(Updated 5:40 p.m.) A barricade situation near Woods Place and Quaker Lane, a few blocks from Alexandria City High School, started a little after noon today and police said, around 5:40 p.m., shots were reported fired inside the home.
Public Information Officer Marcel Bassett told ALXnow the barricade situation is ongoing and shots were fired around 5:30 p.m.
Arlandria music venue The Birchmere has a jam-packed schedule for the holiday season, with a few notable big names and old favorites returning.
Coming up later this week is musician Chris Isaak, best known for his 1989 single Wicked Game.
Before the pandemic, I ran a Reddit forum that brought people together for local happy hours. It became a great outlet for an in-person social life: you could get out, get to know people nearby, and have a familiar group to spend time with. I enjoyed being the person who helped make that happen.
Getting people together became harder after the pandemic. Friends moved away, had kids, or settled into different routines, and organizing a night out took more effort. I still wanted that camaraderie, but having people to invite didn’t necessarily mean we could get something on the calendar.
I’m in my late 30s and live in Old Town. About a year ago, I joined Choros, a local membership community that helps guys build friendships through small-group activities. Since then, I’ve been to close to 50 hangouts, and it’s given me a regular group of guys to do things with around Alexandria and beyond.
I host board game nights and help host a monthly happy hour at the Commodore in Old Town. I’ve done escape rooms on King Street, trivia, food festivals in Del Ray, movie discussions, and Dungeons & Dragons (which can be especially tricky to get going as an adult with a busy schedule). Having that variety means I can find something that fits my mood and schedule, and there are usually familiar faces when I get there.
One of my favorite things, though, is getting on my bike, picking a destination, and making a day of it. Through Choros, I’ve found a consistent crew to ride with almost every month. That’s the kind of thing I wanted more of: people who enjoy the same stuff and make time to get out and do it together.
I still like hosting and bringing people together. What makes Choros useful is having a community to draw from, so every plan doesn’t depend on the same few friends being available. Other guys suggest and host things too, which gives me plenty of opportunities to join something without organizing it myself.
Over time, seeing the same guys at different activities builds familiarity. You have conversations to pick back up and another reason to make plans together. That’s how it’s become a circle of friends for me.
If you’re in Alexandria, check out Choros and come to one of our monthly happy hours at the Commodore. I’d be happy to meet a few more neighbors, whether you’re into board games, bike rides, or just getting out for a drink. There’s plenty happening here, along with activities throughout the rest of the D.C. area.
Metro to keep reduced service through Dec. 31 — “Metro will continue offering reduced rail service through the end of the year, WMATA announced Monday.” [NBC4]
Bun Papa opens third location in Bradlee Shopping Center — “The newest Bun Papa location operates out of the future BeeLiner Diner which will open in Bradlee Shopping Center early next year.” [Alexandria Living Magazine]
At its October general membership meeting, the NAACP Alexandria Branch 7043 Nominating Committee presented its slate for the 2027–2028 term and named John Hopkins-Gillispie as its nominee for Branch President.
Hopkins-Gillispie is a life member of the branch. He has chaired the Freedom Fund Dinner for the past two years, and this year’s dinner raised more than $40,000 for the branch. He serves on the Legal Redress Committee, reviewing discrimination complaints brought to the branch. He has provided input on issues from the Alexandria Police Department’s hate crimes policy to the proposed Edsall Road data center. He also represents the branch as co-chair of the host committee for the 2027 Virginia State Conference convention.
A series of daily events starting later this week will have the dual benefit of helping out local businesses and Alexandrians looking to get some Christmas shopping done.
The ‘Shop Small Week’ started as a mostly digital event last year to help local businesses slammed by the pandemic. The retail events, put together by Visit Alexandria, start on Friday, Nov. 26, with “Plaid Friday” followed by a Small Business Saturday event on Nov. 27.
Join Cruise Planners Beth Borrego and Rod Rodriguez for the World of Travel Show 2027 on Saturday, February 6, 2027, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. in The BlackBox at BlackRock Center for the Arts in Germantown.
Meet representatives from 13 respected travel brands covering family and adults-only cruises, premium and luxury ocean voyages, European river cruises, expedition and Galápagos adventures, small-ship sailing, guided land tours, and customized vacations.
After COVID shut it down last year, the annual Alexandria Turkey Trot is gobbling up parts of Del Ray later this week.
The Turkey Trot is scheduled for Thanksgiving Morning (Thursday, Nov. 25) at 9 a.m. The event is put together by DC Road Runners and the Del Ray Business Association. The five-mile run/walk is scheduled to take trotters through Del Ray, starting and ending at George Washington Middle school. Dogs and strollers are allowed and will have their own starting area separate from the runners.
In a meeting with the Transportation Commission, city staff said earlier reporting about the city axing the city-wide feedback form for the Complete Streets program sounded “scary”, emphasizing instead that the city will be focusing on feedback more local to the affected areas.
Quick refresher: Complete Streets is an Alexandria program that aims to redesign roadways for the benefit of all users, with pedestrians and cyclists in mind along with motorists. The program stirred up some local controversy over plans to reduce travel lanes on Seminary Road in favor of bike lanes.
This weekend, Cameron Run Regional Park reopened Winter Village, an annual transformation of the water park into a winter-themed experience complete with ice skating.
The theme for Winter Village this year is ‘Ice and Lights‘, with various lit-up displays around the village for gawking and taking photos.
On Friday, a three-alarm fire ravaged a duplex in Del Ray and displaced two families. The next morning, neighbors started to mount an effort to help them recover.
Within two days, the Del Ray Citizens Association set up a GoFundMe that has raised $29,464 of a $30,000 total goal to help the families start putting their lives back together. The Del Ray Citizens Association said on the GoFundMe page that the families lost nearly everything they owned in the fire.
Local consignment shop helps after Del Ray fire — “If you’d like to help this family get back on their feet, Bellies & Babies, a consignment boutique located at 1913 Mount Vernon Ave, Alexandria, will act as a drop-off point.” [ABC7]
Alexandria goes backward in its count of single-family units — “The city of Alexandria rarely sees big changes year-over-year in its single-family housing stock, but in fiscal 2021, it went backward.” [Washington Business Journal]
The NOVA Guide has launched, giving Alexandria residents a new source for local news, upcoming events, business stories, and ideas for their next outing.
The website covers news, businesses, and life across Northern Virginia, with a dedicated Alexandria page for readers who want to explore what is happening nearby. It brings together local stories, upcoming events, business features, and Top Picks lists, making it a useful starting point for both everyday plans and weekend adventures.
