Vernon Miles | ALXnow

JUST IN: Suspect in Carlyle assault on law enforcement arrested in Texas

Published March 18, 2022 at 11:10AM

Chukwunyere Onuoha and escape vehicle, image via Alexandria Police Department

Three months after he allegedly assaulted Alexandria police officers in the Carlyle neighborhood and fled the scene, Chukwunyere Onuoha has been apprehended in Texas and is awaiting extradition back to Alexandria.

According to a release from APD, on Dec. 27, police responded to a report of an individual in a domestic dispute in the 2400 block of Mandeville Lane, near the Hoffman Town Center. APD said they located Onuoha in the nearby 200 block of Swamp Fox Road.

News

Alexandria coworking space hosting fundraising night for Ukrainian refugees

By Vernon Miles

Published March 18, 2022 at 9:45AM | Updated March 18, 2022 at 12:54PM

The George Washington National Masonic Memorial bathed in the colors of the Ukranian Flag, Feb. 27, 2022. (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria coworking space ALX Community is hosting a fundraising event next week to raise donations for nonprofits assisting Ukrainian refugees.

The fundraiser, “A Night for Ukraine,” is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday, March 25 at Above ALX (277 South Washington Street). The $25 entrance ticket will go to Community Organized Relief Efforts (CORE), who will supply a family of four with a three-day hygiene kit, which includes soap, hand sanitizer, toothbrushes and other items, along with emergency thermal blankets, the group said.

News

Alexandria prepares to ‘resink’ historic ships

By Vernon Miles

Published March 17, 2022 at 2:45PM

Pieces of 18th-Century ships waiting to be scanned (Staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Almost exactly four years after archeologists recovered three 18th-century ships from under the Old Town Waterfront, Alexandria is planning on sending at least two of them back to Davy Jones’ Locker.

Three ships were discovered under the Robinson Landing construction site in March 2018. While the most intact of the trio was sent to Texas A&M for study and will get a new Torpedo Factory exhibit next month, the other two have sat in water tanks in the DASH bus barn. At a meeting of the Waterfront Commission, City Archaeologist Eleanor Breen said that sometime this year the city will start moving the ships out of their 12×24-foot tanks and out to Ben Brenman Pond (4800 Brenman Park Drive).

News

Police body cameras back in Alexandria budget with federal funding boost

By Vernon Miles

Published March 17, 2022 at 11:00AM

After seven years, body-worn cameras are back in the city budget, but both planned funding and congressional support are still just a drop in the bucket compared to the full cost of the program.

Though the program has been in the budget in previous years, Alexandria communications officer Andrea Blackford said the city hasn’t put any money into the program yet.

Opinion

Poll: Should Alexandria start reducing more speed limits?

By Vernon Miles

Published March 17, 2022 at 10:15AM

Traffic near the George Washington Masonic Memorial during a storm (staff photo by James Cullum)

This weekend, Alexandria’s City Council unanimously approved an ordinance that allows the city manager to further reduce speed limits. But should he?

The ordinance allows the city manager to “reduce posted speed limits to less than 25 miles per hour, but not less than 15 miles per hour on any city street located in a business or residence district.” The measure was supported by speakers at the City Council meeting and endorsed whole-heartedly by the Council, but the reaction online has been more mixed.

News

Plans unveiled for parking lot redevelopment in the heart of Old town

By Vernon Miles

Published March 16, 2022 at 3:45PM | Updated March 17, 2022 at 3:12AM

912-920 King Street, image via Winstanley Architects & Planners

Long-awaited plans for the redevelopment of a block of parking on King Street are finally coming forward.

Plans for the redevelopment of 912-920 King Street are scheduled to be presented at the Wednesday, April 6 Board of Architectural Review meeting, the Washington Business Journal first reported.

News

City looking at New Deal-era program as possible solution for Torpedo Factory financial woes

By Vernon Miles

Published March 16, 2022 at 2:45PM

The Torpedo Factory Art Center in Old Town(staff photo by James Cullum)

The City of Alexandria is still mulling over what to do with the Torpedo Factory, but one way of paying for the expensive additions could lie in a program started under FDR.

At a meeting of the Waterfront Commission, representatives from the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership (AEDP) outlined one potential path to financing the Torpedo Factory overhaul as part of a “public real estate entity.”

News

JUST IN: ACHS lockdown lifted after police investigate nearby car crash

By Vernon Miles

Published March 16, 2022 at 1:15PM

The Alexandria City High School marquee (staff photo by James Cullum)

A car crash near Alexandria City High School’s King Street campus briefly sent the school into “secure the building” status.

In an email, Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) said the school was put into secure status after three people ran towards the school post-crash.

News

Digital reconstruction of buried waterfront ship coming to Torpedo Factory

By Vernon Miles

Published March 16, 2022 at 9:50AM

The Alexandria Archaeology Museum announced on Twitter that a new exhibit coming to the Torpedo Factory will offer a digital guided tour of one of the ships found buried under Old Town’s waterfront.

In 2018, hulls from three mid-18th century ships were found buried underground during an excavation at the Robinson Landing development. The crown jewel of the archeological discovery, however, was a mostly intact lower hull from one of the ships.

News

Duke Street overhaul moving forward with new advisory group

By Vernon Miles

Published March 15, 2022 at 3:45PM

Traffic on Duke Street in Alexandria (staff photo by James Cullum)

A new group is being tasked with heading up the city’s plans to overhaul Duke Street.

The Duke Street In Motion Advisory Group is tasked with guiding the new eponymous Duke Street In Motion project — which aims to make adjust the arterial road to emphasize public transit, make improvements to bicycle/pedestrian safety and other changes.

News

Alexandria City Council feels the need for speed… limit reductions

By Vernon Miles

Published March 15, 2022 at 2:30PM

At a meeting on Saturday, the City Council unanimously approved an ordinance that will allow City Manager James Parajon to reduce speed limits in Alexandria as low as 15 miles per hour.

The ordinance, unanimously approved by the City Council, allows the City Manager to “reduce posted speed limits to less than 25 miles per hour, but not less than 15 miles per hour on any city street located in a business or residence district.”