Arlington Among the Top Ten ‘Well-Read Cities’ in U.S.
Arlington has been ranked among the most “well-read cities” in the United States, according to Amazon.com.
The internet retailer compiled sales data of all book, magazine and newspaper sales since Jan. 1, 2011 — in both print and Kindle formats — to find out which areas read the most on a per capita basis. Only “cities” with a population over 100,000 were considered.
Arlington ranked #10 on the list. Next-door neighbor Alexandria ranked #2, while the District ranked #14. Alexandria also topped the list of the cities that order the most children’s books.
See the full list, after the jump.
Happy Anniversary to Meghan and Nathan
We wanted to give a quick shout out this afternoon to readers Meghan and Nathan.
If you haven’t seen it already, Nathan took out an ad on our homepage today to say “Happy Anniversary” and “I love you, always and forever” to his lovely wife. The ad links to a YouTube video of the Etta James classic “At Last” — the first song they danced to at their wedding.
Happy anniversary to both of you.
Immigration Advocates to March Through Clarendon Tonight
Pro-immigration groups will be marching through the streets of Arlington tonight to protest the deportation of illegal immigrants.
Protesters will march from George Mason University Founder’s Hall, at 3351 N. Fairfax Drive in Virginia Square, to the Arlington County jail, at 1435 N. Courthouse Road in Courthouse, where they will hold a rally against the federal ‘Secure Communities’ immigration enforcement program.
The march is scheduled to begin at 6:45 p.m. Organizers expect the rally outside the jail to start at 7:15 p.m.
“Speakers at the rally will include representatives from Virginia, Maryland, DC, New York, Illinois, California and other locales affected by the discredited deportation program,” organizers said in a statement.
The march and rally will coincide with the start of the Turning the Tide National Summit, a three-day pro-immigration gathering that’s being held this year at GMU’s Arlington campus.
Secure Communities helps federal authorities enforce immigration laws by checking the fingerprints of those arrested by local law enforcement through a Department of Homeland Security immigration database.
In September the County Board voted unanimously to attempt to withdraw from the program, saying that Secure Communities “will create divisions in our community and promote a cultural fear and distrust of law enforcement.” County officials eventually determined that it was not feasible to withdraw from the program. A coalition that helped organize local opposition to Secure Communities was later given the county’s James B. Hunter Human Rights Award.
PETA Weighs in on Arlington Dog Park Debate
A controversial proposal to ban young children from Arlington’s dog parks has caught the attention of PETA.
The animal rights group has written a letter to Arlington Parks Division Chief Caroline Temmermand with a “friendly suggestion” — to ban unsterilized dogs from the county’s dog parks.
“Dogs who haven’t been ‘fixed’ are nearly three times as likely to bite as are dogs who have been sterilized,” a PETA rep told ARLnow.com. Plus, the rep said, dogs that haven’t been spayed or neutered “can contribute to the animal overpopulation crisis.”
“By allowing only ‘fixed’ dogs into Arlington’s [dog paks], the county would make parks safer and send a strong message to dog guardians that spaying or neutering their animal companions is a necessary, responsible thing to do,” PETA Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch said in a statement.
See PETA’s letter to the Parks Department, after the jump.
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Crystal City to Host WABA’s ‘Bike Fest’
The Washington Area Bicyclist Association will be holding Bike Fest, a “summer fundraiser and celebration,” in Crystal City next month.
Bike fest will feature food, drinks, desserts, carnival-style games, a silent auction, a raffle, sideshow performances, live music and dancing, bicycle art, palm readings, a photo booth and a bike building contest. The musical acts will include D.C.-based progressive acoustic act Second String Band and DJ Jennder.
The event is being held from 8:00 p.m. to midnight on Saturday, June 11 in the Crystal City Shops at 1750 (241 18th Street S.).
Tickets are $45 and are available online. Proceeds will benefit WABA’s bicycle advocacy, safety and education programs.
Colony House Furniture to Become Hotel
The Colony House Furniture store at 1700 Lee Highway is set to be torn down to make way for an extended stay hotel.
The recognizable building has been sold to the B.F. Saul Company, the Bethesda-based developer behind the recent Clarendon Center project. Last week representatives from Saul presented their redevelopment plan to the North Rosslyn Civic Association. Under the plan, an eight story extended stay hotel will be built on the 1.2 acre site at the corner of Lee Highway and N. Quinn Street. The hotel will include eight stories of guest rooms on top of two stories of above-ground parking.
(The parking must be built above ground since the site sits on solid rock. The building will technically be ten stories high from the Lee Highway side, but will only be considered eight stories due to the steep elevation near the rear of the site.)
Saul told residents that they’re in negotiations with two companies to operate the hotel — Marriott’s Residence Inn and Hilton’s Homewood Suites. They’re aiming for a LEED Silver certification for the building.
The company says zoning allows them to build an 88-room hotel on the site by right. Saul, however, will be seeking County Board approval later this year to build a 154-room hotel with 96 parking spaces. After presentations to the Rosslyn Business Improvement District, the North Rosslyn Civic Association, and three Colonial Village associations, Saul’s Mary Beth Avedesian says the company has yet to hear any neighbor opposition to the project.
Crime Report: Middle School Car Thieves Edition
In this week’s Arlington County crime report, a 13-year-old and two 14-year-olds allegedly try to steal cars — during the day — on a busy residential street near Columbia Pike.
ATTEMPT GRAND LARCENY AUTO (SERIES)-ARREST, 05/21/11, the 1200 and 1300 block of S. Courthouse Road. On May 21 at 4:20 pm, three juvenile males were located attempted to steal several vehicles. One 13 year-old and two 14 year-olds were apprehended and taken to juvenile detention. Charges are pending.
Also in this week’s report, two drunk women in Ballston get in a fight over smoking.
ASSAULT AND BATTERY, 05/22/11, 4100 block of Fairfax Drive. On May 22 at 8 pm, two intoxicated woman argued over one of them smoking close to the building and one assaulted the other.
The rest of the crime report, after the jump.
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Morning Notes
Iota to Hold Memorial Day Fundraiser — Iota Club and Cafe (2832 Wilson Blvd) in Clarendon will be holding a Memorial Day fundraiser for tornado and flood victims. It will be open for breakfast and brunch starting at 8:00 a.m. on Monday, then the music and the burger/hot dog cookout will begin at 3:00 p.m. Among the 21+ acts scheduled to perform are Alexandria folk-rockers The WeatherVanes, Arlington acoustic rocker Taylor Carson and Arlington singer/songwriter/vocal powerhouse Margot MacDonald.
Civic Federation to Discuss Public Safety — At its monthly meeting on Tuesday, June 7, the Arlington County Civic Federation will hear presentations from and ask questions of Arlington’s police chief, director of emergency management and a senior fire department official. Also at the meeting, the Federation will hear presentations from ask questions of Arlington housing and planning officials, regarding affordable housing.
Farm Animals in South Arlington — The Arlington Career Center apparently houses chickens, goats and a pony behind its concrete walls. [Pike Wire]
