City Council | ALXnow

ARHA asks city to back loan for ‘Silver Fox’ senior housing complex

Published June 11, 2025 at 7:45PM

Erik C. Johnson, former CEO of ARHA, asks City Council to back the Silver Fox plan, June 10, 2025 (staff photo by James Cullum)

The Alexandria City Council has mixed feelings about serving as a cosigner for the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s plan to keep its senior residents in the city.

Faced with a $40 million budget shortfall, ARHA abandoned plans to replace the aging 11-story, 170-unit Ladrey Senior High-Rise with a six-to-seven-story 270-unit L-shaped building. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development subsequently ended its operating support for building management and maintenance, issuing vouchers for the relocation of Ladrey’s residents by the end of the year.

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Alexandria City Council recognizes June as LGBTQ+ Pride Month

By James Cullum

Published June 11, 2025 at 2:30PM

City Council formally recognized June as LGBTQ+ Pride month in Alexandria on Tuesday night (June 10).

“It’s very real that there are people in this country, and even in this city, who, because of who they are, don’t know if they’re going to be welcomed or not,” City Council Member R. Kirk McPike said before reading a city proclamation. “This is a difficult time for many people in our community, LGBTQ+ communities across the country.”

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CEO of ARHA says deal to buy senior apartment building in Braddock neighborhood is ‘serendipity’

By James Cullum

Published June 10, 2025 at 1:20PM

Alate Old Town, 1112 First Street (via Facebook)

With 167 senior residents and a police officer being forced out of the Ladrey Senior High-Rise by the end of the year, Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority CEO Erik C. Johnson says there’s actually an opportunity to capitalize on the situation.

“This comes down to whether or not the city is going to support seniors the way that we want to support seniors,” Johnson told ALXnow. “We’re not asking the city to finance it, nor is the city taking a first position loss in the event that something goes wrong.”

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FIREWORKS: Celebrate Alexandria’s birthday on the waterfront on July 12

By James Cullum

Published June 10, 2025 at 12:30PM

Alexandria's 275th birthday celebration along the waterfront in Old Town, July 13, 2024 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Get your lawn chairs ready, because Alexandria’s birthday celebration is right around the corner.

On Saturday, July 12, the city will celebrate its 276th and the U.S.’s 249th birthdays along the waterfront at Oronoco Bay Park (100 Madison Street). The free party includes food trucks, live performances by the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra, appearances by the town crier, poet laureate, and Mayor Alyia Gaskins, as well as cupcakes for thousands of attendees.

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Alexandria Soccer Association donating bench shelters worth $60K to these city parks

By James Cullum

Published June 6, 2025 at 2:45PM

Coach Fredy Martinez speaks to participants of the Community Youth Empowerment Program's summer soccer program at AlexRenew's Limerick Field, July 26, 2023 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Things are about to get a little cozier for Alexandria soccer players.

The Alexandria Soccer Association is providing the city with eight bench shelters (four sets of two), valued at $58,520, to be installed at the soccer fields at Ben Brenman Park (4800 Brenman Park Drive) and Limerick Field (1800 Limerick Street). On Tuesday (June 10), the City Council will consider accepting the KWIK Goal bench shelters and authorizing City Manager Jim Parajon to finalize the donation.

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Alexandria’s City Hall grows 26% in new development plans

By James Cullum

Published May 30, 2025 at 12:45PM

Alexandria City Hall preliminary site development plan (via City of Alexandria)

The preliminary development site plan for the renovation of Alexandria’s City Hall, Market Square Plaza, and underground parking garage is heading to the Planning Commission.

The city wants to increase the gross floor area at City Hall from an existing 122,171 square feet to 153,332 square feet (a 26% expansion), while maintaining the size of Market Square plaza at 2,975 square feet and the 234-space parking garage at 91,562 square feet.

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ALXnow’s top stories this week in Alexandria

By James Cullum

Published May 23, 2025 at 3:30PM | Updated May 23, 2025 at 5:03PM

Dominion Energy Power Outage Map on Friday, May 16 (screenshot)

It was a fast week in Alexandria! Welcome to ALXnow’s Friday recap of top stories.

This week started as the city cleaned up from last Friday’s damaging storm that knocked over trees, closed roads and disrupted power for thousands. Our top story was on the report of a suspected car thief who ended up in the hospital with serious injuries after a high-speed chase ended in a crash early Monday morning.

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Developer wants extension to build seven-story apartment building across from the Braddock Road Metro station

By James Cullum

Published May 21, 2025 at 2:30PM

The developer behind a seven-story apartment building in the Braddock area is asking the city for an extension of its developmental special use permit (via City of Alexandria)

The developer of a seven-story, 180-unit apartment building across the street from the Braddock Road Metro station is asking the city for an extension of its development special use permit.

West Street Acquisitions says a number of important steps have been made on the one-acre project at 727 N. West Street, which was denied by the City Council in March 2021 and then approved two months later. After some delays, including a legal battle with a neighbor citing city regulations prohibiting the Council from reviewing a denied application for a year, work on the four-year-old project has been slow, and the development special use permit is about to expire.

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Episcopal High School gets green light to build dozens of 40-to-100-foot-tall athletic field lights

By James Cullum

Published May 19, 2025 at 3:30PM | Updated May 20, 2025 at 6:32AM

The athletic fields at Episcopal High School (via City of Alexandria)

Episcopal High School’s plan to install 47 light poles between 40 and 100 feet in height got unanimous backing by the City Council on Saturday (May 17).

The private high school at 1200 N. Quaker Lane will serve as a training site for a team participating in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and the school is planning on adding 10 lights to three northern fields for that purpose on the property — the track field, the practice field, and the Hummel Bowl. Neighbors with the Seminary Hill Association, however, told City Council they were under the misapprehension that the scope of the project was limited to just those 10 lights, instead of what was presented to Council — a largely undefined plan allowing the school to erect dozens of light poles of varying heights on its other outdoor athletic fields and courts over the next decade.

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ACPS staff won’t get 1% market rate adjustment due to budget shortfall

By James Cullum

Published May 15, 2025 at 4:06PM

George Mason Elementary School Principal Christopher Finan with students on the first day of school, August 21, 2023 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Facing a $3.25 million budget shortfall, Alexandria City Public Schools is planning on saving a good chunk of it by not giving staff a 1% market rate adjustment.

According to a budget memo, the school board will review the following at a work session tonight (May 15). In the memo, ACPS staff laid out the following budget adjustments before the Board approves the final FY 2026 Combined Funds (Operating, Grants & Special Projects, and School Nutrition Services) Budget:

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George Mason Elementary School modernization plans heading to City Council

By James Cullum

Published May 14, 2025 at 2:30PM

George Mason Elementary School modernization rendering (via City of Alexandria)

After coasting through the Planning Commission, plans to modernize George Mason Elementary School are heading to City Council for this Saturday (May 17).

Alexandria City Public Schools is hoping to cut the ribbon on the new two-story building in the summer of 2027. The project will keep the original 1939 building, although ACPS plans to demolish a majority of the existing school and replace it with a two-story structure for a capacity of 670 students and 80 teachers and staff.