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All results / Stories / Michael Lee Pope

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Two Hour Vendors: Arlington County Doubles Time Allowed for Food Trucks

One-hour restriction spiked; expanding vending zones is next on the menu.

Every hour, food-truck vendor Amir Mohammed would have to shut down his propane tank, and get behind the wheel of Baba's Big Bite food truck to find a new parking space.

Week in Alexandria: 1/08/14

Highlights from this week in Alexandria.

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."

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Is Money Buying Influence in the Race for Alexandria City Council?

Candidates accept contributions from people with business at City Hall.

Campaign finance documents show candidates for mayor and City Council have taken hundreds of dollars from people with business at City Hall.

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Connecting the Unconnected

Less than 3 percent of broadband spending to help low-income people gain internet access

About 15 percent of Alexandria students did not have access to the internet when the pandemic began last year, a statistic that reveals how many households in Alexandria are locked out of the modern economy.

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Zoned Out

City Council to determine future of single-family housing in Alexandria.

"We need to apply strict scrutiny on the zoning provisions we have and ensure that they do not have a disparate impact, particularly to ensure that some of the provisions are not segregating our communities." — Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson

Demanding Better Budgets

School Board rejects budget document, calls for comprehensive audit.

Demanding Better Budgets

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State Senate Committee Kills Effort to Overturn King's Dominion Law

School boards were encouraged by support from governor, but couldn't win over Senate committee.

The Senate Committee on Education and Health voted today to kill an effort overturning the King's Dominion Law, which mandates that school divisions across Virginia begin classes after Labor Day.

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Killing the Death Penalty

Lawmakers consider bill to abolish capital punishment in Virginia

Virginia has executed people longer than any other state, a tradition that stretches back into colonial days when Captain George Kendall was executed for treason. Over the years, the commonwealth has executed more than 1,300 people. Now, Virginia may be about to join 22 other states that have abolished the death penalty.

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Arlington County Schools Increasingly Crowded as Enrollment Spikes

Two new elementary school planned; more changes on the horizon.

School leaders in Arlington are struggling to accommodate about 1,000 new students in the coming school year, a crunch that's sending school officials scrambling for teachers, assistants, administrators, equipment and relocatable classrooms.

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Will Arlington Food Trucks Be Able to Park Longer Than Two Hours or After 8 p.m.?

County officials to consider creation of vending zones that would allow more flexibility.

It's shortly after 1 p.m. on a beautiful spring day in Rosslyn.

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Hybrid Outrage at the Department of Motor Vehicles

Two legislators vow to introduce effort to repeal new tax on hybrid vehicles.

Suzanne Cleary has owned a hybrid vehicle since 2006, making her an early adopter and a proselytizer to her friends and neighbors.

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Alexandria Set to Exceed Debt Ceiling, Raising Concerns About Bond Rating

City leaders say borrowing is necessary to finance future of Alexandria.

Alexandria is about to hit the roof, literally.

In Session

With the fresh tragedy of Newtown, Conn., haunting the Virginia General Assembly, the issue of gun control is certain to be one of the most emotional topics on the docket.

Setting the Tone

First redevelopment proposal of waterfront plan heads to City Council.

Developer Carr City Centers wants to build the Cummings Hotel, a five-story building with 120 hotel rooms, a restaurant and a meeting room.

Week in Alexandria: June 4

Slip Displeasure

What is the future of pleasure boats on the waterfront? That's a question that has yet to be resolved. It's an uncertainty that's leaving pleasure-boaters, well, displeased.

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Nine Candidates Vying for Attention in 8th Congressional District Democratic Primary

Race to replace Jim Moran is expected to be competitive and expensive.

It's been three weeks since longtime U.S. Rep. Jim Moran (D-8) announced that he would not be seeking a 13th term in Congress, opening up an epic primary fight that is now starting to take shape.

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Even Small Amounts of Precipitation Dump Raw Sewage into Potomac River

City government signs offer misleading information about outfalls.

Don't believe the signs city officials have posted at the four outfall spots that dump raw sewage into the Potomac River. The truth is much worse.

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Alexandria Leaders Consider Lawsuit Challenging Takeover of Long-Troubled School

Unless courts intervene, new statewide division will take control of Jefferson-Houston next year.

Is Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell's effort to take over Jefferson-Houston School constitutional?

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Thousands of Families are Living with Uncertainty on the West End

City Council to consider plan that would demolish hundreds of low-end garden apartments.

On the windswept streets of the city's West End, many poor and Latino residents say they are living with a sense of uncertainty.