How should we commemorate the Civil War? Is the Torpedo Factory headed for a makeover? Does the City’s plan for recycling amount to Big Brother or is it a big help? These and other issues will be examined in the new program schedule announced by Agenda:Alexandria, a leading issues forum in the city.
Agenda:Alexandria is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that prides itself on taking a look at issues without taking sides. Its dinner programs are open to all and take place in the Holiday Inn — Eisenhower Metro, 2460 Eisenhower Ave.
“We hope to have a program lineup that will inform and educate, but also entertain the movers and shakers of Alexandria,” Agenda Chair Alan Dubow said.
The schedule begins Monday, Sept. 27, with “Torpedo Factory – Targeted for Change?” A panel will discuss proposals for changing the management and financing of the city’s premier tourist attraction. One co-manager of the evening’s program is Marian Van Landingham, artist and former legislator credited with being the moving force behind the Torpedo Factory.
The Monday, Oct. 25 program will be on “The Costs and Benefits of Recycling.” City officials prompted a lively debate with proposals to track neighborhoods’ recycling habits through chips embedded in new recycling bins. The ideas raised questions of Big Brother – privacy intrusion – among some Alexandrians. But backers of the plan said the chips would only tell the City where to publicize recycling more, to get a good response rate.
On Monday, Nov. 22, the forum will present a discussion of “Alexandria’s Unique Retailers – An Endangered Species?” A panel will examine the City’s small businesses and the policies that could help them or put hurdles in their paths.
A second look at Alexandria business and growth will come after a holiday hiatus. The program year resumes Jan. 24, 2011, with an examination of the decision-making process for development and whether residents are given a big enough role.
The Civil War and debate over Alexandria’s observance of the conflict’s 2011 anniversary will be discussed Feb. 25, in “Alexandria and The Civil War – Pride and Shame in Black and White.”
The March 31, 2011 program—“Paying for the Alexandria We Want”—asks what measures will be necessary to close the growing gap between the City’s financial resources and its citizens’ service expectations.
An April program will feature an as-yet-unannounced presentation on a hot topic facing the city.
The program year ends May 23 with a discussion of the results of the 2010 Census: “Who We Are and Who We Will Be.” Demographics, far from being a dry topic, have attracted the largest crowds in Agenda:Alexandria’s decade.
Information on the Agenda:Alexandria programs and reservations can be obtained by contacting Executive Director Sherry Brown at (703) 548-7089 or checking the website at www.agendaalexandria.com