The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Thursday it will vacate its facility at 1320 Braddock Place in Alexandria as part of a sweeping reorganization that will relocate thousands of federal employees from the Washington region to five hub cities across the country.
The Alexandria facility houses the USDA Food and Nutrition Service, which administers critical federal nutrition assistance programs including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations. The relocation could affect operations for programs that serve millions of Americans, though officials emphasized essential services will continue uninterrupted.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Jamie L. Whitten Federal Building in Washington, D.C., pictured on Dec. 18, 2017. (USDA photo by Preston Keres)
The U.S. Department of Agriculture plans to slash its presence in the Washington, D.C., area by sending employees to five regional hubs, Secretary Brooke Rollins said Thursday.
The department wants to reduce its workforce in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia from 4,600 to less than 2,000 and add workers to regional offices in Raleigh, North Carolina; Kansas City, Missouri; Indianapolis; Fort Collins, Colorado; and Salt Lake City.
Among the movers serving Alexandria, VA, 495 Movers stands out for a simple reason: its local hourly rate includes packing materials, furniture disassembly and reassembly, and protection for floors, walls, and elevators. The company has been in business since 2009 and has completed more than 20,000 moves, a number that keeps climbing.
Anyone who has hired movers in the DC area knows the familiar pattern. A low hourly rate wins the call. Then the invoice arrives with a charge for boxes, a charge for taking the bed apart, a fee for the stairs, and another for the elevator. By the end, the number on the bill has little to do with the number in the ad. 495 Movers was built to avoid that.
495 Movers at a glance
In business since: 2009 (17 years)
Moves completed: more than 20,000, local and long-distance
Licensed in: Virginia
Serves: Alexandria and the rest of the DMV
Local hourly rate includes: packing materials, furniture disassembly and reassembly, and home protection on every move
No separate fees for: stairs or elevators
Also offers: junk removal, custom crating, and self-storage
Reputation: 4.7 stars across nearly 1,000 Google reviews
Who is 495 Movers?
495 Movers is a full-service moving company serving Alexandria and the rest of the DMV, founded in 2009 by people who had worked as movers for several other companies first. They wanted to do it differently.
“We wanted to take a different approach, offering a simple, honest, and transparent approach for the customer,” said Moti Kachlon, co-owner at 495 Movers. For local moves, that meant building the most common extras into the hourly rate. Seventeen years and more than 20,000 moves later, the company is still growing.
What makes moving in Alexandria different?
Alexandria is a hard place to move. A truck on an Old Town block gets watched by neighbors, property managers, and a family wondering whether the sofa will make the turn on a staircase built long before sofas got this big.
Old Town’s rowhouses have narrow staircases and tight turns, which is why large furniture often has to come apart to get out. Del Ray’s bungalows and rowhouses have basements that hold more than anyone remembers. And condo and apartment buildings in Carlyle, Potomac Yard, and the West End often require movers to carry a certificate of insurance and book the elevator, with building managers who care a great deal about scuffed hallways. The street adds its own complications, from cobblestones to limited curb space.
That’s the context for how 495 Movers prices its work.
What does 495 Movers include in its hourly rate?
For local moves, the rate covers four things that many movers bill separately:
Packing materials. Boxes, tape, paper, and wrap are provided at no additional cost, whether a move needs a few or a few hundred.
Furniture disassembly and reassembly. Beds, tables, desks, sectionals, and wardrobes are taken apart, moved, and put back together at the new home. In an Old Town rowhouse, that’s often the only way a dresser gets down the stairs.
Alexandria police cruiser (staff photo by James Jarvis)
Three people have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a series of violent armed robberies that targeted electronics stores across Northern Virginia last summer, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Javon Rustin Louis Paige, 38, received the longest sentence of 16 years in prison after being sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema. Vincent Henry Kirkland Jr., 31, who also goes by Daniel Eugene Robinson, was sentenced July 15 to 14 years in prison. Brianna Mamie Oceolia Archie, 27, received 5 years and 10 months in prison after her June 17 sentencing.
High school students from across the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia (DMV) region are invited to participate in Dialogue for Democracy at George Mason University!
Hosted by the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, this event offers high school students an opportunity to engage in meaningful conversations about democracy, civic engagement, and the importance of understanding different perspectives.
Outside the Albert V. Bryan United States Courthouse in Alexandria (staff photo by James Cullum)
An Alexandria man pled guilty on Wednesday (July 23) to defrauding pandemic relief programs of nearly $1.5 million, according to the U.S. Justice Department.
Dr. Muhammad Adil Quraish, 35, is a former Air Force dentist, and a financial advisor. Quraish admitted to conspiring with at least four other people to submit false Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and an Economic Injury Disaster loan, and using the funds to invest in cryptocurrency, according to a release from U.S. Attorney Erik S. Siebert of the Eastern District of Virginia.
The Schuyler Hamilton Jones Skateboard Park at 3540 Wheeler Avenue (via Billy Sabatini)
Alexandria’s Parks and Recreation Commission has approved a framework for future improvements at the city’s only skateboard park.
The commission unanimously approved an amendment to the 2015 Neighborhood Park Improvement Plan, which means that the city has a plan on short and long-term improvements at the park once funding becomes available. The city says that the skate park, which was built in 2002, is “reaching the end of its usable life,” and that a final design will be developed in collaboration with skate park users.
A new men's bible study group at Charles Houston Recreation Center in Old Town (staff photo by James Cullum)
There’s a new bible study ministry in Old Town, and it’s just for men.
Every second and fourth Wednesday, more than a dozen men and boys talk about the Bible and staying on the right path at Charles Houston Recreation Center (901 Wythe Street). The group “Men Seeking God” was founded earlier this year by lifelong Alexandria resident Bruce Anderson, boxer Tony Suggs and an old friend he met at the Alexandria jail, Reverend Myron Contee.
Alexandria Health Department (staff photo by Vernon Miles)
As summer winds down and the new school year approaches, the Alexandria Health Department is encouraging families to schedule their children’s required immunizations now to avoid the typical back-to-school rush.
Virginia mandates specific vaccines for students entering kindergarten, seventh grade, and 12th grade. These immunizations protect against preventable diseases, including measles, pertussis (also known as whooping cough), and meningitis.
