Letter to the Editor: City Manager’s Office Salary Summary
* FY 14 merits and salary adjustments were effective July 1, 2013 * There is no executive summary giving everyone a 5 percent increase, the proposed FY 15 budget contains an average merit of 3.2 percent for the entire organization * 1 percent increase for all employees for VRS As of 3-26-14.
Letter to the Editor: Who’s Looking Out For Taxpayers?
To the Editor: Its budget time again in Alexandria and based on [City Manager] Mr. Young's proposed budget items, once again he continues to leave Alexandria loaded with debt while continuing to raise his salary and those of his staff, cutting 33 positions and just "moving the deck chairs" around as it relates to staff reductions, but no eliminations along with a much higher real estate tax initially proposed due to high debt limit and City Council's inability to say "no" to anything. As such, here are some of my questions/suggestions for Mayor Euille and all members of the council to consider and/or ask Mr. Young before adopting this budget.
Letter to the Editor: Proposal’s Effect On Fire Safety?
To the Editor: We, the presidents of the NorthEast Citizens’ Association and the North Old Town Independent Citizens Association, are writing to express the deep concern of many of our members over the budget proposal to remove Fire Engine 204 from Station 204. The city manager has proposed that rather than keep in the budget firefighter positions needed to staff Station 210, the needed firefighter positions from 204 will be transferred to 210. Fire Engine 204 itself would otherwise not need to be moved; in recent years, the city purchased a full fleet of new engines.
Start the Conversation
April 16 has been designated as National Healthcare Decisions Day by national, state and community organizations. This special day was established to encourage adults of all ages to plan ahead for a health care crisis. This is also a great day to focus on how you can prepare yourself and your loved ones to face the decisions that will confront us all as we age.
Letter to the Editor: Mixed Messages To Seniors
To the Editor: In 2012, the City Council unanimously approved the city’s strategic plan on aging. The plan supports the goal of most older Alexandria residents to age in place, in their homes and in the community they love. The city manager’s proposed budget threatens to undermine the ability of many residents to stay in the city. The budget calls for termination of Senior Taxi; imposition of steep cuts in property tax relief for older or disabled homeowners; and termination of JobLink’s program providing employment assistance for older job seekers.
Letter to the Editor: Waterfront Course Correction Needed
To the Editor: What is our goal for Alexandria? To be attractive to upper-income retirees? Or make Alexandria a place where talented young people want to live and raise a family? Judging from recent waterfront discussions, it’s the former — affluent seniors. The best research available, however, says if you want to lock in future prosperity, go for young families. Don’t get me wrong. Waterfront development is coming along reasonably well, and I compliment leadership on its work. It’s just that we need a course correction to make sure we’re heading where we want to go and don’t drift into a dead-zone of older seasonal residents whose memories and priorities are elsewhere.
Letter to the Editor: What Happened To Democracy?
To the Editor: I’ve always wondered what happens when Democrats control a democracy. Alexandria is great petri dish to make this observation. Not only is it full of Democrats, it’s full the best kind: government employees. Alexandria is awash with them. Understandably, their proclivity is to turn to government for leadership, solutions and redress. To this mindset, the government is not the servant; it’s the master. And last month, our local master conquered. It vanquished the Old Town Boat Club. The city used police state threats and $5 million of our money to crush a venerable organization composed of private citizens. The city coveted their club property. Now, it appears what never belonged to the city is nearly in its hand.
Letter to the Editor: Outlandish Property Taxes
To the Editor: Why is it that our property taxes have risen 135 percent since the year 2000? That’s an average increase of 7 percent every year. Yet we are consistently told by our council that the numerous new building developments they have ravaged upon us will create a tax base that will in turn give the citizens a break on their property taxes. That’s just pure baloney, as who is paying for the entire associated infrastructure. Obviously the developers aren’t; we are. Therefore the taxes generated by the city’s numerous overdevelopment programs are being spent in other areas and are not being returned to us as tax rebates.
Opinion: Maintaining a Viable and Diverse Community in Alexandria
Public and private sectors must work together to secure the resources critical to working families and at-risk individuals in our community.
The following letter to Alexandria City Council concerning housing and human services budget recommendations from the Alexandria Budget Advocacy Coalition for Housing and Human Services is shared with the Alexandria Gazette Packet.
Letter to the Editor: Don’t Move Engine 204
To the Editor: As a resident within the area served by Engine 204, I find it hard to grasp why Engine 204 should be relocated to Eisenhower Avenue. I believe it would be an unwise decision that would affect the public, our lives, homes and many businesses throughout our communities of the south side of Old Town Alexandria and the north side of our city.
Letter to the Editor: Are Bike Lanes Really Necessary?
To the Editor: By unanimously overruling the directly affected residents’ desires to put a bike lane on King Street, could our council overlords really want to enable more bike usage; less vehicular traffic? Pedaling a bike does burn calories, and surely more pedalers mean fewer cars. What’s not to like about less vehicular congestion and better health, at least for the pedalers?
Letter to the Editor: Beware Becoming Pedestrian Unfriendly
To the Editor: The subject of managing bicycle traffic in Old Town is a complex one, but a key element is the effect of such traffic on the quality of life for residents. Old Town must be a walkable city, something it seemed to emphasize a few years ago but now has taken a back seat to other interests. It is evident that Old Town residents have complained about bicyclists not stopping at stop signs and not yielding to pedestrians, and added to this peril is the recent declaration by City Council that bicycles may travel on the city sidewalks. How can all of this be interpreted as anything but placing pedestrian safety, and pedestrian access, second to bicycle traffic?
Letter to the Editor: Seeds of Success Are Sown
To the Editor: The recent settlement agreement between the Old Dominion Boat Club and the city is cause for celebration. We applaud both sides for bringing this long litigious battle to an end in a manner we find fair — but more importantly sets the stage for the world class waterfront that our community can treasure. Someday in the near future a visitor at the foot of King Street will never again have to ask “where's the water” while a new state of the art Boat Club facility will rise out of the flood plain replacing the Beachcomber eyesore.
Letter: Towards a Healthy Norm
To the Editor
President Rebuilding Together Alexandria
Her memories are vivid. She loves Alexandria. And she loves her home. After living in the city for 71 years, Mary* not only appreciates the city’s rich history but grows with it. In fact, everywhere she looks, she recollects memories from different parts of her life. As a native Alexandrian who grew up on Queen Street, Mary remembers when Quaker Lane used to be mud lands, and when shops on Mt. Vernon Avenue had to close due to the floods. As a private nurse who often worked at the Goodwin House during her 30-year career, she met and cared for many well-known people and their family members, including a relative of Jackie Kennedy. She experienced segregation during the Civil Rights era but felt that outside of school, boundaries faded and kids got along. This was especially the case during a family tragedy. When her brother drowned as a young boy, the entire community came together working to find him.