Alexandria Jaycees: Have Fun. Do Good!

Fast Facts: Alexandria

We all know that buying a home - whether a condo, townhouse or single-family house - in our northern Virginia city of approximately 140,000 is expensive, but I did a double-take when I was scanning the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership's Local Economic Indicators Report (LEIRS). The average sale price of these 3 types of homes is over half a million dollars. Wow! Yikes!

Some of the other stats the LEIRS highlights (all reflect 4th quarter 2007 for the City of Alexandria only):

• About 200 business licenses are granted per quarter in the City (though not all the businesses actually open their doors)
• Almost 17,000 people use the 4 City Metro stops (King, Braddock, Eisenhower and Van Dorn) each quarter
• Alexandria's unemployment rate is about 1% below the rest of northern Virginia, at 2.4%, and 2% less than the U.S. average of 4.8%

I'll post additional highlights once the AEDP updates the data available online. To view the entire report (3 pages), click here.

A Metro at Potomac Yard?

From the Alexandria Times:

City on track to add Potomac Yard Metro station
June 12, 2008

By David Sachs Alexandria Times Staff Writer

The Planning Commission took the next step in developing the first new Metrorail station in four years by approving various mixed-use developments at Potomac Yard last week. If the station materializes, it will be several years from now, with revenues from the newly approved development paying its way.

Plans for the area’s urbanization include higher-density office, residential, hotel and park space that will coalesce with the slightly older townhouses, restaurants and shops recently developed along the plot’s edge, north of Slaters Lane, to form a new neighborhood in between the National Airport and Braddock Road Metro stops.

The city hopes that tax revenue generated from a larger town center will pay for a Metro station connecting the Braddock Road and National Airport sites. “The station doesn’t depend on it,” Deputy City Manager Mark Jinks said. “But it moves toward that goal.” Read more at the newspaper's website.

Helping Alexandria's Kids

Here are two news items from Alexandria City Councilman Rob Krupicka's email update:

Enhancing Pre-K in Alexandria

At the June 24th City Council meeting, the Alexandria City Council will consider a proposal to use $300,000 in unused child care money from last year's budget to enhance pre-k opportunities in Alexandria.  This effort is aimed at improving quality and access to pre-k services in order to ensure more children show up for kindergarten ready to learn and to excel.  Quality improvements help us to ensure we get the best bang for the buck for our children.  Access improvements help us ensure more children are ready for school. The more children that show up ready to learn, the more efficient and effective our schools can be.

Safe Routes to School
I have the privilege of chairing Virginia's State-wide safe routes to school committee.  We are working with VDOT, the state PTA, local government and national groups to do all we can to provide safe and convenient ways for children to walk or bike to school.  The recent Washington Post series on obesity illustrates our great need to ensure children are active and fit.  As part of this effort, Mt. Vernon Elementary school has received a national grant to increase walking and biking to school by testing programs that can be used to encourage children to walk and bike to school.  I am looking forward to working with City and school staff as well as the Mt. Vernon PTA to ensure we develop a model that can be emulated across our city and the country. 

To sign up for Rob's e-newsletter, send him an email.

Voices

Blogs give any of us a chance to put our thoughts out there and share what we know; ask readers to share what they know; and highlight interesting facts, photos or stories.

Here are some voices in the Northern Virginia area:

• Urban Places and Spaces. Thought not the exclusive focus of this blog, the NOVA area is covered. "This blog focuses on historic preservation, urban design, transportation, asset-based community development, arts & cultural development, commercial district revitalization, tourism & destination development, and quality of life advocacy.
• Washington Times blogs. Several blogs, covering politics, general news, religion, technology, culture, and sports.
• Northern Virginia Daily. Political coverage of Virginia.

Stay tuned... I'll be adding to this list!

And... is there a NOVA blog you follow? Use the comment form to share!

Cathy's "Great Places to Eat": Satay Sarinah

Yummy. As the name implies, the satays at Satay Sarinah are the highlight of the menu - chicken and beef are my faves but they have lamb, tofu and shrimp too, with Jasmine rice. I discovered this Indonesian restaurant during one of the Alexandria Jaycees' "International Nights" - periodic (for awhile we met monthly) dinners out at ethnic food restaurants around the area.

The restaurant is in the shopping center near Giant and the Dunkin' Donuts on Van Dorn - 512 S. Van Dorn Street [Directions]. Washingtonian magazine named Satay Sarinah among their top cheap eats in 1999, 2003, 2004, and 2005. The staff is great, and will tell you about their experiences growing up in Java or Bali. Check it out!

Sets in the City

Volleyball, anyone?  I don't know about you but I'm not into your typical Winter sports, like skiing, snowboarding, etc. But - volleyball. That's a different story! I bet you didn't know that the City of Alexandria runs several co-ed adult sports leagues throughout the year.

I've played in the recreational division of the City's volleyball league, and it's a fun way to get some exercise and meet new people. And, of course, hitting the bar after our weekly game is a great way to unwind!

Even if you've not played much before, you can join the recreational division (there is a competitive division for experienced players). To participate, you must sign up to be part of a team; there is a team fee that usually breaks out to about $50 per person per season. If you're not a City resident, there is a $25 extra charge.

The City does keep a list of people not affiliated with a team, so you can form a new team if you'd like - though my friend Chris is looking for some new teammates, and the Spring '08 season is here. The season runs April 7 through mid-June for playoffs, so if you're interested, email him a.s.a.p.

Who knows? You might just discover Sets in the City, the Joy of Sets, the Netminders, Serves for Life, Scared Hitless...

Cathy's "Great Places to Eat" : Mancini's Cafe & Bakery

Mancini's Cafe is located on Del Ray Avenue in Alexandria, Va. Two words: the brunches. Let me repeat - the brunches!! Owner/chef Barbara Mancini develops new menus for each weekend, and since I've been going to her restaurant, about 3 years now, I have to say there are 3 or 4 unique and tasty combinations of eggs, fruit, and french toast available every week - yum! My favorite (unfortunately for my waistline) is the red, white & blue french toast - usually on the menu around the fourth of July - it's french toast with strawberries, blueberries... and whipped cream.

Mancinis's is on the corner of Del Ray Avenue and East Monroe [Directions], very close to Potomac Yards. For me, this makes Mancini's not only a great stop for brunch Saturday mornings - after enjoying the greens and yellows, flowers and plants that make eating at the restaurant an whimsical experience - a great access point to Potomac Yards Shopping Center, so I can visit Target, Barnes & Noble and even go see a movie.

And, even on days when I don't want to go out I can get some of the homemade lasagne, baked ziti, chicken pot pie, chicken parmesan, and so much more... one of her half-pans can gives me a bunch of meals I freeze for later. Love that catering menu!! I haven't yet stopped by at lunch or dinner time... but I hear the menu choices are also outstanding.

Let me know what you think!

Living in Alexandria: Greener Transportation

I know many of us are doing what we can to conserve our natural resources - and there are a lot of great websites out there that can help us do that. One major way we can help improve our environment is through our daily transportation choices. Whether you're interested in reducing your carbon footprint through greener transportation options or don't want the expense of a vehicle, you'll want to check out several alternative transportation options for living and working in Alexandria.

Car-Sharing

If you only occasionally need a car, check out Zip Car or FlexCar. For a period of time the City of Alexandria will provide a monetary incentive to City residents and businesses to encourage use of car-sharing services in the City by reimbursing (on a partial basis) residents and businesses for first-time memberships to either car-sharing company. Both of these car-sharing services have rental locations at many of Alexandria's metro stations.

Slugging

Those of you new to the Northern Virginia area may think slugs are slimy gastropods... well, you'd be wrong. Slugging is a free form of transportation that metro DC commuters use to get around the area. Motorists pick up "slugs" from established slug lines around the area and then are able to drive in HOV lanes.

Slugging has its own rules of etiquette - one important convention is that slugs do not initiate conversation - only the drivers do. Typically slugs read or listen to an iPod. Another important rule - no money or gifts are to be given. Drivers pay for their own gas.

Ridematching

There's a regional network of transportation providers, Commuter Connections, that gives a good overview of these and other commuter options. Carpooling, or "ridematching", is one of the options available. You can check the list of available carpool partners or add your own name to the list online, or call 1-800-745-RIDE (7433). The website includes an option for a "guaranteed ride home"... not sure if this works, so let me know if you're using this service!

Metro

The area's metro transit system is one of the best in the country - for only a couple of dollars you can travel to almost anywhere in the area. Buy a Smart Card and park at metro stations to ride into DC, VA or MD - here's the metro map. The metro website even has a trip planner to make it easy to figure out when trains come and go and how to get around. As someone who gets lost every time I go into the District, I really appreciate the Metro for trips to the Smithsonian (Smithsonian stop on the Blue or Orange Lines) and The Verizon Center (the Gallery Place-Chinatown stop on the Yellow or Green Line).

For those of you new to Metro - here are two helpful tips: 1) there is no eating or drinking on the Metro. 2) when riding on the escalator PLEASE stand on the right and walk up on the left. Standers on the left side will be asked (sometimes not so politely) to move to the right by busy commuters.