Fresh from her recent Democratic firehouse primary win, City Council candidate Sandy Marks says there’s a lot on the line in the upcoming special election.
Marks is facing independent candidates Frank Fannon and Alison O’Connell in the race, which is slated to coincide with a proposed constitutional amendment to redraw Virginia’s congressional districts.
On This Day in Alexandria History — “On March 2, 1867, two to three hundred Black men met at The Lyceum to demand the right to vote as full citizens in upcoming municipal elections. After City officials consulted with President Andrew Johnson and the U.S. Attorney General, it was agreed that African Americans could cast ballots, but that their votes would not be counted in the final tally. To keep the peace, two companies of U.S. troops and a battalion of cavalry were sent to Alexandria as about 1,000 African Americans voted for the Union ticket. It was not until 1870 that the Fifteenth Amendment was passed, granting voting rights to Black citizens.” [Historic Alexandria]
City Roads Pretreated — “City staff are continuing to monitor the forecast and prepare for the wintery mix predicted for Monday night! Getting ready this weekend means we’re fully prepared to respond quickly and effectively no matter how the forecast may change.” [Alexandria T&ES]
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Good Friday 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 — Feb 27, 2026.
Here are today’s most-read articles:
Since it’s Friday, we’ve also compiled a list of the most-read articles of the week, below.
Here is what’s going on Saturday in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
Here are the events planned for Sunday:
Expect sunshine and a high of around 62 during the day, accompanied by calm winds shifting to the south at about 5 mph. As for Saturday night, the skies will remain mostly clear, with the temperature dropping to approximately 42 and a gentle breeze coming from the southeast. See more from Weather.gov.
“To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk.”
– Thomas Edison
We hope you have a great weekend, Alexandria!
Three candidates have submitted the paperwork necessary to run for Alexandria City Council, meeting the city’s 5 p.m. deadline today (Friday).
Democrat Sandy Marks, independent candidate and former Republican City Councilman Frank Fannon, and independent Alison O’Connell have each turned in the necessary paperwork to be on the April 21 ballot, Director of Elections & General Registrar Angie Maniglia Turner confirmed to ALXnow shortly after 5 p.m. Friday.
Launching July 13 at Revolutionary Fitness, Old Town Alexandria
If you’re over 50 and you’ve ever finished a diet feeling worse about yourself than when you started, this is for you.
With today’s 5 p.m. deadline fast approaching, Alison O’Connell is working to submit 125 signatures needed to file an independent candidacy to run for Alexandria City Council.
O’Connell, a founding member of Alexandria for Palestinian Human Rights, is hoping to run for City Council with platform issues that include affordable housing, ethical investment and anti-immigration enforcement measures. She and her team have been collecting signatures and turning them in throughout the day to the city’s registrar’s office, she told ALXnow this afternoon (Friday).
Dozens of volunteers in Alexandria will be recognized next month for their contributions to the community last year.
Eighty-five honorees have been announced in Volunteer Alexandria’s annual awards program, Volunteers are the Heart of Alexandria, happening Thursday, March 12. The nonprofit, a top coordinator of volunteer services in the city, recorded more than 112,000 service hours in 2025 from over 4,260 volunteers — an estimated value exceeding $3.8 million.
The plaintiffs in Alexandria’s Zoning for Housing/Housing for All lawsuit say they have raised the $28,000 required to pay for attorneys in their appeal against the Circuit Court’s November dismissal.
The plaintiff group, the Coalition for a Livable Alexandria, announced this morning (Friday) that it raised the funds for a fee agreement to move forward with attorneys at Dunn, Craig and Francuzenko. Last month, members of the group asked for donations in their continuing effort to reverse the city’s 2023 zoning overhaul, setting a Feb. 27 deadline.
The gap between Alexandria’s residential and commercial tax bases continues to grow, with residents shouldering more of the city’s tax burden, according to the city’s released real estate tax assessments.
As of Jan. 1, Alexandria’s overall tax base increased by 3.4% in value, or nearly $1.7 billion, to reach $51.4 billion in 2026. The city’s residential tax base increased by 4.4% in value, or $1.4 billion, while the commercial tax base gained $334.8 million in value, up 1.9%, and the non-locally assessed tax base declined by $20.5 million, dropping 2.8%.
A springtime uptick is expected, but for now, Alexandria apartment rental costs are running below last year’s rates.
The median apartment rental cost of $2,187 in the city was down 2.8% year-over-year in February, according to data reported by Apartment List. Median city rental rates were $2,003 for one-bedroom units and $2,460 for two bedrooms.
