The Alexandria Brief | Friday, Aug. 28

Good morning, Alexandria.

Two notes before the rest.

The School Board met for about three hours and 45 minutes last night, with a long public comment session and a longer closed session on the superintendent search. I'll have reporting from it later today.

And on the bus problems this week: ACPS has responded to my questions. Chief Operating Officer Anthony Peña sent a statement covering late buses, missed stops and student assignments, and what the division is doing about it. I've heard from a lot of you — on social, in my inbox, and at last night's meeting. I'm working on the story now and want to get it right. Look for something later today.

Below: a new cider maker at Lost Boy and the first real harvest off eight trees out front, the Minnie Howard fields being dedicated to Kerry Donley next week, and all three Russell Road appellant groups on the record.

Here's what you need to know for Friday, Aug. 28.

1️⃣ A new cider maker, and a first real harvest, at Lost Boy Cider

Jay Coulter walked outside during a delivery pickup Wednesday morning and bit into an apple off one of the trees in front of Lost Boy Cider. He turned to a co-worker and said that as soon as the truck was loaded, they were harvesting. He left at 9:45 p.m. with about 100 gallons from eight trees.

Tristan Wright planted those trees with his mother in December 2018, before the cidery opened, and posted that day that he hoped the little guys would survive. For most of eight years the fruit went unpicked or came home in a bag. "Nobody has done that yet here," Coulter said of a commercial batch. Wednesday it came in by the bin. Wright said he needed to send his mother a photo.

Coulter took over the cider program in June, after applying twice before and getting passed over both times. He came up through wine — a farm in East Tennessee, UC Davis coursework, apprenticeships in Orange and East Texas — and he treats cider accordingly. "We approach cider as wine," he said. "It's white wine," unless the apples have red flesh. Asked what he wished people understood about cider: "It's not beer."

2️⃣ ACHS to dedicate Kerry J. Donley Athletic Field Complex Sept. 1

The athletic fields at the Minnie Howard campus become the Kerry J. Donley Athletic Field Complex on Tuesday. A reception starts at 5:30 p.m. in the campus forum, with the dedication at 7:15. Park in the lower lot near Bradlee Shopping Center and enter through Door #1.

Donley was mayor from 1996 to 2003, leading the city through Sept. 11 and its aftermath, and later served as athletic director at what was then T.C. Williams from 2005 to 2008. He and his wife raised five daughters in Alexandria, all of them ACPS students from kindergarten through 12th grade, all of them athletes. He died suddenly in July 2022 at 66. The School Board approved the name unanimously in December, overriding the superintendent's recommendation after the proposal led a community poll with 49% support.

One number worth watching: the fund ACPS opened to pay for signage and plaques across all four newly named facilities needs $19,856. As of Aug. 25 it had raised $1,701.46 — about 8.5%. Supporters at the December hearings had offered to cover costs beyond what the district budgeted.

3️⃣ All three Russell Road appellant groups respond; T&ES still hasn't

All three groups appealing the Russell Road decision talked to me yesterday. The department that made the decision did not.

The common thread is process, not safety — every group says it supports the goal. John Leary, who lives on the 400 block, gave the clearest example: staff recommended removing two spaces there, the board voted for six, the director landed on five. None match, and the five-space version was never taken to the community or voted on by the board. Nancy Lopez and Carrie Giddins Pergram want the council to weigh the whole project at once, even if that means waiting until after the board acts Sept. 28 — a position that slows their own appeal. Megan Carraghan Langley and Missy Santoro Estabrook pointed to the city's own Complete Streets coordinator saying in July that the median refuges wouldn't be fully compliant from a safety standpoint.

One thing I checked: the parking figure the city corrected on Aug. 12 now reads 120 on the project page, but the table attached to the director's Aug. 7 letter still says 128, and no amended letter has been issued. The page also doesn't note the decision has been appealed — when Braddock Road was appealed this year, the city's page said so and gave the hearing date.

In brief

The Around the World Cultural Food Festival turns 10 on Saturday at Oronoco Bay Park, Crooked Run opens its Del Ray taproom Friday, and the Titans open their football season at home Friday night. Here's everything on the calendar this weekend. (The Brief)

The Alexandria Community Remembrance Project's annual Benjamin Thomas remembrance runs 7 to 8 p.m. today at Shiloh Baptist Church, marking the 1899 mass meeting that protested the lynching of the 16-year-old Alexandrian. NAACP Deputy General Counsel Myesha Braden speaks. Free and open to the public. (The Brief)

A 29-year-old Alexandria man who worked in the Defense Intelligence Agency's Insider Threat Division pleaded guilty Wednesday to transmitting national defense information, 15 months after he handed classified documents to an undercover FBI agent he believed represented a friendly foreign government. (The Brief)

Early voting for the Nov. 3 general election begins Friday, Sept. 18, in Alexandria. Any registered Virginia voter may cast a ballot before Election Day without giving a reason. (The Brief)

Sports

Georgia Amoore scored 16 of her career-high 25 points in the fourth quarter, Kiki Iriafen added 20 points and 12 rebounds for her 19th double-double of the season and the Washington Mystics beat the Phoenix Mercury 80-73 on Thursday night. (The Brief)

Daylen Lile homered and drove in two runs as part of a three-hit day, and the Washington Nationals beat the Colorado Rockies 7-1 to split their four-game series Thursday. (The Brief)

Today in Alexandria

⛅ Weather

Today: Scattered showers and thunderstorms, mainly between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 87 degrees. North wind 5 to 7 mph. The chance of precipitation is 30%.

Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 67 degrees. North wind around 7 mph.

🌖 Sun, Moon, & Tide

Sunrise at 6:33 a.m., sunset at 7:44 p.m. 13 hours & 10 minutes of sun.

High tide at 9:09 a.m. & 9:33 p.m. Low tide at 3:13 a.m. & 3:41 p.m. The moon phase is a Full Moon.

🗓️ Things To Do

• 11:30 a.m.: Crooked Run Brewery & Taproom opens in Del Ray
• 4 p.m.: Food Truck Friday at Cameron Club Parking Lot
• 6:30 p.m.: Friday Night Run Club at Daniel O'Connell's
• 7 p.m.: Crystal Sound Bowl Healing at Mount Purrnon Cat Cafe

🎶 Entertainment

• 219 Restaurant: Fat Chance at 9 p.m.
• Alexandria Bier Garden: Karaoke at 9 p.m.
• Cuates Grill: Karaoke at 10:15 p.m.
• Daniel O'Connell's: Franklin Music Duo at 9:30 p.m.
• Del Ray Public House: Karaoke at 9 p.m.
• Galactic Panther: Princess Taft Album Release Show at 7:30 p.m.
• Hops N Shine: Live music at 6 p.m.
• Laporta’s Restaurant: Live music at 7:30 p.m.
• Makeda Restaurant: Mesfin & Tsehay at 10 p.m.
• Murphy’s Pub: Rook Richards and Pat Garvey at 9 p.m.
• O’Shaughnessy’s Pub: Desert Shade at 9 p.m.
• Rock It Grill: Karaoke at 9:30 p.m.
• The Birchmere: Raheem Devaughn at 7:30 p.m.
• The Garden Del Ray: Mystery Machine at 5 p.m.
• The Light Horse: Ground Broken at 9:30 p.m.
• The Study at Morrison House: Live Piano Music at 6:30 p.m.

🏛️ City & Schools

City Gov.: Open | Flag: Half Staff | Trash, Recycling, & Yard Waste: On Time

• 7:30 a.m.: ACPS Governance Committee (virtual)
• 4:30 p.m.: Warwick Pool open
• 4:30 p.m.: Old Town Pool open
• 7 p.m.: Alexandria Community Remembrance Project's Benjamin Thomas remembrance at Shiloh Baptist Church

📚Alexandria Library

• All day: Alexandria Library: A Legacy of Service Since 1937 at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library

⚾ Sports

DC Sports

• 6 p.m.: Washington Commanders at Baltimore Ravens
• 6:45 p.m.: Miami Marlins at Washington Nationals
• 10 p.m.: Washington Mystics at Los Angeles Sparks

ACHS Titans

• 7 p.m.: Football (boys) vs. Lake Braddock at Parker-Gray Memorial Stadium
• Varsity only. Full schedule, including JV and freshman.

On this day in Alexandria's history

On the morning of Aug. 28, 1814, a committee led by Mayor Charles Simms rowed south to meet Capt. James Gordon and ask for terms of surrender. Gordon refused to give any, and his fleet reached the Alexandria waterfront that evening.

The town had nothing to fight with. Earlier that month, banks in Alexandria, Georgetown and Washington had agreed to lend the government $200,000 to defend the region. The Alexandria town and county militia were called out en masse and sent across the Potomac to a post between Piscataway and Fort Washington, taking nearly all the town's arms and artillery with them. When the militia fell back into the Virginia countryside and Capt. Dyson blew up Fort Washington, Alexandria's fate was sealed.

The next morning the British lined up their guns: two frigates, the 38-gun Sea Horse and the 36-gun Euryalus, a rocket ship, three bomb vessels of eight guns each and a two-gun schooner. They were positioned, in the account of the day, so that they might have laid the town in ashes in a few minutes. (Historic Alexandria)

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

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