The Alexandria Fire Department assisted in extinguishing a fire at a home in the 5800 Block of Queens Gate Court in the Franconia area of Fairfax County on Sunday morning (Oct. 12).
No injuries were reported. The Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department and AFD responded to the blaze at the two-level home at 8:10 a.m., and the fire was extinguished around 30 minutes later, according to radio dispatches.
A local bakery just got a big order with a twist, literally.
Bread and Water Co. in the Belle View Shopping Center is now the pretzel maker for Capital One Arena. Throughout the hockey and basketball seasons, as well as during concerts and special events, customers can expect to find pretzels made by Bread and Water’s bakery in the Alexandria area of Fairfax County.
Welcome to Friday, Alexandria. Here’s a look at the top stories of the week.
ALXnow’s top story this week is on the man who was struck by a train at the Potomac Yard Metro station on September 22 and later died at George Washington University Hospital. Metro Transit Police stated at the time that the man had trespassed onto the tracks, and an investigation revealed that he was being chased by two alleged fare evaders: a 17-year-old female and an 18-year-old female, according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.
An instructional assistant at Thomas Edison High School, located at 5801 Franconia Road, Alexandria (Fairfax County), has been arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two students.
Derrick Burroughs, a 40-year-old Alexandria man, was arrested after Child Protective Services received two referrals that two students were “inappropriately touched,” according to the Fairfax County Police Department. Burroughs, an instructional assistant with Fairfax County Public Schools since 2023, was transported to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center and charged with two counts of aggravated sexual battery and indecent liberties by a custodian. He was released after posting a $3,000 bond, according to FCPD.
There’s officially a new coffee shop in the Alexandria area.
The ribbon was cut at a new PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans franchise at 6220 N. Kings Highway, Alexandria (Fairfax County) on Saturday, Sept. 27. On hand at the event were owners Ron and Sofiya Parker, the family, Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk, and Chamber ALX CEO Joe Haggerty. The coffee shop officially opened in July.
Three suspects have been arrested in connection with the Sept. 19 shooting death of Jaylin Hartless in the Woodlawn area of Fairfax County.
The 21-year-old Hartless was found shot by his vehicle in the 3400 block of Buckman Road at around 4:45 a.m. and died at the scene. Following information relayed via the Fairfax County Police Department’s Crime Solvers tip line, detectives arrested Tavon Ferguson, 31, from the city of Alexandria, Tennida Ferguson, 49, of the Alexandria area of Fairfax County, and Tavon Lang, 32, also from the Alexandria area of Fairfax County.
Our top story this week is on a new report that Alexandria is among the hardest-hit localities affected by the Trump administration’s layoffs of federal workers. According to a new Brookings Institution report, Alexandria and its neighboring jurisdictions saw sharp unemployment increases. More than 13,000 federal workers live in Alexandria, and more than 76,000 federal employees live in Virginia’s 8th Congressional District, which includes Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church and parts of Fairfax County, according to U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-8).
“I do worry that might be a sign of the sort of federal government cuts causing people to feel they need to leave the city,” Vice Mayor Sarah Bagley said in a City Council meeting on Sept. 9.
An Alexandria woman died Tuesday night after being struck by a hit-and-run driver and then by a responding police officer in Hybla Valley, the Fairfax County Police Department announced.
Trina Jones, 62, of Alexandria, was crossing Richmond Highway at Belford Drive, just outside the Mount Vernon Crossroads shopping center, when a southbound driver hit her around 8:39 p.m., according to a police news release. One of the officers responding to the scene then struck Jones while driving a marked police cruiser, the Fairfax County Police Department said.
An Alexandria man was arrested Friday after allegedly brandishing a handgun at a store in the Groveton neighborhood of Fairfax County.
Fairfax County Police arrested Dorian Claytor Jr. after he allegedly brandished a black handgun inside a store in the 6300 block of Richmond Highway and then fled on foot Friday afternoon. Claytor was arrested soon afterward, and police later found a handgun hidden in an aisle of the store.
The Pampered Pet Boutique & Barkery (1612 Belle View Boulevard) and its sister store Pampered Pet Bark Bath (1614 Belle View Boulevard) have permanently closed in the Belle View Shopping Center in the Alexandria area of Fairfax County.
The boutique opened in 2021, and the dog bath opened last year.
Here’s a rundown of our top stories.
Our top story this week is on the Thursday, Sept. 11, announcement that Systems Planning and Analysis (SPA) will expand its Alexandria headquarters and create 1,200 new jobs over the next five years as part of a $46.9 million investment across Northern Virginia. The defense contractor bought, and will renovate, a 239,000-square-foot office building at 2001 N. Beauregard Street. Attendees at the announcement included Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins and Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay.
