One-on-one with Alexandria’s first Black female mayor Alyia Gaskins
ALEXANDRIA, Va. ( DC News Now ) – Alyia Gaskins will serve as the next mayor of Alexandria after winning Tuesday's election, running on the ballot unopposed.
Gaskins will be the first Black woman to hold Alexandria's top office when she's sworn in next year.
DC News Now caught up with her one-on-one Friday as she gets ready to take office.
She said she's already been working on her transition from councilmember to mayor for months, after winning the primary election in June.
She has big plans ahead for the city of Alexandria.
"Getting elected and stepping into this role is is only one piece of it. The work to make sure that we get it right is what begins now," said Gaskins, a democrat.
"If there's anything you'll know about me, I like to be prepared. It's included a lot of meetings with other elected officials in the region and getting to understand some of their priorities and what they're working on. It includes meetings with our residents. I've been hosting roundtable discussions," she added.
Current Mayor Justin Wilson was elected to office back in 2018 and didn't seek re-election this time around. He also served as the city's Vice Mayor and as a city council member.
"Mayor Wilson takes the time to read every detail and get to know some of these very technical infrastructure projects, all of the ins and outs," said Gaskins.
"Mayor Wilson, I think he responds in 30 seconds or less on every single platform. While I can't say that will always be my approach, what I can say is that I want to carry that forth so that if you reach out to your council, you will get a response. You will get your problem solved," she added.
She's excited to bring a fresh perspective to the Mayor's office.
"The top priorities when I started this campaign were safety, affordability and accessibility. I think starting with the first 100 days, it's really going to be diving into that accessibility piece, how we communicate as a council, how we are transparent about what it is that we're working on and how we're going to be working for the people of the city," said Gaskins.
Gaskins said it's an honor to be the first Black woman to take on the Mayor's office in Alexandria's 275-year history.
"I feel such a great a great sense of gratitude, humility, but also responsibility. You know, I know our city's history. I know where we've come in, our legacy in the slave trade, Jim Crow, urban renewal. I hope my candidacy can be a bright step forward that really talks about the future of Alexandria as this creative, diverse cultural light for all of our country," said Gaskins.
The city has a lot of history and part of that history includes older, aging infrastructure.
Businesses and restaurants in the popular Old Town neighborhood often deal with flooding during major rain events and the work to fix the city's flooding problem is top of mind for many.
"On the council, I have been a part of accelerating our investments in our infrastructure, helping support the continuation of our Stormwater Advisory Team, making sure that we are using our Stormwater Utility Fee in a way that starts to advance and move forward these projects. I think we've got a $2 billion CIP, and most of that is infrastructure projects, a large portion of which are dedicated to addressing our flooding. We know we can't continue to be the special place that we are if parts of our community are underwater," said Gaskins.
Moving into the Mayor's office is both a professional shift and a personal shift for Gaskins, a mom to a two-year-old and a four-year-old.
"My son has been so excited every day when I pick him up from school, he's like, 'Are you the mayor yet? We read a lot of books about what it means to be the mayor," said Gaskins. "It's been a really exciting time to share with my kids and my husband. Even my beagle has been to more events than I think he's ever been to in his life."
Gaskins will officially be sworn in as the city's next mayor on January 2, 2025.
