County To Spend Stimulus Funds on LED Streetlights
Arlington is devoting $500,000 in stimulus funds to convert old county-owned streetlights to energy-efficient LED streetlights, the county announced today.
Officials hope to replace 1,800 streetlights, or 40 percent of all county-owned lights, by the spring of 2011. The funds for the project will come from a federal energy efficiency and conservation grant.
After the initial push, the county will install 500 new streetlights per year. The conversion will take about six years to complete, and will produce a significant cost savings for the county.
The new lights are expected to cut energy consumption by about 60 percent and save more than $1 million per year, according to one estimate.
Even after the conversion, however, most streetlights in the county will be of the older, less energy-efficient variety. That’s because the vast majority of streetlights in Arlington are owned by Dominion Power. Dominion operates 11,700 lights under contract with the county, and those have not yet been scheduled for an upgrade.
“Arlington and Dominion are exploring options to improve the energy efficiency of those [streetlights] in the future,” the county said in a statement.
Rep. Moran Returning From Afghanistan
Rep. Jim Moran has just left Afghanistan after leading a congressional delegation to the war-torn region, his spokesperson tells ARLnow.com.
The Alexandria Times reported earlier this week that Moran left for Afghanistan on Sunday. The trip was organized for members of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense but was not announced publicly.
The group has at least one additional, undisclosed stop to make before returning to the U.S. by Monday.
In July, Moran voted against supplemental funding for the war in Afghanistan.
“There exists no military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan,” he said at the time. “Instead of increasing our troop presence, we should be limiting our mission.”
Beloved Ashlawn Elementary Teacher Dies Suddenly
A beloved fifth grade teacher at Ashlawn Elementary School suddenly passed away on Friday, two weeks before the start of school.
Long-time Ashlawn teacher Jimsey L. Frye is being remembered as a devoted educator with an infectious sense of humor. She died unexpectedly at the age of 61, at a time when she was getting ready to greet students for a new school year.
“Needless to say this is a loss for us and the larger school community, as Ms. Frye has touched so many lives in her many years of teaching,” wrote Ashlawn’s new principle, Judy Apostolico-Buck, in a letter to parents.
“I know the strength of the Ashlawn community will sustain us at this difficult time,” Apostolico-Buck wrote. “Please be assured we are working diligently to ensure the fifth grade will be off to a good start this year, despite our loss.”
The school will have counselors available to students or families that would like assistance, Apostolico-Buck said.
Former Ashlawn principle Edgar Miranda said college-aged students would regularly come back to Ashlawn just to visit Ms. Frye.
“She took a genuine interest in them, not just as students but as people,” Miranda said. “She was a wonderful person.”
Frye is survived by a brother, several sisters and Matthew Lemons, her husband.
A memorial service for her Frye be held tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. at Bull Run Park in Centreville. A private staff memorial was held on Monday.
Examiner: Resurgence of Residential and Retail in Rosslyn?
“Rosslyn has seen a surge in residential and retail development,” the Washington Examiner opined over the weekend. “Nearly 600 new housing units have opened in the past year and more than 500 are under construction.”
According to the Examiner, Rosslyn has experienced a “transformation” over the past decade that has made it “cleaner and greener” and a more attractive place to live.
“Rosslyn is becoming much more mixed use,” Rosslyn BID finance director John Seal told the paper. “There are so many things to do here that people tend to overlook.”
Between the DC skyline views and the proximity to downtown, Rosslyn is the “the high-end living destination in Arlington,” one local real estate broker said.
Another selling point: Artisphere, the shiny new cultural center set to open in October in the old Newseum space. (The article incorrectly lists Busboys and Poets as a tenant — in fact, Busboys dropped out and the county is trying to find another restaurant to take over.)
Yes, there’s more housing in Rosslyn as of late, and yes, Artisphere will bring more culture to the area, but retail? The article’s case for a retail resurgence seems much more thin.
Rosslyn-ites, what do you think of your neighborhood’s development?
In Case You Were Wondering: The Hockey RV in Courthouse
If you caught a glimpse of this RV parked outside the Court Suites Hotel in Courthouse, you may have wondered what the heck it’s doing there. If you count yourself as a hockey fan or a video game nut, you may have also been tempted to go up and knock on the door.
The RV is on a tour of the U.S. and Canada to promote the “real hockey experience” of playing NHL 2K11 on the Nintendo Wii.
It’s here in Arlington in advance of two promotional appearances this weekend: Saturday at a GameStop in Rockville (14929 Shady Grove Road), and Sunday at a Best Buy in Alexandria (5901 Stevenson Ave). Both appareances will take place from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
DC is among a handful of hockey meccas on the east coast where the RV is making a stop. The two weekend appearances are the only items on the official schedule, but with the RV crew staying so close to the Caps training facility they have to be planning on going over there and witnessing a real real hockey experience, right?
Morning Notes
ACDC Kicks Off Campaign Season — Last night, the Arlington County Democratic Committee officially launched its campaign to maintain electoral dominance in the county. But looking forward to November contests that include a challenge to incumbent county board member Chris Zimmerman, Democrats aren’t counting their chickens quite yet. “We are not going to take anything for granted [this] fall,” ACDC chair Mike Lieberman tells ARLnow.com. The Democrats’ campaign season will kick into high gear on Monday at the party’s annual Labor Day Chili Cookoff.
Dems, GOPers Swipe Each Other’s Swag — Stop us if this starts sounding like symbolism. In an effort to appease their respective constituencies, the local political parties decided to start stealing from one another. The petty political thievery took place at the recent Arlington County Fair. The Sun Gazette has the details.
Another Week of Chess – Shirlington’s Signature Theater has extended the rock musical Chess for an additional week. The show will now run through October 3. Tickets for the bonus week will go on sale Tuesday, according to Playbill.
The Pit of Hell Burger – Workers have dug up part of the parking lot in front of Ray’s Hell Burger in Rosslyn, but don’t worry, President Obama — your favorite diplomatic lunch spot is still open during the construction. Other affected businesses include Guallijo, Greenberry’s Coffee, and a Virginia ABC store. More from TBD.
Flickr pool photo by Chris Rief.
