Talk to me about Alexandria City

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Belle Haven is overrated and gross.

Idiotic opinion. Belle haven is objectively nice. Where do you live?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Belle Haven is overrated and gross.

Idiotic opinion. Belle haven is objectively nice. Where do you live?

Probably in a van down by the river.

[Anonymous]

....There isn't much to talk about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I firmly believe most of the Alexandria 'haters', especially when it comes to Del Ray, are actually real estate agents in Arlington trying to to drum up business. They're scared about how quickly Alexandria became more desirable than Arlington.

You are an idiot. No one is scared of Alexandria becoming more desirable than Arlington. You don't know what you speak of, leave the room.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I firmly believe most of the Alexandria 'haters', especially when it comes to Del Ray, are actually real estate agents in Arlington trying to to drum up business. They're scared about how quickly Alexandria became more desirable than Arlington.

You are an idiot. No one is scared of Alexandria becoming more desirable than Arlington. You don't know what you speak of, leave the room.

+10000 this will never happen. Alexandria always copies Arlington in everything, it's like the little sister who keeps bothering the bigger sister for attention.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My take as someone who grew up in Bethesda / Chevy Chase and now lives in Alexandria but in the Fairfax County part of Alexandria — live in the Fairfax county part of Alexandria lol. I personally think Alexandria area is the best place to live factoring in cost, charm, architecture, and just overall vibe, but I wouldn’t want to live in the city of Alexandria because the politicians are clowns and they are essentially 100% focused on pandering to poor people and immigrants. As a result of this pandering, the schools are now trash, the roads have potholes, there is crime and “affordable housing”, and neighborhoods that aren’t even near the water flood. Just not worth contributing tax money to that sinking ship. I live in Belle Haven so I get all the benefits of Alexandria without being involved in it personally.

We lived in Old Town for 15 years and loved it, but moved to Belle Haven for all the reasons you describe. A huge percentage of people in Belle Haven moved there from Old Town (and send their kids to private school, so it isn’t the schools that made them move).

Yep we live in Fort Hunt, so a little further down the parkway but same idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I firmly believe most of the Alexandria 'haters', especially when it comes to Del Ray, are actually real estate agents in Arlington trying to to drum up business. They're scared about how quickly Alexandria became more desirable than Arlington.

You are an idiot. No one is scared of Alexandria becoming more desirable than Arlington. You don't know what you speak of, leave the room.

Struck a chord, huh?

[Anonymous]

We live in the Ft Hunt area (so Fairfax County part of Alexandria) but we live our lives in Alexandria City. Kids schools, sports, exercise classes, shopping are all in Alexandria. We love the Old Town restaurants and small businesses and go to nearly all the annual parade and community events. If we could afford Old Town, we would live there. DH and I talk about buying in Old Town when the kids are out of the house.

Yes, the city government is incompetent and property tax increases are a concern. Yes, the schools seem questionable (everyone I know likes their ACPS elementary, but is at a loss about what to do with middle school and high school....but thats the same for a lot of places). Yes, crime is increasing (kids preschool is right by a housing project where there have been shoot outs).

But its still a desirable place to live.

My biggest gripe about Alexandria are the people who get huffy when anyone who lives in the Belle Haven to Mt Vernon corridor says they live in Alexandria....even if their address is Alexandria. Such a touchy subject!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in the Ft Hunt area (so Fairfax County part of Alexandria) but we live our lives in Alexandria City. Kids schools, sports, exercise classes, shopping are all in Alexandria. We love the Old Town restaurants and small businesses and go to nearly all the annual parade and community events. If we could afford Old Town, we would live there. DH and I talk about buying in Old Town when the kids are out of the house.

Yes, the city government is incompetent and property tax increases are a concern. Yes, the schools seem questionable (everyone I know likes their ACPS elementary, but is at a loss about what to do with middle school and high school....but thats the same for a lot of places). Yes, crime is increasing (kids preschool is right by a housing project where there have been shoot outs).

But its still a desirable place to live.

My biggest gripe about Alexandria are the people who get huffy when anyone who lives in the Belle Haven to Mt Vernon corridor says they live in Alexandria....even if their address is Alexandria. Such a touchy subject!

Meh. Just say you live in Ft Hunt. It's what most of your neighbors, me included, do when people ask.

[Anonymous]

Crime is terrible in the city of Alexandria and it's not enforced. Make sure to read the stories about the judges letting a rapist out of jail he then immediately went and killed her. She wasn't even warned he was let out. This has over and over here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in the Ft Hunt area (so Fairfax County part of Alexandria) but we live our lives in Alexandria City. Kids schools, sports, exercise classes, shopping are all in Alexandria. We love the Old Town restaurants and small businesses and go to nearly all the annual parade and community events. If we could afford Old Town, we would live there. DH and I talk about buying in Old Town when the kids are out of the house.

Yes, the city government is incompetent and property tax increases are a concern. Yes, the schools seem questionable (everyone I know likes their ACPS elementary, but is at a loss about what to do with middle school and high school....but thats the same for a lot of places). Yes, crime is increasing (kids preschool is right by a housing project where there have been shoot outs).

But its still a desirable place to live.

My biggest gripe about Alexandria are the people who get huffy when anyone who lives in the Belle Haven to Mt Vernon corridor says they live in Alexandria....even if their address is Alexandria. Such a touchy subject!

Most people who live in Belle Haven or Fort Hunt, etc say they live in those neighborhoods, if they think the person they're talking to knows the area. Otherwise, it's "Alexandria."

But it's a silly debate, because the entire area of Alexandria (including the part that is in Fairfax County) was originally "Alexandria." To make a long story short, the current "City of Alexandria" is a more modern entity that exists separate from the Fairfax County portion only because it was the part of Virginia that was ceded to the District of Columbia. What is now the City of Alexandria *and* Arlington County were all originally in Fairfax County, but were ceded to the federal government to become part of the District of Columbia. The part of Alexandria that was left remained in Fairfax County. When the Old Town & Arlington areas were returned to Virginia in the 19th C., the entire retroceded area became "Alexandria County" until 1870, when the "City of Alexandria" was split off. The remainder was "Alexandria County" until it was eventually renamed "Arlington County" in 1920. So, if anything, the folks in the portion of Alexandria that remained in Virginia as part of in Fairfax County should turn up their noses at the upstarts in the City that have claimed the name.

[Anonymous]

I've lived there for 15 years. Mostly in Old Town, now in southern Del Ray. I'll never live anywhere else in the area. Its perfect for me as I no longer love big city living, but work downtown. It's like a Hallmark movie combined with being a 20 min drive to my office and everything in downtown. I'd rather live in a much smaller metro area than DC, but love my job. And since I'm a lobbyist/policy person I can't really do my job on this level other places. So Alex City splits the baby for me on a quieter, smaller (and easier) town vine with letting me keep my career.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Crime is terrible in the city of Alexandria and it's not enforced. Make sure to read the stories about the judges letting a rapist out of jail he then immediately went and killed her. She wasn't even warned he was let out. This has over and over here.

Blame the state government for the judge. Localities have zero control over judges. I don't know how you people make it to adulthood with such little knowledge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in the Ft Hunt area (so Fairfax County part of Alexandria) but we live our lives in Alexandria City. Kids schools, sports, exercise classes, shopping are all in Alexandria. We love the Old Town restaurants and small businesses and go to nearly all the annual parade and community events. If we could afford Old Town, we would live there. DH and I talk about buying in Old Town when the kids are out of the house.

Yes, the city government is incompetent and property tax increases are a concern. Yes, the schools seem questionable (everyone I know likes their ACPS elementary, but is at a loss about what to do with middle school and high school....but thats the same for a lot of places). Yes, crime is increasing (kids preschool is right by a housing project where there have been shoot outs).

But its still a desirable place to live.

My biggest gripe about Alexandria are the people who get huffy when anyone who lives in the Belle Haven to Mt Vernon corridor says they live in Alexandria....even if their address is Alexandria. Such a touchy subject!

Most people who live in Belle Haven or Fort Hunt, etc say they live in those neighborhoods, if they think the person they're talking to knows the area. Otherwise, it's "Alexandria."

But it's a silly debate, because the entire area of Alexandria (including the part that is in Fairfax County) was originally "Alexandria." To make a long story short, the current "City of Alexandria" is a more modern entity that exists separate from the Fairfax County portion only because it was the part of Virginia that was ceded to the District of Columbia. What is now the City of Alexandria *and* Arlington County were all originally in Fairfax County, but were ceded to the federal government to become part of the District of Columbia. The part of Alexandria that was left remained in Fairfax County. When the Old Town & Arlington areas were returned to Virginia in the 19th C., the entire retroceded area became "Alexandria County" until 1870, when the "City of Alexandria" was split off. The remainder was "Alexandria County" until it was eventually renamed "Arlington County" in 1920. So, if anything, the folks in the portion of Alexandria that remained in Virginia as part of in Fairfax County should turn up their noses at the upstarts in the City that have claimed the name.

Really all the land dates back to the Charles River Shire and was part of Northumberland County, then Stafford County, then Prince William County, and only became Fairfax County in the late 1700s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I firmly believe most of the Alexandria 'haters', especially when it comes to Del Ray, are actually real estate agents in Arlington trying to to drum up business. They're scared about how quickly Alexandria became more desirable than Arlington.

Plus one. Not sure that they are real estates agents but people who paid way above value for houses in Arlington and wonder why they can now only afford the crap pizza at Lost Dog.