All results / Stories / Michael Lee Pope
West End Worries
Beauregard small-area plan raises concerns about displacing poor residents.
Like the street that bears his name, Confederate Gen. Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard was difficult to manage.
Virginia Supreme Court Opens Access to Audio Recordings of Oral Arguments
Policy change overturns blackout instituted in 2008.
Members of the Virginia Supreme Court have a New Year’s Resolution — become more transparent.
Bracing for Massive Change Along the Route 1 Corridor
Whether called it Route 1, Richmond Highway or Hyland Highway, it won’t be the same.
What’s in a name? As William Shakespeare once wrote, a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Then again, the bard never got stuck in traffic.
May 28: Council Notebook
News briefs from the city council on May 28.
High Time for Legalization?
Advocates call on the governor to legalize marijuana as soon as possible.
The debate over legalizing marijuana is about to light up, putting Gov. Ralph Northam at the center of a budding controversy. At issue is a question of timing. Should he agree with lawmakers that legalization should wait until New Years Day 2024, giving the commonwealth enough time to stand up the new Cannabis Control Authority? Or should he amend the bill the General Assembly put on his desk to legalize weed now to prevent communities of color from being overpoliced in the interim?
On the Campaign Trail
What happens to City Councilman Rob Krupicka’s seat if he is elected to the House of Delegates next month? Fortunately for Democrats, it’s too late to have yet another special election.
State May Takeover Struggling Alexandria School After Decade of Failure
Increasing pressure for progress at Jefferson-Houston School.
A decade of efforts to improve Jefferson-Houston School have failed, and now state leaders are increasing pressure on Alexandria City Public School leaders to turnaround the turnaround.
Alexandria Paramedic Remembered for Perpetual Optimism and Wry Humor
Joshua Weissman, 33, dies while responding to a car fire on Interstate 395.
Joshua Weissman, a popular and optimistic Alexandria paramedic with a wry sense of humor, died last week after receiving a head injury while responding to a fire on Interstate 395. He was 33.
Week in Alexandria
This weekend, members of the Alexandria City Council are set to conduct a public hearing on an ordinance officially incorporating the controversial waterfront small-area plan into the city’s master plan.
On the Campaign Trail
With five weeks to go before Election Day, Republicans and Democrats have targeted a small number of jurisdictions as key battlegrounds, including Henrico County and Virginia Beach. Here in Northern Virginia, the key swing jurisdictions are Loudoun County and Prince William County, where Republican George W. Bush won in 2004 followed by Democrat Barack Obama in 2008 only to flip back the next year and vote fore Republican Bob McDonnell in 2009.
Arlington School Board Member Sally Baird Prepares to Exit Public Stage
Elected official recalls the ups and downs of two terms on the board.
When Sally Baird was first elected to the Arlington School Board in 2006, the county's public school system was still shrinking and Baird was a first-time candidate.
Council Notebook
City Council members have taken a bite out of crime.
Alexandria School Board Selects Interim Leader to Head Division
Alvin Crawley to take control of city schools at critical time.
Turns out, the national search for a new superintended wasn't able to find a candidate as good as the guy who is already sitting in the chair.
Young Turk from Alexandria
Armistead Boothe led war vets in General Assembly who took on Byrd Machine.
In some ways, Alexandria was the home of the forces who worked against the conservative political organization that ran Virginia politics for most of the 20th century. Starting after the conclusion of World War II, the city was represented in the House of Delegates by a young war vet by the name of Armistead Boothe.
Half a Loaf, Sort of
City waives $1 million affordable housing contribution; council to consider restoring half next year.
Hidden in the margins of the incentive package Alexandria leaders offered to lure the National Science Foundation from Arlington was a million-dollar motivation. Officials at City Hall said they were willing to waive the $1 million contribution to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. City Council members later said they didn't know the incentive was part of the package until it was too late. Removing it might jeopardize the deal, putting City Council members in a difficult spot. "It was my oversight," said Deputy City Manager Mark Jinks. "I take full responsibility." Fixing the problem was difficult and divisive for council members. Some were willing to let the affordable-housing contribution go the way of floppy disk. Others wanted to see the full contribution. Councilman John Taylor Chapman offered a compromise motion to direct budget officials to earmark $500,000 worth of tax revenue from the property to affordable housing during the next budget cycle. Although he initially circulated a memorandum outlining a $1 million contribution, he ended up cutting it in half to make sure he had the necessary support. "To be honest, I didn't think I would the votes to pass it," explained Chapman of the million-dollar proposal. "Some folks were not behind that idea."
Cementing the Districts
Republicans try to lock in eight-to-three advantage in congressional redistricting.
Now that congressional redistricting has moved through the House of Delegates and the Virginia Senate, a picture of 2012 is beginning to take shape.
Words With Frenemies
Pulitzer-prize winning historian outlines research at Lyceum.
The handwritten words of a former Virginia slave splashed across the screen at the Lyceum Tuesday night, part of a presentation by Pulitzer-prize winning historian Alan Taylor's War of 1812 Bicentennial Lecture. Taylor was explaining the research behind his new book, "The Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia, 1772-1832."
A Beacon of Things to Come on Richmond Highway
Mixed-use development may signal a sea change on Richmond Highway.
It’s the highest spot in Fairfax County, and it may also be a fulcrum for Richmond Highway.
Green Summer
Alexandria delegation works with the governor to legalize marijuana on July 1.
Alexandria is about to become the capital of marijuana in Virginia. The city's legislative delegation is at the center of an effort poised to legalize weed this summer, years ahead of an agreement that was struck behind closed doors at the end of the General Assembly session in February.