Amid parking challenges for residents and visitors in Old Town, the Traffic and Parking Board approved additional parking spaces yesterday (Monday).
The changes respond to concerns from several businesses about parking availability east of Washington Street in Old Town. One of the major factors was the City Hall and Market Square renovation project, which temporarily closed the 180-space Market Square Garage in early 2026 and requires construction staging areas on surrounding streets.
King Arthur Baking Company is setting its sights on later this year for the opening of its permanent location in Old Town Alexandria.
The Alexandria-based Tall Ship Providence Foundation is suspending its educational and tour programs on the Potomac River, effective Friday, June 26, the organization announced today (Monday).
The decision, which was recently made by the nonprofit’s board, means Tall Ship Providence will be sold if significant funding is not found, the organization’s Executive Director Kathy Seifert told ALXnow. As it stands, the bar at the floating pier at Waterfront Park will stay open to pay for upkeep of the ship, which Seifert says will stay docked in Alexandria until the end of the summer.
After nearly a year in development, a new café and wine bar in Old Town is soft opening this week.
Owner Ksenia Varakina is opening Cherry On Top at 1021 Queen Street from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday (June 24), and told ALXnow the grand opening will be on July 10. The shop is expected to offer selections of wine, espresso beverages, charcuterie and pastries.
Alexandria will get a long holiday weekend packed with Juneteenth festivities, Father’s Day events, Pride Month celebrations and summer solstice events.
As some workers get a day off for the federal Juneteenth holiday, Alexandria will host events like the Juneteenth Festival at Charles Houston Recreation Center, Washington Revels Jubilee Voices Juneteenth Concert at Shiloh Baptist Church and Memorial at Douglass Cemetery.
A new bridal boutique is preparing to open its doors in Old Town on Friday, June 26.
The White Magnolia Bridal Collection will open its doors at 123 N. Henry Street, offering a curated collection of bridal gowns priced between $1,800 and $6,000 from designers including Antonio Gual, BECCAR, Calla Blanche, and Sara Gabriel. The business will be open Tuesday to Saturday by appointment only.
There’s more than one reason to stay up late — the Woodrow Wilson Bridge will be opening twice in the early hours of Tuesday morning (June 16).
The bridge will first open at 12:01 a.m. for the passing of the Gazela, a 19th-century fishing vessel docked in Alexandria over the weekend as part of the city’s America250 celebration. The opening will last 15 to 20 minutes, according to DC Police Traffic on X.
With minimal discussion on Saturday (June 13), Alexandria City Council voted to move forward with an “enhanced gravity storm sewer system” to combat flooding along the waterfront in Old Town.
The City Council action was taken four months after the National Park Service denied the city’s plan to build a pump station at Waterfront Park (1 Prince Street). The city’s previously approved proposal would have closed Waterfront Park and Point Lumley Park from the fall of 2026 until the fall of 2028 to rebuild segments of the sea wall and to install the pump station to recirculate water in flood-prone areas back to the Potomac River. The denial by NPS forced the city to make “significant modifications” to the plan, project manager Matt Landis told Council.
After a health scare and visit to the emergency room, Mayor Alyia Gaskins shared some advice for residents: “take care of yourself.”
Gaskins ended up in the emergency room due to severe dehydration during Sails on the Potomac‘s opening ceremony on Friday (June 12). City leaders were giving remarks to kick off the weekend-long festival.
As the second weekend of June arrives, Alexandria City Public Schools students are off for the summer and families will be heading out to enjoy events around the city and region.
Sails on the Potomac will coincide with ALX Jazz Fest from June 12-14 at Waterfront Park (1A Prince Street). Highlights of the event include tall ship tours, fireworks, ALX Jazz Fest performances and the VA250 Mobile Museum.
Gawkers peeking into the windows of historic homes in Old Town need look no further.
On June 16, publisher Simon & Schuster will release “Old Town Style: Inside Alexandria’s Most Beautiful Historic Homes.” In its 253 pages, Robert Weinhagen Jr., president of the Historic Alexandria Foundation, goes inside 44 homes built within the Colonial, Federal and Victorian periods.
