The developer behind a seven-story apartment building in the Braddock area is asking the city for an extension of its developmental special use permit (via City of Alexandria)
The Alexandria Planning Commission will review a three-year extension in October for a controversial 180-unit apartment building near the Braddock Road Metro station that has faced years of delays and community opposition.
In June, the city council deferred a decision to extend the DSUP for the one-acre project at 727 N. West St. until its city council public hearing on October 18. The deferral gave developer West Street Acquisitions several months to discuss stormwater issues with the city and conduct more community conversations with neighbors. The plan will first go to the Planning Commission for review on Oct. 9.
Northern Virginia Magazine's 50 Most Influential of 2025 (Credit: Northern Virginia Magazine)
Good morning, Alexandria! Today is Tuesday, Sept. 16, the 259th day of 2025. There are 106 days left in the year.
⛈️ Today’s weather: Showers, mainly before noon. High near 68. North wind 10 to 13 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Gabrielle Berg, Northern Virginia Tennis for Fun Chapter Founder, 2026 Youth Leader of the Year Awardee
Khoi Truong, Lake Braddock Boys Tennis Coach, 2026 Coach of the Year Awardee
Vice Admiral Sean S. Buck, U.S. Navy (ret.), 2026 Tennis Creates Impact Honoree
Game, set, Gala! On Saturday, Nov. 14, the USTA Mid-Atlantic Foundation’s annual Tennis Creates Gala, presented by QTS, comes to The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner, celebrating the transformative power of tennis.
The evening raises critical funds to make the sport accessible to all across Washington, D.C., Maryland, Virginia and eastern/southern West Virginia.
Every dollar goes back into local communities through programs like Girls Rule the Court™, which has served more than 2,000 girls, along with Junior Player Scholarships and Tennis in Schools. Gala funds also help restore public courts. Over the last three years, the Foundation has invested $505,000 across 17 public facilities.
Emceeing the evening is Emmy Award-winning ESPN journalist Malika Andrews, host of NBA Today and NBA Countdown, who joined ESPN’s tennis coverage this year for the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.
Andrews has pointed to the electric moment American tennis is having, with stars like the DMV’s own Frances Tiafoe reaching the 2026 US Open men’s semifinals, and says she’s grateful for the chance to support the sport at the local level.
Joining the celebration is new USTA CEO Craig Tiley, who took the helm of the national governing body in July after over 20 years at Tennis Australia. As he leads the USTA toward its goal of 35 million players by 2035, the USTA Mid-Atlantic Foundation drives the grassroots work to grow the sport right here in the region.
The Foundation will present its Tennis Creates Impact Award to Vice Admiral Sean S. Buck, U.S. Navy (ret.), 63rd Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy, recognizing his leadership in fostering character, community, and well-being through tennis.
The heart of the night is the 2026 Tennis Creates Awards, honoring local changemakers. Alexandria’s Leigh Ann Jackson receives the Adult Leader Award for coaching Girls Rule the Court at Groveton Elementary, where she has served 130 students over five seasons and championed the program’s expansion to Hybla Valley.
Arlington’s Gabrielle Berg earns the Youth Leader Award for founding a Northern Virginia chapter of Tennis For Fun, which runs free year-round clinics for people with special needs in partnership with the Arlington YMCA. Burke’s Khoi Truong, head coach at Lake Braddock Secondary School, is the 2026 Coach of the Year.
They’ll be joined by fellow honorees Dr. Ellen Markowitz (Community Champion), James Skinner (Provider Champion), and Janelle Nichols (Tennis in the Classroom Awardee).
Tickets and tables are now available. Can’t make it? Make a gift to USTA Mid-Atlantic Foundation or bid in the silent auction to help put a racquet in the hands of the next generation of players.
The Tennis Creates Gala takes place Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026, from 6:00 – 11:00 p.m. at The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner, 1700 Tysons Blvd., McLean, VA 22102.
Alexandria police cruiser (staff photo by James Jarvis)
West Braddock Road remained closed in both directions Wednesday after a single-vehicle crash into a utility pole left power lines down and caused widespread outages affecting thousands of customers.
Emergency crews were dispatched to the 900 block of West Braddock Road at 2:33 a.m. after callers reported a single vehicle had struck a utility pole, according to dispatch scanner reports. The pole fell, and live wires were down with transformers blown in the area.
Players with the Washington Commanders visited Mount Vernon Community School, Sept. 16, 2025 (staff photo by James Cullum)
Mount Vernon Community School students in Alexandria got a visit on Tuesday from Washington Commanders players, who gave away $5,000 worth of food, plush footballs, hats, and notebooks.
Commanders running back Christopher Rodriguez, Jr., wide receivers Jaylin Lane and Chris Moore, and mascot Major Tuddy visited the school in collaboration with the nonprofit Blessings in a Backpack. In addition to receiving signed team merchandise, students also got bags with yogurt, pretzels, fruit cups, cereal, soup, macaroni and cheese, and tuna.
The former Sora Ethiopian Market, Cafe & Carry-Out storefront on Duke Street in Alexandria shows closed blinds and an empty interior after the restaurant's closure in late August. (Ryan Belmore/ALXnow)
Sora Ethiopian Market & Cafe on Duke Street has permanently closed after 12 years in business, with an online auction of its equipment confirming the shutdown of a business that served as both a market and community gathering place.
The restaurant, which opened in 2013, closed over the weekend of Aug. 31, according to customers who posted in a local Facebook group. The building at 5145 Duke St. sold for $2.85 million on July 1 to ADRS Properties LP, according to Alexandria property records.
Alexandria nonprofit ALIVE! gets plenty of peanut butter donations, but not enough jelly.
ALIVE! feeds more than 20,000 hungry residents monthly, and recently announced on social media that the perfect partner to peanut butter is harder to come by. According to ALIVE:
Determined: The 400-Year Struggle for Black Equity Exhibit will be open at the Kate Waller Branch Library (717 Queen Street) from Sept. 24 until Oct. 25 (via Facebook)
A new traveling exhibit chronicling 400 years of struggle for Black equality in the U.S. will open in Alexandria on Wednesday, Sept. 24.
The Kate Waller Branch Library (717 Queen Street) will host Determined: The 400-Year Struggle for Black Equity Exhibit from Sept. 24 until Oct. 25 (Saturday). The traveling exhibit from the Virginia Museum of History and Culture highlights the stories of Black Virginians who fought against injustice. Alexandria history makers are included in the exhibit, and the opening on Sept. 24 will be hosted by Alexandria Library Director Rose Dawson and feature a presentation from genealogist Char McCargo Bah on 15 African Americans “whose lives and legacies shaped the city’s journey toward equality,” according to Alexandria Library.
Alo Yoga at 814 King Street in Old Town (staff photo by James Cullum)
Alo Yoga started construction at 814 King Street in Old Town.
The California-based yoga chain has gutted the interior of the space that was previously home to the Random Harvest furniture store. According to contractors working on site, the renovation should be completed within a month.
The entrance of the Alexandria Health Department (courtesy of the Alexandria Health Department)
Alexandria’s childhood vaccination rates have fallen to concerning levels, dropping from 95% in 2019 to just 88% last school year for measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccines, according to new data from an NBC News investigation published Monday.
The decline affects Alexandria City Public Schools’ 16,335 students across 18 schools. It puts the city below the critical 95% vaccination threshold needed for “herd immunity” — the level required to prevent measles outbreaks and stop disease spread within a community.
