R. Kirk McPike will resign from Alexandria City Council next month as he prepares to run for the House of Delegates, he announced during a legislative meeting tonight (Tuesday).
McPike made the announcement to his colleagues virtually, due to weather conditions, and said his resignation will go into effect on Monday, Feb. 9 — one day before the special election for 5th District delegate, where he’ll run against Republican Mason Butler to succeed outgoing Del. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker.
Good Tuesday 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 — Jan 27, 2026.
Here are today’s most-read articles:
Here is what’s going on Wednesday in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
Expect increasing clouds and a high near 22, along with wind chill values dropping to -1, accompanied by a west wind blowing at 5 to 9 mph. Wednesday night will be partly cloudy with temperatures dropping to a low of 6 and wind chill values as low as -3. A calm wind will turn into a northwest breeze around 6 mph after midnight. See more from Weather.gov.
“Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.”
– George S. Patton
Thanks for reading!
City Manager Jim Parajon is expected to deliver an update about snow response efforts in the City of Alexandria this evening (Tuesday).
Parajon is scheduled to provide the update during City Council’s legislative meeting, which will take place virtually at 7 p.m. The update will detail how the city prepared for snow, “what we have seen, where we need to amp up the response, and what you can expect over the next few days,” Mayor Alyia Gaskins said today on social media.
Nearly three years after the Potomac Yard Metro station opened to the public, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority is requesting that Alexandria pay an additional $35 million to close out all construction contracts and claims associated with the project.
The proposal will head to City Council for review this evening (Tuesday). If approved, WMATA says the funding increase would be the third and final modification to its funding agreement with the city.
Tomorrow (Wednesday) will be a virtual workday for students and teachers at Alexandria City Public Schools.
ACPS facilities will remain closed for all activities for a third consecutive day due to inclement weather, Superintendent Melanie Kay-Wyatt announced this afternoon. Students, teachers and staff will instead move to synchronous virtual learning plans.
Amazon Fresh announced today (Tuesday) that it will close all its stores nationwide, including the location at Potomac Yard that opened just a year and a half ago.
The last day for most Amazon Fresh stores across the country is Feb. 1, according to the Associated Press. Amazon plans to shutter all Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go stores, converting some locations into Whole Foods Markets, according to a press release.
Alexandria City Manager Jim Parajon is asking City Council to reaffirm his authority to transfer unencumbered city funds from any office, department or agency to another.
City Council unanimously approved the proposed resolution at its virtual meeting this evening (Tuesday), mandating city staff to formalize the process for making transfers of appropriated unencumbered funds.
Alexandria City Council approved new environmental standards for the development review process on Saturday, following testimony from dozens of public speakers on climate change and impacts on housing development.
The new Green Building Plan is an update to the 2019 Green Building Policy, which set standards for new public and private renovations needing site plan or special use permit approval. The plan focuses on a measure of energy used by a building called Energy Use Intensity (EUI), rather than specific sustainability certifications like LEED.
Rosie Allen-Herring has been tapped as interim president and CEO of Alexandria-based United Way Worldwide, after several years leading the nonprofit’s National Capital Area branch.
Allen-Herring, who has directed United Way NCA since 2013, will succeed former UWW President and CEO Angela Williams next Monday, Feb. 2. Williams announced her retirement in December after four years leading the nonprofit, which is headquartered in Old Town at 701 N. Fairfax Street.
After their case was dismissed in Circuit Court in November, the plaintiffs in Alexandria’s Zoning for Housing/Housing for All lawsuit are now seeking donations to fund an appeal.
Members of the Coalition for a Livable Alexandria, a group of Old Town residents, are asking supporters to help raise $28,000 for attorneys at Dunn, Craig and Francuzenko, according to an email announcement last night (Monday).
One westbound lane has reopened near 5005 Duke Street after Alexandria staff and police responded overnight to a water main break in the area.
Virginia American Water is currently responding to the main break, which the Alexandria Police Department reported on Facebook shortly after 11 p.m. yesterday (Monday). The break prompted APD to close westbound lanes at the scene, and as of 12:45 a.m. today (Tuesday), one lane had been reopened.
