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

Street repaving and curb repairs underway in Old Town this week and next

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

You might have already noticed if it’s on a street near you, but this week the City of Alexandria has resumed its seasonal resurfacing work throughout Old Town.

Repaving work started on Monday this week as part of a seasonal program. This week and next, repairs and curb improvements are underway on Union Street from Pendleton to Franklin streets and Duke Street from South Union to South Patrick streets.

Go to Street repaving and curb repairs underway in Old Town this week and next Read more
Opinion

Poll: Do you support the proposed 5 cent plastic bag tax?

By Vernon Miles
Cat and plastic bags, photo via Daniel Romero/Unsplash

(Updated 11 a.m.) The city of Alexandria is considering implementing a new 5 cent bag tax at local stores; aimed at curbing plastic bag use and providing funding for enviromental clean-up and other projects.

A similar 5 cent bag tax was implemented in D.C. in 2010, and groups collecting trash around the area reported a three-quarter decrease in the amount of plastic bags being picked up and overall decreased plastic bag use — though some of those results have been brought into question.

Go to Poll: Do you support the proposed 5 cent plastic bag tax? Read more
News

New Normal: ACPS fully reopens for first time since pandemic started

By Vernon Miles
Students return to George Washington Middle School, August 24, 2021. (staff photo by Vernon Miles)

Beside the masks and the news crews flocking around the hallways, after more than a year of virtual or hybrid learning, the start of the 2021-2022 school year was strangely normal.

Children at George Washington Middle School clumped together into groups of either friends or convenient strangers headed to the same destinations. Superintendent Gregory Hutchings, School Board Chair Meagan Alderton, and Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) staff greeted students as they came into the building.

Go to New Normal: ACPS fully reopens for first time since pandemic started Read more
News

Design realities could conflict with promises to speed up stormwater improvements in Alexandria

By Vernon Miles

“Make it happen faster.”

It’s been the rallying cry for countless local residents who have suffered from multiple floods in the last few years. City leaders have promised to expedite stormwater projects, but now admit that many improvements could be years away at best.

Go to Design realities could conflict with promises to speed up stormwater improvements in Alexandria Read more
News

City breaks ground on new broadband network

By Vernon Miles
City leaders break ground on new fibre optic network (staff photo by Vernon Miles)

The city is starting work on a new municipal fiber optic network, but while the project should boost internet speeds at city facilities and schools, the big news for most local residents is higher internet speeds could be a few years and a few contract negotiations away.

Two coils of plastic tubing were wrapped up at the dig site this morning (Monday), where city officials stuck shovels into the ground. One will carry the new municipal network, but the other — added at minimal expense — will be empty for now but built to house a future network put into place by a private provider.

Go to City breaks ground on new broadband network Read more
News

Mayor Wilson talks flooding, vaccine requirements, and Arlington gondola with WAMU

By Vernon Miles
Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson gestures while delivering remarks at TC Williams High School (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

Today on WAMU’s The Politics Hour, Mayor Justin Wilson laid out plans for flood infrastructure work, predicted a decision this fall over whether recreation centers will require proof of vaccination, and tacitly endorsed the Arlington-Georgetown gondola.

The discussion of the mayor took up the back half of the hour-long program hosted by Kojo Nnamdi and Tom Sherwood. As fitting the program’s name, the show started with a question of politics and whether Mayor Justin Wilson is planning to debate Republican candidate Annetta Catchings.

Go to Mayor Wilson talks flooding, vaccine requirements, and Arlington gondola with WAMU Read more
News

ACPS announces vaccination requirement for staff, but some aspects still uncertain

By Vernon Miles

Last night (Thursday), just four days before the school year is scheduled to start, the Alexandria School Board voted to require staff to either be vaccinated or take weekly COVID-19 tests.

The School Board unanimously voted approval of the vaccination and testing requirements, but with significant changes throughout the meeting over when staff would be required to submit their proof of vaccination.

Go to ACPS announces vaccination requirement for staff, but some aspects still uncertain Read more
Opinion

Poll: Have you been impacted by flooding in Alexandria?

By Vernon Miles
Alexandria Sheriff Dana Lawhorne in the alley behind his house after flooding in Del Ray. (Courtesy photo)

In what’s become at least an annual occurrence in Alexandria, heavy rainfall led to severe flooding for many Alexandrians, particularly in Del Ray neighborhood.

City leadership has promised to accelerate the timetable for planned flooding mitigation efforts, but warned that major infrastructure projects will still take some time to process.

Go to Poll: Have you been impacted by flooding in Alexandria? Read more
News

New census shows Alexandria not majority-white

By Vernon Miles
Lower King Street in Old Town, Alexandria, in June 2020. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

Newly released census data shows that Alexandria is becoming more diverse, with white, non-Hispanic Alexandrians comprising less that half the city’s total population for the first time in recent history.

The census broke the categories down into several different sections. The data indicated that 76% of Alexandria identified as one race — a decline from 81.4% in 2020. White Alexandrians accounted for 53.5% of the population in 2010 and in 2020 comprised 49.2%. It marks the first time in any recent census data — at least as far back as the 1990s — that Alexandria has been has not been majority-white.

Go to New census shows Alexandria not majority-white Read more
View More Stories