New Tex-Mex opens in Huntington — “Alexandria residents originally from Texas or other states along America’s southern border say it’s tough to find good Tex-Mex food here in the DMV.” [Alexandria Living Magazine]
It’s Thursday — Overcast throughout the day. High of 51 and low of 36. Sunrise at 6:28 am and sunset at 6:12 pm. [Weather.gov]
Alexandria’s City Council set the maximum real estate tax rate at a half-cent higher than the current rate, with officials saying that 2022’s hardships make any higher burden on residents untenable.
The City Council voted unanimously for the real estate tax rate to be set at no higher than $1.115 per $100 of assessed value, a slight increase from the current $1.11. While the eventual real estate tax rate could be lower than $1.115, it won’t be higher. Additionally, the city won’t increase the tax rate on personal property or business-tangible property.
The WMATA monkey’s paw curls once more, and the planned opening of the Potomac Yard Metro station will coincide with a pair of shutdowns along the Yellow Line.
The first — and long-expected — shutdown will last from Sept. 10 to Oct. 22 as WMATA ties the new Potomac Yard Metro station in with the rest of the system. The shutdown will close all rail service south of Washington National Airport.
As of Monday (March 7), Alexandria City Public Schools staff are no longer required to wear face masks in schools.
Staff were informed of the rule change in an email on Friday (March 4) that wearing masks in ACPS facilities and vehicles is optional, with few exceptions. Additionally, all ACPS staff (not including substitutes) will get paid emergency leave if unable to work due to COVID-19.
There was no proclamation at the March 8 City Council meeting honoring abortion providers, but that one had even been planned in the first place was enough to fill several rows of City Hall with anti-abortion advocates rallying against the canceled proclamation
While the casual viewer of the March 8 agenda might be baffled at the presence of anti-abortion advocates at the meeting, the docket had originally included a proclamation of March 10 as “Abortion Provider Appreciation Day.” Local religious groups were stirred by clergy like Arlington’s Bishop Michael Burbidge, despite the proclamation being pulled from the agenda at the request of Mayor Justin Wilson.
Local businesses will have until the summer to enjoy the fruits of a temporary program that has allowed restaurants to provide curbside pickups, suspend regular operating hours and sell alcohol to-go.
City Council, on Saturday, will consider extending the temporary relief program to local businesses from April 1 to June 30, and expire along with the city’s state of emergency that same day.
Alexandria archeologists preserve old waterfront barrel — “Archaeologists working at the Robinson Landing Site found this barrel head within a stone and log foundation…” [Twitter]
It’s Wednesday — Rain in the morning and afternoon. High of 50 and low of 37. Sunrise at 6:30 am and sunset at 6:11 pm. [Weather.gov]
Need to get your Irish on? While Alexandria’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade has been pushed off until September, there are two Irish-themed bar crawls coming to the city in the days ahead.
The Shamrock Stampede will descend on Alexandria’s Carlyle neighborhood on Saturday, March 12. Participating restaurants include Whiskey & Oyster, Sweet Fire Donna’s, Tequila & Taco, Lost Boy Cider and Joe Theismann’s Restaurant.
Alexandria kicked off a discussion of the FY 2023 budget with a public hearing last night (Monday), where climate and housing advocates pushed for the city’s budget to do more to address these issues.
There was little feedback from the City Council in the 45-minute session as the floor was mostly turned over to public speakers.
Nearly two years after filing for bankruptcy, Seattle-based kitchenware retailer Sur La Table will reopen in Old Town on Thursday, March 10.
Sur La Table opened at 326 King Street in 2013, and closed half of its 121 stores around the country after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020. It was acquired by Marquee Brands and CSC Generation for $89 million.
Fresh off an approval to expand their music venue, the concert series at Classical Movements (711 Princess Street) is planning to highlight the music of two countries in crisis.
One of the two concerts will feature music from Afghanistan, featuring a performance from a recently arrived refugee. The other will feature musicians from the National Symphony and the Washington National Opera/Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra in a fundraiser for Doctors Without Borders’ work in Ukraine, according to a release from Classical Movements.
