Board Lifts Ban on A-Frame Signs — Following through on a New Years promise from Arlington County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman, the Board voted on Saturday to allow businesses in the county to use temporary sidewalk signs, also known as A-frame signs. The Board also approved the use of branded sidewalk cafe umbrellas. [Arlington County]
New Soccer Fields Discussed — The County Board is pondering where future soccer fields should be built in Arlington. New fields are necessary, the Board has been told, due to expected growth of youth soccer programs. The 6,000 player strong Arlington Soccer Association is expected to add another 1,000 players in coming years as Arlington experiences growth in its youth population. [Sun Gazette]
WaPo Readers Complain About ‘Hippie High’ Nickname — A pair of Washington Post readers wrote letters to the editor to complain about an article that once again dubbed the H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program “Hippie High.” [Washington Post]
Arlington Expecting Another Tough Year in Richmond — Arlington’s legislative delegation is anticipating another difficult year in Richmond. They say the Republican-controlled Virginia General Assembly has repeatedly passed legislation that goes against the county’s interests, despite the fact that Arlington is a significant source of state tax dollars. [Washington Times]
Flickr pool photo by Damiec
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Am I the only one amused by the fact that a year long policy initiative on signage has resulted in …..
Allowing logos on umbrellas…
What progressive politics!!!
I guess they wanted something, anything, to pass before Zimmerman steps down from his chairmanship. It’s lame that the County couldn’t do anything else to make it easier for businesses (and individual taxpayers as well) to deal with the permits and inspections department, the biggest problem department in County government.
i didn’t realize they were considering branded sidewalk umbrellas – anyone know if there are any restrictions as to the branding? that is, does it have to be restricted to name of the place of business, or could it be for alcohol (which is what seems to happen in most places)?
Think I read somewhere that there are both size and branding restrictions on the umbrellas.
The old rule said you could have umbrellas with branding as long as the branding did not relate to your business.
Can the Board Please Give our sidewalk space back? Why on earth would restaurants still have outdoor seating set up in freezing weather?
When will Lyon Hall get rid of that huge planter directly in the path of the crosswalk?
What on earth are you doing on the sidewalk in freezing weather??
Walking? Just a guess.
-1
More outdoor seating. Just walk around it. It’s exercise.
Yep, you are soooo right, I should be force to walk over a storm drain instead (case of Lyon Hall) or into a tree bed (case of Cheesecake factory) so that somebody can have a fizzy drink in freezing rain.
rules state I should have 6’4″ of width, that isn’t the case at most of these restaurants.
Agreed – some spots could ostensibly be bottlenecks but I doubt anyone is stepping into the street to get hit by a car to avoid the 2-second inconvenience of a narrower sidewalk for fifty feet.
I like outdoor seating and, if it’s a semi-permanent installation for a restaurant, I’d rather the businesses not have to incur the costs to deconstruct/store the outdoor areas for the time of the year during which there is the LEAST sidewalk traffic.
What about people in wheelchairs?
It’s not just people in wheelchairs. It’s people with walkers, or other injuries (think: old people with knee or back issues, disabled veterans with replacement limbs) that make it harder to walk unless you have a straight, level, unimpeded path. Sidewalks are for walking. At some point they’re going to get so full of tables, chairs, restaurant signs, mailboxes, newspaper stands, bikeshare stations, and other items that we’ll have to build sidewalks in front of the sidewalks for people to actually walk.
And strollers.
Ever been to South Beach? at most 24 inches clear for pedestrians. and it is the most crowdest place ever. oh, right it is also FUN, and arlington bans that.
The blurb on the Times article about Arlington vs. Richmond sets up an interesting dichotomy. Despite Arlington’s significant revenue contribution, Richmond does not roll out the red carpet and pass any legislation Arlington wants.
Arlington sounds like the 1% of Virginia. And they should be treated as such, in the spirit of the Occupy movements.
You mean we should control the other 99% of the state?
Badda-BING!
Hippie High? These one percenter, driving my Audi, doing a tear down to build my McMansion, don’t know from hippies. I’ll send the Rainbow Tribe down on their self-absorbed arses and see if they can pick out the hippies. I few weeks of the real thing living in their parks should show the good people of Arlington who is a hippie and who is not.
And you would know Jerry. Nothing 1% about your house at all…
http://www.55elmirador.com/photos.html
It looked much crappier when I lived there. I had snicker bar wrappers lying on the floor for weeks. I ate them so fast the maid could not keep up. And forget about the burn marks on the furniture after I would doze off chasing the dragon. I couldn’t have got a third of what these folks are asking. It was disgusting, really.
yay on the umbrellas and A-frame signs. They will both make the city look great.
If you don’t want HB Woodlawn called Hippie High then you should stop smoking Pot. If you don’t think they all do just go to the wood line near the school and take a smell of the air.
Hmmm, I don’t think they all do…Let me ask myself. Nope.
And no other schools have pot smokers, only HB. (rolleyes)
Wow – so the board thinks it’s imperative to accommodate the soccer needs of the up coming school pop. but they can’t be troubled to invest in the schools for them resulting in tons of trailers.
Trailers are unsightly and impermanent but they’re an easy fix because there’s usually enough space on the school sites to accommodate them. The County can add and subtract trailers to correspond with the need while they figure out a more permanent solution; adding field capacity, on the other hand, is part of a long-term improvement plan that will require a bond referendum.
In other words, just because they’re talking about fields at the same time as classroom capacity doesn’t mean that your kid will be learning social studies on the playground in late January while a field is being constructed.
The important part I left out is, the article quoted the Arlington Soccer president: “it’s not just classrooms these kids are going to need” – so field infrastructure is included in long-term planning with more permanent school capacity solutions and the time/funding required for both means that they both need to be considered now.
Where does that leave the Wagmore Dogs mural? Granted I realize it’s not an A-frame, but the mural was often lumped in with many of the complaints about Arlington’s far reaching sign restrictions.
if you sue Arlington or speak against zimmie or mock the “Arlington Way” you do not stand a chance of seeing air again.
dog mural will never be seen again.
The 3 sign items the Board approved represent only the beginning of the sign ordinance changes. In summer 2012, the Board will vote on comprehensive revisions.