Two watch parties have been organized in the city to witness the fastest man on the planet, Alexandria native Noah Lyles, race in the 100 meter and 200 meter finals in the Paris Olympics.
It’s the second consecutive Olympics that a watch party will be held at Alexandria City High School (ACHS). The 26-year-old Lyles graduated from ACHS in 2016, and won the bronze medal in the Tokyo Olympics in the 200m. He’s a three-time world champion in the race, winning in 2019, 2022 and 2023.
Cupcakes, music and fireworks punctuated Alexandria’s 275th birthday on Saturday.
It was a clear night for a party at Oronoco Bay Park (100 Madison Street) along the Potomac River. Mayor Justin Wilson and city leaders spoke onstage before handing out thousands of birthday cupcakes.
The Alexandria City Council upheld the certificate of appropriateness for a contentious development in Old Town after an appeal was filed by residents claiming that it will be an eyesore that destroys the historic nature of the area.
Council voted 6-1 upholding the certificate of appropriateness approved by the Board of Architectural Review in May, with small conditions.
Alexandria and regional partners will be getting $3.5 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to “identify and implement” new affordable housing strategies.
The $3.5 million is provided through HUD’s Pathways to the Removal of Obstacles grant. The funding will go to Alexandria and other localities in Maryland and D.C. as part of the Metropolitan Council of Governments.
Alexandria is still working out the kinks in its short-term rentals policies, but rentals on sites like Airbnb have already taken over a considerable amount of the city’s transient lodging market.
In a newsletter, Mayor Justin Wilson said there are over 700 short-term rentals in Alexandria, comprising less than 1% of the city’s housing stock, but that those rentals account for over a quarter of the city’s transient lodging tax revenue — a market traditionally defined by hotels.
On paper, the plan to add toll lanes to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge doesn’t preclude the possibility of adding Metro access one day, Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson joined the Coalition for Smarter Growth in expressing concerns that the new express lanes would make future rail plans unfeasible.
The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is currently considering converting a portion of the bridge reserved for future HOV/express bus/rail transit into toll lanes. VDOT said future transit could be implemented by shifting one thru lane to a local lane and reducing to one express lane in each direction. But Wilson said Alexandria has had a history of legal fights over the bridge, the notable one being a lawsuit that resulted in the bridge being 10 lanes instead of 12.
Outgoing Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson publicly criticized a mailer for Vice Mayor Amy Jackson‘s mayoral campaign that used a photo of former Fire Chief Corey Smedley with her at a city event.
Wilson said at the end of last night’s City Council meeting that the integrity of the city government is at stake, and that it should be insulated from the “vagaries of politics to the extent possible.” Without calling out Jackson by name, he described the mailer and said that former Chief Smedley did not give his permission to be in the ad.
After two years under construction, city leaders cut the ribbon today on Alexandria City High School’s new Minnie Howard Campus.
The $190 million project for the 343,000-square-foot, five-story satellite campus can hold up to 1,600 students — double the capacity of its 1950’s-era predecessor. The building will be home to six career and technical education academies, which administrators say will allow students to pursue their interests.
How many dogs should be allowed to live in Alexandria households?
Since 1995 it’s been illegal to own more than three dogs in Alexandria. The ordinance was passed with cat hoarding in mind, however, and the limit on cats as pets is remaining unchanged at four.
Despite being one of the dog-friendliest cities in the country, it’s been illegal for Alexandria residents to own more than three dogs and four cats for decades. Now Mayor Justin Wilson is asking city staff to present a proposal that will increase the number of dogs allowed to live in a single household.
The limit on dog ownership goes back to 1995, but it was never about the dogs, Wilson said. The ordinance was approved by City Council to keep cat owners from hoarding feline companions.
Can Republican Celianna Gunderson shake up the Alexandria City Council with a win this November?
While she’s still learning the issues, Gunderson says that she would not have voted to approve a recent 2.5-cent tax increase.
