Archive for the 'Old Town' Category
Six Old Town Homes Featured on Historic Garden Week Tour in Alexandria
April 19th, 2008 Categories: Alexandria, Old Town
Six Old Town homes were open to the public today for the beginning of Historic Garden Week in Virginia. During the April 19-27 festivities, visitors across the Commonwealth will step through the gates of more than 250 of Virginia’ s most beautiful gardens, homes and historic landmarks. Three dozen separate tours will present a rich mosaic of formal gardens, walled gardens, cottage gardens, cutting gardens, water gardens, and even secret gardens. Visitors interested in architecture and interior decorating will have the opportunity to see renovated historic properties as well as contemporary residences. (Photography is NOT permitted in private houses and gardens.)
300 South Lee Street sits on land once used as a storage yard for lumber for James Green’s ‘Cabinet Manufactory’ dating to 1934. The two story building now occupying the space dates from 1885. In 1997 the present owners completed a renovation that included an excavation to provide basement living space under the entire length of the house. Prominently on display are an 18th century English desk, a 19th century map of New Orleans, and a framed $100 bill from the Bank of Louisiana dated 1862. A 19 century cigar-store woodcarving of George Washington marks the point where the original house ended. Mr. and Mrs. Brian B. Gibney, owners.
210 Duke Street is a classic home built in 1787 for Dr. James Craik, George Washington’s Revolutionary War private secretary and physician, and is now know simply as “Craik House.” Dr. Craik used the front two rooms of the house for his medical practice; he is buried in the Old Presbyterian Meeting House yard on South Fairfax. After Craik’s death, the building was used as a school and boarding house before being purchased by the Thompson family in 1943.
The Thompson’s also acquired the adjacent frame flounder house at 208 Duke Street and united the two buildings in 1946. Purchased by the present owners, Mr. and Mrs. Dennis J. Garcia, in 2004, the house and garden have been carefully restored. The garden in particular reflects 18th century design and features marble steps salvaged from Blair House during a mid-20th century remodeling. Read the rest of this entry »
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The King St. Trolley is a FREE Ride for Tourists and Alexandria Residents
April 3rd, 2008 Categories: Alexandria, Green Living, Old Town, Things to Do
Clang, clang, clang went the trolley , ding, ding, ding went the bell . . . seven days a week from 10:00am to 10:00pm the clangs and bells of the Alexandria City trolley can be heard up and down King Street.
Offered by the city as a way to encourage tourism, manage congestion and reduce mobile transmissions, the red and black trolley cars are a welcome, and seemingly natural, addition to the streets of Old Town.
Originally designed in conjunction with the City’s National Harbor initiatives, the trolleys will compliment the water taxis that run every 30 minutes between the Old Town waterfront and the new Gaylord National Hotel at the foot of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge in Prince Georges County. The National Harbor project is expected to bring hundreds of new visitors to Alexandria with the FREE trolley service benefitting tourists, residents and businesses alike.
Four trolleys will circulate approximately every 15 minutes between the waterfront and the King Street metro, stopping about every two blocks, at signed stops, to pick up and drop off passengers.
The service is FREE (we just can’t say that enough) and there is no limit to the number of times you can get on and off.
Previously, transportation from the Metro Station to the heart of Old Town meant a cab, a 15 block trek, a bus or, if you were driving, a fruitless hunt for parking. Now, visitors and residents alike will have a FREE, easy to use, alternative.
Clang, clang, clang went the trolley, ding, ding, ding went the bell . . . check it out!
Michael
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Pound or Pedigree, Alexandria is A Dog Friendly Place to Be!
March 21st, 2008 Categories: Alexandria, Del Ray, Doggone It, Old Town, Real Estate News
Named as one of the Top 10 Cities (as part of the greater Washington Metropolitan area) in the U.S. for dogs, Alexandria is home to 20 dog parks, 6 specialty pet boutiques, 3 pet bakeries, 2 organic pet food stores, a luxury pet spa, and at least one doggie happy hour.
Dogs are front and center at Halloween parades, December’s Scottish Walk, St. Patrick’s Day Fun, Yappy Hours, numerous adoption days and the Annual Canine Games in Chinquapin Park. In fact, the local animal shelter, run by the Animal Welfare League, is named after former city manager, Vola Lawson.
Charlie
Saturday morning at the Farmer’s Market - whether in Del Ray or Old Town - is as much about seeing and being seen with your dog as it is about buying fresh produce. And on the beautiful spring days that Alexandria is known for, well, you might think you were at the Westminster Kennel Club walking the judges ring!
One of the newest additions to the specialty pet market is Nature’s Nibbles, which sells all natural, totally organic pet food, natural treats and raw bones plus supplements, toys, beds, hemp collars and leashes.
The business, owned by Chris Gabriel and his wife Anne, grew out of their experience with their own dog Gypsy who was allergic to certain grains. Chris started Nature’s Nibbles as an online delivery venture first, but opened a store front operation in Del Ray just a little over a year ago.
When the weather is nice, Nature’s Nibbles offers a “do it yourself dog wash”. You supply the dirty dog, they supply temperature controlled water, hypo-allergenic shampoo, towels and the bath. What a deal!
In business since 1995, another all natural, all organic shop is Petsage, Inc. which specializes in offering healthy diet choices both at their retail location off Duke Street and on line.
Barkley Square -named the 2006 Alexandria Chamber of Commerce Retail Business of the year - with locations in Old Town and Del Ray (right next to our favorite Evening Star cafe) offers a variety of gift baskets that make gift giving simple for that special dog in your life. Owner Kristina Robertson is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, the Alexandria City Visitors Association (ACVA) and is a board member of the King Street Metro Enterprise Team (KSMET) which works to enhance the pet friendly atmosphere of the community.
Fetch Dog and Cat Bakery Boutique is located directly across from the Old Town Starbucks which makes it a destination for dog and owner alike. (We all know that kitties do not go for walks, nor do they have owners.) Fetch offers more than 60 kinds of edible treatsand specializes in unusual birthday cakes. There are also doggie cupcakes, tiny pizzas, “Postman cookies” and “Kitty cookies”so, as owner Lisa Erbe joked, “a dog can eat a cat.”*** Fetch has just opened a second location in Lorton, VA - just south of Alexandria on I-95.
Treats from Fetch
The real pioneers in pet care however are Carlos and Sandy Mejias who opened Olde Town School for Dogs in 1975 in a 300 sq. ft. rental in the heart of historic Old Town. Since that time they have expanded, on the same block, to 7,000 sq. ft. devoted solely to training, grooming and retail.
Perhaps best known for their innovative “Puppy Head Start” program, OTSFD offers pick up and delivery service for area residents (dogs only, no humans allowed). Using the streets, shops and parks of Alexandria as a perfect situational training ground, OTSFD ”students” are a common sight in Old Town.
The Mejias most recent enterprise is the Olde Towne Pet Resort in Springfield, VA offering some 200 rooms, or suites, with packages that can include windows, television, and play time in an indoor pool or on an agility course. Similar accommodations are offered for feline friends.
Other specialty stores include For Pet’s Sake in the Fairlington area of Alexandria, and Pro Feed in the Bradlee Shopping Center. The Alexandria Medical Arts Pharmacy in Old Town will specially prepare pet medicines to make them more palatable.
Who ever came up with the phrase “going to the dogs” was obviously not from this area ’cause our dogs have it good . . .as does our spoiled feline
Thanks for stopping by,
Michael
***Mac did NOT think much of this cookie idea!
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