Open Houses in Arlington This Weekend
Over the past two weeks, Republicans and Democrats have held conventions in an effort to sell the country on their respective political agendas. If you’re tired of hearing your apartment neighbors cheer and/or boo their televisions in response to speeches from presidential candidates, perhaps it’s finally time to put buying a new home on your agenda.
Below are a few notable open houses taking place in Arlington over the weekend. See our real estate section for a full listing.
329 Oxford Street North
Single Family Detached — 4 Bed / 3 Bath
Listed: $899,900
Agent: Diane Duston
Open: Saturday, Sept. 9 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
5012 11th Street South
Single Family Detached — 3 Bed / 1 Bath
Listed: $424,000
Agent: Ann Wilson
Open: Saturday, Sept. 9 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
1728 Queens Lane
Condominium — 1 Bed / 1 Bath
Listed: $299,900
Agent: Tracy Graves
Open: Saturday, Sept. 9 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
5051 7th Road South
Condominium — 2 Bed / 2 Bath
Listed: $267,700
Agent: Garnett Robins-Baughman
Open: Saturday, Sept. 9 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Your Beermonger: Ready for the Football
Editor’s Note: This sponsored column is written by Nick Anderson, beermonger at Arrowine (4508 Lee Highway)
Much to the chagrin of my wife and most of my friends, I’m a pretty big sports nut, and despite being a long suffering local sports fan there’s no anticipation quite like the feeling right as another pro football season starts. Maybe it’s the intensity of the game or the short schedule compared to other sports, but there’s an edge to the beginning of football season that gets me just a little extra charged up, and I know I’m not alone in that.
Just watching a few minutes of a game lets you know, through the sponsorships and overwhelming number of ads, that macrobreweries are the beverage of choice for the football fan, but that’s not always the case. There are a lot of us who love more than a couple beers during a game (and more often than not before or after one as well), so here’s some recommendations for this season. Enjoy these at your next tailgate or with some great snacks in front of the TV at home.
Devil’s Backbone Striped Bass Pale Ale: Recently released, this special-run Ale from Lexington, VA is a perfect late summer/early autumn beer. Striped Bass Pale is super-clean with a focused, earthy hop character. I hesitated to recommend this as I don’t know how long it’ll be around, but it’s too good not to. Not to mention proceeds go to help out the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.
Oskar Blues Mama’s Lil’ Yella’ Pils: It’s very easy to get branded as “that guy” when you bring craft beer to a tailgate or a friend’s house for the game. This crisp Pilsner-style from Oskar Blues is a perfect beer to avoid this: essentially one of those beers you see TV ads for, made by someone who gives a damn, Lil’ Yella’ is familiar enough that anybody who snags a can from the cooler can enjoy it, but made to a standard that makes it obviously a craft beer.
Port City Monumental IPA: Alexandria’s Port City Brewery is on a serious roll right now. Their Monumental IPA is well-balanced, with assertive but not overly aggressive hops and a nice malty character. Bring this one out for those who want to try something different but can be overwhelmed by intense hops.
Abita Pecan Harvest Ale: This year’s Pecan Harvest Ale hasn’t arrived yet, but when it does its mix of fine malts and nutty tones makes it a perfect match for pretzels, nuts, chips — you know, all the stuff you put out on the table when you sit down for a Sunday’s worth of action. Abita recently shut down temporarily with Hurricane Isaac bearing down on the Gulf Coast, but hopefully this unique and tasty seasonal Ale will be on one of their first truck out once they’re back up and running.
Founder’s Breakfast Stout: This is a beer that’s back on the market as of this week, but will be around throughout the season and into the playoffs, meaning during the winter where we have many a Sunday matchup played under ‘football weather.’ The combination of chocolates, coffees, and flaked oats in the Founder’s Breakfast Stout give it a bold flavor and while at 8.3% ABV it may seem a bit too strong for some, the feel isn’t nearly as heavy as you might think. This is a great brew for getting your winter grillout going or for taking the edge of a winter chill.
Until next time
Cheers! Also, hail!
Nick Anderson maintains a blog at www.beermonger.net, and can be found on Twitter at @The_Beermonger. Sign up for Arrowine’s money saving email offers and free wine and beer tastings at www.arrowine.com/mailing-list-signup.aspx. The views and opinions expressed in the column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.
EXCLUSIVE: ACPD Launches Coordinated Operations Against Food Trucks
Around lunchtime on Friday, Aug. 24, five Arlington County police officers, including three undercover officers in plainclothes, were assigned to enforce mobile vending regulations along the county’s Metro corridors. By the time lunchgoers had returned to their offices, police had issued seven court summonses to four different food trucks for a variety of violations.
The operation was one of two such coordinated enforcement actions against food trucks this summer — operations that have become necessary due to repeated violations, according to police.
As the number of food trucks in Arlington continues to rise, complaints against improperly licensed or illegally parked food trucks have risen — with many of those complaints coming from the brick and mortar restaurants that compete with food trucks for customers. In response, Arlington County Police say they came up with a plan of action earlier this year that included a vendor education campaign.
“[Police] determined that based on the number of complaints, we needed to at least assess the situation,” Arlington County Police second district commander Capt. Andy Penn told ARLnow.com. “We looked to see what was going on and noted that there were some violations were occurring. [We] then got together and decided that the best approach is going to be an educational campaign, certainly in the beginning, just trying to make sure people are informed and seek compliance.”
Penn said police met with vendors, inspected vending licenses, and handed out a small booklet listing relevant county ordinances. They also distributed a one-page handout of the most commonly-violated mobile food vending rules, including requirements for each vendor and employee to be licensed and — the perhaps most controversial rule — that food trucks can only remain parked in one spot for 60 minutes at a time. Finally, officers issued warnings when vendors were not in compliance, Penn said.
With the warnings distributed and the violations continuing, police began enforcement, issuing summonses that require the vendors to appear in court, in person, and pay a fine.
“The goal was not to give anybody a summons until they’ve been warned at least one time, if not more,” Penn said. “To my knowledge, the people charged have been previously warned.”
On July 25, a coordinated “district team” of officers observed how long food trucks were parked in various areas and issued summonses to three vendors, all for parking more than 60 minutes, Penn said. On Aug. 24, five officers — including two uniformed officers and three plainclothes officers — issued seven summonses to four different vendors.
The plainclothes officers were only detailed to the district team on Aug. 24 for a “limited amount of time,” Penn noted, and were in plainclothes “for a different issue.”
“The initial intent for the plainclothes had nothing to do with vendors,” he said. “They just happened to be in plainclothes that day.”
Food truck operators, meanwhile, have been voicing their discontent, calling the rules — in place since 2010 — “unfair,” and suggesting the fines and required court appearances are heavy-handed.
“Law enforcement has stepped up efforts in major areas like Crystal Drive, N. Lynn Street and N, Stuart Street in Ballston to enforce the rule,” Bada Bing food truck owner Nicholas Terzella told ARLnow.com via email on Aug. 24. “Police have been staking trucks out. When I was parked in Crystal City a few weeks ago, an Arlington County police officer sat across from Chic fil A for over an hour. In this time, multiple cars pulled up to 2200 Crystal Drive and double parked (this happens daily). None of these cars are EVER ticketed. The officer sat there for 1.5 hours and ticketed us.”
“This is the first time in my 2 years of business that I have ever received a ticket,” he continued. “I admit, parking in those particular locations is AWFUL!! That’s why we can’t just leave after the 60 minutes and just grab another spot. This rule ends our lunch service early and makes staying in Arlington impossible. We have to change it now or Arlington will soon be a food truck wasteland.”
Taxi Driver Tased Outside Arlington National Cemetery
A U.S. Park Police officer tased a taxi driver who “became disorderly” while waiting for a fare outside Arlington National Cemetery this morning.
The incident happened around 11:00 a.m. According to U.S. Park Police spokesman Sgt. Paul Brooks, an officer approached a cab that was waiting for a fare on Memorial Drive, near the cemetery, and asked to see the driver’s hack (taxi) license. The driver refused, became disorderly and exited his vehicle without being asked to do so, Brooks said. There was some sort of confrontation and the officer used a Taser to subdue the driver.
Medics from Arlington County responded to the scene to evaluate the driver, per standard procedure following a Taser deployment. The driver was arrested, but Brooks was unable to say what he was charged with.
No word yet on whether the taxi was from D.C., Arlington or another jurisdiction cab.
With New Schools Will Come Boundary Changes
Arlington Public Schools is starting its community engagement process for upcoming changes to elementary school boundaries.
Boundary and admission policy changes will be necessary to relieve pressure at overcrowded schools once two new elementary schools and three new elementary school additions come online between 2014 and 2017. (A 225 seat addition at Ashlawn Elementary is expected to be complete by fall 2014, and a new 600-seat elementary school on the Williamsburg Middle School campus is expected to be ready by fall 2015.)
Based on past experience, APS can expect parent opposition to some boundary changes. Perhaps with that in mind, the school system will kick off the discussion about boundaries and admissions at a meeting next week.
The meeting will be held at 7:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 12, in Room 101 of the Arlington Education Center (1426 N. Quincy Street). At the meeting, the School Board will “review the current boundary policy, discuss the scope of the boundary changes to be considered, and give direction to staff to ensure communication with and feedback from the community.”
The School Board is expected to take action on new school boundaries in late February 2013, according to a “proposed boundary framework” presentation from earlier this summer. Planning for new middle school boundaries is expected to start during the 2014-2015 school year.
In addition to planning for boundary changes, the school system is also starting its design process for the Ashlawn addition and the new school at Williamsburg.
Arlington Couple Grows Giant Sweet Potato
David and Susan Wase of Alcova Heights tried their hand at growing sweet potatoes this year, and they succeeded well beyond their expectations.
The couple managed to grow what they said was a seven pound sweet potato. Asked his secret for growing the giant root vegetable, David explained that sunlight, not shade, was key to his urban agriculture endeavors. That and some good ol’ fashioned mulch.
“A client of mine and fellow gardener had given me a few sweet potato shoots to plant in spring… never grew them before,” he said via email. “They were grown in a raised bed, nothing special other than some Arlington municipal mulch.”
“Every spring, Arlington County makes a big ‘to-do’ about planting more trees as part of their formally adopted ‘Tree Canopy Policy,’” he added. “Tree canopy and the ability to grow vegetables are pretty much mutually-exclusive. I’m fortunate because my yard is not heavily shaded, thus I was able to grow the sweet potato among other veggies, but I know so many other folks can’t have a garden because of extensive shade.”
The Wases still have a long way to go if they ever want to set a world record. A recent edition of the Guinness Book of World Records lists the largest sweet potato on record as 81 pounds.
Morning Notes
Rosslyn Jazz Fest to Be Held on Saturday — The annual Rosslyn Jazz Festival will be held at Gateway Park (1300 Lee Highway) from 1:00 to 7:00 p.m. on Saturday. The musical lineup includes groups and artists like Afro Blue, Rene Marie, Don Byron and Joshua Redman. Some surrounding roadways will be closed for most of the day. Planned street closures for the event include westbound Lee Highway from Lynn Street to Fort Myer Drive, and one lane each on eastbound Lee Highway and North Lynn Street. [Rosslyn BID]
Duncan to Visit Arlington Traditional School — U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will announce the 2012 National Blue Ribbon Schools in Arlington this morning. The announcement is scheduled to take place at 10:00 a.m. at Arlington Traditional Elementary School (855 N. Edison Street). Duncan is expected to be joined by Rep. Jim Moran (D) and Arlington Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy. [Department of Education]
APS Still Processing Appeals — Arlington Public Schools has received 450 formal appeals from parents of children denied bus service this year. The school system is continuing to respond to those appeals “as rapidly as possible.” At a school board meeting last night, however, APS officials showed no sign of backing down from their controversial new busing policy, despite strong words from a dozen or so parents who spoke. [Sun Gazette, Arlington Mercury]
No West Nile Virus in Arlington — Updated at 9:30 a.m. — D.C. officials revealed this week that an elderly man has died from West Nile virus. So far this year, 21 cases of West Nile virus have been reported in Maryland and five confirmed cases have been reported in Virginia. No cases have been reported in Arlington, a spokesman for the county’s Department of Human Services tells ARLnow.com.
