Good morning, Alexandria! 👋 Today is Monday, Aug. 4, the 216th day of 2025. There are 149 days left in the year.
⛈️ Today’s weather: Sunny, with a high near 86 degrees. Calm wind becoming east around six mph in the afternoon. Increasing clouds tonight, with a low around 66. Light and variable wind.
U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, recalls how over the years, he and colleagues in Congress used to say “we’re gonna get to housing next, we’re gonna get to housing next.” But it never really came, he said, and now “housing shortages are a real crisis.”
Last week, he called himself and his colleagues out for “kicking the can on housing” since before the COVID-19 pandemic. Though he and others had introduced proposals, the proposals haven’t always succeeded. But he’s encouraged this year, as a package of housing bills he helped craft advanced unanimously through the Senate’s Banking Committee.
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.
For more information, visit TennisCreatesGala.com.
Good morning, Alexandria! 👋 Today is Sunday, Aug. 3, the 215th day of 2025. There are 150 days left in the year.
On this day in, 1950, Alexandria residents began complaining about a bad taste in the local drinking water. According to Historic Alexandria, “Alexandria Water Company soon officials determined the cause to be chemicals that had been dumped into a storm sewer by men at Cameron Station, the U.S. Army’s Quartermaster Depot. The affected water had to be drained from the water company’s reservoir and the City’s water supply was impacted for a week”.
Over three days of sometimes contentious hearings this week, the National Transportation Safety Board interrogated Federal Aviation Administration and Army officials about a list of things that went wrong and contributed to a Black Hawk helicopter and a passenger jet colliding over Washington, D.C., killing 67 people.
The biggest revelations: The helicopter’s altimeter gauge was broken, and controllers warned the FAA years earlier about the dangers that helicopters presented.
Join us for our second annual CatRad Halloween Eve! A night of ghoulish fun, spooky treats, and a wicked good time!
It's time for CatRads 2nd Annual Halloween Eve! Join us at St. Elmo's Old Town North for an evening of Halloween fun. Join us for:
Good morning, Alexandria! 👋Today is Saturday, Aug. 2, the 214th day of 2025. There are 151 days left in the year.
⛈️ Today’s weather: Increasing clouds, with a high near 82 degrees. East wind 5 to 7 mph.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — Federal judge T.S. Ellis III, whose legal scholarship and commanding courtroom presence was evident in numerous high-profile trials, has died after a long illness. He was 85.
Ellis oversaw the trials of former Donald Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and former U.S. Rep. William “Dollar Bill” Jefferson as well as the plea deal of “American Taliban” John Walker Lindh across a judicial career that lasted more than 35 years.
An Alexandria police officer has been charged with reckless driving following a vehicle collision that occurred during a pursuit of a stolen vehicle in June.
Officer Damon Frazier was served a summons for reckless driving, a Class 1 misdemeanor, after the Alexandria Commonwealth’s Attorney reviewed the June 14 incident, according to a Friday press release from the Alexandria Police Department.
Alexandria residents are bracing for significant transportation disruptions as construction begins on the long-awaited Mount Vernon Avenue Bridge project, which will require a two-year timeline and has already garnered nearly 7,000 page views from concerned commuters.
Meanwhile, congressional representatives are pushing back against a federal USDA relocation plan that could impact the city, drawing substantial community attention with over 6,000 views.
The Alexandria Chamber of Commerce will host its 2025 Legislative Reception on Thursday, Sept. 4, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at The Alexandrian in Old Town Alexandria.
The annual event will bring together chamber members and guests with elected officials for networking in what organizers describe as a “relaxed and elegant setting.” The chamber will also release its 2026 Legislative Agenda during the reception.
