News | ALXnow - Part 828

Morning Notes

Published March 17, 2021 at 5:00AM | Updated March 17, 2021 at 9:42AM

Bishop Ireton is raffling off a Ford Escape — “Want to win a brand new 2020 Ford Escape (courtesy of Ourisman Chrysler Jeep Dodge of Alexandria)? You’re in luck! We’re raffling off a brand new car to support the BI Annual Fund. There are only a few raffle tickets left so don’t delay!” [Facebook]

DASH bus drivers have spare face masks just in case — “#MaskUp for every DASH trip and while you wait for the bus. If you cannot delay your trip to obtain a mask, simply ask your operator for one when you board the bus.” [Facebook]

Police link bullets to West End shooting suspect

By James Cullum

Published March 16, 2021 at 4:45PM | Updated March 16, 2021 at 5:27PM

Alexandria Police cruiser (staff photo by James Cullum)

An 18-year-old Fairfax County man is under investigation for firing gunshots in the West End, and soon faces a series of court appearances on gun-and-driving-related charges.

At around 11 p.m. on November 27, gunfire was heard coming from the front-facing front floor balcony of a home in the 5400 block of Richenbacher Avenue, which is near Holmes Run and about a mile away from Inova Alexandria Hospital.

Students return to in-person classes, but ‘normal’ is still far off

By Vernon Miles

Published March 16, 2021 at 3:30PM | Updated March 17, 2021 at 8:33AM

Students have returned to T.C. Williams High School, but the empty halls and spaced-out classrooms are a grim reminder that the “return to normal” is still a goal on the horizon.

T.C. Williams, a school which typically packs in 3,200 students, now sits just under 500 students. Principal Peter Balas said 475 students came to school this week.

Council to review Taylor Run and Strawberry Run stream restoration projects this spring

By James Cullum

Published March 16, 2021 at 2:15PM

Critics of the Taylor Run and Strawberry Run stream restoration projects will get some of their questions answered this spring.

A recent City Council memo is asking staff to schedule a legislative meeting — preferably in April — for an update on the projects, which a growing chorus say disrupt natural habitats. The issue would be raised during the oral reports portion of the Council meeting.

Residential neighborhood with 139 townhomes approved for Victory Center site

By Vernon Miles

Published March 16, 2021 at 1:00PM

Proposed townhouse near the Victory Center (image via City of Alexandria)

A new residential neighborhood could soon be replacing the long empty parking lot just east of the Victory Center on Eisenhower avenue.

The plan is to bring 139 new townhomes to 4901 Eisenhower Avenue on a 6.9 acre parcel that is currently a parking lot.

Alexandria’s initial and continued unemployment claims just jumped by double percentage points

By James Cullum

Published March 16, 2021 at 10:45AM

Initial (first time) and continued unemployment rose sharply for the week ending March 6.

Initial claims jumped 61%, with 440 claims over the 274 claims from the previous week. That’s the most initial claims since the week ending Jan. 30, which saw 479 initial claims.

City Council approves classical concert venue in Old Town

By James Cullum

Published March 16, 2021 at 9:45AM

Garden portion of The Rectory set up as music venue during the pandemic in 2020. (via Classical Movements)

The Alexandria City Council unanimously approved a special use permit authorizing four hours of daily acoustic classical musical performances at The Rectory at 711 Princess Street in Old Town.

Since last year, Classical Movements and musicians from the National Symphony Orchestra, the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra and the Eclipse Chamber Orchestra have performed at the venue to outdoor audiences. The Sounds of Hope and Harmony performances have been held with socially distant crowds, and the new approval allows for up to 50 guests to enjoy the music.

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published March 16, 2021 at 5:00AM

Animal Welfare League gets 50 cats from Texas shelters — “Among the lingering effects of the winter outages is the strain on animal shelters. According to AWLA, the Texas shelters are seeing a surge in surrendered pets. The animals come from eight animal shelters in Texas. By transferring animals to Virginia, these shelters can better address the continued needs of homeless animals.” [Patch]

School Board public hearing on renaming of T.C. Williams High School and Matthew Maury Elementary School on March 18 — “There will be a School Board Public Hearing on March 18 at 5pm, where community members have their final opportunity to sign up to speak or submit comments about the renaming of schools.” [Twitter]

New assistant city manager appointed to lead public-private partnerships

By Vernon Miles

Published March 15, 2021 at 4:30PM

Alexandria is expanding its push into public-private partnerships with the appointment of a new Assistant City Manager to help manage and facilitate them.

The city has sought to implement public-private partnerships over the last few years to lower costs for projects and make better use of limited space in the city. One notable example has been a housing development and fire station in Potomac Yard.

Alexandria gets $59.4 million in federal coronavirus relief funding

By James Cullum

Published March 15, 2021 at 3:30PM

Alexandria is slated to receive $59.4 million from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, and Alexandria will be reaching out to residents on how to spend it.

“On behalf of all Alexandrians, I want to share my heartfelt gratitude to Senator Warner, Senator Kaine and Representative Beyer for their assistance in achieving this legislation,” Mayor Justin Wilson said in a statement. “The assistance from the American Rescue Plan will help our residents and business community in many ways over the coming years and will certainly expedite our recovery after the devastating economic and personal impacts of the last year. We will continue to persevere together, and this aid will help to see us through to the other side of this global pandemic.”

City Council takes rare step and strips local business of special use permit

By Vernon Miles

Published March 15, 2021 at 2:30PM

A year of family drama behind the scenes of a car dealership ballooned to such a point that the City Council took the incredibly uncommon step this weekend of stripping the business of its Special Use Permit.

M&B Auto Sales (26 S. Dove Street) has been in hot water with multiple neighbors over the last year, with 37 calls for service over the last year for everything from fighting and drug use to “mob activity.” The most recurring issue noted by staff was parking violations, with the business parking vehicles in the public right of way.