’s finally a positive milestone for the Potomac Yard Metro station.

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) tweeted this morning that the first test train has gone through the station.

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News

New report examines how King Street pedestrianization fits into waterfront plans

By Vernon Miles
Unit block of King Street pedestrian zone (image via City of Alexandria)

Ten years after adopting a plan with suggestions for turning the Waterfront into a cultural hub, the City of Alexandria is poised to move forward with one of them: making the streets closest to the river pedestrian-only.

Ahead of a potential vote to close the unit block of King Street and part of The Strand to traffic, a new report suggests that these street closures are supported by the 2012 Waterfront Small Area Plan and are broadly popular among locals. The unit block of King Street, the block closest to the Waterfront, is a one-way street connected to the two-way street called The Strand that runs parallel to the Potomac River.

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News

ALXnow’s top stories this week in Alexandria

By Vernon Miles
Pumpkins in Old Town (staff photo by Vernon Miles)

It’s been a busy week as the city announced progress on a few new policies that could give a financial boost to some Alexandrians in need.

One of the most notable is a pilot project testing out a Universal Basic Income pilot with $500 a month for local residents making less than half of the area median income. Local residents can apply for Alexandria’s Recurring Income for Success and Equity (ARISE) online.

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