On the weekend of June 22 and 23, national art show promoter Howard Alan Events will hold the inaugural “Arlington Festival of the Arts,” a “two-day juried outdoor gallery style art exhibit” featuring various works from “100 of the finest artists in the country.”

The festival is free and will take place each day from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., on N. Highland Street near the Clarendon Metro station.

“Festival patrons can expect to see bold and vibrant paintings, contemporary and whimsical art, life-size sculptures, photography, handcrafted jewelry and much more,” said a press release. “A food festival hosted by the Clarendon Alliance will be located adjacent to the Metro Station stop on Clarendon Boulevard and Highland Street. Admission to the art show is free and open to the public.”

In addition to viewing art, festival-goers will, of course, also be able to purchase art. Prices will range from $25 to $30,000, according to organizers.

Also in June, the Market Common Clarendon shopping center (2700 Clarendon Blvd) will kick off a summer-long acoustic music festival. Concert-goers are encouraged to bring picnic blankets or lawn chairs to the free concerts, in the Market Common Clarendon courtyard.

The concerts will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Thursday nights. The scheduled artist lineup is as follows.

• June 6 — Lloyd Dobler Effect
• June 13 — Hand Painted Swinger
• June 20 — Josh Burgess
• June 27 — Willem Dicke
• July 4 — David Andrew Smith
• July 11 — Melodime
• July 18 — Levi Stephens
• July 25 — Jason Masi
• August 1 — FarAway Duo
• August 8 — Paul Pfau
• August 15 — Shane Gamble
• August 22 — Heather Renee
• August 29 — Kerry McCool

Construction issues will delay the anticipated “late spring” reopening of Clarendon’s James Hunter Park until summer.

According to Arlington County Department of Parks and Recreation spokeswoman Susan Kalish, a number of unforeseen conditions turned up during construction at the dog park site on the corner of N. Herndon Street and N. 13th Street. Some of the problems include difficult soils, grading issues and the discovery of “buried structures.” Kalish said although such issues are not unheard of, they will push the expected park completion date into July.

“This is not unusual at an urban site and we were able to make adjustments to ensure the park will be a great place for the community to gather,” she said.

Workers will spend the next several weeks installing site furnishings and landscaping.

“This space should look more and more like a park by the middle of June,” said Kalish.

Despite the delay, the $1.6 million renovation project remains on budget.

The two parcels of vacant land run along Clarendon Blvd, between N. Adams Street and N. Barton Street. The ROK Arlington Embassy Annex building lies adjacent to the land, but faces Wilson Blvd. The land parcels up for grabs currently house nothing but fenced asphalt and gravel lots.

The embassy reports that the space is only used a few times each year during large meetings. It decided to offer the land to the county as a goodwill gesture.

Terms of the lease would allow the county to use the land free of rent as long as it maintains the parcels. The county may use the property for any legal use, provided it notifies the embassy prior to changing the land use. Any permanent improvements on the land would first require consent from the embassy.

The lease agreement would be in effect for a minimum of two years and would continue until terminated by one of the parties. The county staff report indicates maintenance costs associated with the lease would be minimal and no significant fiscal impact is expected.

Although the county staff report recommends the Board approves the deal, so far no firm plan has been developed for the future of the land. The county’s Department of Community Planning, Housing and Development (CPHD) performed a preliminary land analysis and came up with some potential uses and improvements to the property. CPHD is prepared to solicit public input on possible uses for the site.

LOFT, formerly known as Ann Taylor LOFT, sells “upper moderate” priced women’s clothing for for work and home. The company’s two stores in Arlington — at the Pentagon Row and Market Common Clarendon shopping centers — closed recently to undergo some remodeling.

The Pentagon Row location is expected to reopen this Friday (May 3) and the Clarendon location should reopen at some point next week, according to company spokeswoman Marie Larson.

“This new concept store is complete with plush seating and open space encouraging interaction among clients and larger groupings of mannequins in order to show our guests additional outfitting options,” Larson said.

Last year, Potomac CrossFit at 1039 N. Highland Street in Clarendon closed, along with nearby businesses, to make way for a new development that’s currently under construction. Tomorrow, the gym will hold a grand reopening celebration at its new home at 1320 N. Courthouse Road.

With more than 8,000 square feet, the Courthouse location offers more than double the space of the previous site. Employees at the new location also boast of shower facilities, new equipment and a revamped class schedule.

Everyone is welcome to stop by for a free class tomorrow (Saturday) at 10:30 a.m. No CrossFit experience is necessary. Immediately following the class, the grand reopening celebration will kick off at 11:30 a.m. Visitors can check out the facility, meet instructors and enjoy food and drinks.

Arlington Homeless Population Increases — Despite a decline of 2.4 percent across most of the region, Arlington’s homeless population rose by six percent between 2012 and 2013. The figures were gathered during the annual homeless census on January 30. The county’s new homeless count stands at 479 people, up from 451 the previous year. [Sun Gazette]

Streetcar Cost/Benefit Test — An article criticizing Libby Garvey’s op-ed in the Washington Post contends streetcars do indeed pass the cost/benefit test, contrary to Garvey’s thoughts. The author favors a streetcar to buses based on points such as the streetcar having a greater passenger capacity, faster rate of travel and bringing more development to the area. [Greater Greater Washington]

Raise the Roof Service Project — The Arlington Teen Network Board has teamed up with Rebuilding Together Arlington/Fairfax/Falls Church for a service project called “Raise the Roof.” Tomorrow (April 27), volunteers will begin repairing the Borromeo Housing, Inc. group house, which is a transitional home for teen moms and their children. Volunteers are collecting money to continue with the next phase of the service project, which involves a facelift of the interior and exterior of the home. Those interested in contributing can do so through the project website.

Police Seek Tips in Two Theft Incidents — The Arlington County Police Department is seeking the public’s assistance in finding suspects involved in two separate theft incidents. The first incident involved shoplifting at South Moon Under (2700 Clarendon Blvd) on March 1. Suspect descriptions are available online, along with contact information for reporting tips. The second case involves tracking down persons of interest in the theft of a victim’s wallet. The victim’s credit cards have since been used around the area. Suspect information and contact information for reporting tips for that crime can also be found on the police department website.

The county’s BikeArlington program posted the following photo of one of the shelters on Facebook.

“The temporary rack assembly shown here will be replaced this week with 12 permanent racks,” BikeArlington said. “The two bike shelters are designed to accommodate 12 racks each, which together will provide cover for up to 48 bikes.”

“The Clarendon shelters are identical to Arlington’s two existing bike shelters. The first was located at the Shirlington bus station. The second recently opened at the Pentagon City metro station. An air pump and repair stand with basic tools will also be installed at all three bike shelter locations sometime this summer.”

The new bike shelters are part of the larger Clarendon Metro Plaza project, which has resulted in new paving, seating, lighting, landscaping and newspaper racks outside the Metro station. Construction on the project is expected to wrap up this spring and summer.

Photo via Facebook

The stations will close beginning today at 10:00 p.m. and running through closing on Sunday. The closures allow for track circuit replacement, which is a safety measure recommended by the NTSB.

Trains will operate every 15 minutes in two segments: between Vienna and Virginia Square, and between Rosslyn and New Carrollton. There will be free shuttle buses to take passengers between stops from Virginia Square to Rosslyn. Customers using the shuttles should add 15 minutes to their travel time.

To allow for shuttle bus connections, the last train from Vienna to Virginia Square will depart 31 minutes earlier than normal on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. The train will leave Vienna at 2:05 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, and at 11:05 p.m. on Sunday.

Riders on the Blue and Yellow lines should also expect delays. Trains will be single tracking between Braddock Road and Pentagon City due to maintenance such as rail tie, fastener and insulator renewal. Blue and Yellow trains will operate every 30 minutes.

The only problem? He wasn’t a police officer at all, according to this week’s Arlington County crime report.

The 38-year-old Sterling man turned out to be a medical assistant, the crime report says. He was charged with impersonating a police officer.

IMPERSONATING A POLICE OFFICER, 04/06/13, 1000 block of N. Irving Street. At 10:38 pm on April 6, a subject claimed he was a police officer and displayed a badge during a traffic stop. Further questioning revealed he was a medical assistant in a doctor’s office. Hussein Al-Rehaief, 38, of Sterling, VA, was charged with impersonating a police officer and failure to obey a highway sign. He was released on a summons.

The rest of the crime report, after the jump.

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 04/05/13, 1700 block of N. George Mason Drive. At 5:34 pm on April 5, a suspect pulled a meat cleaver from his waistband after a verbal altercation escalated inside Virginia Hospital Center. The suspect struck a room door several times with the knife before throwing the weapon inside the room in the direction of the occupants. Hospital security detained the suspect until arrival of police. Kareem Jorif, 34, of Arlington, VA, was arrested and charged with 5 counts of attempted malicious wounding and carrying a concealed weapon. He was held without bond.

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 04/06/13, 600 block of N. Glebe Road. On April 6 at 11:41, officers responded to a large fight in progress with a stabbing victim in Glebe Road. Four subjects were taken into custody and the weapon was recovered. Davis Bhatti, 23, of Arlington, VA, Gutavito Lopez, 20, of Annandale, VA, Naveed Mughal, 23, of Arlington, VA and Heberb Amaya-Gallo, 25, of Arlington, VA were arrested and charged with malicious wounding. They were held without bond. The victim sustained at least seven stab wounds and was located on the sidewalk a short distance away. He was transported to INOVA Fairfax Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Antonius Sallis, 32, of Arlington, VA, was arrested and charged with possession with intent to distribute.

BURGLARY, 04/07/13, 1900 block of S. Hayes Street. Between 10 am and 1 pm on April 7, a victim was outside gardening when an unknown subject(s) entered the residence and stole her purse off the kitchen counter. There is no suspect(s) description.

BURGLARY (Series), 04/09/13, 4000 block of N. Wilson Street. Between 6:30 pm on April 8 and 6 am on April 9, an unknown subject entered a construction site and stole equipment from four different companies working at the site. There is no suspect(s) description.

BURGLARY, 04/09/13, 1400 block of N. Quinn Street. Between 7 am and 6:20 pm on April 9, a victim returned home from work to find several items missing from her apartment. Stolen items included cash, jewelry and a camera. There is no suspect(s) description.

STOLEN VEHICLES

04/04/13, NH 171851, 2002 Chrysler Town and Country, Silver, 1400 block of N. Inglewood Street

04/04/13, MD 5CSC48, 2007 Cadillac CTS, Black, 5500 block of N. Lee Highway

(Updated at 1:20 p.m.) Vice President Joe Biden stopped by Liberty Tavern (3195 Wilson Blvd) in Clarendon this morning to film a segment for a TV news show.

Biden was one of the guests on the MSNBC show Morning Joe, which filmed a roundtable discussion on gun reform at the restaurant.

It’s not the first VIP visit for the Clarendon restaurant. President Obama dined at Liberty Tavern on October 27, 2011. Biden, for his part, is no strangers to popular Arlington eateries. He had lunch at Metro 29 Diner on Dec. 7, 2012.

Biden and his security detail arrived at Liberty Tavern around 11:00 a.m., Clarendon Patch reported via Twitter. The Vice President left at 12:15 p.m., flashing a big smile and a thumbs up to a crowd that had gathered across the street. Morning Joe hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski stood outside O’Sullivan’s, across from Liberty Tavern, to see Biden’s departure.

Liberty Tavern co-owner Mark Fedorchak said Biden and the other guests were served pastries and coffee from Northside Social, which he and his brother Stephen also own.

Fedorchak said Biden “was very conversational” and talked with him about their mutual northeastern Pennsylvania roots. As it turns out, Biden used to enjoy going to the Scranton-area Circle Drive-In Theatre, which is owned by the Fedorchaks’ uncle.

That wasn’t the only incidental connection between Biden and Liberty Tavern’s ownership group. Restaurant co-owner and local developer Brian Normile got a chance to apologize to Biden for accidentally driving a ball into his golf foursome during a recent trip to Kiawah Island, South Carolina.

The Vice President apparently didn’t mind. According to Fedorchak, Biden wrote a gracious note on a menu before leaving the restaurant.

“Next time lunch, thanks for the hospitality,” it said.

Photos by ARLnow.com except as noted