News | ALXnow - Part 684

School Board District B candidate Ashley Simpson Baird says ACPS needs to focus on English-language learners

Published November 1, 2021 at 3:45PM | Updated November 3, 2021 at 10:15AM

Ashley Simpson Baird says widespread unfinished learning within the Latino community is a result of the pandemic, and the District B candidate for the Alexandria School Board wants the city’s school system to refocus its attention to get kids back on the ball.

“We are still very much living in schooling in a pandemic, and so I would really like to see ACPS have a stronger plan for how we’re addressing unfinished learning,” Baird told ALXnow. “We need to make sure that we are giving school leaders and educators the resources to implement that plan.”

Cut-through traffic protections along Duke Street could go into effect early next year

By Vernon Miles

Published November 1, 2021 at 2:30PM

Traffic on Duke Street in Alexandria (staff photo by James Cullum)

The City of Alexandria is looking to move forward with Phase 1 of a pilot program that could help reshape traffic patterns on Duke Street.

The pilot program will start in Phase 1 with changes to signal timing on Quaker Lane and along Duke Street for routes to Telegraph Road, an access point to I-395 that sees frequent backup during rush hour periods.

District A School Board candidate Ish Boyle says ACPS needs leaders who can handle a crisis

By James Cullum

Published November 1, 2021 at 1:10PM

District A School Board candidate Aloysius “Ish” Boyle says he’s a proven leader, and that Alexandria City Public Schools is still in crisis mode.

Boyle, a retired Marine Corps captain with combat tours in Iraq, has two young children in ACPS and gives the school system a four out of 10 for its COVID-19 response. He says students should have gone back to full-time in-person learning sooner than the beginning of this school year, and criticized Superintendent Gregory Hutchings for putting his own kids in private school.

Alexandria preps COVID-19 vaccine availability for kids aged 5-11

By James Cullum

Published November 1, 2021 at 10:55AM

Kids playing near Alexandria City High School (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria is planning on expanding vaccine availability to children ages 5-11, while waiting on the go-ahead from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration last week approved the emergency authorization of the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11.

Alexandria seeking applicants for community policing review board

By Vernon Miles

Published November 1, 2021 at 9:55AM

Alexandria Police at night (staff photo by James Cullum)

The City of Alexandria is looking for locals to comprise the new Independent Community Policing Review Board, a body created by the City Council last year as part of an effort to provide greater police accountability in the wake of the George Floyd murder and the nationwide Black Lives Matter protests.

The new review board is an eight-member panel that will review complaints against the police department after an internal investigation by the police department. Ordinance adopted on April 17 earlier this year described the board as part of an effort to enhance policing legitimacy and to maintain trust between the police department, City Council, city manager and the public.

Morning Notes

By Vernon Miles

Published November 1, 2021 at 5:00AM

Robert E. Lee home in Alexandria omits famous resident in new listing — “The Potts-Fitzhugh House in Old Town Alexandria is for sale for $5,995,000. The listing for the six-bedroom, five-bathroom, 8,000-square-foot mansion includes a thorough description of the place, but omits a key fact: It was the childhood home of Robert E. Lee.” [Washingtonian]

Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin stops in Alexandria — “At an early Saturday morning campaign stop in Alexandria, Virginia, supporters for Youngkin told Fox News that family and education are top ticket items in their decision to back the GOP candidate.” [Fox News]

Photos: Scenes from the Friday flood in Old Town

By ALXnow.com

Published October 29, 2021 at 5:45PM

Heidi DeuPree and Keith Harmon canoeing down Union Street in Old Town, Friday, October 29, 2021. (staff photo by James Cullum)

After reaching a high water mark around 3:30 p.m. at high tide — with some help from the rainfall — waters are starting to recede for now in Old Town.

Today, a combination of rains and coastal flooding brought the Potomac up to 5.99 feet, making today a “moderate flood” by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) standards. The record high is 8.7 feet from Hurricane Isabel in 2003. The National Weather Service warned that more flooding is anticipated at high tide around 4 a.m. tomorrow morning (Saturday), though it’s not forecast to get quite as high as water levels were this afternoon.

BREAKING: Flooding in Old Town as Potomac River nears high tide

By Vernon Miles

Published October 29, 2021 at 2:30PM

Flooding in Old Town Alexandria (staff photo by Vernon Miles)

Staff from Alexandria Toyota desperately piled sandbags in front of Chadwicks (203 Strand Street) as floodwaters started to swell and shut down several blocks of Old Town.

The National Weather Service has issued an areal flood warning for Alexandria, in addition to a coastal flood warning in place until Saturday.

Man arrested for strangling girlfriend in West End parking lot

By James Cullum

Published October 29, 2021 at 1:10PM | Updated October 29, 2021 at 9:35PM

Police car lights (file photo)

An 28-year-old Arlington man is being held without bond after allegedly strangling and physically assaulting his live-in girlfriend in the Van Dorn Plaza Shopping Mall parking lot.

Alexandria Police officers responded to Inova Fairfax Hospital on September 8, where they interviewed the victim, who had injuries to her face and arms, including “swelling to her forehead, nose, shoulders, forearms and left wrists… bruises to her left leg and swelling to the back of her head,” police said in a search warrant affidavit.

SoberRide returns this weekend to offer safe Halloween travel

By Vernon Miles

Published October 29, 2021 at 10:50AM

SoberRide flyer, courtesy Washington Regional Alcohol Program

The Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP) is bringing back its SoberRide program this weekend to offer a safe alternative to drinking and driving.

The Halloween SoberRide will be operational from 10 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 30, to 4 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 31. During this time, any area resident 21 or older can use the SoberRide code in the “promo” section of the app and get a no-cost trip of up to $15 to get home. The code will be posted at 7 p.m. on the SoberRide website.

Police: Arlandria juvenile was shot on roof of apartment building over marijuana argument

By James Cullum

Published October 29, 2021 at 9:30AM | Updated October 29, 2021 at 12:20PM

Park Vue of Alexandria at 511 Four Mile Road in Arlandria has been renamed as The Square at 511. (staff photo by James Cullum)

An argument over marijuana was behind the Oct. 10 shooting of a juvenile on the roof of an Arlandria apartment building, according to court records.

A 17-year-old Alexandria male was arrested five days later, transported to the Northern Virginia Juvenile Detention Center and charged with malicious wounding, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and possession of a firearm by a juvenile. The suspect is a student at Alexandria City High School, according to the affidavit.