A planning effort kicking off next year could determine the future of a major transit project in the West End.
Envision Route 7 is an ongoing plan to build a bus rapid transit (BRT) system connecting the Mark Center in Alexandria, through Bailey’s Crossroads and Falls Church, out to Tysons. An update headed to the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission tonight spells out some of what’s ahead for that plan in 2025.
A 15-year-old Alexandria boy was arrested after a series of armed carjackings and another vehicle theft in the West End last month, according to the Alexandria Police Department.
There were armed carjackings on July 9 and July 16 in the area of Northampton Road and Strutfield Lane, according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.
Police are investigating an early morning shooting at Southern Towers.
According to scanner traffic, the victim was shot in the hand around 2 a.m. in the Southern Towers parking lot. Witnesses told police the gunshot seemed to follow a fight outside.
A coalition of affordable housing advocacy organizations is planning to rally outside of City Hall this weekend to advocate stronger affordable housing and tenant protections.
The rally is scheduled for Market Square outside of City Hall (301 King Street) on Saturday, April 13 at 1 p.m. — while City Council is meeting inside.
From protests over evictions to outrage over living conditions, complaints at the Southern Towers Apartment complex in Alexandria’s West End have become somewhat commonplace over the last few years.
The aging five-building complex is home to an estimated 7,000 people living in about 2,000 workforce apartments. One maintenance worker told ALXnow that he fixes at least two riser leaks per month on the property, the most recent of which affected 14 apartments in The Sherwood building last month.
(Updated at 4 p.m. on Oct. 18) For at least five weeks, Loren DePina and her family will be forced live in a one-bedroom apartment until flooding damage in her three-bedroom Southern Towers apartment is fixed.
DePina’s and 13 other apartments at Southern Towers’ Sherwood building (5001 Seminary Road) were significantly damaged early Sunday morning by a water leak that worked its way from the eighth floor of the 15-story building all the way to the first floor. Video of the damage showed residents wading through inches of water in apartments and hallways and flooded elevators.
The City of Alexandria is hosting Fall Festival this weekend with a moon bounce, hot food, and everyone’s favorite fair activity: free health screenings.
The Department of Community and Human Services (DCHS) is leading the event in the parking lot of Southern Towers (5067 Seminary Road) from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 9.
After years of battling between residents at Southern Towers and building management, a program next week aims to help renters get a better understanding of their rights.
The Tenant’s Rights workshop, presented by Mary Horner of Legal Services of Northern Virginia, is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 17, at 1 p.m. at the Workforce Development Center (4850 Mark Center Drive).
Alexandria’s long-term plans for the West End go back to 1992 and the city is in the process of bringing some of those up to date to address the current needs; namely housing.
The city’s “updated community vision” aims to address housing vulnerability and affordability in an area that’s traditionally been home to some of the city’s last bastions of market-rate affordable housing.
While Southern Towers has been the center of a multi-year battle over housing costs and evictions from market-rate units, the City of Alexandria’s Office of Housing said there are still over 50 committed affordable units at the project in need of residents.
Southern Towers is one of the last bastions of market-affordable housing in Alexandria — which means housing that is considered affordable to Alexandria residents making less than 60% of the area’s median income.
(Updated at 11 a.m. on June 29) U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine sent a letter to CIM Group highlighting the concerns of residents regarding evictions, increased rents and living conditions at their Southern Towers Apartments complex.
In a letter Monday, the Virginia Democrats urged the building owner to resolve long standing disputes with residents. Since buying the property at the height of the pandemic in 2020, residents have protested against evictions, claiming that CIM Group has raised rents and evicted hundreds of residents from deteriorating properties.
