Alexandria City Public Schools is increasing the cost of breakfast and lunch at the elementary and middle schools that charge for meals.
Starting this school year, the cost of breakfast will rise by 25 cents (to $2.35 for all grade levels), and lunch will jump 50 cents (to $3.75) for students in kindergarten to fifth grade, and will cost $3.95 for students in grades 6 to 8, according to ACPS.
The Old Town North Alliance is one step closer to developing branding for the neighborhood’s new arts and cultural district.
The alliance’s board of directors named three artists as finalists in the Old Town North Arts and Cultural District Banner Design Project. They will be subject to a public vote to determine the winning artist.
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 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.
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.
For local moves, the rate covers four things that many movers bill separately:
Nearly a year after rebranding as the Breast Cancer Collective, the Alexandria-based organization is preparing for major fundraisers in the fall to continue its work to make breast cancer screenings and treatments accessible.
The collective officially announced its rebranding as the Breast Cancer Collective last October. The name change from the National Breast Center Foundation sought to clear up confusion with other national breast cancer entities.
How Alexandria Pursued Gas Leaf Blower Ban without State Law — “[Former Attorney General Jason] Miyares, a Republican, acknowledged that the General Assembly had voted down legislation giving local governments express authority to regulate leaf blowers, but cited case law in rejecting any inference of legislative intent from those outcomes as speculative. Alexandria, he concluded, was clearly within its rights to ban the equipment. Alexandria used that green light to amend its noise ordinance in May of 2025 and begin an 18-month phaseout of gas leaf blowers. A full prohibition is set to take effect on November 17, 2026.” [Virginia Mercury]
Acting Superintendent on Biggest Challenge of This School Year — “With the reality of maintaining a variety of rising costs, including healthcare premiums and other operating variables, the school division is expecting another challenging budget year. While maintaining our focus on supporting students, staff and our schools, investing in recruitment and retention remains critical to ensuring ACPS can continue to attract and retain the talented educators and staff who serve our students each day.” [WTOP]
It's that time again – The November 14 Del Ray Vintage & Flea Market!
Saturday, November 14
9am-2pm
Good Monday evening, Alexandria. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.
The following articles were published earlier today — Aug 24, 2026.
Here are today’s most-read articles:
Here is what’s going on Tuesday in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
There will be increasing clouds with a high of around 86 degrees and a northwest wind blowing at 5 to 8 mph. On Tuesday night, expect partly cloudy skies with temperatures dropping to about 64 degrees, and a light northwest wind. See more from Weather.gov.
“Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.”
– Henry David Thoreau
Thanks for reading!
A D.C. man has been charged with felony grand larceny after allegedly stealing more than $1,000 of clothing from a popular yoga shop in Old Town last month.
The suspect was arrested on Friday, July 17, after being captured on surveillance footage allegedly stuffing Alo Yoga (814 King Street) merchandise into a white Nordstrom bag and fleeing the store without paying, according to a recently unsealed search warrant affidavit.
The owner of an Old Town office building is asking the city for permission to modify its parking lot to make space for six three-story townhomes.
Merion Group, the owner of 330 N. Washington Street, will present plans to the Board of Architectural Review on Wednesday, Sept. 16. The building is home to a Wells Fargo bank, and Merion Group wants to eliminate two of the three drive-thru banking aisles to make way for six three-story townhomes with rear-loading parking garages and rooftop terraces.
Even though Alexandria Restaurant Week ended Sunday, diners have another chance to score special menus for a second restaurant week.
Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington’s Summer Restaurant Week runs from Monday, Aug. 24 to Sunday, Aug. 30. Participating eateries have a choice of offering $25 or $35-per-person brunch or lunch menus and $40, $55 and $65-per-person dinner menus. Some restaurants may extend specials beyond the weekend.
Alexandria City Public Schools welcomed students back for the first day of school today (Monday) as the district implemented a stricter student cell phone policy and new school boundaries.
More than 15,000 students started school at ACPS, from the incoming kindergarten class who will graduate in 2039, to the seniors graduating next year. Acting Superintendent Grace Taylor, Mayor Alyia Gaskins, School Board Chair Christopher Harris, Alexandria City High School Principal Michael Burch and Police Chief Tarrick McGuire visited classrooms at ACHS’s King Street Campus on the first day.
