Good morning, Alexandria.
DASH ended its last fiscal year about $3.7 million over budget and didn't know until the books had closed. A $3.2 million placeholder left in a spreadsheet made the system's own reports show a nearly balanced budget while the money was going out the door — as late as June, the board was told the year would finish even. Mayor Alyia Gaskins has turned down a request to postpone next Wednesday's joint work session with council.
Also today: police arrested an Annandale man in Tuesday's stabbing on Mount Vernon Avenue, a day after releasing his photo. And the city's tourism economy topped $1 billion for a second straight year, which Visit Alexandria says works out to $846 a year in taxes each household doesn't pay.
If you're free this evening, the Taste of Old Town North is at Montgomery Park — free, family- and pet-friendly, with tastings from neighborhood restaurants and live music.
Here's what you need to know for Thursday, Sept. 17.
1️⃣ DASH overspent its budget by $3.7 million. A spreadsheet error hid it for months.
DASH ended its last fiscal year about $3.7 million over budget, roughly 10% of what it spends to operate, and didn't know until after the books closed. A $3.2 million placeholder left in a spreadsheet made the system's internal reports show a nearly balanced budget while the money was going out the door. As late as June, the board was told the year would finish balanced.
Mayor Alyia Gaskins has turned down the board chair's request to postpone next Wednesday's joint work session with council. The community deserves a clear explanation of how this happened and why it wasn't caught sooner, she told me, "which is precisely why I have declined to postpone."
2️⃣ Police arrest Annandale man in Mount Vernon Avenue stabbing
Police have arrested an Annandale man in Tuesday's stabbing on Mount Vernon Avenue, a day after releasing his photo. The victim was sleeping on the ground near the Tiger Market parking lot at 3903 Mount Vernon Ave. when he was stabbed several times around 3:20 a.m.
3️⃣ Visit Alexandria marks 30 years as city's tourism economy tops $1 billion for second straight year
Alexandria's tourism economy topped $1 billion for a second straight year, and the city's consumption tax revenue hit a record of nearly $91 million. Visit Alexandria says that works out to $846 a year in taxes each household doesn't pay.
The organization marked 30 years at its annual meeting.
In brief
Ada's on the River was named Virginia's Restaurant of the Year and state Sen. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker took Legislator of the Year at the Virginia Restaurant, Lodging & Travel Association's Ordinary Awards. (The Brief)
A new state dashboard shows when affordable properties around Virginia lose that status. More than 18,000 units statewide come off by 2030, and a new law from Bennett-Parker lets cities buy them first. (Virginia Mercury/The Brief)
Twenty-four homes sold in Alexandria last week, from $280,000 to $1.8 million. Eleven topped $1 million, and every home that sold within five weeks closed at or above asking. (The Brief)
The Taste of Old Town North is at Montgomery Park this evening — free, family- and pet-friendly, with tastings from neighborhood restaurants and live music. (The Brief)
"Bridging Ground," a documentary on Virginia Theological Seminary's reparations program by Alexandria native Mark Farkas, has its first public screening Sept. 23 at the Lettie Pate Center. The seminary's endowment now supports more than 200 descendants of enslaved people who worked on its campus. (Journal of Blacks in Higher Education)
Alexandria Army veteran Lindsey Schmidt, who served in Iraq as an Arabic linguist and interrogator, was selected for the Pin-Ups For Vets charity calendar. The nonprofit picks 13 women veterans nationwide each year to raise money for VA hospitals and homeless veterans. (DC News Now)
Alexandria resident Justus Kelley is the first married woman, first mother and first woman in her 30s to win Miss USA. She's a foster mom and is using the platform to advocate for foster care, and competes at Miss Universe in November. (WJLA)
Sports
Zack Wheeler threw seven innings in Philadelphia's 3-0 win over the Nationals on Wednesday, who at 71-82 clinched a seventh straight losing season. (AP/The Brief)
Today in Alexandria
⛅ Weather
Today: Isolated showers before 2 p.m., then isolated showers and thunderstorms after 4 p.m. Mostly sunny, with a high near 89 degrees. South wind 3 to 6 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Tonight: Scattered showers and thunderstorms before 11 p.m., then a slight chance of showers between 11 p.m. and midnight. Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly clear, with a low around 72 degrees. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
🌖 Sun, Moon, & Tide
Sunrise at 6:51 a.m., sunset at 7:13 p.m. 12 hours & 21 minutes of sun.
High tide at 12:58 a.m. & 1:39 p.m. Low tide at 7:54 a.m. & 7:20 p.m. The moon phase is a Waxing Crescent.
🗓️ Things To Do
- 3 p.m.: Old Town North Farmers’ Market at 901 North Royal St.
- 4 p.m.: Taste of Old Town North at Montgomery Park
- 5:30 p.m.: The Chamber ALX's September After Hours at Royal Restaurant
- 7 p.m.: Prisoner Wine Dinner at Chart House Restaurant
🎶 Entertainment
- 219 Restaurant: Mike Kelley & Friends at 9 p.m.
- Alexandria Bier Garden: Trivia at 7 p.m.
- Aslin ALX: Trivia at 7 p.m.
- Epicure on King: Mark Winters at 7 p.m.
- Evening Star Cafe: Co-Conspirators in the No. 9 Lounge at 8:30 p.m.
- Hops N Shine: Trivia at 6:30 p.m.
- Laporta’s Restaurant: Ken Kilpatrick Trio at 6 p.m.
- Lena's: Gigi MacLaughlin at Havana 151 at 6 p.m.
- Lost Boy Cider: Trivia at 7 p.m.
- Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub: Rook Richards & Pat Garvey at 8:30 p.m.
- O'Shaughnessy's Pub: Leme Shelter at 9 p.m.
- Rock It Grill: Karaoke at 9:30 p.m.
- The Birchmere: Tweet at 7:30 p.m.
- The Little Theatre of Alexandria: Blithe Spirit at 8 p.m.
- The Study at Morrison House: Live Piano Music at 6 p.m.
🏛️ City & Schools
City Gov.: Open | Flag: Full Staff | Trash, Recycling, & Yard Waste: On Time
- 2 p.m.: Commission for Women executive board meeting (virtual)
- 4 p.m.: Alexandria Library Board regular meeting at Charles E. Beatley, Jr. Central Library
- 4:30 p.m.: ACPS Operational Excellence Committee Meeting at Central Office
- 5:30 p.m.: Public Health Advisory Commission meeting (virtual)
- 5:30 p.m.: ARHA Redevelopment Work Group monthly meeting at ARHA Headquarters
- 6 p.m.: ACPS School Board Work Session at School Board Meeting Room
- 7 p.m.: Commission on Information Technology monthly meeting at Lee Center
- 7 p.m.: Park and Recreation Commission meeting at Patrick Henry Recreation Center
- 7:30 p.m.: Carlyle/Eisenhower East Design Review Board public hearing at Del Pepper Community Resource Center
📚 Alexandria Library
- 10 a.m.: English Language Learning 1 Workshop — Beginner Conversation at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library
- 10:15 a.m.: Stories and Songs at James M. Duncan Jr. Branch Library
- 11 a.m.: Line Dancing 101 at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library
- 11:15 a.m.: Stories and Songs at James M. Duncan Jr. Branch Library
- Noon: Line Dancing 201 at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library
- 1:15 p.m.: Baby Bounce at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library
- 2 p.m.: The Comeback Conversation, an author talk with Yasmine Cheyenne (virtual)
- 3 p.m.: Carefull Knit & Crochet — America250 at Kate Waller Barrett Branch Library
- 4 p.m.: Preschool Storytime at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library
- 4 p.m.: Alexandria Library Board meeting at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library
- 5:30 p.m.: Alexandria Oddball Cinema — "The Artifice Girl" at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library
- 6 p.m.: Dungeons and Dragons Teen Group at Kate Waller Barrett Branch Library
- 6 p.m.: Nerdy Knotters at James M. Duncan Jr. Branch Library
- 7 p.m.: Great Books Foundation Discussion Group — "Counterparts" (virtual)
⚾ Sports
D.C. Sports
- 8 p.m.: Washington Mystics at Chicago Sky
ACHS Titans
- 7 p.m.: Football (JV) vs. John Lewis at Parker-Gray Memorial Stadium
- Full schedule
On this day in Alexandria's history
Two things happened in Alexandria on Sept. 17.
In 1889, the Alexandria Gazette reported the city's first 40 electric street lamps burning. There was no ceremony — the current came on from a new plant built at the site of the old gasworks — but small crowds gathered at intersections where 1,500-candlepower fixtures hung 20 feet overhead. At dusk, Mayor Downham and plant manager W.E. Guthrie threw the switch, and cheers went up across the city as the lights came on "steady, almost white." (Historic Alexandria)
And in 1949, George Washington High School in Del Ray opened its football season on a fall day with the stadium full and President Harry S. Truman in the crowd. Truman had come to Alexandria to help bury a time capsule at the flagpole near the north goal post, marking the city's bicentennial. The capsule — a stainless steel cylinder about four feet long and eight inches across — held photographs, newspapers, documents, books and artifacts going back to 1749. Warner Brothers Pathé News filmed it, and the footage ran in more than 176,000 theaters. (Historic Alexandria)
Power The Brief: Reading a DASH board packet against six months of financial reports takes hours. So does capturing a city portal every few days to see what changed. That's what reader support pays for. 6,447 people get The Brief every weekday morning; 295 pay for it. Become a supporter or make a one-time contribution.
The Alexandria Brief
Alexandria news and information you won't find anywhere else
Publisher: Ryan Belmore, an Alexandria resident and journalist. Send news, tips, and feedback to ryan@alexandriabrief.com.
About · Standards & policies · FAQ
© 2026 Alexandria News, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
