On This Day in Alexandria History — “On June 16, 1809, the Virginia General Assembly was petitioned to construct a new turnpike linking Alexandria with Fredericksburg about 50 miles away. Construction began soon after on a causeway across the Great Hunting Creek and a road through the rural wilderness of eastern Fairfax County, passing the Huntley meadows, Mount Vernon, Woodlawn and the town of Woodbridge, eventually becoming part of U.S. Route 1 stretching from Fort Kent, Maine to Key West, Florida. That same year, a new turnpike was built north of Alexandria (now Powhatan Street) extending from the northern dead-end of Washington Street to connect with the Long Bridge across the Potomac River. This new turnpike would finally provide a direct road connection between Alexandria and Washington Counties, the original two counties that made up the District of Columbia.” [Historic Alexandria]

Differences Between New Virginia House, Senate Budget Proposals — “The data center sales and use tax exemption remains the biggest bottle neck on state budget negotiations.. The state currently forgoes an average of $1.6 billion annually by allowing the industry to not pay the 5.3% state tax on their computer equipment and server racks.” [Virginia Mercury]


Good Monday evening, Alexandria. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.

🕗 News recap

The following articles were published earlier today — Jun 15, 2026.

Here are today’s most-read articles:

  1. Mayor Gaskins urges self-care after her dehydration scare during Sails on the Potomac (1241 views)
  2. Arlington backs city’s $27M funding request for road upgrades near Bradlee Shopping Center (792 views)
  3. Hearing on man’s death in Alexandria police custody set for late June (482 views)
  4. After NPS pump station denial, City Council advances alternate waterfront flood mitigation system (471 views)
  5. City Council greenlights financing, first phase of Old Town North power plant redevelopment (458 views)

📅 Upcoming events

Here is what’s going on Tuesday in Alexandria, from our event calendar.

☀️ Tuesday’s forecast

Expect sunny skies with a high near 80 degrees and light, variable winds. Tuesday night will bring increasing cloud cover and a low of around 63 degrees, with south winds at 3 to 6 mph. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.”
– Franklin D. Roosevelt

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

Thanks for reading!


There’s more than one reason to stay up late — the Woodrow Wilson Bridge will be opening twice in the early hours of Tuesday morning (June 16).

The bridge will first open at 12:01 a.m. for the passing of the Gazela, a 19th-century fishing vessel docked in Alexandria over the weekend as part of the city’s America250 celebration. The opening will last 15 to 20 minutes, according to DC Police Traffic on X.


With minimal discussion on Saturday (June 13), Alexandria City Council voted to move forward with an “enhanced gravity storm sewer system” to combat flooding along the waterfront in Old Town.

The City Council action was taken four months after the National Park Service denied the city’s plan to build a pump station at Waterfront Park (1 Prince Street). The city’s previously approved proposal would have closed Waterfront Park and Point Lumley Park from the fall of 2026 until the fall of 2028 to rebuild segments of the sea wall and to install the pump station to recirculate water in flood-prone areas back to the Potomac River. The denial by NPS forced the city to make “significant modifications” to the plan, project manager Matt Landis told Council.


The Alexandria City Council on Saturday unanimously greenlit construction and financing plans to redevelop the shuttered Potomac River Generating Station in Old Town North.

City Council approved property owner HRP Group’s plan to develop the first phase (Blocks B and C) of the six-block, 19-acre project with mixed-use apartment and retail buildings, create more than 10 acres of public open space and convert an old pump house into a community amenity. City Council also approved a $135 million financing deal for the project, which HRP Group says will catalyze more than $2 billion in private investment into the site. Deconstruction of the former power plant could begin as early as next year and is expected to take up to 20 months.


On Saturday (June 13), Alexandria City Council unanimously approved the Housing 2040 Plan, which will set the city’s housing goals over the next 15 years.

The Housing 2040 Plan will guide city policies on expanding housing supply and affordable homeownership, preserving existing affordable housing, seeking landlord-tenant protections, strengthening condominium communities, expanding resources for seniors and people with disabilities, and supporting safe and healthy housing. It will also guide the city’s legislative policies on housing, land use planning, small area plans, housing programs and development of new financial and regulatory tools.


Alexandria’s Independent Community Policing Review Board will conduct a public hearing on Monday, June 29, after the release of a report on the death of 32-year-old Allan Tucker in Alexandria Police Department custody last summer.

The public hearing will be held from 6:30-9 p.m. in City Council Chamber at the Del Pepper Community Center, following the release of the auditor’s report Monday, June 22 on the auditor and board’s website. The public hearing will allow for residents to speak before the review board for three minutes apiece.


The City of Alexandria and other agencies serving the city have announced closures and other schedule changes for the Juneteenth holiday.

All City of Alexandria government offices will be closed Juneteenth (Friday, June 19). The holiday recognizes the end of slavery in the U.S. as the last enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free on June 19, 1865 — two years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation.


After a health scare and visit to the emergency room, Mayor Alyia Gaskins shared some advice for residents: “take care of yourself.”

Gaskins ended up in the emergency room due to severe dehydration during Sails on the Potomac‘s opening ceremony on Friday (June 12). City leaders were giving remarks to kick off the weekend-long festival.


Alexandria’s request for up to $27 million in state funds to support transportation improvements to a King Street access road in the Bradlee Shopping Center area has won support from the city’s neighbor to the north.

Arlington County Board members on Saturday (June 13) approved a resolution supporting the city’s SMART SCALE application for the project as part of the 2026 application round.


On This Day in Alexandria History — “On June 15, 1775, one day after the Second Continental Congress authorized a Continental Army, Alexandria’s favorite son George Washington, was appointed its Commander in Chief by a unanimous vote of the Congress. Washington accepted the post, and served throughout the war without compensation.” [Historic Alexandria]

Mayor on Last Week’s Power Outages — Mayor Alyia Gaskins noted a peak of 9,910 Dominion Energy customers were without power on Thursday following storms. Storm responses typically activate various city departments to respond to the storm and field calls. For example, police and fire respond to emergencies during the storm, and the city arborist monitors downed trees. Gaskins said the fastest way for residents to get a response to concerns on their properties is through 311. [Mayor Alyia Gaskins/Facebook]


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