controversy | ALXnow

ARHA deputy director takes over as interim CEO amid controversy

Published September 4, 2025 at 11:45AM

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

While its current CEO is on probation and under investigation for living in a public housing property under his management, the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority is being led by an interim CEO, ALXnow has confirmed.

Last month, ALXnow reported that ARHA CEO Erik Johnson was living in an ARHA property, prompting the Alexandria City Council to call for an independent investigation. ARHA has since confirmed that its Deputy Executive Director Rickie C. Maddox is currently working as the organization’s interim CEO.

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Today marks anniversary of Old Town’s contentious founding as a ‘historic district’

By Vernon Miles

Published August 14, 2024 at 11:00AM

A cloudy day in Old Town (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Old Town is no stranger to controversy over historic preservation, and the Office of Historic Alexandria’s superb This Week in Historic Alexandria newsletter documented the intense local controversy around the neighborhood’s historic designation 78 years ago.

Old Town is the third oldest historic district in the United States, after Charleston formed a historic district in 1931 and New Orleans six years later. The first preservation efforts focused on residential buildings and were called the Charleston Ordinance, WETA reported.

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Rep. Beyer pushes for more AI transparency after Scarlett Johansson controversy

By Vernon Miles

Published May 21, 2024 at 3:55PM

Rep. Don Beyer, of Virginia's 8th District, speaks to supporters on election night at Pork Barrel BBQ in Del Ray, Nov. 8, 2022 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria Rep. Don Beyer (D-8th) is doubling down on a push for new transparency standards after a controversy surrounding OpenAI and actress Scarlett Johansson.

OpenAI claimed its new ChatGPT assistant, which sounded eerily similar to Johansson, wasn’t based on Johansson despite the actress saying the company previously tried to hire her for the chatbot. Further adding to evidence that it was, in fact, based on Johannsson’s voice was OpenAI CEO Sam Altman posting a one-word reference to the 2013 movie Her, which notably features Johansson playing an AI.

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Alexandria church faces expulsion from denomination over female pastors

By Vernon Miles

Published May 14, 2024 at 3:50PM

First Baptist Church of Alexandria (2932 King Street) faces expulsion from the Southern Baptist denomination because of its female pastors.

The Southern Baptist Convention only allows men to occupy the office of pastor/elder/overseer, but the Washington Times reported that Kim Eskridge has held the position of pastor at the church in Alexandria for nearly 20 years.

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Alexandria Director of Elections apologizes for Israeli flag behind voting machine

By Vernon Miles

Published March 6, 2024 at 12:35PM | Updated March 6, 2024 at 2:32PM

Picture on the CAIR website of an Israeli flag hung at an Alexandria polling station (image via Council on American-Islamic Relations)

(Updated 2:30 p.m.) In most years, an Israeli flag at the Beth El Hebrew Congregation precinct might not draw attention on an election day, but with the catastrophic civilian death toll in Gaza, it raised some eyebrows on Super Tuesday.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) put out a release yesterday (Tuesday) calling for an investigation of a report that an Israeli flag was hung near voting machines inside a polling station at a synagogue.

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UPDATED: Slaughterhouse mostly avoids ruffling feathers, but at least one violation reported

By Vernon Miles

Published April 25, 2022 at 9:45AM | Updated April 28, 2022 at 12:17PM

Chickens at the D.C. Poultry Market at 3225 Colvin Street. (staff photo by James Cullum)

Updated 4/28 — The City of Alexandria confirmed that, contrary to earlier comments from code enforcement, there was at least one complaint about the slaughterhouse. According to Alexandria communications officer Andrea Blackford:

Thank you for following up with us. There was a complaint about the Market in December 2021, which was followed up by a Zoning Inspector, who reported:

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EXCLUSIVE: Halal slaughterhouse opens, gives away free chickens for first two days in business

By James Cullum

Published July 28, 2021 at 1:15PM

Chickens at the D.C. Poultry Market at 3225 Colvin Street (staff photo by James Cullum)

After years of legal wrangling and pandemic pressures, the controversial halal slaughterhouse at 3225 Colvin Street quietly opened on Wednesday, July 28. There is no discernible smell of chickens in the air yet, and there are hundreds in cages in a back room.

The D.C. Poultry Market is now open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and is giving away two free chickens per customer for the first two days that it is open.

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EXCLUSIVE: Here’s what the inside of the Halal slaughterhouse looks like on Colvin Street

By James Cullum

Published April 26, 2021 at 3:30PM | Updated April 26, 2021 at 4:00PM

After a series of delays, the owner of the Saba Live Poultry slaughterhouse says he will open in June.

ALXnow was granted exclusive access to the building at 3225 Colvin Street. The paint is still fresh, floors are being retiled and cages for chickens and other equipment were recently unpacked.

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Just In: Halal slaughterhouse to open in two weeks

By James Cullum

Published March 31, 2021 at 1:00PM | Updated March 31, 2021 at 6:32PM

Abdul Mused says it hasn’t been easy, but his halal slaughterhouse at 3225 Colvin Street will open in approximately two weeks.

Mused, the owner of Saba Live Poultry, said that neighbors and the city have made it hard to get the business off the ground. No firm date has been set for the opening, and Mused said that the opening is an estimate.

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Patrick Moran addresses controversies, wants to look to future

By James Cullum

Published March 17, 2021 at 2:30PM | Updated April 15, 2026 at 12:09PM

An earlier version of this article referred to a court case against Patrick Moran, but the case has been sealed in D.C. court.

Earlier: Patrick Moran wants to focus on the issues, and says that events from his past are hurtful, misunderstood and private.

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Alexandria Advocacy Facebook Group Parodied in New Blog

By Vernon Miles

Published March 1, 2021 at 11:30AM | Updated March 1, 2021 at 11:53AM

The 2,233-member strong Bring Integrity Back to Alexandria (BIBA) Facebook page has become a prominent forum for criticism against local government but has found itself the object of some backlash and now: parody.

A blog launched this weekend, Make Alexandria Great Again, includes a handful of posts lampooning common topics in the group, like frequent criticism of Mayor Justin Wilson, opposition to added density, and nostalgia for the city’s past.