[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 64 (Thursday, April 6, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E801-E802]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                         HONORING JOE ALEXANDER

                                 ______


                          HON. THOMAS M. DAVIS

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 5, 1995
  Mr. DAVIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to one of 
Virginia's best known and most successful political leaders, who is 
retiring from public office after 32 years of service. Joseph 
Alexander, known as ``Metro Joe,'' or ``The Baron of Lee District,'' 
has announced he will not seek reelection to the Fairfax Board of 
Supervisors from Lee District. He is being honored by the Fairfax 
Chamber of Commerce at this annual turkey roast on April 22, 1995.
  Joe grew up in Franconia, where his father, Milton Alexander, 
established the Franconia Hardware Store at 6124 Franconia Road. His 
mother, Celia, was the local post mistress at the Franconia Post 
Office, which was located in the same building with the hardware store.
  Joe moved on to attend college at Virginia Tech, where he served with 
the Corps of Cadets all 4 years of his stay. He graduated in 1951 with 
a degree in business administration and a commission of second 
lieutenant in the Air Force. Joe continued at Tech in 1952, and pursued 
a degree in public administration. He was called to duty this time and 
went to flight training. He served in the Korean war as a first 
lieutenant until 1955.
  After leaving the service, Joe returned to Fairfax County and joined 
his father in the family hardware business, and became active in the 
Springfield Chamber of Commerce, where he served as president from 1959 
to 1961. Prior to his leadership role with the chamber, Joe met Davina 
Einbinder, a Washington, DC, native. In June of 1956, they married and 
moved into the Rose Hill area of Lee District, where they have 
continued to live to this day.
  While serving in the Springfield Chamber and being active in the 
community as a local businessman, Joe became interested and concerned 
about the future of Fairfax County. Other area businesses were also 
concerned that there was no representation for the business community 
on the Board of Supervisors during 1960. They began to press Joe to run 
for the Lee District position on the board. Joe decided to enter the 
race in 1963. With the Franconia Hardware Store as his headquarters, 
Joe received a large amount of public support from the Springfield 
Chamber, local fire fighters, and a number of Lee District communities. 
His bid for the seat was successful, and in 1964 Joe was sworn in as a 
member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
  Joe always showed a strong interest in transportation issues, and in 
1971 he was appointed as an alternate member of the Metro board. He was 
instrumental in getting the citizens of Fairfax County to approve bonds 
to finance the regional Metro system. He became a principle voting 
member in 1973, and he further advanced the organization to serve as 
[[Page E802]] chairman of the board four times: 1975, 1981, 1987, and 
1993.
  Some of the organizations that Joe helped organize as a County Board 
member were: the Economic Development Authority, the South East Fairfax 
Development Corporation, and he pushed the county to begin promoting 
tourism. Joe has always been one of the most stable business leaders on 
the Board of Supervisors.
  He has always paid attention to local concerns, and as the Lee 
District Board member, he has personally been responsible for the 
completion of over at least 200 million dollars' worth of public 
projects in Lee District. Projects range from neighborhood 
improvements, parks, drainage protection, trails, street lights, 
intersection improvements, new roads and streets, conservation and 
environmental projects, the Huntington, Van Dorn, and Franconia-
Springfield Metro stations, as well as a number of other projects that 
are too numerous to mention.
  During all of this time, he was very active in the American Public 
Transit Association [APTA]. The association represents all of the 
transit systems in the United States and Canada. Joe was elected vice 
president of APTA in 1981, and was elected chairman of APTA in 1982. He 
served as chairman until 1984. Joe developed a tremendous amount of 
knowledge about transit operations around the country.
  Because of his transit experience, Joe was asked to join Ernst & 
Young and help develop the National Transit Consulting Practice. Joe 
left Perpetual in 1987 to go to work for Ernst & Young. He spent the 
next 5 years developing the transit practice and working with transit 
systems in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, and many other cities. 
Joe left Ernst & Young in 1992 to create the Alexander Group, in order 
to pursue additional consulting opportunities.
  He is presently serving as the APTA membership committee chairman, 
president of the Virginia Association of Transit Officials, a member of 
the Virginia Railway Express Operations Board, a member of the NVTC 
Board, and a member of the Metro Board.
  Joe and his wife Davie have two daughters, Cathy and Cheri, both 
graduates of the Fairfax County school system. Davie presently serves 
as the executive director of the Mt. Vernon-Lee Chamber of Commerce.
  Mr. Speaker, I know my colleagues join me in honoring Joe Alexander 
for his 32 years of public service and wish him and Davie continued 
success in the years ahead.


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