The City of Alexandria has fully transitioned from gas-powered to electric leaf blowers as it prepares to implement a citywide ban on the gas devices later this year.
The city reported this week that it has completed the transition to electric devices for city maintenance and operations. The May 17 phase-out came one year after City Council approved the ban, which made Alexandria the first locality in Virginia to approve such a measure.
Old Town will go to the dogs tomorrow (Saturday) as the ALX Dog Walk returns.
The event, first held in 2022, combines the causes of animal welfare and sustainability for a two-mile walk through Old Town and a celebration with activities at Oronoco Bay Park. The event runs from 7-11 a.m., with the walk starting at 8:15 a.m. An estimated 2,000 walkers and their dogs are expected to participate.
Three students at Alexandria Country Day School have earned the highest Girl Scout Cadette award for their projects addressing bullying, sustainability, charitable giving and animal welfare.
Eighth graders Eleanor Chambers, Sadia Hussain and Cece Baker will be honored during a troop meeting next month for earning the Girl Scout Silver Award. Girl Scout Cadettes in sixth to eighth grade can earn the Silver Award by completing a service project focusing on a community issue.
Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail, a volunteer group dedicated to trail maintenance and education efforts, was recognized with an award last month for its trail renovation work.
The organization was honored with the “Trail of the Year” award from the Public Lands Alliance at the nonprofit’s conference in Daytona Beach, Fla., on Feb. 23. The group received the award for its partnership with the National Park Service to renovate the George Washington Memorial Parkway’s trail surface and rest areas from 2024 to 2025.
Regional officials were briefed yesterday (Monday) on continued repairs and efforts to mitigate health risks five weeks after a sewage pipe collapsed, releasing an estimated 243 million gallons of sewage into the Potomac River.
DC Water officials outlined steps it has taken since the Jan. 19 sewer pipe collapse, just east of the American Legion Bridge, during a virtual meeting with the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments that included Vice Chair, Mayor Alyia Gaskins. The collapse happened in a section of the Potomac Interceptor, which carries about 60 million gallons of sewage daily from Fairfax and Loudoun counties, the towns of Vienna and Herndon, Dulles Airport and Montgomery County, Md.
New fitness equipment, trees and shrubs are coming to a half-mile segment of the Ben Brenman Park walking trail.
The improvements at 4800 Brenman Park Drive, which are expected to arrive by early spring, are being coordinated through a partnership between Alexandria’s Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities and a professor at George Mason University.
Alexandria’s Natural Resources Division is introducing new leadership and a slate of upcoming community engagements in 2026.
The city has hired Raychel Frye and Katrina Napora as new natural resource managers, it announced yesterday (Wednesday), with Oscar Mendoza continuing to oversee the division as chief. Under the new leadership, Natural Resources will have a “renewed focus on education, stewardship, and community engagement.”
The city of Alexandria is hoping to update its environmental standards for new developments, with a proposal slated for review by the Planning Commission and City Council next month.
Released last week, the proposed Green Building Plan establishes new criteria for private and public developments in aspects like renewable energy usage and wastewater infrastructure. It serves as an update to the city’s 2019 Green Building Chapter, which currently “relies heavily on prescriptive third-party sustainability certifications with specific ‘performance points’ identified for each certification option,” according to the city.
With teamwork, grit and a reciprocating saw, a group of volunteers in Alexandria successfully removed a piece of debris from the Mount Vernon Trail that they estimate weighed at least 500 pounds.
The Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail discovered the debris, a large sling fender, sitting in the Potomac River’s low tide line near the Marina Towers building at 501 Slaters Lane during the Nov. 15 Mega Trash Bash cleanup.
Applications for Alexandria’s Stormwater Utility (SWU) Fee Credit Program opened today (Monday).
Property owners can apply for credits electronically or with hard copies through Feb. 15, 2026, and may be eligible for up to a 50% reduction on SWU fees “by installing eligible practices,” according to a city announcement.
The city of Alexandria will receive $10.9 million in federal grant funding toward DASH, Sens. Mark Warner (D) and Tim Kaine (D) announced today (Wednesday).
Funding will benefit the transit system’s Bus Fleet Replacement & Facility Rehabilitation project, an undertaking that aims to transition Alexandria to 100% zero-emission buses over the next decade and build infrastructure to support the growing fleet, according to a release.
