Thousands of visitors flocked to Oronoco Bay Park on Saturday for the Around the World Cultural Food Festival, a multicultural celebration now in its fourth year at the Alexandria waterfront location.
The festival, running from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., featured more than 45 countries represented through 24 food vendors, 19 performances and various arts and crafts displays. Organizers expect around 30,000 people to attend throughout the day.
The Alexandria City Public Schools board opened its first meeting of the 2025-26 school year Thursday evening with celebrations of student and staff achievements, while also addressing pressing concerns about teacher pay delays and outlining significant budget challenges ahead.
Superintendent Dr. K. Wyatt reported the district achieved its lowest staff vacancy rate in years at less than 2%, crediting successful recruitment and retention efforts that brought back former employees who had previously left the system.
Visit Alexandria’s President & CEO Todd O’Leary leads with the belief that travel is a force for good, inspiring visitors to deepen their travel experiences by connecting with Alexandria’s myriad stories. That’s why 2026 National Travel and Tourism Week (May 3-9, 2026) isn’t just any week. It’s a time to reflect and celebrate the important role that tourism plays in bringing people together across cultures and geographies, creating shared understandings and memories that last a lifetime. This year’s theme, “Postmarked: Essential,” takes on special significance as Alexandria prepares to host several major events this summer, bringing the stories of our local community onto the world stage.
“This year’s National Travel and Tourism Week celebrations seem particularly fitting, given all the momentum we’re seeing in Alexandria’s hospitality industry,” said Visit Alexandria’s President & CEO Todd O’Leary. “As tourism grows in importance here, the dividends from visitor spending support our small business owners and ultimately our residents. Visit Alexandria is proud of the work done by our local industry to keep this city top of mind for domestic and international travelers.”
Last fall, Visit Alexandria announced that Alexandria’s tourism spending from travelers residing more than 50 miles away grew to $1 billion for the first time in history during calendar year 2024. Additionally, Fiscal Year 2025 city consumption tax revenues reached a record $88 million—supporting core city services, saving the average Alexandria household $832 annually, and sustaining more than 5,700 local jobs.
In conjunction with this year’s America 250th commemorations, Alexandria will host programs, exhibitions, historic tours and signature events, including the three-day Sails on the Potomac festival—all of which showcase Alexandria’s renowned historic character and ever-evolving progressive nature. As Alexandria continues to make waves on the world stage, especially as a destination for sports tourism, the city will serve as the official Team Base Camp for the Croatian National Football Team, a FIFA top ten ranked team, during the World Cup. With state-of-the-art facilities, a wide range of accommodations, a wealth of visitor experiences and incredible transportation access, Alexandria’s prominence in sports tourism is growing. (more…)
Good morning, Alexandria! 👋 Today is Saturday, Aug. 23, the 235th day of 2025. There are 130 days left in the year.
🌧️ Today’s weather: Sunny, with a high near 83 degrees. South wind 5 to 9 mph.
Volunteer Alexandria collected 36,000 pounds of nonperishable food in its 2025 Food4ALX campaign, the nonprofit announced on social media.
While falling short of the 40,000-pound goal, Volunteer Alexandria says that the food will help feed thousands of Alexandrians. The third annual campaign was conducted throughout the month of July, and the results were announced today (Friday, Aug. 22). The food will be donated to Hunger Free Alexandria’s food pantries and ALIVE!.
Come celebrate the 250th anniversary of America’s War for Independence with renowned music historians David & Ginger Hildebrand for performances of special period music. The Hildebrands will don period attire to discuss and perform music associated with Alexandria’s sister cities: Caen, France; Dundee, Scotland; Helsingborg, Sweden; and Gyumri, Armenia. Scottish music was especially influential in the American colonies, and once the French joined the Revolutionary cause there were musical celebrations for Generals LaFayette, Rochambeau and other French leaders. This concert event is part of the “Alexandria commemorates America’s 250” campaign. David & Ginger specialize in researching, recording, and performing early American music. Since 1980 they have presented concerts and educational programs throughout the country and abroad at museums, historic sites, schools and universities. Mount Vernon, The National Gallery of Art, The National Archives, and Colonial Williamsburg are among their many past sponsors.
Tickets are $20.
Alexandria City Public Schools has won an award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for its federally funded school nutrition program.
ACPS announced today (Friday, Aug. 22) that it received a Healthy Meals Incentives (HMI) Recognition Award from Action for Healthy Kids (AFHK) and U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Two major road construction projects will begin early next week, affecting traffic on Duke Street and the Mt. Vernon Avenue Bridge, city officials announced Friday.
Nighttime milling and paving work on Duke Street between Roth Street and Wheeler Avenue is scheduled to begin Sunday, weather permitting. The roadwork will occur Sunday through Thursday from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. to minimize traffic impacts. No work is planned Sunday, Aug. 31, and Monday, Sept. 2, due to the Labor Day holiday.
Health officials issued a rabies alert Friday after a fox in Alexandria’s Del Ray/Rosemont neighborhood tested positive for the virus following contact with a domestic cat.
The Alexandria Health Department said the fox encountered the cat on Monday near a home in the area. The fox died, and officials are working with the cat’s owner on safety measures.
It’s been an intense week in Alexandria. Here’s a look at our top stories.
Our most-read story is on a woman found dead outside her apartment during an eviction process on Wednesday, Aug. 19. The Alexandria Sheriff’s Office reported on social media that deputies were conducting an eviction at an apartment at 400 Madison Street at around 9 a.m., when they found the adult woman dead outside the building. The woman’s identity and the circumstances surrounding her death have not been released.
The city of Alexandria has not received a federal letter that transportation officials say could be used to pressure jurisdictions to remove rainbow crosswalks, a city spokesman said Friday.
Acting Communications Director Justin Thompson told ALXnow that Alexandria has not received the July 1 letter from Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy launching a nationwide roadway safety initiative.
