Traffic near the George Washington Masonic Memorial during a storm (staff photo by James Cullum)
This weekend, Alexandria’s City Council unanimously approved an ordinance that allows the city manager to further reduce speed limits. But should he?
The ordinance allows the city manager to “reduce posted speed limits to less than 25 miles per hour, but not less than 15 miles per hour on any city street located in a business or residence district.” The measure was supported by speakers at the City Council meeting and endorsed whole-heartedly by the Council, but the reaction online has been more mixed.
Nominees sought for Excellence in Aging awards — “Awards recognize people, organizations that provide services to, and advance programs for, city’s elderly population” [Zebra]
It’s Thursday — Rain in the morning and afternoon. High of 58 and low of 49. Sunrise at 7:17 am and sunset at 7:18 pm. [Weather.gov]
Alexandria already feels like home. It’s the trails you walk, the restaurants you return to, and the easy reach of D.C. that make it all work. The question is whether your home feels as right as the city around it. For those who love Alexandria but want more space, more privacy, and more choice, Van Metre at Banner Heights offers a new opportunity to have it all, just minutes from I-495, I-95, and Old Town Alexandria.
Every Van Metre homesite at Banner Heights has a backyard that doesn’t face into another homesite, so the space behind your home is entirely yours, and a deck or covered terrace makes it the spot for a quiet morning or a long evening with friends. Four levels offer up to five bedrooms and an optional elevator. From there, 20+ personalization options let you decide the rest: add a bedroom on the lower or fourth levels, a great room fireplace with ceramic detailing, or a wet or dry bar, plus upgraded flooring and packages for electrical, tech, and comfort.
With more than 70 years of building across Northern Virginia, Van Metre designs homes around the way people live. At Banner Heights, that means the T-27 townhome plan with 3-5 bedrooms, 3-4 full and 1-2 half baths, 3,014+ square feet, a 2-car garage, and 20+ personalization options, starting from the $1.25Ms.*
Van Metre at Banner Heights is now open for Early Access, giving interested buyers the chance to purchase before our grand opening, when initial homesites deliver.
*Pricing, offers, and availability are subject to change without notice. Some images and renderings may represent a similar home or may have been created or edited using artificial intelligence (AI), and may depict design elements, furnishings, finishes, landscaping, views, or other features that are not included in the home or may not be available. Please see a Van Metre New Home Advisor for details.
Following the 2026 NAACP Election Procedures, the Alexandria Branch of the NAACP held a General Membership meeting on Thursday October 22, 2026. The purpose of the meeting (in part) was to select candidates for branch officers including President, First Vice-President, Second Vice-President, Treasurer, and Secretary and at-large members of the Executive Committee positions.
At a meeting of the Waterfront Commission, representatives from the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership (AEDP) outlined one potential path to financing the Torpedo Factory overhaul as part of a “public real estate entity.”
Northern Virginia Fairfax Families for Safe Streets (NoVA FSS) cordially invites you to attend and support our upcoming World Day of Remembrance (WDoR) for Road Traffic Victims.
World Day of Remembrance is an annual event where we honor those whose lives were prematurely ended after being struck by a person driving. This year is particularly painful and sad as we think about the recent death of a 13-year-old Frost middle school student who was struck and killed by a person driving a truck on Pickett Road. We will also honor the nearly 30 other people (as of today’s date) who have been killed on Northern Virginia streets while, walking, biking, or rolling since last year’s day of remembrance.
Alexandria Restaurant Partners bought the 3,000 square-foot space at 1501 Mount Vernon Avenue last fall with the intention of turning it into a concept called Joe’s Kitchen, but those plans were scrapped when ARP managing partner Matt Sloan announced he was leaving to open his own restaurant. ARP offered the space to Sloan, who moved to D.C. a year-and-a-half ago from Michigan to be the general manager of ARP’s Ada’s On The River and The Majestic.
The Alexandria Archaeology Museum announced on Twitter that a new exhibit coming to the Torpedo Factory will offer a digital guided tour of one of the ships found buried under Old Town’s waterfront.
In 2018, hulls from three mid-18th century ships were found buried underground during an excavation at the Robinson Landing development. The crown jewel of the archeological discovery, however, was a mostly intact lower hull from one of the ships.
Traffic on Duke Street in Alexandria (staff photo by James Cullum)
A new group is being tasked with heading up the city’s plans to overhaul Duke Street.
The Duke Street In Motion Advisory Group is tasked with guiding the new eponymous Duke Street In Motion project — which aims to make adjust the arterial road to emphasize public transit, make improvements to bicycle/pedestrian safety and other changes.
At its October general membership meeting, the NAACP Alexandria Branch 7043 Nominating Committee presented its slate for the 2027–2028 term and named John Hopkins-Gillispie as its nominee for Branch President.
Hopkins-Gillispie is a life member of the branch. He has chaired the Freedom Fund Dinner for the past two years, and this year’s dinner raised more than $40,000 for the branch. He serves on the Legal Redress Committee, reviewing discrimination complaints brought to the branch. He has provided input on issues from the Alexandria Police Department’s hate crimes policy to the proposed Edsall Road data center. He also represents the branch as co-chair of the host committee for the 2027 Virginia State Conference convention.
