By Sydney Kodama | skodama@alextimes.com
Lifelong Alexandrian Frank Fannon is hoping to return to City Council after more than a decade away, with a focus on reconnecting Alexandria’s leaders with city residents.
“I have the time and knowledge and temperament, the desire to do this,” he said. “I could be … traveling around and watching baseball games or playing golf, but I’ve decided to take this time of my life to serve my city, which I’ve grown up in and I’ve loved.”
Fannon said the time is right, not only because he recently retired from a career in mortgage banking, but because he sees issues brewing he believes he can resolve.
“There is a lack of leadership and a disconnect between City Council and the citizenry, and I think I’m the person that can help reconnect [them],” Fannon said. “… We’re a citizen-first City Council.”
Fannon won a seat to Council in 2009 as a Republican, serving until 2012. If reelected, he would be the first non-Democrat elected to Council since himself. He said he instead chose to run as an Independent this time around to focus on what really matters: the issues.
“The most important thing is to answer to the citizens, whatever their national party affiliation – that shouldn’t have anything to do with what we’re doing here on the local level,” he said. “Because everybody wants to have good schools, everybody wants to have good roads and there should be no ‘Ds’ or ‘Rs.’”
As a fourth-generation Alexandrian, Fannon has strong family ties to the city. His great-grandfather’s heating and cooling business, T.J. Fannon & Sons, was founded in 1885 and is still going strong.
“I always believe that if you understand history, it can really help shape the future. And my great grandfather … was [Irish and] it was very tough to be Irish in America between 1890 and 1920, so he faced a tremendous amount of discrimination,” Fannon explained. “… He was always told by his father [to] take advantage of the unique opportunities that you have here, so he started a business and bought real estate. And, 150 years later, that’s why a lot of people want to come to our great country for all the opportunities that it offers.”
Though they never met, Fannon’s great-grandfather, who also served on Council, is his political inspiration.
“I’ve always looked up to what he’s done and read a lot of his writings, and he’s inspired me to carry on this tradition, to serve the citizens of Alexandria and give back to your community,” he said.
Fannon was named a Living Legend of Alexandria in 2020 due to his public service, volunteer work and commitment to the city. Fannon said he learned from his family to give back to the community – he led his 18th annual “Alexandrians Have Heart” food and clothing drive in February.
He said community service has been ingrained in him since childhood. The family business slogan is “Over a century of service,” after all.
Fannon has also served as president of Agenda:Alexandria – a forum for discussing local issues – and on the Alexandria Housing Affordability Advisory Committee, on the board of the Alexandria Sportsman’s Club and more. Fannon is also president of the Alexandria Aces, the city’s entry in the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League.
After graduating from North Carolina’s Elon University in 1991 with a degree in corporate communications, Fannon re-immersed himself in the Port City’s community. He’s lived in Rosemont and Old Town and currently resides in Clover-College Park.
Though he’s remained an involved community member, Fannon said he has additional time now to dedicate himself to more service.
“A lot of the people on the current City Council, before they ran, they came [to me for advice],” he said. “… One of the first things I always say is, ‘Don’t run for City Council unless you have an extra 30 hours a week.’ … You really have to be able to have the time and the commitment and the desire to serve.”
Fannon said, since launching his campaign, constituents have reached out to him with concerns about the city’s transparency, or a perceived lack thereof, on an array of issues, including new housing development, the city’s plan for Braddock Road improvements and the now-defunct pump station plan for Waterfront Park.
“They’re [these issues] getting on my radar now,” he explained. “They’re concerned that … the city is growing too fast … it is going to affect the traffic, and it is going to affect the schools.”
Fannon’s concerns about schools stretch beyond their capacity – like Council, he is worried about whether Alexandria City Public Schools funding is effectively reaching the students. Council, in early March, passed a resolution that would change the funding structure in fiscal year 2028.
“I think there definitely is some tension right now between City Council and the School Board,” Fannon said. “We need to direct the money to the children to make sure that all these children are getting a quality education here in the city because that’s what really also helps drive the desire and the real estate values for people to live here.”
Fannon would also be the only Councilor, if elected, to support Sheriff Sean Casey’s compliance with administrative warrants from Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“Sheriff Casey is following the laws, and he wants to protect our citizens here in Alexandria,” he said. “It’s just a shame, unfortunately, in Fairfax County, their sheriff has operated a different way.”
Fannon said his top priorities if elected to Council, in addition to a “citizen-first” approach, would be managing the growth of the city, practicing fiscal restraint and protecting neighborhoods from new, higher density development.
“If you’re in a single-family neighborhood right now, you, by-right, can … put a four-unit apartment building with no parking restrictions, and it could overwhelm a neighborhood,” Fannon said.
Reflecting on his time on Council, Fannon noted that having different political parties led to “great debates.” He said he can represent constituents that feel unrepresented by today’s Council.
“I want the citizenry to feel that they now have a voice on City Council, and I’m going to help change the conversation at the table,” he said. “… It’s going to be, ‘What do the citizens want?’ I really want to return a voice to the citizens and have more transparency and better discussions on the issues that we move forward here in Alexandria.”