As cleanup of “snowcrete” continues from the Jan. 25 winter storm, Alexandria officials discussed progress of snow and ice removal and ways to improve the response during future winter weather events.
On Tuesday, City Manager Jim Parajon briefed City Council about the unprecedented conditions that led to a longer cleanup effort than a typical snowstorm.
Alexandria appears to be closing the gap with neighboring Arlington for priciest apartment rentals in the region, according to one data analysis.
The median Alexandria apartment asking rent of $2,200 for one-bedroom units was up 5.3% year-over-year, while the median $2,740 for two bedrooms was up 3.8%, according to figures reported on Tuesday by Zumper.
Mayor Alyia Gaskins says one lesson to be learned from January’s snow and ice storm is the importance of timely messaging that reaches a large audience.
“It’s given us a lot of lessons learned,” Gaskins said at a roundtable yesterday (Wednesday) hosted by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG).
Alexandria’s month-long celebration of the first president of the United States continues this Saturday with the return of the George Washington Birthday Parade.
Known as Washington’s adopted hometown, Alexandria has celebrated the Founding Father, born Feb. 22, 1732, with a birthday parade that dates back to 1801. This year, it will run from 2-4 p.m. this Saturday in Old Town with a modified route, due to ongoing renovations at City Hall and Market Square.
On This Day in Alexandria History — “Alexandria celebrates African American heritage every month of the year, but before there was a designated Black History Month, Black History Week was started in 1926 by Dr. Carter G. Woodson to commemorate the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln on February 12th, and Frederick Douglass on February 14th. In many black communities, these birthdays were already commemorated in the years between 1865 and 1926. Black History Week evolved into Black History Month in 1976.” [Historic Alexandria]
Attorney Who Prosecuted Trump Running For Congress — “J.P. Cooney — who served as a top deputy for special counsel Jack Smith’s office in two criminal prosecutions against Trump, before the president fired him in January 2025 — announced his candidacy Wednesday.” [ARLnow]
Good Wednesday evening, Alexandria. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.
The following articles were published earlier today — Feb 11, 2026.
Here are today’s most-read articles:
Here is what’s going on Thursday in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
Expect to see mostly sunny skies and a high temperature near 38 degrees. The northwest wind will be blowing at a speed of 11 to 15 mph, alongside gusts reaching up to 26 mph. Thursday night will be mostly clear, with the temperature dropping to around 24 degrees, and a northwest wind blowing at roughly 10 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
Thanks for reading!
The Alexandria City Council last night (Tuesday) unanimously approved a resolution asking the Alexandria Circuit Court to set an April 21 special election date to fill the council seat vacated by Del.-elect R. Kirk McPike.
April 21 is the same date as a statewide referendum, and city staff and the city’s registrar of voters recommended holding the special election on that date to “reduce election costs and avoid voter confusion associated with multiple elections held in close succession,” according to the resolution.
As the General Assembly reaches mid-session, the City of Alexandria is supporting nearly 400 proposed bills, including restrictions on immigration enforcement.
Wendy Ginsberg, the city’s legislative director, provided a mid-session General Assembly update to City Council yesterday (Tuesday). According to Ginsberg, city staff have reviewed 584 bills for potential impacts to the city. During the presentation, Councilman Abdel Elnoubi requested an update on the immigration enforcement-related bills, which Ginsberg said are continuing to make progress.
Shannon Steene, the longtime executive director of Carpenter’s Shelter, is stepping down next month, the organization announced today (Wednesday).
After 11 years leading one of Northern Virginia’s largest homeless shelters, Steene will be departing the role to be the CEO of Reston-based Cornerstones, providing advocacy and support to people who need food, shelter, housing, child care and other services in northwestern Fairfax County and eastern Loudoun County.
A proposal for new bike lanes, enhancements to pedestrian crossings and shorter crossing distances at key intersections on Braddock Road are up for review this month by Alexandria’s Traffic and Parking Board.
A city-recommended design concept calls for several Braddock Road upgrades between Russell Road and West Street. The city has worked on the Braddock Road Trail Access and Corridor Improvements project since last year as a response to concerns from Alex311, the 2023 Safe Routes to School walk audit at George Washington Middle School and the Virginia Department of Transportation.
On This Day in Alexandria History — “On February 11, 1799, Alexandrians celebrated the annual Birthnight Ball at Gadsby’s Tavern, with guest of honor George Washington. Washington was actually born on that same date in 1732, but according to the Julian calendar.” [Historic Alexandria]
McPike, Bennett-Parker Win Elections — Last night, voters elected departing City Councilman R. Kirk McPike and Del. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker to the House of Delegates and the State Senate, respectively. Both Democrats received over 80% of the vote in their respective elections. [ALXnow]
