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.

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Upcoming concert will help raise funds for Alexandria music school scholarships

By Vernon Miles
A studio at Rock of Ages Music in Del Ray. (Photo via ROAM/Facebook)

An upcoming rock concert in Del Ray later this month will help raise funding for scholarships and other assistance to help young students attend a local music school.

The Rock Del Ray concert on Sunday, July 28, will benefit the nonprofit Friends of ROAM, which provides need-based scholarships to Rock of Ages Music, a music school at 114 E. Del Ray Avenue.

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ALXnow’s top stories this week in Alexandria

By Vernon Miles
The rear of Onelife Fitness at 305 Hooffs Run Drive (staff photo by James Cullum)

It was Independence Day this week, so ALXnow was off yesterday and has a half-day today, but there was a lot of news in the first half of the week.

The biggest story was the murder-suicide at the Onelife gym in Carlyle. Charles Hewitt, a D.C. man, allegedly entered the gym and shot and killed Maryland man Joshua Wilcox before shooting himself. Both were transported to a hospital, but died from their injuries.

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Alexandria trading parking spots for pedestrian improvements at West End school

By Vernon Miles
Proposed Sanger Avenue changes near William Ramsay Elementary School (image via City of Alexandria)

Parking is already in high demand near William Ramsay Elementary School. A change (page 12) coming to the nearby Sanger Avenue could make parking even more scarce, but the tradeoff is making it safer to walk to school.

The plan is to extend the curbs near William Ramsay Elementary School and, in the process, remove three parking spaces. The staff report said that “parking is permitted along Sanger Avenue and there is a high-demand for parking throughout the day.”

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Alexandria and neighbors receive $3.5 million for collaborative new affordable housing strategies

By Vernon Miles
About 50 demonstrators outside City Hall called for affordable housing solutions in Alexandria, April 13, 2024 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria and regional partners will be getting $3.5 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to “identify and implement” new affordable housing strategies.

The $3.5 million is provided through HUD’s Pathways to the Removal of Obstacles grant. The funding will go to Alexandria and other localities in Maryland and D.C. as part of the Metropolitan Council of Governments.

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Alexandria swears in new fire chief from Rochester, New York

By Vernon Miles
Fire Chief Felipe Hernandez Jr. swearing in (image via Alexandria Fire Department/Facebook)

Alexandria swore in Felipe Hernandez Jr. as the city’s new fire chief in a ceremony at City Hall yesterday (Tuesday).

Hernandez, previously the fire chief for the City of Rochester, New York, will lead the Alexandria Fire Department and Emergency Medical Services.

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Has noise from National Airport been getting louder in Alexandria? Sort of…

By Vernon Miles
An airplane on approach to National Airport is reflected in a puddle on Prince Street near the waterfront (Staff photo by Jay Westcott)

In general, noise levels from National Airport haven’t gotten noticeably louder in recent years, but there are legitimate reasons it has gotten more noticeable for Alexandrians.

In a community meeting about the South of the Airport Noise Mitigation Project, Vianair Inc. CCO Jim Allerdice laid out some of the goals of the project and explained why airport noise has gotten worse in recent years for Alexandrians.

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Forecast says thunderstorms possible for Independence Day in Alexandria

By Vernon Miles
A multi-frame exposure of fireworks over Arlington's Westover on July 4th (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Alexandrians considering outdoor activities this 4th of July (Thursday) may want to plan a backup or bring a sturdy umbrella.

The National Weather Service is forecasting “a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2 p.m.” on Thursday, though it said the chance of precipitation is 50%.

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Former Republican presidential candidate keynote speaker at ‘Fairfax Resolves’ commemoration in Alexandria

By Vernon Miles
The Fairfax Resolves (image via Library of Congress/Mount Vernon)

The Fairfax Resolves were a series of radical resolutions drafted in Alexandria in 1774 that laid the foundation that helped steer Virginia toward revolution.

An event later this month in Market Square celebrates the monumental 250th anniversary of the Fairfax Resolves with a marker dedication, music from the United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, and reenactors portraying George Washington and George Mason.

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Major Robinson Terminal North project scheduled for City Council review this winter

By Vernon Miles
Plans for Robinson Terminal North (via City of Alexandria)

Robinson Terminal North, a major piece of waterfront development in Old Town, could heat to City Council review by the end of this year or early next year.

Robinson Terminal North is the last of the large industrial sites in the city’s Waterfront Plan and one of the final pieces of a long-held aim of the city to have a fully walkable waterfront.

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Alexandria Mayor says short-term rentals now comprise over a quarter of the city’s ‘hotel tax’ revenue

By Vernon Miles
An Airbnb rental in Old Town, Alexandria. (Photo via Boyd Walker)

Alexandria is still working out the kinks in its short-term rentals policies, but rentals on sites like Airbnb have already taken over a considerable amount of the city’s transient lodging market.

In a newsletter, Mayor Justin Wilson said there are over 700 short-term rentals in Alexandria, comprising less than 1% of the city’s housing stock, but that those rentals account for over a quarter of the city’s transient lodging tax revenue — a market traditionally defined by hotels.

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