Good Thursday morning, Alexandria!
☀️ Today’s weather: Widespread haze. Areas of smoke. Sunny, with a high near 88. Light and variable wind becoming west around 6 mph in the afternoon. At night: Mostly clear, with a low around 68. Southeast wind around 6 mph.
(Updated 4:35 p.m.) Police are investigating a child’s death at an apartment building on the 200 block of Yoakum Parkway around 2 p.m. today.
Police Chief Don Hayes said police found a three-year-old boy who fell from one of the upper floors and died.
Before the pandemic, I ran a Reddit forum that brought people together for local happy hours. It became a great outlet for an in-person social life: you could get out, get to know people nearby, and have a familiar group to spend time with. I enjoyed being the person who helped make that happen.
Getting people together became harder after the pandemic. Friends moved away, had kids, or settled into different routines, and organizing a night out took more effort. I still wanted that camaraderie, but having people to invite didn’t necessarily mean we could get something on the calendar.
I’m in my late 30s and live in Old Town. About a year ago, I joined Choros, a local membership community that helps guys build friendships through small-group activities. Since then, I’ve been to close to 50 hangouts, and it’s given me a regular group of guys to do things with around Alexandria and beyond.
I host board game nights and help host a monthly happy hour at the Commodore in Old Town. I’ve done escape rooms on King Street, trivia, food festivals in Del Ray, movie discussions, and Dungeons & Dragons (which can be especially tricky to get going as an adult with a busy schedule). Having that variety means I can find something that fits my mood and schedule, and there are usually familiar faces when I get there.
One of my favorite things, though, is getting on my bike, picking a destination, and making a day of it. Through Choros, I’ve found a consistent crew to ride with almost every month. That’s the kind of thing I wanted more of: people who enjoy the same stuff and make time to get out and do it together.
I still like hosting and bringing people together. What makes Choros useful is having a community to draw from, so every plan doesn’t depend on the same few friends being available. Other guys suggest and host things too, which gives me plenty of opportunities to join something without organizing it myself.
Over time, seeing the same guys at different activities builds familiarity. You have conversations to pick back up and another reason to make plans together. That’s how it’s become a circle of friends for me.
If you’re in Alexandria, check out Choros and come to one of our monthly happy hours at the Commodore. I’d be happy to meet a few more neighbors, whether you’re into board games, bike rides, or just getting out for a drink. There’s plenty happening here, along with activities throughout the rest of the D.C. area.
(Updated 4:20 p.m.) Alexandria’s School Board is meeting tomorrow for a seemingly innocuous budget revision, but city leaders say the truth is the School Board is walking back a potentially illegal decision made without communicating with the City Council.
Like previous work sessions, a joint City Council/School Board meeting became tense as the discussion turned to funding. The fiscal year 2024 combined funds budget for Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) details the revenues and expenditures.
After considerable pushback, the city is rethinking its bonus height provision as a way to build affordable housing in Alexandria.
The city’s controversial zoning for housing plan proposes to upend a number of zoning ordinances. One of them is a bonus height amendment that would incentivize developers to add affordable housing to projects in exchange for two additional stories of construction in areas where height limits are 45 feet or more.
Join Cruise Planners Beth Borrego and Rod Rodriguez for the World of Travel Show 2027 on Saturday, February 6, 2027, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. in The BlackBox at BlackRock Center for the Arts in Germantown.
Meet representatives from 13 respected travel brands covering family and adults-only cruises, premium and luxury ocean voyages, European river cruises, expedition and Galápagos adventures, small-ship sailing, guided land tours, and customized vacations.
Longtime Deputy City Manager Debra Collins is retiring at the end of this week after nearly 20 years working for the city.
Collins’ 19-year career in the City of Alexandria included helping to kickstart ACT for Alexandria and the consolidation of city services in the West End.
(Updated 6/29) After nearly seven hours of public comment, Alexandria’s City Council voted to move forward with the Duke Street Transitway.
The gist of the plan is to reconfigure sections of Duke Street to make the road more accessible to public transit, as well as making improvements to the pedestrian and cyclist experience along the arterial road.
Good Wednesday morning, Alexandria!
☀️ Today’s weather: Mostly sunny, with a high near 81. Northwest wind around 10 mph. At night: Mostly clear, with a low around 64. Northwest wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Alexandria and Arlington police are searching along Four Mile Run for a grand larceny suspect who fled from officers near the West Glebe Road bridge.
Alexandria Police spokesman Marcel Bassett said the department requested assistance from Arlington police to search along both sides of Four Mile Run.
(Updated at 11 a.m. on June 29) U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine sent a letter to CIM Group highlighting the concerns of residents regarding evictions, increased rents and living conditions at their Southern Towers Apartments complex.
In a letter Monday, the Virginia Democrats urged the building owner to resolve long standing disputes with residents. Since buying the property at the height of the pandemic in 2020, residents have protested against evictions, claiming that CIM Group has raised rents and evicted hundreds of residents from deteriorating properties.
