As the first-ever Old Town Oyster Week draws to a close in Alexandria, an oyster eating contest with Del Ray and Old Town business owners resulted in a tie.
Bill Blackburn, of Pork Barrel BBQ in Del Ray and Trae Lamond of Chadwicks in Old Town tied by both eating 103 sea stone oysters in the Pearl of Alexandria Oyster Eating Contest held at Whiskey & Oyster on Thursday, October 15. The competition ended when the restaurant ran out of oysters.
There are few sweeter traditions in Old town than trick-or-treating on Halloween night, but this year’s celebration will undoubtedly be unlike any other.
The pandemic has threatened the health and safety of residents, which has us wondering: Are you going to hand out Halloween candy this year?
Kamala Harris’ Husband Douglas Emhoff Ecourages Voters in Alexandria — “Excited to welcome @DouglasEmhoff to Alexandria as he works to encourage voters to turn out and make his wife our next Vice President!34K+ ballots have been mailed.Nearly 8K in-person early voters….and we are just getting started!” [Twitter]
Councilman Chapman Takes Tour of Potomac Yard Metro Station Construction –“Some pictures from my tour this morning of the construction site of the Potomac Yard Metro!” [Facebook]
Beyer Says Trump Should Not Reject Strict FDA Guidelines for COVID Vaccines — “Political interference with vaccine development and an open feud with FDA can only further damage the public’s already growing safety concerns. Once again, lives may depend on Trump shutting his mouth and letting scientists do their jobs.” [Twitter]
Pizzeria Paradiso Closing in Old Town — “Like many restaurants in Old Town, Pizzeria Paradiso closed when the coronavirus pandemic reached Alexandria. Unfortunately, the beloved pizza restaurant will not be reopening, the owner announced this week.” [Alexandria Living]
Beyer: We Must Protect the U.S. Postal Service — “I have been in touch with local postal officials, who express their commitment to ensuring the timely delivery and return of all ballots. This could be an issue in many parts of the country, however, and I will be working with my colleagues to exercise constant vigilance and ensure that elections are fair and safe. My Northern Virginia colleague, U.S. Rep. Gerry Connolly, serves as the chair of the Oversight Subcommittee on Government Operations, and with his tireless leadership the House will do all it can to fix these problems and restore operations and service at USPS.” [Gazette]
Three City Parks Scheduled for Improvements — “Projects at or near Powhatan, Hooffs Run, and Brenman Parks to occur over next two months.” [Zebra]
In years past, the Alexandria Old Town Art Festival has packed King Street full of art vendors. This year, that changes with a new venue to allow for some extra pandemic precautions.
The Old Town festival will be moving a little west to 300 John Carlyle Street in the Carlyle neighborhood on Saturday, September 12 and Sunday, September 13.
(Updated 8/7) Upcoming Scottish Christmas Walk Weekend Canceled — “The coronavirus has canceled one of Alexandria’s most beloved traditions this winter.” [Alexandria Living]
Beyer Blames Trump for Coronavirus Response Failures — “The White House is simultaneously blaming state governments for Trump’s failed pandemic response and blocking federal assistance to support state and local governments.” [Twitter]
Catholic University of America (CUA) is planning to open up a new branch in Alexandria’s Carlyle neighborhood.
According to an application headed to the Planning Commission in September, CUA is hoping to renovate the second floor of 2050 Ballenger Avenue to create a new location specifically for students in Alexandria, Arlington, and other Northern Virginia locations.
Over 13 years since it was originally proposed, a plan to turn the quiet southeastern corner of the Eisenhower corridor into a pair of mixed-use towers is coming back with some new proposed uses.
A project called 765 John Carlyle proposes turning the empty grass lot near what is still Eisenhower Circle — for now — into “two mixed-use towers conjoined by the common podium” according to an application by Carlyle Plaza, LLC.
Alexandria formally moved into the second phase of its economic recovery today (Friday), and while some businesses are embracing the easing of restrictions, others are taking a slower approach.
Even though there was only one new reported case of coronavirus in the city today, Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson said that phase 2 does not mean that the city is out of the woods just yet.
Alexandria is putting many of the city’s homeless in hotel rooms for the foreseeable future.
“While many of our hotels are suffering significant losses of their own, they have been willing to partner with the City to assist in the response,” Mayor Justin Wilson told ALXnow. “To ensure that our homeless populations can maintain safe social distancing, these hotel partnerships have been critical.”
