Justin Wilson | ALXnow

Morning Notes

Published July 29, 2020 at 9:00AM | Updated July 29, 2020 at 10:37AM

Mayor Reports COVID-19 Cases Increase by 14 — “Positive tests up 14 to 2,749 in the City 7-day Positivity Rate up to 5.9% 0 new hospitalizations Still safer at home, wash hands, wear masks and support our essential workers.” [Twitter]

Beyer Asks U.S. Park Police Chief to Implement Body Cameras After Lafayette Square Incident — “Beyer seeks commitment to body cam program funded/authorized by Congress from acting Chief Monahan given USPP’s transparency failures in the killing of Bijan Ghaisar. Monahan: USPP not ‘in a position to successfully implement, manage, and sustain a body-worn camera program.'” [Twitter]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published July 28, 2020 at 9:00AM

Exercising near the closed GenOn power plant in Alexandria near the Potomac River. (staff photo by James Cullum)

Mayor Says Heroes Act Ignores Local Government — “The Heroes Act, adopted by the House of Representatives included $89.6M in funding for Alexandria, which nearly replaced the revenue we are projected to lose this year. The bill released in the Senate tonight doesn’t even mention local government. They cannot be serious.” [Twitter]

ACPS Hosting Reopening Chats Today — “School Board Representatives, Lorraine Johnson and Ashley Sanchez-Viafara (both seniors), to lead Student-focused Reopening Community Chats.” [ACPS]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published July 23, 2020 at 9:00AM | Updated July 23, 2020 at 10:31AM

View of the U.S. Capitol from Rivergate City Park along the Potomac River in Alexandria. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

Longtime Beverly Hills Resident Marilyn Whitehurst Dies — “Sweet, beautiful, kind, funny, and thoughtful with your contagious laugh, charming and unforgettable Southern accent, and always a twinkle in your eye, you will be dearly missed by all, Marilyn. Loved all the times you and the other Saints mom came to the Vineyard. Rest In Peace my dear friend.” [Facebook]

COVID-19 Cases Increase by 36 — “Positive tests up 36 to 2,618 in the City… Still safer at home, wash hands, wear masks and support our essential workers.” [Twitter]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published July 22, 2020 at 9:00AM | Updated July 22, 2020 at 9:37AM

City Official Dies in Car Crash — “The City of Alexandria is devastated by the loss of Robert Bloom, Public Safety Systems Administrator in the Department of Emergency and Customer Communications (DECC), in a vehicle crash on the morning of July 20, 2020.” [City of Alexandria]

Alexandria Man Dies in D.C. Shooting — “Homicide detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department are investigating the fatal shooting of an Alexandria man that occurred Sunday night in the Shipley area of the city, according to a police release… MPD identified the decedent as Rayfone Gassaway, 37, of Alexandria, Virginia.” [Patch]

News

Percent Positivity for Coronavirus Trending Down Once Again

By Vernon Miles

Published July 21, 2020 at 5:30PM

The City of Alexandria is back on the right track for the percentage of positive coronavirus testing, at least for now.

Percent positive — or the number people with a positive test result out of all those tested — is one of the more reliable ways of assessing the spread of the virus and the reach of testing, according to John Hopkins University. As the state began to consider reopening, a prolonged decrease in new cases was cited as one of the requirements for reopening.

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published July 14, 2020 at 9:00AM

Longtime Bishop Ireton Teacher Dies — “It is with sadness but also with great faith in our Lord that we share that Mr. Ron Umbeck, a beloved faculty member at Bishop Ireton for more than 50 years, passed away earlier this evening. He is now at peace in Heaven and we are sure that he met St. Peter with a math book, a crossword puzzle, an It’s Academic prep sheet and a Bishop Ireton pin. He loved this school, but more importantly, he loved his students and his Bishop Ireton family.” [Facebook]

Mayor Talks About Coronavirus on PBS — “My thanks to ⁦@AlexandriaVAGov⁩ Mayor ⁦@justindotnet⁩ for spending time with us to talk #Virginia re-opening, concerns about virus spread, and how he’s balancing the two. Our report, produced by ⁦@courtneyknorris, on ⁦@NewsHour⁩ tonight…” [Twitter]

News

ACPS Has No Comment on Chief Operating Officer’s Vocal Departure

By James Cullum

Published July 8, 2020 at 10:30AM

Alexandria City Public Schools will not comment on assertions made by the former ACPS Chief Operating Officer Mignon Anthony, who lambasted the school system and the leadership of Superintendent Gregory Huthings, Jr. in a scathing opinion letter published by the Alexandria Times.

Anthony apologized for not fulfilling promises made when she started her job in January 2018, and said that the tide turned against her after raising concerns over de-escalating transportation employee complaints. She also that ACPS leadership is unstable and that it “does not serve our students or educators well.”

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published July 8, 2020 at 9:00AM | Updated July 8, 2020 at 9:51AM

Walking along the Potomac River at Founders Park in Old Town. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

Mayor Decries Hate Incidents in Alexandria — “‪Two sad examples of hate in our community this week. ‬This is not who we are as a City. We reject those that would spew hate and target members of our community.‬ ‪I hope that any violation of the law will be addressed aggressively by City, State and Federal officials, as applicable.‬” [Facebook]

Beyer Says Trump Doesn’t Care About Children — “Trump’s approach all along has been to pretend a miraculous end to the pandemic is just around the corner. He doesn’t have a plan. He isn’t going to lead. He doesn’t care about making schools safe for children and educators. It’s so important to get this right.” [Twitter]

News

Poor Business Revenue Amid Shutdown Leaves Alexandria Government With Empty Pockets

By Vernon Miles

Published July 7, 2020 at 12:00PM

Alexandria City Hall (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria businesses struggled with poor sales during the shutdown, and now that drop in revenue is coming around to leave the City of Alexandria with little commercial tax support for an already strained budget.

According to information shared by Mayor Justin Wilson, the city faced a dramatic drop off in business taxes in April and May.

News

Alexandria Law Enforcement Officials Welcome a Closer Look to Eradicate Systemic Racism

By James Cullum

Published June 30, 2020 at 11:50AM | Updated June 30, 2020 at 3:05PM

Alexandria Police Chief Michael Brown joins protestors outside the city's police headquarters on Tuesday, June 2, 2020. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

Representatives of Alexandria’s law enforcement community, in a Monday night Zoom meeting, said they welcomed a closer look in order to eradicate systemic racism in their respective departments.

Police Chief Michael Brown and Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Shelbert Williams discussed the work that their departments have done over the years and in the wake of the death of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis Police. Mayor Justin Wilson also chimed into the conversation, which was moderated by city’s racial and social equity officer Jaqueline Tucker.

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published June 29, 2020 at 9:00AM

Alexandria Among Top Cities Where Women Find Success — “Here in Alexandria, more than two-thirds of women have a Bachelor’s degree or higher. The median income of women is more than $75,800. In addition, almost one-third (31.3 percent) of local businesses are owned by women.” [Alexandria Living]

Mayor Supports Governor Extending Rent Moratorium — “The extraordinary financial pressure facing residents of Alexandria who are experiencing unemployment or loss of income continues.‬ ‪Today, I supported the Governor of Virginia’s efforts to extend the moratorium on evictions to allow state/local rent relief programs to assist.” ‬[Facebook]