A plan to construct 32 four-story townhomes at the site of two Old Town office buildings is still struggling for the blessing of the Board of Architectural Review.
Members of the review board are requesting more exterior variety and colonial influence in the proposed townhomes, after reviewing new renderings of the project at 333 N. Fairfax Street. The board did not vote on the item during last night’s public hearing (Wednesday).
A family-owned sushi restaurant is preparing to open soon in Old Town with a menu full of Thai and East Asian specialties.
Interior renovations for Akeno Sushi are wrapping up at 611 King Street, where co-owner and veteran restaurateur Eakachai “Sean” Promsiri hopes to open for business by the end of the month.
Alexandria leaders have approved an Old Town cafe’s request to expand its outdoor seating and extend Sunday hours, after several neighbors spoke in support of the measure.
The City Council green-lit LaPluma Coffee & Wine’s special use permit application to increase outdoor seating capacity from 28 guests to 40, and to remain open until 10 p.m. on Sundays, as opposed to 6 p.m.
Book specials, prizes and a kids’ storytime are coming to Old Town Books tomorrow (Saturday) as the local shop celebrates seven years in business.
The independent bookstore at 130 S. Royal Street first got its start as a pop-up business in 2018. The shop “never un-popped,” owner Ally Kirkpatrick told ALXnow.
City and public housing leaders joined developers today (Wednesday) to break ground on the Samuel Madden Homes affordable housing apartment complex in Old Town.
The project will replace the former 66-unit public housing apartment complex with 532 new affordable homes across two phases. The first phase, costing $120 million, will redevelop the site into 207 units of affordable and mixed-income housing, with an estimated completion date of fall 2027.
The Freedom House Museum reopened last Thursday following over a year of exterior renovations to restore the building’s pre-Civil War facade.
Alexandria leaders cut the ribbon on the renovations during a ceremony Saturday afternoon, where Mayor Alyia Gaskins said the museum — formerly a site where slave traders trafficked tens of thousands of enslaved peoples — serves as a declaration that the city will not forget its history.
There’s a rush of business at Bar 86 in Old Town after midnight, after most of Old Town’s nightlife has died down.
Business is in full-swing at Alexandria’s newest speakeasy. By day, the venue is home to French bistro Café du Soleil, serving coffee, croissants and crepes. But at 5 p.m., a transformation occurs. The business closes, dim green lightbulbs are installed and tables are rearranged and set for 6 p.m. evening service at 215 S. Union Street.
Even though she started work this past summer, Campagna Center CEO Edith Hawkins is still moving into her office.
Hawkins succeeded the nonprofit’s former CEO of 13 years, Tammy Mann, in June. The mother of three commutes twice a week, sometimes more, from Bowie, Maryland, to the educational and social development nonprofit’s headquarters at 418 S. Washington Street in Old Town, where she told ALXnow that needs are growing.
Alexandria will temporarily shut down the streets surrounding City Hall on Monday as part of preparations for the City Hall Renovation Project.
N. Royal Street will close to traffic between Cameron Street and King Street from 7 a.m. Monday until 7 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 13. Parking will also be prohibited on that section of road from Thursday, Nov. 13 to Thursday, Nov. 20.
The Alexandria Police Department suspects that a man shot in Old Town last month likely accidentally shot himself.
APD responded to the 300 block of N. West Street around 9:45 p.m. Oct. 8, after receiving reports of six to eight shots fired and an 18-year-old male with a gunshot wound to the thigh. Police now suspect the man fired at himself while fleeing the scene, according to a recent search warrant affidavit.
A 48-year-old Alexandria man charged with forcible sodomy and attempted rape against a woman in her Old Town apartment last year was found not guilty today (Wednesday) in the Alexandria Circuit Court.
Antuan Bostick was found not guilty after a seven-day jury trial. The incident occurred around 8 p.m. April 7, 2024, in an apartment on the 800 block of N. Pitt Street, when a neighbor called 911 and reported that she heard the victim screaming for help for up to five minutes.
