Daily Brief | May 27

Good morning, Alexandria. It's Wednesday, May 27 — the 147th day of 2026, with 218 days left in the year.

Two meetings drove the news last night, and I followed both closely. The City Council held a roughly three-hour legislative meeting that touched several threads we've tracked through the spring — and I'll have more from it throughout the morning. Among the headlines: the council took its first formal step toward a joint committee on school board election reform, got an update on the draft Duke Street Framework Plan, heard the renegotiated agreement on police in city schools, and unanimously approved the GO Alex Strategic Plan, the city's five-year transportation blueprint for fiscal 2027 through 2031.

Earlier in the evening, HRP Group held its 20th community meeting on the redevelopment of the former Potomac River power plant, detailing how the coal plant will come down even as the first new buildings go up — and how a proposed public financing package fits an approval calendar that reaches the Planning Commission on June 2 and the City Council on June 13.

Here's what you need to know today.

1️⃣ Alexandria City Council moves on school board's election-reform request

Alexandria City School Board Meeting Room (ACPS)

The Alexandria City Council on Tuesday took its first formal step toward answering a request the Alexandria City School Board has been pressing for more than a year: a joint committee to study changing how and when school board members are elected.

During council updates at its May 26 legislative meeting, Mayor Alyia Gaskins said she wanted to direct City Manager James Parajon to draft a resolution establishing an ad hoc committee — two council members working with two school board members — to develop a recommendation and timeline for carrying out the board's Nov. 7, 2024, resolution. That resolution, signed unanimously by the board, asked the council to seek a city charter amendment extending board terms from three years to four and shifting from concurrent to staggered elections.

2️⃣ HRP details power plant phasing, demolition timeline, and financing ahead of June votes

*A rendering of the proposed waterfront redevelopment of the former Potomac River Generating Station, shown on the title slide of HRP Group's 20th community meeting on May 26. (Source: HRP Group)*

HRP Group used its 20th community meeting Tuesday night to explain how the former Potomac River Generating Station coal plant will come down even as the first new buildings go up, why the project's southern entry block is on hold, and how a proposed public financing package fits into an approval calendar that reaches the City Council in June.

The hour-long session, held one week before the Planning Commission is scheduled to take up the project on June 2, focused on four topics HRP said neighbors had raised after its May 4 meeting: master-plan phasing, arts and cultural uses, environmental remediation, and abatement and deconstruction. A City Council vote on the development approvals and a tax increment financing proposal is expected on June 13.

3️⃣ City to host free Croatian cultural celebration at waterfront ahead of World Cup

Enjoy an evening at Waterfront Park to celebrate the food, wine, klapa, and tamburica, to commemorate Team Croatia’s Team Base Camp in Alexandria for the World Cup. (Visit Alexandria)

The city will host a free community celebration of Croatian culture at Waterfront Park on June 6, though a same-day correction to the announcement clarified that Croatia's national football team will not be present at the event.

"Flavors & Sounds of Croatia – Alexandria" will run from 5 to 8 p.m. at Waterfront Park, with City Manager James Parajon delivering opening remarks followed by a recognition of Alexandria's partnership with the Croatian Embassy.

4️⃣ Alexandria's D-Day commemoration moves to Carlyle Square this Sunday

The city's 16th annual event takes place Sunday at Carlyle Square, honoring the Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944. (Courtesy of the Alexandria-Caen Sister City Committee)

Alexandria's annual D-Day commemoration will move to a new home this year, with the city's 16th annual event taking place Sunday at Carlyle Square after ongoing construction displaced it from its longtime Old Town location.

The free event runs from 1 to 4 p.m. at Carlyle Square, 300 John Carlyle St. Hosted by the Alexandria-Caen Sister City Committee and the City of Alexandria, it commemorates the Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, marking the 82nd anniversary of the landings.

5️⃣ Sunday chamber music returns to The Lyceum for a 36th summer

Need Summer plans? Head to WMPA's Summer Chamber Music Series every Sunday at 3 pm live at the Lyceum in Old Town Alexandria starting June 7!

Chamber music returns to The Lyceum this summer as the Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic Association presents its 36th annual Summer Sunday Chamber Music Series, with a dozen free concerts running every Sunday afternoon from June 7 through Aug. 30.

The concerts begin at 3 p.m. at The Lyceum, the Alexandria History Museum, in Old Town Alexandria. No tickets are required, and a $25 donation is suggested. Organizers note that performances are subject to change.

Coverage like this morning's — two meetings followed, with more reporting still to come — is funded by 248 of this newsletter's 5,919 readers. If you value it, join them with a monthly, annual, or one-time contribution.

📰 In brief

The City of Alexandria, in partnership with Representative Don Beyer, invites the community to a memorial for the 67 lives lost in the January 2025 Potomac River Mid Air Collision. (City of Alexandria)

"Alexandria soon to be overrun with Croatian soccer hunks" (Axios)

Region

The Trump administration wants all current and future federal employees to sign non-disclosure agreements, part of a continuing crackdown on leaks to the media. (The Alexandria Brief)

Sports

James Wood hit a two-run homer and Keibert Ruiz had a two-run single in the second inning as the Washington Nationals beat the Cleveland Guardians 6-3 on Tuesday night. (The Alexandria Brief)

Today in Alexandria

⛅ Weather

Today: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers and possibly a thunderstorm after 2 p.m. Patchy fog before 7 a.m. High near 82 degrees. Calm wind becoming west around 6 mph in the afternoon. The chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch are possible.

Tonight: Showers and thunderstorms likely before 11 p.m., then a slight chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 65 degrees. Calm wind becoming north around 5 mph after midnight. The chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and a quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

🌖 Sun, Moon, & Tide

Sunrise at 5:47 a.m., sunset at 8:24 p.m. 14 hours & 37 minutes of sun. High tide at 6:18 a.m. & 6:45 p.m. Low tide at 12:05 a.m. & 12:55 p.m. The moon phase is a Waxing Gibbous.

🗓️ Things To Do

12 p.m.: Live Well with Well Ray Mini-Workshops at Duncan Library
6 p.m.: Literary Libations May Book Club at The Study at Morrison House
6 p.m.: Dad Night at Continues Arcade
6:30 p.m.: Sushi & Cider at Lost Boy Cider
7 p.m.: Murphy’s Run Club at Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub
7 p.m.: Rom Com Bookclub: Discussing While You Were Seething by Charlotte Stein at Friends to Lovers Bookstore

🎶 Entertainment

219 Restaurant: Bill Pappas Project at 9 p.m.
Atlas Brew Works: Bingo at 7 p.m.
Augie's: Mackenzie Ryan at 5 p.m.
Galactic Panther: Jackie and the. Treehorns, Broken Men, and the Fixer at 6:30 p.m.
Hops N Shine: Trivia at 6:30 p.m.
Laporta’s Restaurant: Pete Chauvette at 6 p.m.
Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub: Kenny Kohlhaas at 8:30 p.m.
O’Shaughnessy’s Pub: Karaoke at 9 p.m.
Rock It Grill: Karaoke at 9:30 p.m.
Southside 815: Rook Richards at 9:30 p.m.

🏛️ City of Alexandria

City Government: Open | Flag Status: Full Staff | Trash, Recycling, & Yard Waste Collection: 1-Day Slide

6 a.m.: Chinquapin Pool Open at Chinquapin Park Recreation Center
9 a.m.: Walk-In Wednesday Hiring Event with the Alexandria Police Department
9 a.m.: Climate Resilience Sister Cities Solutions Webinar (virtual), with Helsingborg, Sweden, and Alexandria
9:30 a.m.: Alexandria Electoral Board in-person meeting
2 p.m.: Alexandria Community Policy & Management Team (ACPMT) regular monthly meeting
4 p.m.: Duke Street Land Use Plan Office Hours (virtual, registration required)
4:30 p.m.: Warwick Pool Open at Warwick pool
6 p.m.: Minnie Howard Pool Open at Minnie Howard campus
(City of Alexandria calendar)

📚 Alexandria Library

All day: A Commonwealth of Cultures Exhibit — The Virginia Folklife Apprenticeship Program at Local History/Special Collections
All day: America 250 Community Mini Art Show at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library
9 a.m.: Exhibit: Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka — The Struggle and Beyond at Local History/Special Collections
10:30 a.m.: Stitcher's Space at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library
10:30 a.m.: 1s and 2s Time (first session) at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library
11 a.m.: Just Babies at Kate Waller Barrett Branch Library
11:30 a.m.: 1s and 2s Time (second session) at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library
2 p.m.: 250th Film Festival — "The Color Purple" at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library
5:30 p.m.: English Language Learning (ELL) 2 Workshop — Intermediate Conversation at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library
6 p.m.: DIY Flower Crowns with Brass Bee Floral Design at James M. Duncan Jr. Branch Library (waitlist)
6 p.m.: Sci-Fi & Fantasy Book Tasting — Asian American and Pacific Islander Authors at Kate Waller Barrett Branch Library
6:30 p.m.: Dabke Dance Workshop at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library
7 p.m.: Romance Book Club (virtual)
(Alexandria Library calendar)

🏫 Alexandria City Public Schools

Eid al-Adha - No school for students.
(ACPS calendar) (ACHS Titans sports calendar)

The Alexandria Brief

Alexandria, Va., news and information you won't find anywhere else.

The Alexandria Brief has no ads, no paywall, and no corporate owner. Support this work with a monthly or annual subscription, or a one-time contribution.

Publisher: Ryan Belmore, an Alexandria resident and journalist. Send feedback, story ideas, news, and tips to ryan@alexandriabrief.com.