City Council | ALXnow

Key endorsements heat up Jan. 9 Alexandria School Board special election

Published January 4, 2024 at 10:45AM | Updated January 4, 2024 at 11:54AM

Tim Beaty and Gina Baum, the candidates in the Alexandria School Board's Jan. 9 special election for the open District A seat (staff photos by James Cullum)

There’s less than a week to go until the Jan. 9 special election for Alexandria’s open District A School Board seat, and things are getting interesting.

With a focus on helping Alexandria City Public Schools craft a collective bargaining agreement with staff, retired labor leader Tim Beaty has secured key endorsements from the two other School Board Members in District A — Board Chair Michelle Rief and Jacinta Greene, as well as from City Council Members Canek Aguirre and Kirk McPike, Sheriff Sean Casey, NOVA Labor and the Education Association of Alexandria teachers union.

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The Alexandria City Council’s democratic primary field is getting crowded

By James Cullum

Published January 4, 2024 at 9:30AM | Updated January 4, 2024 at 3:01PM

(Clockwise from top left) Alexandria City Council candidates Charlotte Scherer, City Council Member John Taylor Chapman, City Council Member Sarah Bagley, School Board Member Abdel Elnoubi, Council Member Kirk McPike and James Lewis announce their candidacies to the Alexandria Democratic Committee on Jan. 2, 2024 (staff photo by James Cullum)

(Updated at 11:30 a.m.) The field of candidates is getting crowded in Alexandria’s Democratic primary for City Council.

The list of nine candidates includes four incumbents, two School Board Members, two community leaders and a former magistrate, who, if elected would be the first transgender City Council member.

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Mayoral candidates announce intentions to Alexandria Democratic Committee

By James Cullum

Published January 3, 2024 at 3:30PM | Updated January 4, 2024 at 12:04AM

Alexandria mayoral candidates City Council Member Alyia Gaskins (on left) and Vice Mayor Amy Jackson speak at the Alexandria Democratic Committee meeting about their campaigns on Jan. 2, 2024 (staff photos by James Cullum)

(Updated at 11:45 p.m.) The race for the next mayor of Alexandria has officially begun, sort of.

Last night, Vice Mayor Amy Jackson formally announced her candidacy to the Alexandria Democratic Committee (ADC), a rite of passage in Alexandria elected politics since the city has only ever elected a Republican mayor once, in 1872. Jackson’s opponent, City Council Member Alyia Gaskins, made her own announcement to the ADC on Dec. 2, and used the opportunity last night to announce her latest endorsements.

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New Torpedo Factory governance structure could take inspiration from Visit Alexandria and AEDP

By Vernon Miles

Published December 19, 2023 at 4:10PM

The Torpedo Factory Art Center in Old Town (staff photo by James Cullum)

A task force recommended to the City Council at a meeting last week that the Torpedo Factory Art Center (TFAC) be converted (item 9) to a “quasi-public entity.”

According to a presentation, the task force said:

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Traffic and Parking Board chair James Lewis announces City Council campaign

By Vernon Miles

Published December 18, 2023 at 10:05AM

City Council candidate James Lewis (photo via James Lewis/Facebook)

With two City Council members throwing their hats into the ring to become Alexandria’s next mayor, there will be at least two new faces on the Council next year: James Lewis wants to be one of them.

Lewis, chair of the Traffic and Parking Board, previously ran for City Council in 2021.

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BREAKING: Washington Capitals and Wizards are officially moving to Potomac Yard

By ALXnow.com

Published December 13, 2023 at 8:30AM | Updated March 27, 2024 at 3:56PM

Rendering of aerial view of Monumental Arena development (image courtesy of JBG SMITH)

Updated 3/27/2024 — The Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards are not, in fact, coming to Potomac Yard

It’s official: the Washington Capitals and the Washington Wizards are moving to Alexandria’s Potomac Yard neighborhood.

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Alexandria reconfiguring elections office to shorten early voting lines

By Vernon Miles

Published December 12, 2023 at 11:10AM

Voters line up to vote early in Old Town (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

The wait for early voting should be a little shorter next year.

The City of Alexandria is working to expand its Office of Voter Registration and Elections in Old Town (421 King Street) to accommodate a surge in early voting.

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Alexandria discloses list of ‘racially restrictive’ covenants on city-owned properties

By James Cullum

Published December 8, 2023 at 10:55AM | Updated December 8, 2023 at 5:42PM

Alexandria City Hall sign (staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

Alexandria has identified dozens of racially restrictive zoning covenants, many of which have been on the books for more than 100 years.

Next Tuesday, City Council will review a report on racially restrictive covenants that, during much of the 20th century, prohibited non-white residents from moving into subdivisions and neighborhoods throughout the city. City staff are also asking Council to review a process for a property owner to get the illegal covenant by filing for a certificate of release from the Alexandria Circuit Court.

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‘I’ve done what I could do for the City of Alexandria,’ says retiring Fire Chief Corey Smedley

By James Cullum

Published December 6, 2023 at 2:05PM | Updated December 6, 2023 at 3:03PM

Alexandria Fire Chief Corey Smedley (on left) and Sheriff Sean Casey at the George Washington Birthday Parade in Old Town, Feb. 20, 2023 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Mutual respect, growth, and an ability to be vulnerable: That’s the kind of relationship retiring Alexandria Fire Chief Corey Smedley wants with his next job, wherever that might be.

Smedley says he wants purpose, not a position, and that he’d like for the right opportunity to find him.

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Alexandria investing in thousands of mussels to help clean the Potomac River

By Vernon Miles

Published December 6, 2023 at 11:00AM | Updated December 6, 2023 at 11:33AM

Mussels (photo via Gil Ndjouwou/Unsplash)

Among the results of a settled lawsuit between the City of Alexandria and the Potomac Riverkeeper Network is a project to add thousands of freshwater mussels to the Potomac River.

City Council member Sarah Bagley gave the Council an update last week from the Waterfront Commission where she said the mussels — which are filter feeders and help clean the water –would be added to the river as part of the city’s remediation efforts.

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Check out our photos of the Scottish Christmas Walk Parade in Old Town

By James Cullum

Published December 4, 2023 at 3:45PM | Updated December 4, 2023 at 9:36PM

Santa Claus waves at the Scottish Christmas Walk Parade in Old Town on Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023 (staff photo by James Cullum)

(Updated 9:35 p.m.) It was overcast and cool — the perfect weather for the Campagna Center’s 52nd Scottish Christmas Walk Parade.

The parade is one of the most popular events in the city, bringing thousands of participants, including Irish dancers, historic reenactors and the City of Alexandria Pipes and Drums. It is considered the highlight of a weekend full of events.