ACPS pays tribute to essential workers — Updated at 10:40 a.m. — Alexandria City Public Schools recognized and honored local essential workers [NBC4]
It’s Wednesday — Rain overnight. High of 67 and low of 45. Sunrise at 7:19 am and sunset at 7:17 pm. [Weather.gov]
A new group is being tasked with heading up the city’s plans to overhaul Duke Street.
The Duke Street In Motion Advisory Group is tasked with guiding the new eponymous Duke Street In Motion project — which aims to make adjust the arterial road to emphasize public transit, make improvements to bicycle/pedestrian safety and other changes.
At a meeting on Saturday, the City Council unanimously approved an ordinance that will allow City Manager James Parajon to reduce speed limits in Alexandria as low as 15 miles per hour.
The ordinance, unanimously approved by the City Council, allows the City Manager to “reduce posted speed limits to less than 25 miles per hour, but not less than 15 miles per hour on any city street located in a business or residence district.”
Updated at 6:30 p.m. — The Alexandria School Board on Monday (March 14) was advised against talking to the media, as the Board received a refresher on their operating procedures.
Board members were told that they have to be careful of what they say out of concern for the division as a whole, prompting some members to question toeing the line of Superintendent Gregory Hutchings, Jr. and staff.
During the Civil War, the former home of Revolutionary War hero Henry “Light Horse Harry” Lee was converted into a hospital for wounded Union soldiers. On Saturday (March 19), the Lee-Fendall House will briefly be converted into a hospital with living history reenactors.
The home of the former Virginia governor, and father of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, was also the site of the first-known successful blood transfusion.
At the cusp of what should have been a crowning moment for Alexandria’s City Council — the long-awaited approval of broadband franchises to compete with Comcast — the city and the chosen internet providers appear to be having some network connectivity issues.
Last month, two companies were chosen to provide internet service piggybacking off the city’s new municipal broadband network. At a City Council meeting on Saturday, companies Ting and Lumos Telephone were given right-of-way franchises; seemingly one of the last major legislative hurdles.
DASH looking for applicants to join Board of Directors — “The Alexandria Transit Company (DASH) has an exciting opportunity for anyone with a passion for public transit to become more involved in the community.” [Zebra]
It’s Tuesday — Mostly cloudy throughout the day. High of 65 and low of 40. Sunrise at 7:21 am and sunset at 7:16 pm. [Weather.gov]
There are major traffic delays leading up to Interstates 495 and 395 in Alexandria, as a trucker convoy protesting COVID-19 mandates has entered D.C. and created miles of backups.
Traffic snaked all the way down to Jefferson Manor, just south of Huntington, which is about a half-mile from the interstate.
Alexandria restaurant owners Larry and Kristine Ponzi plan on opening their newest St. Elmo’s Coffee Pub in Fairlington in mid-May. The couple, who own Cafe Pizzaiolo (1623 Fern Street) and two other St. Elmo’s shops, also just bought a family restaurant in Nags Head, North Carolina.
The Ponzis shuttered their Cafe Pizzaiolo location in Shirlington in May 2020, and then entered 2022 strong with the opening of a second St. Elmo’s in Old Town North in January. The newest St. Elmo’s will open at 1536 Kenwood Avenue in mid-May — across the street from Cafe Pizzaiono, Ponzi said.
There were just 75 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Alexandria since this time last week, according to the Alexandria Health Department.
There are now 29,809 reported cases of the virus in Alexandria, up from 29,734 last Monday. The number of deaths remains at 184, and the seven day average of daily new cases is now 21, down from 84.5 this time last week.
No official announcements have been made, but D.C.-based bagel shop Call Your Mother Deli is not opening in Old Town.
The interior of the storefront at 128 and 130 N. Pitt Street is empty, and despite signing a lease last summer, staff at another location confirmed that the Old Town location is not happening. The brick and mortar has been vacant for more than two years since Helen Olivia Floral Design moved to Del Ray.
