Alexandria’s City Council will approve its fiscal year 2025 budget in a little more than a week, and important actions will be taken between now and then.

On Wednesday (April 24), Council will hold a public hearing on the city’s tax rate. Last month, a 4-cent tax ceiling was approved for consideration, allowing city staff and local legislators wiggle room in analyzing funding options in exchange for raising taxes. Each penny added to the tax rate is about $4.7 million, and a 4-cent tax increase would bring in $18.8 million.

This year’s residential taxes are expected to rise due to underperforming commercial real estate assessments, as well as a proposal to raise salaries for teachers in Alexandria City Public Schools.

Alexandria’s commercial property tax rate fell 4% this year, or $736.9 million. The value of the city’s office properties fell 12.38%, from $3.58 billion in 2023 to $3.14 billion in 2024, according to a city report. It’s the second year in a row that office properties dipped in value, dropping 10% last year.

Council will also conduct a budget work session on Wednesday with their proposed budget additions and deletions.

City Council will approve the fiscal year 2025 budget on May 1.

The deadline has now passed for members of Council to propose amendments to the Manager’s proposed budget.

Amendments must have the support of 3 members to be considered during the remainder of the process.

This is the preliminary list of amendments:https://t.co/82LQDifJYN

— Justin Wilson (@justindotnet) April 5, 2024

Alexandria School Board Member Tim Beaty just won his special election in January, and now he tells us that he’s running for reelection in November.

Beaty won a special election on Jan. 9 to fill the District A seat vacated by former School Board Member Willie Bailey. He was sworn in days later, and said he would spend the next several months learning the intricacies of Alexandria City Public Schools before deciding on whether to run for reelection on Nov. 5.

“I was just at the Alexandria Democratic Committee meeting asking people to sign my petitions, and more than one person said, ‘Didn’t I just sign this for you?'” Beaty said.

Beaty ran on a platform of helping ACPS navigate the new and complex collective bargaining process with licensed teachers and staff. The school system is currently experiencing a staffing crisis, and Beaty says that a strong collective bargaining agreement will improve retention.

Last month, the School Board unanimously approved a collective bargaining resolution, laying the groundwork for a future agreement. Beaty believes he was an important contributor to the process, and said that now the hard work begins.

“Over the last few months, I have enjoyed my interaction with my colleagues on the School Board and with the senior staff in the division,” Beaty said. “I feel like I made a useful contribution, particularly during the debate about the resolution that enables union recognition and collective bargaining.”

Beaty continued, “I believe that this is a process that is going to benefit us, that’s going to be a process in which our employees feel more engaged, more respected, more listened to, and in the end through this process and leading to a collective bargaining agreement, I think we’re going to have a much better labor management relationship going forward. We need that. We need our employees to feel like they’re being listened to, that they have a voice.”

Beaty retired two years as the global strategies director for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. He and his wife moved to the city 10 years ago, and until he was elected was a substitute teacher at two ACPS elementary schools.

He also voted with the School Board to ask the City Council for a tax increase to restore steps and fund teacher raises.

“Our staff is working very hard, and they need a raise,” Beaty said. “We live in an area that is expensive to live in — housing and other things. For them to be able to live a good life and be able to focus on doing a good job every day, we need to compensate them well. So, I was happy to move for funds above the superintendent’s proposed budget.”

District A includes Old Town, Del Ray, Potomac Yard and Arlandria. Incidentally, the filing deadline for School Board candidates is June 18, which is the same day as the Democrat and Republican primaries. So far, only one School Board candidate has filed paperwork to run — Alexander Scioscia in District B.

Alexandria City Council candidate Abdel Elnoubi has been making legislative waves recently as a member of the School Board, and says residents should expect the same kind of results if he gets elected.

Elnoubi is one of 11 Democrats running to fill six seats on City Council, including four incumbent Council members running for reelection in the Democratic primary on June 18. The field also includes Jacinta Greene, a fellow School Board Member.

Elnoubi is a freshman politician sworn in virtually during the pandemic in 2021. The last several years meant contending with staffing shortages, learning loss, school safety and budgeting issues. He says that alleviating staffing woes is an important solution for the school system, and consequently added a $4.2 million bonus in the ACPS budget request to the City Council for staff who were excluded from step increases in fiscal year 2021.

That move, and other additions by the School Board, will likely result in a residential tax increase during an election year.

“It’s your decision to decide whether you want to raise taxes or not,” Elnoubi told City Council last month. “If you do that, if you decide to raise taxes, I’m 100% with you.”

Elnoubi, an engineering project manager for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, also made big changes to the ACPS collective bargaining resolution. Most notably, he gained support to eliminate a voting threshold for ACPS staff to establish unions to begin the bargaining process with the school system.

“We just can’t pay our teachers enough, so it’s personal for me,” Elnoubi said. “In my early days at Metro, I was a young engineer making $66,000. I could hardly afford to live in Alexandria. My family was growing. We (at WMATA) got a raise because the union had a new agreement… Not just that, they got us back pay, and that made a significant change in my life. It made me feel more financially secure. Now all of a sudden I have extra money for savings, I’m making a little bit more money with this newborn that I just had. So, I saw firsthand the impact of being part of a union and having a collective bargaining agreement.”

Elnoubi lives in the Landmark area with his wife and two children.

Early on in his School Board tenure, Elnoubi said he wouldn’t be a “rubber stamp” for former ACPS Superintendent Gregory Hutchings, Jr., and frequently went against established Board practices by speaking with the press.

“I believe in transparency, and I made it a point to be accessible to the press,” he said. “Because I came to this country for Democracy, for opportunity, for the things that make this country great, that we can hold government accountable.”

Born in Chicago, Elnoubi lived in Falls Church until he was eight years old, and then moved with his family to Alexandria, Egypt. He says his return to America and political aspirations in Alexandria, Virginia, makes for a literal “Tale Of Two Cities,” where quality of life issues stand in stark contrast.

“The police there (in Egypt) don’t work for the people,” Elnoubi said. “They’re an instrument of the regime to crush dissent… Education is totally underfunded, especially public schools. Teachers are paid very badly and can’t afford basic life necessities.”

At 21, Elnoubi returned to the U.S. after three years of college in Egypt and transferred to the City College of New York, where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in mechanical engineering. He later earned a Master’s in engineering management from George Washington University, and moved to the city in 2012. Prior to his election in 2021, he was also the president of the PTA at Samuel W. Tucker Elementary School and was a member of the city’s Community Criminal Justice Board and the Building Code Board of Appeals.

Elnoubi is Muslim and says he was inspired to run for office after former President Donald Trump was elected and signed an executive order initiating a travel ban to seven Muslim countries.

“My kids know no other country but the U.S., and I didn’t want them growing up in their own country feeling they do not belong or were being discriminated against,” Elnoubi said. “I started talking to people, and they advised me to join the Democratic Committee, to become a grassroots activist, to get involved more than I was. I did.”

He continued, “We can’t take this Democracy for granted. I’ve seen what happens when you don’t have Democracy. Corruption, bad quality of life, you can’t hold government accountable, you’re risking your life just by speaking up. And now I’m like, oh my God, could that happen here? And guess what? We found the answer four years later. It almost happened. You almost had a coup four years later.”

Elnoubi says that he’s a goal-oriented engineer, setting achievable benchmarks and closely measuring progress with data. He said that the failed Potomac Yard arena deal lacked safeguards to shield Alexandria residents from hundreds of millions of dollars in financial liabilities “in the event of unrealized projections.”

“The deal neglected the needs of our commuters posing adverse implications through the anticipated surge in traffic, compounded by insufficient state funding allocated for essential public transportation enhancements aimed at mitigating such concerns,” Elnoubi said. “The deal’s environment details were lacking. The deal failed to prioritize the welfare of our workforce with lack of sufficient labor protections and commitments to uphold union standards.”

On affordable housing, he said that he will use “zoning and permitting regulations, tax incentives, and partnerships” to allow residents of all income levels to live in the city.

Elnoubi admits that he’s got his work cut out for him in this primary election. He also says that his experience on the Board sets him apart.

“I’ve seen how hard the work is, how much effort and dedication it takes,” he said. “I love to roll up my sleeves and get involved.”

Property owners in Alexandria may notice that the Stormwater Utility Fee is likely going up again in the 2024 budget.

The City Manager’s proposed budget increases the utility rate from $308.7 to $324.10.  Mayor Justin Wilson said in a newsletter that the new annual fee structure is broken down for local residential property owners as:

• $90.75 for condos
• $136.12 for townhomes
• $324.10 for small single-family homes
• $541.25 for large single-family homes

Wilson said the stormwater utility fee is paid by all property owners in the city, including non-taxable properties, with fees calculated by the square footage of buildings, parking lots and more.

The Stormwater Utility Fee has gradually increased over the years as the city works through infrastructure projects to combat frequent flooding.

“The increases of the fee over the past four years have allowed the City to quadruple the planned investment in stormwater mitigation since 2020 and support an accelerated 10-year program of infrastructure investment,” Wilson wrote.

Wilson said the increase in funding will allow the City to tackle eleven top-priority storm sewer capacity projects over the next ten years:

• Commonwealth & Glebe: $34 million
• Ashby & Glebe: $16 million
• Hooffs Run Culvert Bypass: $60 million
• Edison & Dale: $13 million
• Dewitt Avenue: $15 million
• East Mason Avenue: $1 million
• Notabene & Old Dominion: $4 million
• Mount Vernon, E. Glendale, E. Luray & E. Alexandria: $10 million
• E. Monroe & Wayne: $3 million
• Russell & W. Rosemont: $6 million
• Russell & W. Rosemont (south): $8 million

As Alexandria’s City Council works through a tight budget year, one of the big items infrastructure pieces looming over the city is the $110.2 million renovation of City Hall.

The renovation was brought up as an item that could be delayed at a recent budget meeting, but over time repeated deferrals — and an expansion in scope — have made the much-needed renovation more and more expensive.

“The renovation of City Hall has been deferred five times,” Giovonny Bland, from the city’s Office of Communications, told ALXnow, “moving the main renovation/construction period from FY 2015 to FY 2025.”

A decade ago, the city balked at a $50 million renovation of City Hall, and there was a minor controversy over a comment from then-Mayor Bill Euille over the possibility of financing the renovations by leasing out space in the building. Euille’s opponents in the mayoral election attacked Euille for considering ‘selling city hall’ and Euille eventually walked back the comments, saying he was considering every option.

Since then, City Hall has continued to deteriorate, getting F ratings on a new facility report in 2022, described in the Joint Facilities Master Plan Roadmap as “functionally obsolete.”

“The cost has increased over time, however, the scope of the project has also changed from an HVAC-only replacement to a full renovation of the facility,” Bland said. “The full renovation scope started in the Approved FY 2015–FY 2024 CIP and the budgeted cost at that time was $47.5 million. It has since increased to $110.2 million.”

Last year, the city added the replacement of the Market Square parking garage and the redesign of Market Square to the project.

There is $93.4 million set aside for the renovation of City Hall and the Market Square Garage in the City Manager’s proposed FY 2026 Capital Budget.

According to the City Budget (page 193):

This project was initiated with the purpose of replacing the outdated and past their life cycle heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems (HVAC), life safety systems and perform any necessary structural repairs. This work requires the demolition of the ceilings and lighting, and disruption of the HVAC and life safety systems in the work areas, therefore requiring the temporary relocation of the employees to a swing space for the duration of the work. Since the HVAC, life safety and structural work will have a significant impact in disrupting the workspace and building operations, and requiring the expense of temporary swing spaces, it is reasonable to be performed at the same time with the newly proposed space planning and space reconfiguration.

The budget item says the goal of the project is to create a modern and energy-efficient building with environmentally friendly systems.

Rosemont, Parkfairfax, and North Ridge residents could get the short end of the stick as DASH looks to scale back bus service in those neighborhoods.

A memo from Martin Barna, director of Planning and Scheduling for DASH, said the city’s bus system could reduce service on Line 104. Barna wrote that the change is based on the City Manager’s Draft FY 2025 budget.

Line 104 runs from the Braddock Road Metro station to the Pentagon Metro station.

Service would be reduced on Line 104 from every 30 minutes to once every hour. Barna said the change is likely to significantly decrease ridership.

According to the memo:

This reduction would reduce annual operating costs by $180,000, but would have an adverse impact on commuters in Parkfairfax, North Ridge and Rosemont. It also runs counter to the goals and recommendations of the 2022 Alexandria Transit Vision (ATV) Plan and Alexandria Mobility Plan (AMP). In general, fixed-route bus service that only runs once every 60 minutes is not considered to be useful or reliable, and ridership is likely to decrease by a large margin as riders seek other alternatives.

At the same time, there are other potential service improvements included in the memo, though they’re considered unfunded improvements:

• Line 32 – DASH is proposing to improve midday, evening and weekend headways from every 60 minutes to every 30 minutes.
• Line 34 – DASH is proposing to improve Sunday headways from every 60 minutes to every 30 minutes.
• Line 31 – DASH is proposing to improve midday, evening and weekend headways between King Street Metro and Braddock Road from every 30 minutes to every 15 minutes by extending all Line 31 short trips that currently operate between NVCC-Alexandria and the King Street Metro.

The changes are scheduled for review at the Transportation Commission meeting on Wednesday, March 20.

Alexandria’s City Council set a maximum tax rate at 4 cents higher than the current $1.11 tax rate — a significant increase, but less than the 6-cent increase proposed earlier in last night’s (Tuesday) meeting.

The maximum tax rate, as was emphasized several times in the meeting by nearly everyone on the City Council, does not reflect what the tax rate will be in the final budget, it is only the highest tax rate the City Council can possibly go to in its budget.

A 4-cent tax rate increase would bring the tax rate up to $1.15 per $100 of assessed value.

While the City Manager’s proposed budget is based on keeping the current real estate tax rate, a higher maximum tax rate gives the City Council some wiggle room to include other priorities. Notably, a public hearing the day before the maximum tax rate focused primarily on calls for more funding for affordable housing programs and Alexandria City Public Schools.

“This will be a sacrifice no matter what happens in May [in the final budget],” Vice Mayor Amy Jackson said. “This is just the advertised ceiling, not being approved for what will happen. But when we’re hearing; and it was packed here last night listening to the public hearing about affordable housing issues and school issues, we have a lot that our city is challenged with right now. We certainly want a buffer in the coming weeks as we’re trying to make big, bold decisions.”

A 4-cent tax rate increase would be substantial, but not as much as the 6-cent increase proposed by City Council member Canek Aguirre, who said he wanted to set that as the maximum tax rate to make more Alexandrians pay attention to issues affecting the city. A 6-cent increase would bump the City of Alexandria’s tax rate to $1.17 per $100 of assessed value.

At the current tax rate, the Average Alexandria homeowner will see their tax bill go up by $210. A 6-cent tax rate increase would add $420 onto that increase, according to city staff.

According to Aguirre:

We need our community and residents to understand the situation we’re in. We have not been able to find new revenue. We are 20,000 residents larger with staff at the same level as 2010. We have to pay for services. Our schools are asking for more money. We still have a collective bargaining agreement to go with general services staff. We have our own infrastructure buildings for the city that we need to pay for. When we look at DASH, looking to expand service, not reduce. Again, just as a reminder to our residents, whenever we advertise something that doesn’t mean that’s actually what we’re going to do. That’s just setting a maximum cap.

I know six cents is extremely high but I want to signal to residents that we’re in a big situation right now. Admittedly I’ll say even if we don’t do the full six cents, if we choose something else, it may still require an increase after this year.

But the 6-cent increase faced some pushback from other City Council members, who said the maximum tax rate should still be something the Council would conceivably vote for. City Council member Alyia Gaskins said setting a 6-cent maximum may set false expectations for the community.

“I want to be honest though: what gives me pause is we are about to engage in conversations over the next few weeks with our residents… and I want us to go into that conversation with a good faith effort,” Gaskins said. “I wouldn’t want us to advertise something that is so high or so above what we would actually advertise that people come and they would submit ideas that are not going to be considered, because I don’t think that’s fair to their time, I don’t think that’s respectful of their creativity.”

The City Council worked the maximum tax rate down to a 4-cent increase, though the final budget could have a lower tax rate increase, no tax rate increase, or a very unlikely cut to the tax rate.

According to Mayor Justin Wilson

My view is: you raise the tax rate for a capital investment and you live within your means on the operating side. That’s generally what you do, and when you do that, you help yourself in the future. Generally, my view on tax rate increases is heavily dependant on how we’re going to spend the money. Particularly in an environment where you are looking at a really narrow revenue growth for the next several years, unless we are signing up for large tax rate increases every single year for the years to come, then we have to be restrained on the operating side or we’re really setting ourselves up.

Budget hearings will be held throughout March and April with final budget adoption scheduled for May 1.

It was standing-room-only at a City Council budget hearing yesterday (Monday) and most of the speakers had one of two things on their mind: affordable housing and fully funding Alexandria City Public Schools.

The push for more funding to the city’s affordable housing programs came from a mix of housing nonprofit leaders and residents from neighborhoods like Arlandria/Chirilagua staring down the barrel at gentrification.

“We recognize that $12 million for the Housing Trust Fund isn’t enough to reach each affordable housing target,” said Jill Norcross, executive director of the Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance.

Norcross and others called for the city to fund the Community Lodgings redevelopment of Elbert Avenue Apartments and Wesley Housing’s ParcView II development for a total of 464 affordable housing, much of it considered ‘deeply affordable’ — ie for residents at around 40% of area median income or lower income levels.

At least half of those in City Council chambers were there with Tenants and Workers United (TWU), an organization that supports low-income communities of color, immigrants, low-wage workers and more.

“Our families are not part of the city’s growth,” said Ingris Moran, a lifelong resident of Alexandria and community organizer for TWU. “We do not see proactive tools that will stabilize our families and keep our families in the city.”

As the city prepares for redevelopment at the former Landmark site and Potomac Yard, Moran said residents in Arlandria and low-income communities fear displacement. Moran said TWU supports the city investing $10 million to create a voucher program for families earning less than 40% of AMI, investment into the expansion of the guaranteed income pilot, and funding for the aforementioned affordable housing projects.

“The City needs to make bold decisions to make good, sustainable investments,” Moran said. “The City Council supporting funding, creating and expanding these programs would be the City Council supporting working class families in the city.”

Carlos Rubio, an Arlandria resident, said wages have not kept pace with rent increases around Arlandria. Rubio asked the City Council to provide support through rent relief programs.

“Last year I had to leave my apartment where I was living for 20 years,” Rubio said. “I was okay leaving there, but then suddenly I received a rent increase that was way too high for me. It was more than a $400 increase. Now I live in another property, where it’s not that affordable but it is better.”

The other half of the public comment, on the other hand, primarily featured teachers and parents pushing for the City Council to fully fund the Alexandria City Public Schools’ $384.4 million combined budget request by the School Board. That budget has been a battleground for City Council and School Board leadership, with many on the Council expressing displeasure at a lack of long-term planning in the school budget and last-minute budget requests.

Mayor Justin Wilson told the School Board that fully funding that budget would require a six-cent tax rate increase, calling the proposal not viable.

Advocates from the ACPS community said, regardless of the enmity between the boards, the City Council should fully fund the ACPS budget.

“I recognize this city is facing a difficult year, however, without a strong public school system, we run the risk of negatively affecting the entire city,” said ACPS parent Catie Brownback. “As we continue to increase affordable housing options in this city, which we should do, we will also increase the enrollment in our public school system. With the rising cost of living, we can’t expect the budget to stay flat. Please help keep Alexandria a thriving city long-term by fully funding our schools.”

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Alexandria School Board Members went all-in Wednesday night in asking City Council to fund its budget by approving a massive tax increase.

Mayor Justin Wilson told the Board at a budget work session on Wednesday night that its fiscal year 2025 $384.4 million combined funds budget request would result in a historic tax increase. The Board, in turn, said that the funding could stem the school system’s staffing crisis.

“To be candid, the combination of the operating requests and the capital requests is probably about a 6 cent tax increase, which is not viable,” Wilson said, adding that it would be the largest tax increase since the 5.7 cent tax increase of 2017 raised the average residential property tax bill by more than $300.

The Board’s proposed budget, which was approved last month, surprised Wilson and other Council Members, who said they were left in the dark with its development.

“I’ve heard nothing around a strategic look at how we pay folks,” City Council Member John Taylor Chapman told the Board. “I know many of you personally. I know you care about what you do. I know you are professionals. So, when I say ‘Hey, I expect you to bring a great budget to Council and Council is going to fund it,’ I don’t expect you to be just willy nilly. I expect you to be focused and I think that’s who you are.”

School Board Chair Michelle Rief countered that the Board has been strategic in its thinking, and that she prioritizes the 2% market rate adjustment for staff as the most important addition that needs funding.

“In my opinion, to sort of go out publicly and tell us to fight for the thing that we need and then come here and tell us that we’re we’re asking for too much, I think might be a political strategy on your part,” Rief said.

Vice Mayor Amy Jackson, who is running for mayor, said that the city should raise taxes to fully fund the school system’s budget request.

“I know it’s a sacrifice for all of us,” Jackson said. “I mean, we all live here in the city, and raising taxes would be a sacrifice.”

Jackson was the only Council member to not criticize the school system’s budget during the meeting.

“I just feel like we need to get close to what they’re asking for, if not fully funded,” Jackson said. “I think raising taxes also will mean that hopefully we’re not cutting our services and that our services are remaining at the optimum level for our residents and our businesses, but also making sure that our schools are remaining competitive and keeping our community stronger.”

School Board Member Tammy Ignacio was brought to tears while recounting the stresses that staff and students are experiencing.

“We have got to be able to compete with our surrounding jurisdictions,” Ignacio said. “In my 32 years in education, I have never seen it this bad. I have never seen the level of kids in a classroom without a teacher in front of them.”

City Council will set a maximum tax rate next week, allowing the City Manager to pursue some of the Board’s proposed additions, which include $4.2 million for staffers who did not get step increases in fiscal year 2021 and a $5.4 million (2%) market rate adjustment for all eligible staff.

Council Member Alyia Gaskins, who is running against Jackson in the Democratic mayoral primary, said she is in favor of advertising a higher tax rate to consider the additions.

“We have to deliver a balanced budget that responds to the needs of our community and that means doing right by our teachers and students,” Gaskins said. “If in the end we decide an increase is necessary, then I will be leading the charge to figure out relief for those who cannot keep affording these increases, like seniors on fixed incomes or others who are one tax increase away from not being able to afford to live here.”

School Board Member Abdel Elnoubi, who is running for City Council, said that he’s asking them to make an unpopular decision during an election year.

“It’s your decision to decide whether you want to raise taxes or not,” Elnoubi said. “If you do that, if you decide to raise taxes, I’m 100% with you… Let me just address the elephant in the room. It is an election year and as a School Board Member I’m in a less tough position.”

Four City Council Members are seeking reelection, and two members are running for mayor. Elnoubi and School Board Member Jacinta Greene are also running in the June 18 Democratic City Council primary.

Elnoubi said that from Council’s perspective, the Board gets to take credit for the increased funding while City Council has to deal with the consequences of raising taxes.

“That’s very viable, that is the political reality of things,” Elnoubi said. “What I will tell you is we are doing what we think is right for the school system… I would be derelict in my duty if I don’t ask you for what we need, understanding full well you may not be able to give it to us, which is fine.”

Wilson said that the Board needs to work closer with Council to craft not only this budget, but future budgets.

“It is impossible for us to resolve the gap on both the capital and operating side,” he said. “So we are going to pick a number and to come to some conclusion to our process, and it’s going to be challenging to arrive at that number without some really good input from the School Board as to what that should be.”

School Board Member Tim Beaty said that living in the city is becoming more expensive, and that the additions are focused on teacher retention.

“We were doing what we thought was best in order to keep the quality of what we’ve got,” Beaty said. “I’m frustrated that this leads to this huge difference between what we need and what’s available in the budget.”

City Council will adopt its final budget on May 1.

ALXnow will be running a series of City Council candidate interviews through the local election filing deadline on April 4.

The economic potential for the $2 billion Potomac Yard arena deal is maintaining the interest of Alexandria City Council Member Alyia Gaskins.

Gaskins is running for mayor and says that a good deal for Alexandria means more city representation on the Virginia Stadium Authority board, which would own and finance the future home of the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals.

Gaskins says that she’ll carefully dissect the proposal “if and when” it comes before City Council and that her four key issues are on the city’s representation on the Virginia Stadium Authority board, as well as how the project impacts labor, housing, and transportation.

“A good deal is one that has strong labor protections, a commitment to affordable housing and new transportation investments,” Gaskins told ALXnow. “It is also one in which we have the majority of authority on the, but the majority of seats on the stadium Authority Board.”

A House version of the bill to create the board was approved earlier this month, but the Senate version of the bill is currently stalled.

“As you know, I’m the one who’s going to be in the weeds going through each and every page to really evaluate what has come to us and is it something that’s going to deliver for Alexandria,” Gaskins said. “I can’t speculate now until I see specifically where we are on each of those areas, because I don’t think it works without all of them.”

On the issues

Gaskins said she had to take a pause and that she was disappointed after seeing the Alexandria School Board’s recent budget request. The Board asked for $21 million more than what was allocated from the city in last year’s budget, prompting an outcry from Mayor Justin Wilson, and a fiscal year 2025 budget proposal from the City Manager that does not include $10 million in additions from the School Board.

Gaskins said that City Council was briefed in the fall about a potential reduction in real estate values, and that the decline would mean a substantial revenue reduction in the city, potentially resulting in cuts to city services.

“I thought seeing then a budget that calls for such an addition at a time when we are facing some tough economic situations was really a little disappointing,” she said. “At the same time, we all are fighting for the same thing. We want our teachers to be the best paid, and to be the most supported in the region. We want our kids to have the greatest academic outcomes that they can achieve. Our two bodies will have to figure this out, starting tonight at our work session.”

Gaskins also said that the city needs to pause as it evaluates the second phase of its zoning for housing initiative. Last year, City Council controversially its upended its residential zoning policies  by eliminating single family zoning. She said that the first phase focusing on housing production and that the city also needs to look at homeownership programs, tenant protections and preventing housing displacement should be refined.

“I don’t think we need to add anything else,” she said. “We need to focus on doing that and doing that well.”

On the double-digit Virginia American Water rate hikes, Gaskins said that she wants to get retroactive refunds for residents who may see their water bills significantly hiked.

“I think it’s excessive and it could be harmful to our residents,” Gaskins said of the increase. “The numbers I’ve seen show that if this rate goes through as planned, some of our residents could see upwards of a 50% increase in their bills.”

On public safety, Gaskins said that the citywide uptick in violent crime is “unacceptable,” and that the Alexandria Police Department needs to create a strategic plan that “clearly articulates” how it is being tackled. She also said that the recently released community crime map will help residents understand what’s happening.

“It’s not just uncomfortable, I think it’s unacceptable,” Gaskins said. “And I think that communication between our public safety professionals and our residents is an important piece of our crime prevention strategy that has to be strengthened.”

About Alyia Gaskins

Gaskins, who was elected to City Council in 2021, is running in the Democratic primary on June 18. She’s married with two young children and moved to the with her family from Fairfax County in 2016. She’s been a senior program officer at Melville Charitable Trust for three-and-a-half years, before which she worked as a a public health strategist with the Center for Community Investment and the National League of Cities.

She’s a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and was raised by her single mother, Francine Smith, and her paternal grandmother Marilyn Parker. Gaskins said that her mom regularly worked two or three jobs at a time, mostly as a paraprofessional and librarian at Pittsburgh Public Schools.

Parker died last month, and Gaskins said that the loss has been difficult.

“It’s definitely been hard, because every big moment I can think of in my life, my grandma has been by my side,” she said. “I think the only kind of saving grace is she taught and she instilled in me a faith and a joy that surpasses understanding. And so when the days are hard, I can still smile because I know I know she’s with me.”

If elected, Gaskins will be the first Black female mayor of Alexandria.

“When I think about what it would mean to be the first Black female mayor, honestly, sometimes I can’t even put it into words, like it’s something that is overwhelming,” she said. “It’s something that is humbling, and it’s something that would fill me with tremendous joy.”

Gaskins has a bachelor’s degree in medicine, health and society from Vanderbilt University, a master’s in urban planning from Georgetown University, and a master’s of public health from the University of Pittsburgh and a certificate in municipal planning from the University of Chicago.

She was elected to City Council in 2021, and previously served on the city’s Transportation Commission, where she said that her experience with the Seminary Road bike lane controversy convinced her that the city needs to improve outreach to impacted communities.

Communication-wise, Gaskins said she had no notice from Mayor Justin Wilson when he announced he wasn’t seeking reelection on Dec. 1. She announced her intention to run on Dec. 4, as did her fellow Council Member Vice Mayor Amy Jackson.

“I had no special inside knowledge or anything like that,” Gaskins said. “What I watched over the past several months is what Justin has said, that he’s thinking about it and we’ll find out the decision. I thought to myself, I’m going to be ready no matter what that decision is. I want to be ready to run.”

Gaskins is leading in fundraising among her Council colleagues, raising $46,000 with $34,000 on-hand as of Dec. 31, according to the Virginia Public Access Project. Jackson has raised $16,900, and has $15,800 on-hand. The next financial disclosure deadline for the candidates is at the end of this month.

Gaskins says that she gets four-to-five hours of sleep on a good day, and that her family is committed to seeing her conduct city business.

“What I do think I’ve been able to create in my life and will do as mayor is a harmony where I have found a way for all of the pieces to work together,” she said. “I recognize the demands that will be on my time, then it makes sense that will be on my family’s time. But this is something that we are fully committed to doing as our unit and making sure that as a unit we can serve and continue to deliver.”

The Democratic primary is June 18.

I'm running for Mayor to build an Alexandria that works for all of us. Watch, share, and join our grassroots campaign today! pic.twitter.com/hGf80NTjDV

— Alyia Gaskins (@Alyia4ALX) December 4, 2023

Join hosts Pat Miller & Gayle Reuter for a kid-friendly Meet & Greet in Del Ray with Alyia this Saturday, March 9th. RSVP at https://t.co/haTJBmQ3qX and let's discuss the future of our community together! #DelRay #MeetAndGreet pic.twitter.com/dW3PUzB3JA

— Alyia Gaskins (@Alyia4ALX) March 6, 2024

We've been loving the doors on the West End! Join us this Saturday morning at 9:00 to share Alyia's message of a safe, accessible, and affordable Alexandria. Sign up at https://t.co/lOZLj2DY0p. #everyweekendeverydoor pic.twitter.com/I6OfVIZE45

— Alyia Gaskins (@Alyia4ALX) March 5, 2024