Vernon Miles | ALXnow

Alexandria Firefighter Retires After 34 Years and No Sick Days

Published November 27, 2019 at 9:30AM

Acting Fire Chief Corey Smedley (left) and Firefighter JJ Jackson (right) (photo via Alexandria Fire-EMS/Twitter)

After 34 years and no sick leave, James “JJ” Jackson wrapped up his last shift at Fire Station 203 yesterday (Tuesday).

Short of a little time in Del Ray and Old Town, Jackson said he’s spent every year of his career at the firehouse in Alexandria’s Beverly Hills neighborhood.

News

Human Rights Campaign Ranks Alexandria Highly for Inclusivity, but Low for Gender Identity Protections

By Vernon Miles

Published November 26, 2019 at 3:30PM

Alexandria has ranked highly on the 2019 Human Rights Campaign’s (HRC) Municipal Equality Index of cities, with a 90/100 score, but it also highlighted where there’s room to improve.

Alexandria’s lowest category is in non-discrimination laws, where HRC gave Alexandria 15 of 30 possible points. Of localities in Virginia, Alexandria ranked third behind Richmond and Arlington. Where Alexandria loses is in its protections for gender identity, where there are no protections in employment, housing, or public accommodations from discrimination.

News

VDOT Change Could Put Alexandria Bus and Bicycle-Pedestrian Improvements at Risk

By Vernon Miles

Published November 26, 2019 at 2:05PM

A cyclist in Del Ray (Staff photo by Jay Westcott)

After years of relying on the Virginia’s SMART SCALE grant program to fund transportation projects, changes in the program’s scoring criteria could leave that well dry for Alexandria.

At a Transportation Commission meeting on Monday, Nov. 20, city staff warned that new criteria under consideration by the Commonwealth Transportation Board could shift transportation funding away from existing urban centers like Alexandria and instead favor less dense locales.

News

Thanksgiving Closures in Alexandria

By Vernon Miles

Published November 26, 2019 at 10:35AM | Updated November 26, 2019 at 10:57AM

Alexandria City Hall (staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated at 10:55 a.m.) Thanksgiving is just two days away, and much of the city government will be shutting down for the holiday.

On Thursday (Nov. 28), all city facilities and the Torpedo Factory will be closed. DASH bus service will not operate, but the King Street Trolley will still be running. The Vola Lawson Animal Shelter will be closed on Thursday except for its Kongs-giving event to make treat packages for animals in the shelter.

News

Local Inmates Responsible for Much of Old Town’s Holiday Decorations

By Vernon Miles

Published November 26, 2019 at 9:30AM

Old Town Alexandria is widely renowned for it’s Christmas atmosphere, but it’s local inmates who do much of the work to get those decorations up.

In addition to the lights in trees on King Street, there are garlands and ribbons around poles and lamp posts throughout Old Town.

News

Committee Established to Research Lynchings in Alexandria’s History

By Vernon Miles

Published November 25, 2019 at 3:35PM

Memorial post for victims of Alexandria lynchings (photo via City of Alexandria)

Officially, there are two lynchings in Alexandria’s history, but a new investigation by the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) hopes to discover whether there were more that went unrecorded.

The two documented lynchings were of Joseph McCoy in 1897 and Benjamin Thomas in 1899. At a meeting of the Equal Justice Initiative on Nov. 16, Audrey Davis, director of Alexandria’s Black History Museum, said that one of the seven committees in EJI’s Alexandria branch is dedicated to conducting research to “find out if there were any other lynchings in Alexandria we’re not aware of.”

News

City Asks for Public Input on Eisenhower East Plan

By Vernon Miles

Published November 25, 2019 at 2:15PM | Updated November 25, 2019 at 2:52PM

Rendering of a proposed park under the Eisenhower Metro station (image via City of Alexandria)

As Eisenhower East continues to grow, the City of Alexandria is hoping for input on how to shape the community as it continues to grow.

City staff is working on an update to the 2003 Eisenhower East Small Area Plan. A lot has changed for the area since 2003, with the National Science Foundation moving in and new developments taking shape. A draft of the update to the Small Area Plan focuses on how to build or maintain affordable housing and open space amid new development in the area.

News

City Boards and Commissions Divided on Issue of Scooters on Sidewalks

By Vernon Miles

Published November 25, 2019 at 10:45AM

As the City Council considers approving Alexandria’s e-scooter pilot program for another year, several of the city’s boards and commissions have written letters asking that scooters be prohibited from city sidewalks in one form or another.

A draft recommendation being presented to the City Council tomorrow (Tuesday) includes banning sidewalk riding in Old Town and along Mount Vernon Avenue, which runs through Arlandria and Del Ray.

News

City Approves Visual Overhaul for Old Town Gas Stations

By Vernon Miles

Published November 25, 2019 at 9:30AM

Shell station at 801 N. Washington Street (photo via City of Alexandria)

A few months after telling a pair of local companies to pump the brakes on plans to renovate three Washington Street gas stations, the Board of Architectural Review has approved changes to the facades.

The stations in question are the Shell station at 801 N. Washington Street and a pair of Exxon stations at 703 N. Washington Street and 501 S. Washington Street. There are assorted changes with the stations themselves, but the biggest changes for anyone driving down Washington Street will be the price signs that currently are manually set will be replaced by LED signs that can update as prices change.

News

City Changing Streetlights to LEDs

By Vernon Miles

Published November 22, 2019 at 3:30PM

Alexandria’s lights are about to shine a little differently than most folks in the city might be used.

The City of Alexandria is working with Dominion Energy to retrofit the city’s streetlights with new LED lights. Currently, 150 lights have been swapped out, with the goal of replacing 2,500 by summer 2020. The city will have to replace 12 lights per day to reach that goal by June 20, the start of summer.

News

Block of King Street in Old Town Closed Tomorrow Morning

By Vernon Miles

Published November 22, 2019 at 3:15PM

621 King Street (photo via Google Maps)

The 600 block of King Street in Old Town — the one with the Chipotle and the Walgreens — is going to be briefly closed to car and some pedestrian traffic early tomorrow (Saturday) morning.

The block will be closed from 6-9 a.m. for construction work at 621 King Street, a Burke and Herbert Bank location, according to a press release from the City of Alexandria. A crew replacing equipment at the building will require a roadway closure for use of a large crane.