Good Friday morning, Alexandria!
⛈️ Today’s weather: Expect scattered showers and thunderstorms, partly sunny skies, and a high around 68. Breezy conditions will prevail, featuring a west wind at 14-24 mph and gusts up to 43 mph; there’s a 40% chance of precipitation. Friday night will see scattered showers, mainly before 2am, with mostly cloudy skies and a low near 52. The breeze will continue with a west wind at 21 mph and gusts reaching 39 mph, accompanied by a 30% chance of precipitation.
🚨 You need to know
Like Rodney Dangerfield, U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-8) is going back to school.
Patch reported that the 73-year-old Congressman enrolled at George Mason University to get a Master’s Degree in artificial intelligence.
Does it pose an existential threat? Beyer says no.
“I tend to be an AI optimist,” Beyer said after taking a recent class. “We can’t even imagine how different our lives will be in five years, 10 years, 20 years, because of AI. … There won’t be robots with red eyes coming after us any time soon. But there are other deeper existential risks that we need to pay attention to.”
📈 Thursday’s most read
The following are the most-read ALXnow articles for Apr 11, 2024.
- Mayoral candidates say Alexandrians lost trust in public officials because of failed Potomac Yard arena deal (1023 views)
- Alexandria police investigating white supremacist fliers posted in Potomac Yard (923 views)
- What’s Up in Alexandria This Weekend: Del Ray Dog Fest, Spring Garden Market, Spring Oysterfest, and more! (460 views)
📅 Upcoming events
Here is what’s going on today and this weekend in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
- 9:00 am Friday: 2024 Spring Garden Market at River Farm
- 8:30 am Saturday: MVCS Big Flea in the Neighborhood
- 9:00 am Saturday: 2024 Spring Garden Market at River Farm
- 👉 9:00 am Saturday: Del Ray Vintage & Flea Market
- 12:00 pm Saturday: The “Grandest Congress”: The French and Indian War in Alexandria
- 8:00 pm Saturday: LIVE Comedy Game Show with the Auxiliary Improv
Happy Thursday, Alexandria!
⛈️ Today’s weather: Expect isolated showers between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., followed by scattered showers and thunderstorms that could produce small hail. The day should be partly sunny with a high temperature near 57. Tonight, there’s a 30% chance of isolated showers between 8 and 11 p.m., with a low temperature of 39.
🚨 You need to know
What’s going to happen with the 12-acre property at Potomac Yard since the arena and entertainment district plans evaporated?
In an exclusive interview with the Washington Business Journal, Matt Kelly, the CEO for landowner JBG Smith, said that he doesn’t know exactly what will go into the space now, but that the arena deal highlighted the “attractiveness” of the property, which is next door to the Potomac Yard Metro station.
Kelly’s statements follow a scathing condemnation from the company immediately after the deal officially died.
Kelly said that JBG Smith’s 2020 plans to build six office buildings with ground floor retail on the arena will likely be scrapped due to a dwindling office market. He also said that Virginia Tech’s Innovation Campus and Amazon’s HQ2 in Crystal City will open opportunities for “tech uses” in the space.
The statement contradicts a more dire message from Mayor Justin Wilson, who recently wrote in his April newsletter that the arena failure will likely result in a period of stagnation for the property.
A husband-and-wife real estate team in Alexandria have launched a new site to help homebuyers find often lucrative assumable mortgages.
An assumable mortgage allows a buyer to assume the rate, repayment period, balance and other terms of the seller’s mortgage. For homebuyers, it can be a way around high-interest rates, but the trick is finding them.
The website AssumeList was built after the local real estate agents Michael Lorino and Bethany Stalder found that there was no easy way to track or find assumable rate mortgages.
Lorino said home buyers today are likely looking at 6.25% or 6% interest rates.
“Generally speaking, for every 1% change in the interest rate in a mortgage, that translates into a 10% change in a monthly mortgage payment,” Lorino said.
Some assumable mortgages, however, can come with interest rates of 2.5-3%.
“I would be able to assume that mortgage and buy that house with existing loans,” Lorino said. “As a buyer, that’s huge for me because I’m saving 35% a month.”
Lorino said any government back loans are assumable. Most notably, for this region, that includes loans backed by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Lorino noted that those loans can be assumed by anyone, meaning they can be transferred to non-military veterans.
“In this area, we obviously have a higher concentration of military families,” Lorino said. “We have a higher concentration of homes that are assumable in this market compared to places in the midwest.”
Lorino said it’s a fairly unique market in that around 10% of homes in Northern Virginia have assumable mortgages.
“In Alexandria there are 233 homes for sale right now, not including those under contract,” Lorino said. “My guess is: about 25 or so of those have an assumable mortgage.”
Lorino said the concept for the website started around a year and a half ago when interest rates started increasing.
“We work with a lot of military families and were saying ‘why take out loans at 6% when these rates are lower?’ Lorino said.
Lorino said he went through various search functions real estate agents use, but there was no way to search for assumable mortgages.
“I said ‘heck, if there’s no way to search for them, why not build a search tool?'” Lorino said.
Lorino said the platform takes aggregated data from public records and private data aggregated from other data repositories to identify mortgages on properties.
“You can identify mortgages on properties, that’s reported in the public record,” Lorino said. “Not even all listing agents know their home has an assumable mortgage.”
The website currently covers parts of:
- California
- Delaware
- Florida
- Maryland
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- Virginia
- Washington D.C.
- West Virginia
True to the legacy of the titan Prometheus, Alexandria City High School’s Titan Robotics team is celebrating ten years on the cutting edge of discovery and innovation.
Titan Robotics kicked off its tenth season earlier this month.
Titan Robotics is a student-led organization that started at ACHS in 2014. The group participates in the FIRST Robotics Competition and participates in various science and mathematics-focused outreach programs.
The team consists of around 40 ACHS students working, over eight weeks, to design, manufacture, build and program a robot. This year, the teams are working on creating a robot capable of moving foam rings across a field the width of a full-size basketball court and shooting them into goals before time runs out.
The competitions are as much about collaborating and strategizing as a team as testing the team’s scientific know-how.
According to a release from the team:
Teams plan and practice individually or collaboratively, and then at the tournaments, teams compete in random alliances with other teams for qualification matches. Each match sets three teams against three others. For qualification matches, teams often end up playing against their former alliance partners. As the tournament progresses, 30 teams form eight alliances to move from qualification matches to the elimination rounds.
Titan Robotics will take their creations to a district competition on March 2 and March 3 in Ashland, then in a second competition on March 23 and March 24 in Falls Church.
Photo via Titan Robotics/Facebook
Ting Internet started providing some long-awaited competition to Comcast in parts of Alexandria earlier this year, now the company says it’s expanding to central Alexandria soon.
Catharine Rice, community engagement and public affairs manager, told ALXnow in an email that the company has finished microtrenching in work zone 1, the first area Ting Internet was implemented in Alexandria. Rice said Ting Internet is starting work in neighborhoods west of Braddock Road soon, but without any exact dates announced.
“We have now completed all microtrenching in our work zone 1, which includes all of Del Ray, and will head into work zone 2 shortly (west of Braddock Road),” Rice said.
Rice said the existing infrastructure made Del Ray and surrounding communities the ideal starting place.
“We originally began construction in northern Alexandria as our first work zone because there was already critical backbone infrastructure in place in the area,” Rice said. “It also creates a seamless starting point for construction as we build to the west and south. Most households in Del Ray, Beverly Hills, North Ridge, and Lynhaven can now sign up for service and we anticipate being able to begin construction on our work zone two in the near future.”
Rice also said “hundreds of residents” have signed up for Ting, but would not give ALXnow any exact numbers or any timetable for future expansion plans.
New coffee shop opening in West End — “A new coffee shop will be opening in the Shoppes of Foxchase shopping center in Alexandria’s West End. Cortado Cafe is under construction now in the shopping center on Duke Street. It is taking the place of a now-closed Hair Cuttery between Massage Envy and La Casa restaurant.” [Alexandria Living]
Nonprofit teaches computer coding for free — “For over 20 years, the Alexandria nonprofit Computer CORE has helped adults learn computer technology and programming, thereby advancing their careers. The newest educational opportunity begins Tuesday, Sept. 14 with the virtual class Code Beats Computer Coding Camp. The free course will use hip hop and other music beats to teach computer coding.” [Zebra]
Alexandria to hold remembrance ceremony for 9/11 attacks — “The City invites the public to attend a remembrance ceremony Saturday, Sep 11, 10-11am, at Waterfront Park (1A Prince St.), to mark the tragic events of September 11, 2001.” [Twitter]
September is Recovery Month — “September is #RecoveryMonth and we are celebrating the gains made by those who are in recovery from mental illness and substance use disorders. Learn more and find out how you can help raise awareness of prevention and recovery options at alexandriava.gov/117342.” [Twitter]
Art on the Avenue returns to Del Ray Oct. 2 — “The event was virtual last year due to concerns about coronavirus. The popular event draws artists in more than 10 categories from food and books to sculpture, painting, bath and body products and more. In addition, attendees can enjoy music, visit the kid’s art corner and support local restaurants and businesses. In the past, the event has brought out 300 artists and 50,000 visitors. It has been named one of the best festivals in Virginia.” [Alexandria Living]
Today’s weather — “Sunny (during the day). High 79F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph… Clear (in the evening). Low 58F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph.” [Weather.com]
New job: Play expert — “We provide family-focused therapeutic services to children age 0-12 years old. With a focus on play-based learning, TLBC believes that language and skill development should be a positive experience for both the child and the family.” [Indeed]
Capitol officer who committed suicide was from Alexandria — “Very sad news: @MikevWUSA @wusa9 reports MPD Officer Kyle DeFreytag died by suicide in July after defending the US Capitol on January 6. His obituary says he was a hiker, drummer, motorcyclist, and resident of Alexandria, who served with MPD for five years” [WUSA9]
Alexandria, neighboring health directors recommend wearing face masks indoors — “Today, all five Northern Virginia Health Directors issued a joint letter of interim recommendations for mask wearing in Northern Virginia. The letter was issued by Health Directors from the City of Alexandria, as well as Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William counties to Northern Virginia Mayors, Chairs and Chief Administrative Officers with the recommendation that individuals wear masks while indoors in government and other public settings, regardless of vaccination status.” [City of Alexandria]
Olympics update — Noah Lyles races today in the 200 meter final at 8:55 a.m., and Tynita Butts-Townsend competes in a high jump qualifier at 8 p.m. [ALXnow]
City makes September feedback deadline for making outdoor business programs permanent — “Programs include the closure of the 100 block of King Street to vehicles, the use of on-street parking spaces for dining, retail and fitness use and the curbside loading zones for customer pick-up of food and merchandise. City Council approved the initiatives in 2020 to provide safe opportunities to patronize and support City businesses during the challenging economic times associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. The temporary programs are in effect until January 1, 2022.” [City of Alexandria]
Traffic and Parking Board to vote on expanding Capital Bikeshare — “The existing bikeshare stations are located mostly in the eastern and northern regions of Alexandria, with plans to not only add more stations in Old Town but to also add several stations in the West End. In regard to the final seven bikeshare locations that have yet to be determined, Casey Kane, a member of the board, encouraged staff to prioritize locations around Holmes Run.” [AlexTimes]
Cat cafe sees 180 felines adopted in first year — “Mount Purrnon, Alexandria’s only cat café, has found fur-ever homes for 180 cats in its first year in business… The cafe area, separated from the cats (for obvious reasons), serves a variety of food, coffee and drinks. There is also free Wi-Fi and day/monthly passes for those who wish to telework from there. Regular special events include Jeopurrdy, meditation, and wine tastings.” [Alexandria Living]
Today’s weather — “Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy in the afternoon. Slight chance of a rain shower. High 81F. Winds NE at 10 to 15 mph… Mostly clear (in the evening). Low 62F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph.” [Weather.com]
New job: Entry level computer programmer — “As the fastest growing employer of emerging tech talent across the U.S, Revature looks to hire over 300 innovative Entry Level Computer Programmers in the next 4 weeks.” [Indeed]
The pandemic changed how consumers shop, and with the development of Amazon HQ2, Alexandria is evolving from a government town to a tech town.
That’s according to a presentation to the Del Ray Business Association this week by Kevin Fenton, founder of The Walla Design Company.
“We’re basically evolving from being known as a government company town to now pivoting to be looked at as a tech, innovative place to set up a business,” Fenton said. “It doesn’t make brick and mortar experiences insignificant. It does, however, mean that your brick and mortar experience needs to be extraordinary in order to maximize the value of the trip that your audience is taking.”
The bottom line, Fenton said, is that local businesses will need to focus their offerings online and create unforgettable experience at their brick and mortars, which will see a reduction in foot traffic in the years to come.
Amazon will start construction in 2022 and open in 2025 in Arlington, and the move will means even more younger consumers making more money living in the area. Millennials already make up 43% of residents in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area, according to the 2019 U.S. Census Community Survey, which Fenton sourced in his report.
Fenton said that online grocery shopping, home nesting and virtual health care will continue to grow in popularity.
“The big takeaway here is that COVID required us as consumers to overnight — I mean quite literally overnight — to reconsider our value systems and our attitudes about consumer safety and self preservation,” he said. “Our spending habits changed very, very quickly. What we were spending our money on also changed.”
Courtesy Amazon
Comcast sent shockwaves through localities in the northeast with plan to implement data caps, and Mayor Justin Wilson said this emphasizes more than ever the need to break the cable company’s monopoly on internet in Alexandria.
“It’s frustrating to see Comcast put new policy in place…basically data caps,” Wilson said. “They’ve said there’s a small number of customers who would be impacted by this, but in the end it’s not great timing.”
Comcast has put its plans on hold for the time being, but local residents chimed in at a virtual town hall last week to express their concern. Wilson agreed, and said it’s another point in favor of moving forward with municipal broadband.
The city has been working on building a broadband network for city-use that would have enough excess capacity to lease to private internet and cable providers. That plan has hit some stumbling blocks, but the city has recently restarted its search for a partnering company.
“The big picture answer is competition, we continue to work through our municipal broadband effort,” Wilson said. “We just went out to market and closed on bids — it’s first step towards bringing some competition to the city.”
Alexandria Realtor Branden Beasley has such a knack for asking tough and engaging questions that he decided to start a new podcast.
Beasley’s why ALEXANDRIA podcast premiered earlier this month in Del Ray, and he and his small production crew are currently taping more interviews.
“I just enjoy talking to people,” Beasley told ALXnow. “The podcast is nice, because I don’t feel like I’m reporting. I don’t feel like I’m covering current events. It’s more just like having really good positive conversations.”
The first show was taped on September 5 at Pat Miller Square in Del Ray. Guests included Miller, Pork Barrel BBQ owner Bill Blackburn, and DC Wheels founder Jimmy Pelletier for a skateboarding event to support the Lupus Foundation of America.
“Branden is such a neat guy,” Miller said. “He’s very smart and has a lot of energy.”
The 35-year-old Beasley is married with two kids and has lived in Del Ray most of his life.
“I know all the mayors and the business owners and athletes and the coaches and the community leaders,” Beasley said. “I’m fearless. I’m not shocked by anything, so I think people feel they can open up to me, which I think will help a lot in the podcast.”
Beasley said that he wants to eventually produce three shows a month.
“I want to keep the podcast as a nonprofit,” he said. “I want to basically raise money and use all the proceeds of support ACT for Alexandria and other Alexandria charities and nonprofits.”
Courtesy image
