Mayor Alyia Gaksins endorsed Alexandria City Council candidate Roberto Gomez at his campaign kickoff in Landmark yesterday (Sunday).
About 50 people attended the event, which was the third Democratic campaign kickoff so far in the Feb. 21 firehouse primary. Five Democratic candidates are competing for the seat left by outgoing City Councilman R. Kirk McPike, whose resignation goes into effect today as he runs for Virginia’s 5th House District in tomorrow’s special election.
New potential measles exposures in Northern Virginia were confirmed last week, following several cases in the region so far this year.
A preschool-age child and an out-of-state resident with measles recently traveled in Reagan National Airport and a Yellow Line Metro train, in addition to visiting a medical facility in Haymarket. Dates, times and exact locations of the potential exposure sites are listed below, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
An Alexandria City School Board member has proposed starting discussions to bring back traditional snow days, after school buildings were closed for more than a week in the aftermath of last month’s winter storm.
Board member Ryan Reyna called for a discussion on potentially building snow days back into the calendar and examining flexibility of winter break start and end dates for the 2028-2029 calendar during the School Board’s Feb. 5 meeting.
On This Day in Alexandria History — “On February 9, 1862, Rev. K.J. Stewart of St. Paul’s Church was arrested by Union troops for omitting a prayer for President Abraham Lincoln during services. Within a couple months, St. Paul’s was converted into use as a Union hospital.” [Historic Alexandria]
Walk for Peace Happening Today — “The Walk for Peace is expected to enter Alexandria on the morning of Monday, Feb. 9 and will proceed northbound along George Washington Parkway. Intermittent lane closures along George Washington Parkway is expected, and traffic will be impacted. Expect delays, alter travel plans, and have an alternate route planned. This information is subject to change.” [APD]
Alexandria will recognize a group of Buddhist monks on a 2,300-mile journey to D.C. on Monday as they near the end of their months-long “Walk for Peace.”
The group of monks, who began their pilgrimage on Oct. 26, 2025, at a Vietnamese Buddhist temple in Texas, are expected to pass through Old Town on Monday and interact with passersby at Christ Church (118 N. Washington Street) around noon.
Good Friday 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 6, 2026.
Here are today’s most-read articles:
Since it’s Friday, we’ve also compiled a list of the most-read articles of the week, below.
Here is what’s going on Saturday in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
Expect sunny skies and a high temperature of 18 degrees, but wind chills could plunge as low as -8 due to strong northwest winds of 25 to 29 mph, and gusts reaching up to 60 mph. For Saturday night, the skies will be mostly clear with a low near 10, while wind chills could drop to -6. The blustery conditions continue with the northwest wind blowing at 15 to 24 mph, and gusts peaking at 43 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
“With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt
We hope you have a great weekend, Alexandria!
Around 250 to 300 students walked out of both campuses of Alexandria City High School today (Friday) to protest U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The student-led walkout lasted from around 2:15 to 2:45 p.m., according to ACPS. The event happened less than a month after hundreds of people gathered at Four Mile Run Park Plaza to protest ICE, after an officer fatally shot Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis.
Cries of “shame” rang out this afternoon (Friday) outside Citizens Bank near the King Street-Old Town Metro Station, as dozens of protestors rebuked the bank’s ties to U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.
The group made speeches, sang songs and held signs condemning the bank for extending a $500 million line of credit to The GEO Group, a Florida-based international private prison operator that has more than $700 million in contract obligations with ICE.
New fitness equipment, trees and shrubs are coming to a half-mile segment of the Ben Brenman Park walking trail.
The improvements at 4800 Brenman Park Drive, which are expected to arrive by early spring, are being coordinated through a partnership between Alexandria’s Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities and a professor at George Mason University.
Alexandria has experienced a domino effect of incoming special elections since last month, but city election officials and political party leaders are rising to the challenge amid tight deadlines.
Next Tuesday, voters will decide on special elections for seats in Virginia’s 5th House District and the 39th Senate District. Eventually, they’ll also select a new member of City Council, as Councilman R. Kirk McPike departs the post Monday to run for delegate.
Dems Release Congressional Map — “Virginia Democrats on Thursday evening finally released their long-awaited revised congressional map … [it] leaves several of Virginia’s largest districts visually intact while concentrating most of its changes in Northern and central Virginia.” [Virginia Mercury]
Mayor Hosting Resident Roundtable — “I’m excited to resume my Resident Roundtables and reconnect with you. Join me to share your ideas, ask questions, and help shape Alexandria’s future.” [Mayor Alyia Gaskins]
