If you’ve ever wanted to get more involved in city governance, now is your chance.
There are several vacancies for boards in Alexandria. Many have certain requirements, like being a member of the Planning Commission or a representative of an impacted group, many groups also have public members who represent the community and are not required to be affiliated with any particular group.
It has been years since the City Council has been giddy during a meeting discussing its state legislative package.
For the first time in decades, there is a Democratic majority in the Virginia legislature, which is a boon to the city’s all-Democrat council.
A new noise ordinance could impose Old Town’s decibel limits citywide, but one local restaurant isn’t taking the news lying down.
Lost Dog Cafe, a popular restaurant at 808 N. Henry Street near the Braddock Metro station and part of a regional franchise, expressed frustration at the proposed limits on Twitter.
St. Elmo’s Coffee Coming to Old Town North — “St. Elmo’s Coffee Pub could be getting a second location. The Del Ray coffee shop submitted an application to open at the Gables Old Town North mixed-use development.” [Patch]
City Refuses to Pay for Damaged Fence — “Have you ever heard of something called sovereign immunity? Basically, it lets local governments off the hook if they damage your personal property. It’s what an Alexandria man learned the hard way after he caught a city trash truck damaging his iron fence.” [Fox 5]
The City of Alexandria could be restricting noise limits citywide, and double violations fines as part of new ordinances.
City staff are proposing a citywide noise limit of 65 decibels (about the volume of a normal conversation) in a public place within 10 feet of a structure, and nothing louder than 75 decibels (about the volume of an average dishwhasher) in a public place within 50 feet of a structure.
Gone are the days when the Alexandria City Council and School Board’s joint meetings were bloody affairs where both sides would haggle over monumental budget gaps. But under the surface, members of the City Council were dubious at last night’s (Wednesday) joint session that enough is being done to align city and school interests when it comes to new development.
One of the most-discussed goals of the collaboration between the city and schools is co-locating facilities — moving away from new developments being single-use and towards projects that might include a school along with recreational facilities or housing.
The Ramsey Homes affordable housing project will loaned an additional $1.4 million thanks to a vote by the Alexandria City Council.
Council members voted to grant the additional funding to the redevelopment last night (Tuesday), bringing the total amount Alexandria has loaned to $5 million.
The Alexandria City Council reaffirmed longstanding rent increase guidelines after debating the value of the unenforceable rules.
Last night (Tuesday), City Council members voted in favor of keeping guidelines capping rent increases at 5%, but not before arguing over the point of the “symbolic” guidelines, with one member jokingly offering to lower the cap to 1%.
Alexandria Declares Climate Emergency — “On October 22, the Alexandria City Council unanimously adopted a resolution declaring a climate emergency, recognizing that climate change poses a grave threat to everyone in Alexandria and around the world.” [City of Alexandria]
City Council Passes Refugee Resolution — “The Alexandria City Council unanimously approved a resolution to notify the federal government of its continued support for resettling refugees in Alexandria. The action was taken in response to Executive Order 13888, issued on September 26, which provides that the federal government ‘should resettle refugees only in those jurisdictions in which both the State and local governments have consented to receive refugees.'” [City of Alexandria]
Favoring the Planning Commission’s decision over staff’s recommendation, the Alexandria City Council has told the Virginia Paving Company it has seven years to vacate its West End property.
The requirement comes as the city is working to transform the Van Dorn Corridor — today an industrial and car-heavy stretch from the Van Dorn Metro station to Landmark Mall — into a more residential-focused area.
Alexandria officials have voted to allow mobile carriers to start installing what’s billed as a faster, and smarter, cellular network.
The Alexandria City Council voted during its meeting this past Saturday, October 19 to approve a 5-year agreements with Verizon and AT&T, allowing the company to install small wireless equipment on street poles to boost 5G cell networks to the city.
