News | ALXnow - Part 157

Alexandria Economic Development Partnership celebrates major wins in new Carlyle office space

Published October 7, 2025 at 5:45AM

Alexandria Economic Development Partnership Celebrates Major Business Wins at Annual Impact Meeting. Photo by Ryan Belmore/ALXnow

The Alexandria Economic Development Partnership showcased a year of significant economic achievements during its annual impact meeting on Monday, held for the first time in the organization’s new Carlyle neighborhood offices at 1940 Duke Street.

AEDP President and CEO Stephanie Landrum noted that the organization deliberately chose the Carlyle location to support a part of the city that “needs and wants more business activity.” The new space allows AEDP to showcase Alexandria’s potential directly to visiting businesses and prospects.

Alexandria man charged with abduction, assault after ice cream dispute

By James Cullum

Published October 6, 2025 at 3:30PM | Updated October 8, 2025 at 3:21PM

Alexandria police cruiser (staff photo by James Jarvis)

Correction: The victim in this case is not the suspect’s wife. Police recovered a weapon at the suspect’s home, and spoke with the suspect’s wife. ALXnow regrets the error.

A 60-year-old Alexandria man will appear in court later this month after being charged with abduction, assault and battery, and brandishing a firearm in an incident that allegedly “stemmed from dropping ice cream,” according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.

Tickets on sale for Ice & Lights winter attraction at Cameron Run

By Ryan Belmore

Published October 6, 2025 at 3:00PM

Ice & Lights: The Winter Village At Cameron Run in 2021 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Tickets went on sale Monday for Ice & Lights: The Winter Village at Cameron Run, one of three holiday light attractions operated by NOVA Parks this winter season.

The outdoor winter experience at Cameron Run Regional Park in Alexandria features illuminated holiday displays, ice skating, photo opportunities, and seasonal refreshments. It opens on November 15 and runs through February 28.

ACPS to induct 13 individuals, three teams into Athletic Hall of Fame Saturday

By Ryan Belmore

Published October 6, 2025 at 2:45PM

Alexandria City High School (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria City Public Schools will honor 13 individuals and three athletic teams at its 2025 Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Saturday, Oct. 11, at Alexandria City High School.

The ceremony, scheduled from 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the King Street campus auditorium, will recognize 11 athletes, one coach, and one administrator who have made significant contributions to high school athletics in Alexandria.

Speaker Johnson says it’s up to Democrats to ‘stop the madness’ on government shutdown’s sixth day

By The Associated Press

Published October 6, 2025 at 2:12PM

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., holds a news conference on the 6th day of the government shutdown, at the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Oct. 6, 2025. Johnson is keeping the House out of session for the second week in a row during the shutdown. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

By JOSH BOAK Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawmakers provided few public signs of meaningful negotiations to break an impasse on reopening the federal government as the shutdown entered its sixth day on Monday, with House Speaker Mike Johnson saying it was Democrats who needed to “stop the madness.”

‘KRISSFIT’ gym opens on Colvin Street in Alexandria

By James Cullum

Published October 6, 2025 at 1:45PM

(Left to right) Viktoria and Kriss Baychev, Chamber ALX CEO Joe Haggerty, and two children at the ribbon cutting at KRISSFIT at 3014 Colvin Street in Alexandria (courtesy image)

There’s a new gym just off Duke Street in Alexandria.

Over the weekend, the ribbon was cut at KRISSFIT at 3014 Colvin Street, near the intersection of Roth and Duke Streets. The gym is owned by personal trainers Kriss and Viktoria Baychev, who specialize in core training, nutrition, strength training, endurance training, and bodybuilding.

Alexandria launching invasive species management program

By James Cullum

Published October 6, 2025 at 12:45PM

Japanese honeysuckles are an invasive species (via Facebook)

Starting this month, Alexandria will begin eradicating invasive plants in the Wilkes Street Tunnel and at several city parks.

Residents and visitors can expect some temporary fencing around affected areas, as the city will be making herbicide treatments and other “control” methods. Some of the invasive species that will be eradicated include Japanese honeysuckle, tree of heaven, English ivy, mimosa trees, and Oriental bittersweet.

Muay Thai gym moves to new location in Alexandria

By James Cullum

Published October 6, 2025 at 11:00AM | Updated October 6, 2025 at 1:22PM

Atlas Muay Thai fighters at their new location at 2395 S. Dove Street (courtesy photo)

A local Muay Thai dojo recently moved to a new location in Alexandria.

Atlas Muay Thai Gym opened earlier this month in its new location at 2395 S. Dove Street. The gym opened in 2023 in a former CrossFit gym at 215 N. Payne Street, part of The Link coworking office, and is owned by Muay Thai world champion Amine “The Lion” Ballafrikh.

Alexandria-area bakery is making all the pretzels at Capital One Arena

By James Cullum

Published October 6, 2025 at 10:00AM | Updated October 9, 2025 at 6:13PM

Bread and Water Co. in the Belle View Shopping Center is now making all the pretzels for Capital One Arena in D.C. (courtesy photo)

A local bakery just got a big order with a twist, literally.

Bread and Water Co. in the Belle View Shopping Center is now the pretzel maker for Capital One Arena. Throughout the hockey and basketball seasons, as well as during concerts and special events, customers can expect to find pretzels made by Bread and Water’s bakery in the Alexandria area of Fairfax County.

Alexandria Cider Festival returns to Lloyd House in November

By Ryan Belmore

Published October 6, 2025 at 8:40AM

Alexandria Cider Festival (via Historic Alexandria)

The Alexandria Cider Festival will return to Lloyd House on Nov. 22, featuring Virginia cideries, live music, and historical context during the state’s annual Virginia Cider Week.

The Office of Historic Alexandria will host the event from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. at 220 N. Washington St., in partnership with the Virginia Association of Cider Makers. Last year’s festival sold out.

‘Beyond disqualifying’: Jay Jones controversy jolts Virginia’s pivotal 2025 elections

By Markus Schmidt, Virginia Mercury

Published October 6, 2025 at 7:40AM

Democrat Jay Jones speaks in Richmond during his 2024 campaign kickoff for attorney general. Jones is now facing bipartisan backlash over newly surfaced text messages containing violent remarks about a former Republican House speaker. (Photo by Markus Schmidt/Virginia Mercury)

What began as a quiet October Friday in Virginia politics erupted into a full-blown national scandal when screenshots of private, three-year old text messages showing Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones fantasizing about shooting then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert and his children were made public.

The National Review story revealed an August 2022 exchange between Jones — a former Norfolk delegate and one-time assistant attorney general — and Del. Carrie Coyner, R-Chesterfield. In the texts, Jones described a scenario in which Gilbert “gets two bullets to the head,” followed by a wish that the Republican lawmaker’s children “die in their mother’s arms.”