Duke Street

News

Shooter McGee’s reopens, some neighboring businesses remain closed following shopping center fire

By James Cullum
Shooter McGee's (5249 Duke Street) reopens after neighboring fire, April 1, 2025 (staff photo by James Cullum)

With the odor of Sunday’s fire fading from a neighboring business, Shooter McGee’s (5249 Duke Street) reopened today (Tuesday).

A number of neighboring businesses have been closed since the Sunday morning (March 30) blaze in the 5200 block of Duke Street. AFD posted notifications outside the Blessed Smiles dental office at 5241 Duke Street and Hair Loom (5247 Duke Street) stating that the businesses were unsafe to occupy due to smoke and water damage. According to a staffer, the dental office expects to be closed for the rest of this week.

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News

CommonWealth One Federal Credit Union opening new branch this summer at the Shoppes of Foxchase

By James Cullum
CommonWealth One Federal Credit Union is coming to the Shoppes of Foxchase (staff photo by James Cullum)

CommonWealth One Federal Credit Union is planning to open its third location in Alexandria.

A bank sign reading, “Coming soon,” has been erected on the door of 4557 Duke Street in the Shoppes of Foxchase.

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Smoking Kow BBQ on Duke Street scraps tipping policy and raises employee pay

By James Cullum
Food at Smoking Kow BBQ at 3250 Duke Street (staff photo by James Cullum)

Tired of tipping? Smoking Kow BBQ on Duke Street recently stopped asking customers for tips.

That’s right—after ordering burnt ends, spare ribs, sweet potatoes, and cornbread, customers are no longer prompted to tip by the restaurant’s electronic payment system, and the tip jar has also been removed.

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SNEAK PEEK: Umiya Alexandria is opening in the old Generous George’s spot on Duke Street this summer

By James Cullum
Front counter of Umiya at 3006 Duke Street (staff photo by James Cullum)

It’s been 16 years since Generous George’s Positive Pizza & Pasta Place closed, and only a few months before it reopens as a Japanese sushi restaurant.

After an extensive interior renovation, Umiya Alexandria is expected to open by August, a contractor working on the project told ALXnow.

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POLICE: At least nine vehicles involved in crash on Duke Street after tow truck loses brakes

By Vernon Miles
Intersection of Duke Street and Quaker Lane (image via Google Maps)

Update at 5:15 p.m. — All lanes have now been reopened

The Alexandria Police Department (APD) warned drivers to avoid the Duke Street and Quaker Lane intersection after a crash involving anywhere between nine to eleven vehicles.

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Short-term rentals, Duke Street plans and more at the top of Alexandria’s planning agenda

By Vernon Miles
Traffic backup heading eastbound along Duke Street (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Hidden behind the relatively boring title “Long-Range Planning Interdepartmental Work Program” is a peek at some of the biggest planning efforts in Alexandria over the next year.

The program spells out some of the biggest priorities for the various city departments for FY 2026-27. For the Department of Planning and Zoning, one of the top items on that list is possible regulations for Alexandria’s short-term residential rental market — i.e. Airbnb and other home-sharing apps.

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News

New Japanese restaurant files permit to replace troubled Yates Pizza Palace space on Duke Street

By Vernon Miles
3006 Duke Street on Jan. 27, 2025 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Japanese restaurant Umiya could be opening in a location previously haunted by a ghost kitchen and the pizza palace that never was.

Umiya Alexandria Inc. filed a permit to open a full service restaurant at 3006 Duke Street, offering Japanese sushi, seafood and grilled food.

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One dead after fire under overpass near Holmes Run Park

By James Cullum
Police tape at Holmes Run Park on Dec. 14, 2024 (staff photo by James Cullum)

One person is dead after a fire at a homeless encampment near Holmes Run Park in Alexandria’s West End.

The Alexandria Fire Department discovered the fire under an overpass in the 4600 block of Duke Street, near the entrance to Holmes Run Park and the Shoppes at Foxchase. The Friday night fire was reported at around 10:45 p.m. by a resident in a nearby apartment building, according to AFD dispatches.

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News

What is the most dangerous street in Alexandria?

By Vernon Miles
Duke Street was closed at S. Walker Street down to N. Ripley Street, where a motorcyclist died after crashing into a DASH bus, April 9, 2024 (staff phjoto by JAmes Cullum)

Traffic safety advocacy group Northern Virginia Families for Safe Streets (NoVA FSS) compiled crash data from 2021 to 2024 and put together a ranking of the city’s most dangerous corridors with one standing out in particular.

The ranking looks not at the number of crashes, but the number of total casualties — from visible and non-visible injuries to severe and fatal crashes — reported by the Virginia Department of Transportation.

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Duke Street changes stir ‘tough decisions’ argument on Alexandria City Council

By Vernon Miles
Duke Street and Cambridge Road intersection (image via Google Maps)

An argument over major roadway changes left City Council members, like drivers at the Duke Street and Cambridge Road intersection near Bishop Ireton High School, stuck at a messy impasse.

As the City of Alexandria’s been working through the Duke Street In Motion plans — an overhaul of Duke Street with a bigger focus on transit, cyclist and pedestrian safety — the intersection of Duke with Cambridge Road has been a sticking point.

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