Vice President JD Vance moves out of Alexandria and Judy Lowe Park reopens

By James Cullum
Published January 21, 2025 at 2:40PM
Updated January 21, 2025 at 7:55PM


Chalk messages adorn concrete barriers outside Judy Lowe Park, which is near the home of Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance in Del Ray (staff photo by James Cullum)

Del Ray officially lost one of its most famous residents this week, as Vice President JD Vance moved from his Del Ray home to the grounds of the U.S. Naval Observatory. The move also means that Judy Lowe Neighborhood Park at 1 E. Del Ray, which is next to Vance’s former home has reopened to the public.

The reopening of the park was announced on the city website. Moving trucks were spotted by an ALXnow tipster on Saturday, Jan. 18 — two days before the inauguration.

The Republican bought the nearby home for $1.6 million in Feb. 2023, just three months after being elected to the U.S. Senate. A year-and-a-half later, Vance was named President Trump’s vice presidential nominee, resulting in the closure of Judy Lowe Neighborhood Park whenever he or his family were home.

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Vance is the second vice president to live in Alexandria. … Former President Gerald Ford, his wife and children moved to the city in 1951 during his second term in Congress. Ford even lived in the city with his family as vice president, and gave the keynote address for his son’s graduation from T.C. Williams High School. For his first 10 days in office as president, Ford commuted to the White House from Alexandria. He was also sworn into office as president in 1974 in a suit cleaned and pressed the night before by Presto Valet in Alexandria.

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