Arlington Teacher Attends NBC Education Summit
Randolph Elementary third grade teacher Matt Tosiello, Arlington’s Teacher of the Year, was in New York City yesterday for the NBC News Education Nation summit.
While there, Tosiello participated in a two-hour Teacher Town Hall with NBC’s Brian Williams. The event focused on the struggles teachers face in the classroom and on future opportunities for improving the country’s educational system. (Tosiello can be seen briefly, holding an iPhone in this NBC Nightly News clip.)
Before the summit, Tosiello talked to NBC4′s Aaron Gilchrist.
LeoNora Bakery to Open Clarendon Storefront
Arlington’s LeoNora Gourmet Bakery, which offers its artisan baked goods via delivery and through a couple of local retailers, will soon have its first brick-and-mortar storefront.
The bakery is opening a store at 1108 N. Irving Street. Clarendon’s grungiest block — home to the Red Top Cab parking lot and to the no-frills Sam’s Corner deli — will soon be filled with the aroma of fresh-baked bread, as LeoNora plans to do all its baking in-house, in a bakery area behind the front counter.
Colombian-born bakery owner Carolina Garcia says that after a year and a half in the delivery business, LeoNora is ready to have a storefront to call its own.
“We realized that people really wanted a retail store,” Garcia told ARLnow.com. “That’s why we decided to open… they want the option to go and pick it up somewhere nearby.”
Currently, LeoNora’s baked goods are available for purchase at local retailers like Whole Foods, Arrowine and Boccato Gelato. The bakery will still offer free delivery to customers in D.C. and parts of Northern Virginia when the store opens, but Garcia says the minimum order will increase from $30 to $50.
Garcia, who trained as a baker and pastry chef in France, makes French baguettes, sourdough loafs, cakes, quiches and various pastries. Her inspiring economist-to-bakery-owner story has been told by news outlets from TBD to CNN to Northern Virginia Magazine.
Garcia says she hopes to have the new store open in a couple of weeks.
“It’s going great, we are very happy,” she said.
Crystal City to Get ‘Sparkling’ New Southern Entryway
A drab piece of vacant land that serves as the decidedly unspectacular southern entryway to Crystal City will soon be getting a new look.
The 30,000 square foot, triangular lot at the intersection of Crystal Drive and Jefferson Davis Highway will be getting “a large-scale lighting and landscape enhancement that will create a truly enticing gateway experience.”
“The project adds new turf, 28 trees, and beautiful LED lighting features laid out in an interesting and attractive geometric pattern that continues up the façade of the southernmost building in Crystal City,” according to the Crystal City Business Improvement District. Nearly 50,000 drivers per day pass by the entryway. The revamped look will communicate “the excitement and vibrancy of Crystal City,” according to the BID (see illustration, below).
A groundbreaking will be held on Monday, Oct. 3. Construction is expected to wrap up by Thanksgiving.
Disclosure: Crystal City BID is an ARLnow.com advertiser.
Clarendon/Courthouse Verizon Outage Continues
Hundreds of Verizon landline phone and DSL internet customers in the Clarendon and Courthouse area are still without service today, a week after a contractor taking a soil sample struck several cables buried under Rocky Run Park.
“Our restoral efforts continue,” Verizon spokesman Harry J. Mitchell told ARLnow.com this morning. “We’ve replaced and completed work on one of the damaged cables, and we’re at work on the second cable. We also found that a third cable was damaged, and we’ll be replacing a section of that one as well.”
The cables contain thousands of individual copper lines, which carry phone conversations and internet service to hundreds of Verizon customers in the area. Each copper line must be painstakingly spliced together to restore service. On Wednesday, Mitchell said employees were working around the clock to perform the repairs.
“We will keep at it until we’ve restored all services,” he said today.
One tipster, whose phone service was knocked offline last week, says he has been told to expect a prolonged outage.
“I was told that customers could easily be out of service through Friday,” the tipster said.
Yorktown Defeats District Rival Hayfield
The Yorktown Patriots are now 4-0 after defeating National District football rival Hayfield before a home crowd Friday night.
Despite a slow start on offense, the Yorktown defense held up and led the team to a 21-0 victory. The Patriots will try to improve to 5-0 this week when the team faces J.E.B. Stuart on the road.
Arlington Tax Deadline Approaching
The payment deadline is fast approaching for Arlington’s vehicle personal property tax and for installment two of the county’s real estate tax.
Both tax bills are due next week on Wednesday, Oct. 5.
In addition, the Arlington County Treasurer’s office is reminding residents that the 2011-2012 vehicle decals must be displayed on windshields by Nov. 15.
“If residents would like more information (including payment options, information about the Taxpayer Assistance Program, etc.), they may visit www.arlingtonva.us/treas or call 703-228-4000,” a Treasurer’s office representative wrote. “Residents may also contact the Treasurer’s office by emailing treasurer@arlingtonva.us.”
Photos from Clarendon Day
Live music. Dancing. Food. Exhibitors. Kid’s activities. Arts and Crafts. A skateboarding demonstration.
Clarendon Day has a little something for everyone. The annual street fair, held on several streets in the heart of Clarendon, went off without a hitch on Saturday.
Though cloudy, the afternoon was mercifully rain-free, which helped to boost attendance. See the rest of our photos from the event, after the jump.
Morning Notes
Musical Moves to New Theater — The Arlington Players are moving next month’s production of Nine to the Kenmore Middle School auditorium. Earthquake damage was discovered earlier this month at the musical’s original venue, the Thomas Jefferson Community Theater. [Sun Gazette]
Roosevelt Island Access From D.C.? — Greater Greater Washington argues that ferry service or bridge should be established/built from the Georgetown waterfront to Roosevelt Island. Why? “Roosevelt Island is in the District of Columbia, yet DC residents have to travel through Virginia via or along a highway to get to this fantastic and wild resource.” [Greater Greater Washington]
Metro Cell Phone Upgrades Behind Schedule — Metro is well behind schedule in providing cell phone service to all 47 of its underground rail stations. The agency had promised to add service to the 27 stations currently without cell phone infrastructure by last fall, but now says it’s not sure when the cell phone companies will complete the work necessary to provide the service. [Washington Examiner]
