It’s Election Day — Voting today in Arlington will take place between 6 a.m.-7 p.m. at your local polling place. Most of the local candidates in competitive races penned essays describing why Arlington residents should vote for them. [Arlington County]

Almost A Century Since Suffrage — “Tomorrow represents 99 years of women voting in Arlington. Arlington’s celebrating with 19 events this year.” [Twitter, Arlington County]

‘Baby Trump’ Greeting Key Bridge Commuters — Arlington Democrats have inflated a 13-foot “Baby Trump” on the Virginia side of the Key Bridge as part of a get-out-the-vote message. [Twitter]

Anti-Trans Group is Based in Shirlington — “From the 12th floor of a glass office tower in the Washington suburbs, a campaign to sway the governor’s race in Kentucky on Tuesday is being waged with an alarmist claim that has little to do with the race itself: If Democrats have their way, soon boys will be able to compete against girls in school sports.” [New York Times]

Growing Season Over in D.C. Area — “As of this morning, the growing season has been declared to have ended across our entire forecast area. Frost and freeze [watches and warnings] will not be issued again until Spring 2020.” [Twitter]

Pedestrian Enforcement in Clarendon Tomorrow — “As part of the Street Smart campaign, officers will conduct high-visibility traffic enforcement… November 6th from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. [on the] 2700 block of Clarendon Boulevard (Pedestrian Enforcement Detail).” [ARLnow]

Nearby: Va. Tech Unveils Plan for Potomac Yard — “Plans are starting to take shape for North Potomac Yard. Virginia Tech has submitted its first concept plan, showing what its Innovation Campus will look like just as the design of the Potomac Yard Metro station nears its final design phase.” [ALXnow]

Heads up if you’re heading home to Arlington via the Key Bridge tonight — a vehicle fire has closed both lanes heading out of D.C.

D.C. police say some traffic is still flowing into the city, but are otherwise warning of big back-ups heading toward Rosslyn.

Police added that the fire has been put out. No word yet on when the lanes will reopen.

Traffic Alert: NW, OB Key Bridge BLOCKED due to a vehicle fire.[the fire has been knocked]; IB One Lane AVAILABLE
MPD and DCFEMS on the sce

— DC Police Traffic (@DCPoliceTraffic) August 15, 2018

A decades-long effort to build a boathouse along the banks of the Potomac River is lurching forward once more.

Officials with the National Park Service have wrapped up an environmental analysis of the project and settled on a preferred alternative near Rosslyn for its construction, in the latest bit of forward momentum for an initiative that has long bedeviled county leaders.

Local high schoolers have been particularly keen on seeing a new boathouse come to the fruition, as the closest access points for rowing teams have long been in Georgetown or Alexandria, but the project’s complexity has repeatedly stalled it.

NPS took control of Arlington’s portion of the Potomac shoreline after the construction of the GW Parkway, and the federal agency has spent years working off-and-on with the county to find a way to give local rowers easier access to the river. Arlington officials helped jump-start the process in 2014 by buying a parcel of land along Lee Highway just south of the Key Bridge, giving the NPS some added flexibility as it evaluated several options where the boathouse could be built.

Now, the agency is recommending a design that would involve building a 300-foot-long floating dock and 14,000 square feet of boat storage along the Potomac’s shoreline near Rosslyn, just across from Theodore Roosevelt Island. The plan also calls for building a support facility on the county-owned Lee Highway site with office space, locker rooms and handicapped parking.

NPS also evaluated plans to build the boathouse on the same site near the island without the support building, as well as an option that would involve building the boathouse on Gravelly Point near Reagan National Airport instead.

Yet the agency settled on its preferred alternative because the additional space off Lee Highway “allows for development of a smaller boat storage structure while providing additional support facilities outside the floodplain, off NPS property, and close to transit,” officials wrote in the environmental analysis.

They also noted that the Potomac is a bit calmer near the Rosslyn location, earning it higher marks than Gravelly Point. The close proximity of the Rosslyn Metro station and several local bus stops, in addition to the Custis bike trail, also won the option some praise.

While the agency found that any construction would have some limited impacts on the area’s wetlands and soil, it broadly didn’t foresee many stumbling blocks for the project to move forward. Nevertheless, any construction will require both federal and state permits to advance, and the county will need to work with federal officials to find funding for the effort.

In the meantime, however, NPS is accepting comments on the environmental analysis through July 30 on its website. The agency also plans to hold a July 12 open house at Washington-Lee High School on the project, starting at 6 p.m.

Hat tip to Chris Slatt

Update at 2:10 p.m. — The incident ” has transitioned from a rescue to a recovery operation,” according to D.C. Fire, indicating that officials believe the missing worker did not survive. The barge that overturned has been secured, the fire department said.

Earlier: Rescuers are searching for a worker who remains unaccounted for after a small barge overturned in the Potomac River near the Key Bridge Monday morning.

At least people were rescued after what was described as a “workboat” reportedly flipped over amid a strong current in the rain-swelled Potomac. A total of six people were in the water and five made it out uninjured, according to Twitter posts from D.C. Fire and EMS.

An “extensive search” remains underway, D.C. Fire said.

The Key Bridge is in the midst of a $14.5 million rehabilitation project.

#DCsBravest have secured a barge involved in this incident to the shoreline opposite the Watergate complex. The PIO remains on the scene at that location for any media needs. Also thanks to @uscoastguard and @usparkpolicepio eagle helicopter for their assistance. pic.twitter.com/gqTKDhwB4s

— DC Fire and EMS (@dcfireems) June 4, 2018

Update Key Bridge water rescue: 1 worker remains unaccounted for in river. Extensive search in progress utilizing 2 #DCsBravest fireboats + 2 inflatables. 5 others who were in water evaluated and Uninjured. Will not be transported. pic.twitter.com/MdDM3NPinT

— DC Fire and EMS (@dcfireems) June 4, 2018

Water Rescue Potomac River beneath Key Bridge. 3 people in water. 2 removed and 1 unaccounted for. This was reported as a workboat overturned.

— DC Fire and EMS (@dcfireems) June 4, 2018

Perriello Campaigns in Arlington — Democratic Virginia gubernatorial candidate Tom Perriello canvassed in Arlington yesterday with former Obama speechwriter and Pod Save America co-host Jon Lovett. [Twitter]

Key Bridge Lane Closure — One southbound lane of the Key Bridge, heading from D.C. to Rosslyn, is scheduled to be closed from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. today through Friday. The closure is part of the Key Bridge Rehabilitation Project. [DDOT]

Beyer Blasts Trump, Again — “Have you no decency?” was the Twitter response of Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) to President Donald Trump’s tweet criticizing the mayor of London in the aftermath of Saturday’s terror attack there. [Twitter]

‘Jungle Book’ at Encore — DC Metro Theater Arts has a review of Encore Stage & Studio’s production of The Jungle Book, which pays through June 11 at Thomas Jefferson Community Theater (125 S. Old Glebe Road). [DC Metro Theater Arts]

Flickr pool photo by Joseph Gruber

Arlington police are looking for a man who pulled a 27-year-old woman from a sidewalk and tried to touch her under her clothing in Rosslyn over the weekend.

The attempted sexual assault happened in a grassy area near the George Washington Memorial Parkway and Key Bridge about 2:30 a.m. Sunday, police say.

The woman and the man were walking past each other on the bridge when he grabbed her and forced her into the nearby grass, police said. The man then covered the woman’s mouth and tried to get his hands under her shorts.

But the victim was able to get away, and the man fled. Police described the suspect as:

A white male, in his late 20’s to early 30’s, approximately 5’8″ to 5’10” with a medium build. He is described as having fair skin, dirty blonde hair and was clean shaven at the time of the incident. He was wearing a dark t-shirt with tan shorts or possibly pants. He was last seen fleeing the area on foot along the Key Bridge towards Washington D.C.

“If anyone has information on the identity of this individual or details surrounding this incident, please contact Detective R. Icolari of the Arlington County Police Department’s Special Victim’s Unit at 703.228.4240 or at [email protected],” police said in a press release. “To report information anonymously, contact the Arlington County Crime Solvers at 866.411.TIPS (8477).”

Starting Monday morning, commuters will have to find an alternate route to get from the GW Parkway to the Key Bridge.

National Park Service will close the ramp from southbound GW Parkway to Key Bridge starting before rush hour Monday morning and running through Friday, Aug. 28. The ramp will reopen Saturday morning, said NPS spokesman Aaron LaRocca.

NPS will be replacing the entire surface of the ramp while it is closed. The repairs include milling the road, replacing gravel and overlaying with asphalt.

There will be no detours. NPS advises commuters to find alternate routes and to expect delays.

The driver of the SUV that crashed in the early hours of April 16 by the Key Bridge has died.

The Arlington County Police Department identified the deceased as 26-year-old Jefferson R. Edwards IV, of Arlington.

According to Edwards’ obituary, published in the Washington Post on Friday, he was 26 years old, a former member of the United States Coast Guard and had worked as a personal trainer at Fitness First and Gold’s Gym in Arlington.

Edwards went by “J.R.” and grew up in Jacksonville, Fla. According to Sternbeck, alcohol and speed were factors in the crash that resulted in Edwards being ejected from his GMC Yukon at the intersection of Ft. Myer Drive and Lee Highway.

He was taken to George Washington Hospital, where he remained in critical condition for at least a day before he succumbed to his injuries.

“J.R. lived life to the fullest and left his footprint along the way,” his obituary reads. “Everything J.R. did was larger than life. J.R. was larger than life. J.R.’s splash was like a cannonball, we didn’t just get wet, we got soaked. J.R. not only jumped, he catapulted. J.R. not only hugged you, he lifted you off your feet. J.R. not only lit up the room, he lit up the stadium. J.R. not only raised the flag, he flew it.”

Photo via Facebook

The Rosslyn intersection where cyclists and pedestrians face drivers exiting I-66 has received safety modifications in the past two weeks and more changes are on the way, county officials said on a tour of the site Tuesday morning.

In advance of a $5 million overhaul slated to be complete in summer 2016, Arlington County and the Virginia Department of Transportation changed the timing of the traffic lights and walk signals at Lee Highway and N. Lynn Street last week, said Larry Marcus, the county’s head of transportation engineering.

“Pedestrians and cyclists are the priority at this location, period,” Marcus said as county officials and police watched people navigate the corner some locals call the “Intersection of Doom.”

One change is minor in cost but should be significant in impact: A no-turn-on-red sign is being installed at N. Lynn Street for those exiting I-66. That’s being done “as soon as possible,” Marcus said.

Additionally, cyclists and pedestrians crossing N. Lynn Street using the Custis Trail previously had a walk signal when all traffic lights were red — known as a “leading interval” — for just 2 seconds; the length of that signal was increased last week to 5 seconds, Marcus said. The county plans to increase the leading interval time to 15 to 20 seconds in the next six months, once new signal technology is installed.

“We’re giving more time for pedestrians and bikes to go first,” Marcus said, adding that new caution signs for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists will be added to the intersection.

Drivers headed west on Lee Highway, meanwhile, now have an additional 10 seconds of biker- and pedestrian-free time to clear the intersection.

To pair with engineering changes, the Arlington County Police Department has ramped up traffic enforcement and educational efforts at the corner where numerous car-on-bike accidents have occurred, Capt. James Wasem said.

“People can expect to see uniformed police officers out here flagging cars over, directing traffic, handing out some brochures and citing violations,” he said about the measures enacted about two weeks ago.

Police issued 228 citations at the intersection from Sept. 15, 2013 through the same date this year: 133 for failure to obey traffic signals, 32 for improper turning and 1 for failure to yield to a pedestrian. Fifteen car crashes occurred at the intersection within that period, police said; just two crashes on record involved pedestrians.

The ACPD assigns an officer to direct traffic at the intersection on weekdays from 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. but must spread officers between that corner, schools and other frequent crash sites. The department began sending an officer to the location “as often as possible” following recommendations from a traffic analyst the county hired this year, Wasem said.

ACPD is seeking funding to assign two officers to Lee Highway and N. Lynn Street every weekday morning, plus an additional two officers at Lynn Street and Wilson Boulevard, Wasem said. The latter intersection has been facing a chronic problem of drivers “blocking the box” during rush hour since construction began on the Central Place project, blocking lanes of Lynn Street.

The additional staffing would cost $180,000 through next year.

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