Good Thursday evening, Alexandria. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.
🕗 News recap
The following articles were published earlier today — Nov 20, 2025.
Here are today’s most-read articles:
- Old Town townhome proposal gets lukewarm response from architectural review board (1247 views)
- Morning Notes for November 20, 2025 (640 views)
- After spring deferral, King Street cafe proposal will seek architectural approval next month (513 views)
- Holiday events in Alexandria: Tree lighting, ice skating, markets and more (461 views)
📅 Upcoming events
Here is what’s going on Friday in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
🌦️ Friday’s forecast
Rain is expected mostly after 1pm, accompanied by mostly cloudy conditions and a high temperature near 56°F. The calm wind will later shift to the south, blowing at around 5 mph, with a 50% chance of precipitation. Friday night will experience more rainfall, with temperatures around 49°F and a calm wind turning north at 6 mph after midnight. There is a 90% chance of precipitation, with potential accumulation between a quarter and half an inch. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world.”
– Albert Einstein
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
Thanks for reading!
This holiday season in Alexandria brings charming decorations, warm community gatherings and seasonal festivities aplenty.
From “Turkey Trot” races and a giant menorah lighting in Old Town, to fireworks displays and winter concerts, discover a wide range of holiday happenings this season. Here’s a preview of notable activities through late December in one of the country’s “Most Christmassy” cities.
A proposed cafe on King Street in Old Town will head back to the Board of Architectural Review next month after being deferred in the spring.
Business owner Kahan S. Dhillon, Jr., wants to open Kingsley Cafe at 910 King Street, currently the site of a three-level, 1850s-era townhome. The board deferred the cafe in May, and it is now slated to return for consideration during a public hearing on Wednesday, Dec. 3.
Following hefty city pushback, the Board of Architectural Review unanimously advanced plans to renovate City Hall and Market Square with a new certificate of appropriateness at last night’s public hearing (Wednesday).
Board member Andrew Scott introduced a motion to approve a final design stipulating the inclusion of decorative chimneys, lifted archways and other 19th-century flourishes at the site of the 1871 building, garnering some dissent from Director of General Services Jeremy McPike.
Alexandria, VA – In recognition of World Pride Month, the City of Alexandria welcomes back the Annual LGBTQIA+ Pride fair on June 27 from 2 to 6 p.m. at John Carlyle Square Park (300 John Carlyle Street), sponsored by the City of Alexandria, Del Ray Community Partnership, Inova Pride, Kindred Tree Healing Center, and VEG ER for Pets.
Join neighbors, friends, and allies for an afternoon of music, creativity, and community. Enjoy emcee Rayceen Pendarvis, inspiring words from Alexandria leaders, live performances by the Funicular Project, line-dancing, and DJ Thunderbunny. Express yourself at the mobile art lab, grab a bite from local food vendors, and explore more than 100 Pride affirming programs, organizations, and businesses from across Alexandria. Families are invited to experience Drag Story Hour, celebrating imagination, joy, and the freedom to be your authentic self.
Why is love so hard? Does ketamine-assisted therapy actually work? How can you tap into your “inner healer”? A new podcast hosted by two Del Ray-based clinical psychologists hopes to answer these questions and more.
Earlier this month, Doctors Eleni Boosalis and Lauren Fisher of Del Ray Psych & Wellness launched the premiere episode of Shrinks On Tap. Aiming to raise mental health awareness and normalize counseling, the pair hosts informal conversations from a podcast studio set-up inside their practice, while sipping on non-alcoholic beverages.
A plan to construct 32 four-story townhomes at the site of two Old Town office buildings is still struggling for the blessing of the Board of Architectural Review.
Members of the review board are requesting more exterior variety and colonial influence in the proposed townhomes, after reviewing new renderings of the project at 333 N. Fairfax Street. The board did not vote on the item during last night’s public hearing (Wednesday).
For the sixth year in a row, Alexandria has received a “perfect score” from an annual evaluation of United States cities by a national LGBTQ+ rights nonprofit.
Alexandria earned a maximum score of 100 points on its Municipal Equality Index scorecard from the Human Rights Campaign, the city announced yesterday (Wednesday). The score accounts for factors like non-discrimination laws, protections for LGBTQ+ employees and fair enforcement of the law.
On This Day in Alexandria History — “On Nov. 20, 1818, the Alexandria Common Council authorized space in the new City Hall and Market House for an Alexandria Museum. The space, located on the second floor corner of the building overlooking Cameron and N. Royal Streets, was operated by the local Masonic Lodge and was the site of many important public receptions overs the years, including one for the Marquis de Lafayette who visited Alexandria for a month in 1824.” [Historic Alexandria]
NYT Covers HOA Quarrels — “Mr. [Frank] Capone has spent $40,000 suing the HOA over his right to plant a Mickey Mouse flag in his front flower pot and revoke the street parking privileges of 22 neighbors. Seeking to oust him from leadership, his association started a multimedia campaign … The case is another example of how the nation’s partisan divide has reached the hyperlocal level. Nearly one-quarter of Americans belong to an HOA, whose dominion over private property draws ever more complaints.” [The New York Times]
Good Wednesday evening, Alexandria. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.
🕗 News recap
The following articles were published earlier today — Nov 19, 2025.
Here are today’s most-read articles:
- AFD extinguishes fire at Landmark high-rise, transporting two residents to hospital (858 views)
- Alexandria Cider Festival brings tastings, food trucks to Old Town this weekend (635 views)
- Alexandria to receive $10.9 million in funding for DASH, senators announce (391 views)
📅 Upcoming events
Here is what’s going on Thursday in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
☁️ Thursday’s forecast
Expect mostly cloudy skies with a high temperature near 52 degrees accompanied by a light and variable wind. Thursday night will also be mostly cloudy, while the temperature drops to around 43 degrees and a calm wind prevails. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”
– Mahatma Gandhi
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
Thanks for reading!
