No West Nile Found in Arlington So Far
Surrounding areas are dealing with the first reports of West Nile Virus this season, but so far Arlington remains in the clear.
No cases of West Nile Virus have been reported in humans this year or last year, according to the Arlington County Department of Human Services. Fairfax, Alexandria and the District all identified West Nile in mosquito samples in recent days. However, Arlington County no longer does sampling because it confirmed long ago that mosquitoes with West Nile are present throughout the region.
Arlington County discontinued mosquito spraying several years ago, but encourages residents to be proactive about avoiding contact with mosquitoes. A “Mosquito Information Center” website has been set up with tips for staying mosquito bite free.
Walkers Wanted for Survey
Efforts are underway to make Arlington more friendly to walkers, and your input could help influence future improvements.
The national survey is aimed at finding out what motivates avid walkers and what prevents others from walking more. WalkArlington and Arlington County Commuter Services have teamed up to conduct the survey locally.
To take the online survey, click here. It takes about fifteen minutes and results are anonymous. The deadline has been extended to this Friday. Everyone who participates is entered into a drawing for a $100 Visa gift card.
Sneak Peek at New Cherrydale Fire Station
Here’s a sneak peek at the new Fire Station No. 3 in Cherrydale.
Previously, the firefighters had to rent space from the Cherrydale Volunteer Fire Department in the facility two blocks away. The size of the new 14,100 square foot station allowed for the addition of meeting rooms and offices, as well as a significantly larger exercise room and laundry room.
The station provides a more gender-neutral workplace due to the improvements in restroom facilities and dorms. Previously, firefighters had to share a large dorm room and only one restroom. Now, each firefighter gets his or her own dorm room which includes lockers, a changing area and a restroom.
Each dorm room is also equipped with an alarm device above the bed to alert firefighters to a call. The alarm gradually becomes louder to help reduce shock to firefighters’ systems, instead of the previous alarms which suddenly jolted them awake with a loud tone.
There are fewer fluorescent light fixtures and nearly all of the lighting is LED. This is one of the features making the station more “green” than the previous facility. The lights throughout the station turn red to alert firefighters when a call comes in, and to help them maintain night vision if a call happens during the night.
The public gets a chance to tour the nearly $4.5 million dollar facility at 4100 Old Dominion Drive during the open house this Saturday from 10am-2pm.
Kitten Boom Prompts Need for Adoptions
The boom of kittens born in spring has left a lot of animals homeless this summer.
As first reported by Coryn Julien in the blog The Arlington Connection, summer is a tough time to find homes for kittens and cats. Because of spring’s increase in births, there are too few adopters to take in all of the kittens and cats in shelters.
The SPCA of Northern Virginia has noticed the cat problem as well. The organization’s website lists an urgent need for foster homes for cats and kittens. It says while foster homes are always needed, it “is especially critical for cats during kitten season.”
Right now the Animal Welfare League of Arlington is focusing on adult cats who don’t get adopted because so many people are opting for the newborn kittens during the summer. To help alleviate the problem, the AWLA is offering free adoption of any cat at least two years old during the month of July.
In order to cut down on future cat population booms that lead to homeless animals, the AWLA also recommends spaying and neutering pets.
Morning Notes
Goldman Fund Buys Rosslyn Buildings–A real estate private equity fund run by Goldman Sachs has agreed to buy 10 office buildings in Rosslyn from Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. The sale is viewed as the sign of an uptick in commercial real estate values in the area. [Wall Street Journal]
Power Pilot Program–Dominion Virginia Power plans to launch a pilot program in the fall to give discounts to electric vehicle owners who charge up during off-peak hours. [Washington Post]
Job Fair–The soon-to-open American Tap Room in Clarendon is holding a job fair. The restaurant is advertising on the spot hiring for qualified candidates in all positions from bussers to managers. Bring ID and employment documents to the auditorium at 2100 Washington Blvd. from 10am-4pm.
