Washingtonian recently included three Alexandria restaurants in their food critic’s list of 19 favorite pizzas right now.
Washingtonian’s Executive Food Editor Ann Limpert included in her list “Stracci Bianca” at Stracci Pizza (106 Hume Avenue), the vodka pizza at Emmy Squared (124 King Street) and the white clam Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana (3231 Duke Street).
According to the Washingtonian review of Stracci Pizza:
This Del Ray gem makes its own stracciatella cheese—hand-pulled mozzarella soaked in cream—and it’s best shown off on this Roman-style white pizza, simply accented with olive oil and flakes of Maldon salt.
According to the Washingtonian review of Emmy Squared, which also has two locations in D.C.:
The thick, soft, Detroit-style pizzas from this Brooklyn transfer can be a little…extra. This version is relatively straightforward—just sweet, creamy vodka sauce, basil, and pecorino. The sauce is also good on the Big Ang, which adds ricotta, Italian sausage, and banana peppers to the party.
According to the Washingtonian review of Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana:
I’ve lined up outside this century-old New Haven institution for its coal-fired sheet-pan pizza countless times. And now there is one at Westfield Montgomery Mall! And in Old Town! This particular pie—one of their most famous—is thin, crispy, garlicky as hell, and loaded with fresh clams.
The Commonwealth, Ashby, and Glebe Flood Mitigation Project — one of the largest flood mitigation projects in the city other than the huge RiverRenew project — is set to hit a planning milestone sometime this spring.
In a February Flood Action newsletter, city staff said the project is set to hit the “60% of the project design” milestone sometime this spring.
According to the newsletter:
Designs provided at the 60 percent benchmark will include additional project details, such as utility relocation design, structural details for culvert and storm sewer system, easements or right-of-way acquisitions to support project construction, and a more detailed review of constructability and construction methodology.
The project is an amalgamation of two large-capacity projects providing flood relief for the northern end of Del Ray and Lynhaven.
“The proposed design includes new parallel relief sewers along Commonwealth Avenue and East Glebe Road, which will increase the capacity of the storm sewer system,” the city’s website said. “Additionally, a new outfall will be installed to discharge flows to Four Mile Run. Finally, green infrastructure practices will be implemented to provide a water quality benefit to the watershed.”
The project is estimated to cost $50 million.
Construction is expected to start in Summer 2026 and be completed by Summer 2029.
Got dinner plans for Super Bowl Sunday? Benny Diforza’s 28-inch pies will be available in Del Ray starting this week.
The restaurant has been in the works since last summer in the former home of Sicilian Pizza at 1504B Mount Vernon Avenue. Manager Hayden Ko says the restaurant is waiting for one more permit approval from the city before the pizza oven gets fired up. She also said that the restaurant will open this week.
“I’m really excited to start working,” Ko said. “I have 15 employees and last week and we had a staff dinner with their families, and it was great to meet everyone and get the vibes up.”
The restaurant is well known for selling 28-inch pies that go for $5 to $6.50 per slice.
Benny’s first opened its Blacksburg location in 2011, and now has dozens of locations throughout Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wyoming. Each location has a different last name, with Del Ray’s Diforza literally translating to “of strength.”
According to the Benny’s website: “Order a whole pie and feed 2 families. We limit our toppings and we don’t count pennies so everything stays simple.”
Alexandria’s political scene is heating up, as a number of Democrat candidates formally launched their campaigns over the weekend.
City Council Member Alyia Gaskins held a packed kickoff at Indochen in Cameron Station on Sunday, following her opponent Vice Mayor Amy Jackson’s kickoff on Jan. 21 at Doyle’s Outpost in the West End. On Saturday, City Council Member Kirk McPike launched his campaign at Pork Barrel BBQ in Del Ray and City Council Member John Taylor Chapman did the same at Port City Brewing Company.
In her speech, Gaskins didn’t get into her positions on large projects in the city, like the Potomac Yard arena or the massive WestEnd development, but said that she is devoted to the nitty gritty of policies that maintain a quality of life for residents.
“I am running to be your next mayor to make sure that your city, that my city, that our collective city is a place that is safe, affordable, accessible, and one that truly and finally works for all of us,” Gaskins said.
A third mayoral candidate, Steven Peterson, will announce his candidacy to the Alexandria Democratic Committee on Monday, Feb. 5, followed by his formal kickoff later in the month.
City Council Members Sarah Bagley and Canek Aguirre are also running for reelection and have not announced when their kickoffs will be held. Aguirre is finalizing details for an event in Arlandria next month, he told ALXnow. Candidate Charlotte Scherer, a former Alexandria magistrate, is holding her campaign kickoff on Feb. 21 at Mount Purrnon Cat Cafe & Wine Bar in Old Town.
Chapman has been on council since 2012, and is the most senior member running for reelection. An Alexandria native who grew up in public housing, he said at his kickoff that doing City Council work is a “labor of love.”
“We have a thriving city,” he said. “It takes good policy, it takes advocating for resources.”
The other candidates with intentions to run haven’t announced when their campaigns will formally launch. They include Alexandria School Board Members Jacinta Greene and Abdel Elnoubi, West End Business Association President James Lewis, Del Ray’s Jesse O’Connell and Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority Resident Association President Kevin Harris.
The Democratic primary is on June 18. No Republican candidates have entered the race.
Campaign finances
Gaskins is leading the money race so far, raising $46,000 with $34,000 on-hand as of Dec. 31, according to the Virginia Public Access Project. Jackson has raised $16,900, and has $15,800 on-hand.
Longtime City Council Member Del Pepper endorsed Gaskins and donated $3,000 to her campaign.
“She has the ability to work with people she disagrees with,” Pepper said at the event. “You’ve got to have that if you want to be a good mayor.”
In the Council race, Chapman leads with fundraising, having raised $19,579 with $16,624 on-hand. McPike has raised $14,790, with $12,087 on-hand, followed by Aguirre, who raised $7,020 and has $10,716 on-hand. Bagley raised $3,320 and has $856 on-hand and Scherer is self-financing her campaign and contributed $900.
Del Ray’s Jesse O’Connell has thrown his hat into the City Council race.
O’Connell launched a campaign website this morning and announced his intention to run in an email.
“I have been really lucky to work across a wide variety of city departments and issues,” O’Connell told ALXnow. “I think I have really good perspective on how all these things fit together. Fundamentally, I’m somebody that likes to solve problems. I think I’m really good at listening to people and sort of building consensus. I’m a collaborator, and I hope to bring that to Council.”
The married father of two is chief advancement officer at the American Council on Education, and has served for more than a decade on a number of city boards and commissions, including as chair of the city’s influential Budget and Fiscal Affairs Advisory Committee. He sees himself as a collaborator, a “servant leader” who believes that the city’s Zoning for Housing policies don’t go far enough in expanding affordable housing opportunities. He also says he’s excited about the potential for a good deal with the controversial $2 billion Potomac Yard arena.
“I think a good deal looks like the opportunity to fundamentally change the city’s revenue projections,” O’Connell said. “We’ve made investments in our public safety workers, we are working on stormwater infrastructure, we are spending a lot of money on stuff that we have to spend money on, and a lot of that revenue burden is borne by our taxpayers. I think the chance to get kind of a transformative commercial-oriented source of revenue is a really exciting one for the city.”
O’Connell is a New Jersey native and moved to the area to attend Georgetown University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology and a master’s degree in social and public policy. He is also a former All-American track star, who placed fifth in the U.S. Olympic trials in 2004 in the 800 meters. He and his wife moved to Alexandria in 2012.
“The whole time we’ve lived here, I have looked for ways to give back and to contribute,” he said.
Since last August, he’s also co-authored an Alexandria-focused blog, ALXtra. It’s a satire blog, O’Connell says, humorously intended for millennials.
“I think the newsletter is very informed by kind of a millennial sensibility,” he said. “I think it’s very informed by kind of a literacy with internet culture.”
On Zoning for Housing, O’Connell said that the city’s elimination of single family zoning is a good start.
“I think where the city landed at the end of this first phase was the right place to be,” O’Connell said. “People want to live here because it’s a great place to live. If we don’t have the housing supply to meet that demand, prices are going to go up. I’ve been really encouraged to see the city think more holistically more creatively about giving this broader set of tools to meet that housing demand.”
O’Connell is also a running buddy with Mayor Justin Wilson, who is not running for reelection. He also said that the next mayor will have to be a collaborator.
“I think we’re losing somebody that is tireless and dedicated,” O’Connell said of Wilson. “I genuinely can’t think of a better example of constituent service. He’s responding to people and interacting with people at all hours of the day and night. It’s clear that he deeply cares about Alexandria and wants to ensure that Alexandria is able to be the city for a whole sort of wide set of people.”
Del Ray/Arlandria bar Hops N Shine (3410 Mount Vernon Avenue) is celebrating its five-year anniversary tomorrow (Saturday) with live music, craft activities, and a local beer tasting.
The bar’s anniversary party is scheduled to run from 1-8 p.m. on Saturday, with arts and crafts for kids from 1-6 p.m. and live music from 2-6 p.m.
The event listing said it would include sample beers from Lost Rhino, Dynasty, City State, Cigar City, and Oskar Blues as well as a selection of new sandwiches.
The bar launched in 2019 and became a staple of the Arlandria/Del Ray area with events like packed trivia nights.
It’s occasionally been a victim of its own success in the past: facing scrutiny from the Planning Commission and backlash from neighbors over noise violations.
Photo via Hops N Shine/Facebook
If you need a break from those harsh winter conditions, Del Ray’s seasonal popup bar will resemble a ski lodge in Aspen, Colorado, when it opens early next month.
“Aspen On The Avenue” is the latest effort from Homegrown Restaurant Group owners Bill Blackburn and “Mango” Mike Anderson. The bar and restaurant is being outfitted with skis on the walls, fake fireplaces and more.
“We’re going to create our version of an Après-ski cocktail lounge, and make you feel like you just finished a day on the slopes and you’re going to relax with a craft cocktail,” Blackburn told us. “It’s going to have a very warm feel. Think rough timber, fur, brick, fireplaces, skis and snowboards, hot toddy’s, sharable appetizers and our twists on classics.”
Blackburn said that the bar will open early next month, and will then close at the end of the season and reopen as a new concept in the spring.
“It’s going to be a cold winter,” Blackburn said. “We’ve got a couple more snows in us and it’s going to be a great place to warm up.”
Officials planning the $2 billion arena at Potomac Yard say that there will be multiple ways to park around and access the site, from accessing parking garages in nearby Crystal City and at Metro stations, with fans getting carted around in shuttles running up and down Potomac Avenue.
Transportation issues were the most frequently mentioned in a roundtable discussion on Monday with local business owners and representatives at Pork Barrel BBQ in Del Ray. The dozen or so business leaders otherwise expressed support for the project.
“The biggest thing I’m hearing from business owners and residents is the transportation and traffic needs,” Pork Barrel owner Bill Blackburn said. “That seems to be the overriding concern for folks.”
Working hand-in-hand, officials from Monumental Sports and site owner JBG Smith said that data from a transportation impact study will be released in weeks, not months. The 70-acre development is sandwiched between Richmond Highway to the west and the George Washington Memorial Parkway to the east. It is also next door to the brand new Potomac Yard Metro station, which will have to be upgraded to accommodate arena-size traffic.
“We have to make sure that the transportation plan that comes out of this works to make sure that your business is continuing to thrive, whether they’re in Del Ray, or Old Town, or at the arena district or in Crystal City, we want to make sure that everyone sort of understands how this is going to impact them and get all the data,” said Evan Regan-Levine, executive vice president at JBG Smith.
The meeting followed news that an authority to finance the deal was introduced into the Virginia General Assembly on Friday, and that Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin’s administration outlined $200 million for transportation improvements for the area. Mayor Justin Wilson said last month that the entertainment district will have minimal parking to discourage visitors from driving to the area.
“Who wouldn’t want some of the best athletes in the world visiting Alexandria and eating at my restaurant?” said Jamond Quander, owner of 1799 Prime Steak & Seafood in Old Town. “I think Alexandria is enough of a destination, is well known enough, that events at the new arena won’t hurt, but only improve my business. The question is how are they going to handle the transportation impact?”
Regan-Levine said that there are going to be multiple ways to access the proposed entertainment district.
“Look, there are a lot of different ways you’re gonna be able to access this,” he said. “And some of that might mean parking at something off-site. So, do I park at a Metro garage that’s not used at night and take the Metro a couple of stops in, and whether that’s Eisenhower or Huntington (stations), or also even in National Landing in Crystal City… The idea would be let’s open up and let’s run some shuttle buses down Potomac Avenue so we take some of those cars off the local grid.”
Jordan Silberman, Monumental’s executive vice president and general manager, said that solving the transportation issue is the most important piece in this puzzle.
“We want to make sure that as we invite everybody into, into our building (the arena), that people in the neighborhood feel good about it,” Silberman said. “It’s gonna make sure that we’re enforcing parking across Route 1 and the Mount Vernon neighborhood and Del Rey and making sure that people are not parking here and walking across the street into the neighborhood and affecting people’s lives.”
Monumental Sports wants the first phase of the project to be completed in 2029. According to Monumental:
The proposed sports and entertainment district in Potomac Yard would stimulate growth and job creation in the region through a new campus featuring the global corporate headquarters for Monumental Sports & Entertainment, an industry-leading arena for both the NHL’s Washington Capitals and NBA’s Washington Wizards, a state-of-the-art Monumental Sports Network media studio, a Wizards practice facility, a performing arts venue, and an expanded esports facility, in addition to new retail, restaurants, hotels, housing and community gathering spaces.
Alexandria will conduct a virtual public meeting on transportation and traffic management on Feb. 1.
In his second annual State of the Commonwealth address, Gov. Glenn Youngkin praised Pork Barrel BBQ (2312 Mount Vernon Avenue) in Del Ray at the end of a section arguing in favor of the new Potomac Yard arena.
Youngkin, who has faced some unwelcome receptions in Alexandria in the past, had previously visited Pork Barrel BBQ.
In his speech, Youngkin said the new arena bringing the Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards to Alexandria will be a boon for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the region, and the City of Alexandria.
“Small businesses will win too: one of those businesses is Pork Barrel BBQ in the Del Ray neighborhood, where for over a decade you’d find its owner, Bill Blackburn, behind the counter,” Youngkin said. “He’s a father of two and his roots in Alexandria run deep. He knows that when opportunity knocks, you should open the door. He knows having a world-class sports entertainment venue… right around the corner is good for business.”
Blackburn was in attendance at the address and received applause from the audience.
“Bill, thank you for showing us that when the opportunity presents itself, Virginia should seize it,” Youngkin said. “Thank you for being one of the thousands of small business owners that are lifting up the economy and are the lifeblood of Virginia’s future.”
In the speech, Youngkin was making the case for the new Potomac Yard to the General Assembly. The General Assembly is considering legislation to create a sports and entertainment authority, which would then have the power to issue the $1.5 billion in bonds required for the project.
“In partnership with the General Assembly, we can bring this opportunity to fruition,” Youngkin said. “Together, we can welcome both a new NBA team and new NHL team, with $12 billion in new economic activity and 30,000 new jobs.”
The city-funded Alexandria Economic Development Partnership hired lobbyists to advocate for the development at the General Assembly.
Youngkin said the arena opportunity is “rare and complex.”
Many in the General Assembly, and in Alexandria as a whole, remain unconvinced. The Pork Barrel BBQ choice is particularly ironic given that some state legislators have expressed concerns that the project will be Commonwealth funding to a project solely benefiting one locality — also known as pork barrel spending.
Republican State Senator Glen Sturtevant told 7News that he was reticent to give Alexandria more state funding after earlier appropriations for the state-mandated RiverRenew project. New legislation proposed this month also made it clear that RiverRenew won’t meet its 2025 deadlines.
Locally, the Potomac Yard arena has drawn protests from both Alexandrians and Washingtonians, where transportation concerns remain a key issue. State Sen. Adam Ebbin said securing Metro funding is a precondition, at the very least, to even talking about the arena.
In a release from Capitals and Wizards owner Monumental Sports, Blackburn said he was excited about the project
“As a small business owner, a resident, and a parent in Alexandria, I’m excited about this project and the opportunities it will create for my business, my family, and my city,” said Blackburn following the annual address. “The City, the Governor, and the General Assembly are going above and beyond to engage with residents and the business community about this opportunity and I really appreciate that. This project should be something that brings our community together regardless of your politics. It’s about investing in the future of our City.”
.@GovernorVA Youngkin on Capitals & Wizards to Virginia: "It would be a huge win, not just for Commonwealth, but for region and of course for Alexandria. Small businesses will win, too, One of those small businesses is @porkbarrelbbq Del Ray … Bill Blackburn @BillofDelRay " pic.twitter.com/oJdPYKrq06
— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) January 10, 2024
The impact that the proposed Washington Wizards/Capitals arena at Potomac Yard will have on local businesses will be discussed in a virtual town hall meeting this week.
Stephanie Landrum, CEO of the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership (AEDP), will speak about the ramifications in a Zoom meeting at noon on Thursday (Jan. 21).
Reception of the news that the multi-billion dollar arena and entertainment district is coming to Potomac Yard has been tepid at best. While an AEDP report states that the development will result in 30,000 new jobs, the city is contending with a number of challenges before the deal can be sealed.
Last week, a group of residents from the Coalition to Stop the Arena at Potomac Yard rallied in protest outside the Potomac Yard Metro station — next door to the proposed development. Concerns ranged from the project’s transportation and financial impacts to parking and quality of life.
“An entertainment district is projected to generate roughly 2.5 times the economic output of what would otherwise be built based on current development plans,” according to an AEDP impact analysis.
Metro General Manager Randy Clarke also said that the newly opened Potomac Yard Metro station can’t handle arena-size crowds and will need an upgrade. In an effort to encourage alternative transportation to events at the proposed district, Mayor Justin Wilson says there will be minimal parking at the completed site, prompting some concern that neighboring communities will be affected by spillover parking.
Landrum recently said that the fate of the Target store at 3101 Richmond Highway in Potomac Yard is undetermined, but that it is one of the most frequent questions she gets regarding the development.
