Arlington County courts, human services, libraries, recreation centers and administrative offices will be closed this coming Monday, Sept. 5, for the Labor Day holiday.
Parking meters will not be enforced on Labor Day and only ART bus routes 41, 45, 51, 55 and 87 will be running. Those routes will operate on a Sunday schedule. Metro will operate on a holiday schedule, with extra delays due to track work.
The Wakefield and Washington-Lee high school pools will be open, but the Yorktown pool will be closed.
Trash and recycling will be collected as normal, and Arlington’s special collection service will also operate as normal. A paper shredding and inert material drop-off event that would have otherwise taken place on Sept. 5 has been rescheduled for Sept. 10.
It’s Labor Day weekend — how did that happen already? If you’re sticking around town this weekend, it could be a time to tour a couple of homes and still have a couple days to yourself to enjoy the last days of summer.
As always, see our real estate section for a full listing of open houses. Here are a few highlights:
30 Old Glebe Road
1 BD / 1 BA Condominium
Agent: Grant Doe, Long & Foster Realty
Listed: $200,000
Open: Sunday from 1-4 p.m.
2505 Walter Reed Drive S.
2 BD / 1 BA Condominium
Agent: Peggy Parker, Long and Foster Realty
Listed: $309,800
Open: Saturday from 1-4 p.m., Sunday from 1-4 p.m.
3917 17th Street N.
3 BD / 2 BA Single Family Detached
Agent: Keri Shull, Optime Realty
Listed: $625,000
Open: Sunday from 2-4 p.m.
410 Fenwick Street
3 BD / 2 BA Single Family Detached
Agent: Elizabeth Twigg, Mcenearney Associates
Listed: $650,000
Open: Sunday from 1-4 p.m.
1010 20th Street S.
3 BD / 3 Full, 1 Half BA Single Family Detached
Agent: Patricia Hines, American Realty Group
Listed: $809,000
Open: Sunday from 1-4 p.m.
4502 7th Street N.
4 BD / 3 Full, 1 Half BA Single Family Detached
Agent: Noel Harmer, Keller Williams Realty Falls Church
Listed: $1,299,999
Open: Sunday from 2-4 p.m.
AAA Mid-Atlantic came out with its annual Labor Day travel forecast earlier this week, predicting that 850,700 D.C. area residents will head out of town for the holiday.
That’s a paltry 0.4 percent increase from last year, with 743,200 residents expected to drive to their vacation destinations, 62,500 expected to fly and the rest expected to take trains and other modes of transportation.
AAA says there would have been more locals traveling this year, had Labor Day not fallen on Sept. 7, the latest possible day it can occur. Historically, that dampens holiday travel.
“While increasing travel volume is great news for the industry and economy, our survey shows a decidedly ‘un-laboring’ take on the Labor Day holiday,” said AAA’s John Townsend II, in a press release. “Many would rather spend the holiday at cookouts, relaxing or simply at home to avoid heavy holiday traffic congestion or additional spending, especially if they have already taken a vacation this summer.”
Are you planning on skipping town for one last summer trip — or staying put and firing up the grill?
Most Arlington County government offices will be closed this coming Monday, Sept. 7, for the Labor Day holiday.
Libraries, courts, nature centers and administrative offices will be closed on Monday in observance of the holiday.
Parks will be open, and county pools will operate on a modified schedule. The Washington-Lee pool will be open from noon to 4 p.m., the Wakefield High School pool is open from noon to 6 p.m., and the Yorktown pool will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
ART will run on a holiday schedule, meaning the 41, 51 and 87 buses will operate on Sunday times. All other routes will not run on Labor Day. Metro will run on a Sunday schedule and will operate from 7 a.m. to midnight.
Trash and recycling will be collected as normal.
Today Is Terrible Traffic Tuesday — AAA Mid-Atlantic has again dubbed today Terrible Traffic Tuesday. With vacations over and kids back in school, rush hour trips are expected to increase in length by 26 percent today, on average. Washington, the auto club says, has the worst rush hour traffic in the nation. [AAA Mid-Atlantic]
Fairfax School May Be Model for Arlington — Fairfax County unveiled a new five-story urban-style elementary school, with tech-laden and light-filled classrooms. The school, in the Seven Corners area, may be a model for a future school in Arlington, which is struggling to find enough open space for new schools. [InsideNova]
Shuttleworth Wins Pie-Eating Contest — Bowen Shuttleworth, the son of former Congressional candidate Bruce Shuttleworth and an emerging track champ, emerged victorious in the pie-eating contest (photo, above) at the annual Arlington County Democratic Committee Labor Day chili cookoff on Monday. The cookoff itself was interrupted by thunderstorms.
Flickr pool photo by Alan Kotok
County Offices Closed for Labor Day — Arlington County government offices will be closed Monday for Labor Day. Pools and ART buses will operate on a holiday schedule. Trash collection will proceed as normal, but mulch delivery will be suspended. Parking meters will not be enforced. [Arlington County]
Last Outdoor Films of the Season — Rosslyn will be hosting its last outdoor film of the summer tonight. “Horrible Bosses” is slated to run from 8:00-10:00 p.m. at Gateway Park (1300 Lee Highway). The Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization, meanwhile, gets the honor of hosting Arlington’s last outdoor film of the summer. “Gravity” will be shown at Penrose Square (2503 Columbia Pike) Saturday starting around 7:30 p.m. [Rosslyn BID, CPRO]
Courthouse: ‘A Hot Spot Getting Hotter’ — Courthouse “is on the cusp of being reinvented” says a county planner. Its walkability, abundance of retail and park proximity have all helped to contribute to its increasing desirability among homebuyers. [Washington Post]
Arlington GOP Adopts Local Platform — Billed as its “first local platform,” the Arlington County Republican Committee approved a set of five guiding principles Wednesday. [InsideNova]
Photo courtesy Kenneth Edward Piner
Fourteen percent of the D.C. metro area’s population will be going out of town for Labor Day this weekend, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.
That’s 842,100 local residents hitting the local roads, rails and airways. Nine out of ten of those traveling — 735,000 residents — will doing so by automobile, the association predicts. That’s up 0.8 percent from 2013, and AAA says the lowest Labor Day weekend gas prices in four years are helping to drive the increase.
“It remains the preferred and cheapest mode of transportation for a couple traveling with children trying to squeeze in a memorable family getaway before the school year goes into high gear,” said John B. Townsend II, AAA Mid-Atlantic’s Manager of Public and Government Affairs, in a press release. “With the wind to their backs, they will also be buoyed along by a positive consumer outlook and improvements in the labor market.”
Air travel, meanwhile, is expected to dip slightly, down 0.3 percent to 64,200 residents who will be flying out of the D.C. area. “Other” modes of transportation, like rail, are predicted to dip 0.5 percent to 43,100 travelers.
Are you planning to travel this weekend? How will you be getting to your destination?
Arlington County Democrats were joined by Sen. Mark Warner at their annual Labor Day Chili Cook-off in Lyon Park on Monday.
Between chatting with local Democratic elected officials and activists, Virginia’s senior U.S. senator cheered on contestants during the event’s popular no-hands-allowed pie eating contest. Finishing first in the contest was Ben Tribbett, of the Not Larry Sabato blog.
The main attraction, of course, was the chili contest. A dozen and a half entries competed for the votes of a panel of judges — the “electoral college” — and for the votes of all attendees — the “popular vote.”
Del. Patrick Hope captured top honors from the popular vote, with attorney Betsey Wildhack and School Board member Noah Simon in second and third respectively. Rep. Jim Moran’s “Animal Lovers Chili,” meanwhile, won the electoral college vote.
Among other attendees at the cookout were all five Arlington County Board members, Commonwealth’s Attorney Theo Stamos, state Sen. Adam Ebbin, Del. Bob Brink and Del. Alfonso Lopez, whose son won the cupcake decorating contest.
More than 800,000 D.C. area residents are expected to leave town for Labor Day, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.
The organization estimates that 811,500 people will travel at least 50 miles this weekend, a 2.6 percent increase from 2012. Of those travelers, 707,000 — or 87 percent — are expected to travel by car. About 8 percent will travel by air and 5 percent will travel by train, bus or boat, AAA projects.
AAA says the average traveler will journey about 600 miles, which is close to the national average. Gas prices are “unlikely to be a major factor for people in determining whether they will travel this Labor Day,” even though most consider the current national average of $3.54 a gallon “too high,” according to AAA.
“Call it summer’s last fling,” said John B. Townsend II, AAA Mid-Atlantic’s Manager of Public and Government Affairs. “After staying put throughout the summer, Washingtonians are yearning for travel, so they are getting the heck out of town for Labor Day. In fact, this is the fourth year of increases in local Labor Day travelers in the Washington metro area.”
“The effect of sequestration is still felt locally,” Townsend continued. “However, local residents can now gauge its full impact on their discretionary budgets with the recent announcement that the number of civilian furlough days has been reduced from 11 to six. That’s enough unanticipated good news to put folks around here in the mood to travel.”
Metro Accident Victim Identified as GMU Student — The person struck and killed on the Metrorail Orange Line tracks between East Falls Church and Ballston early Sunday morning has been identified as 21-year-old George Mason University student Patrick Sibley. Sibley’s brother says he did not have a good sense of direction and may have become lost after leaving a bar in Clarendon and trying to make it home to Vienna. Metro is not commenting on the incident while it is under investigation. [Washington Post]
McDonnell Touts Budget Surplus — Gov. Bob McDonnell says the state ended its fiscal year on June 30 with $585 million more than projected. That’s the largest state surplus since 2005. The cumulative surplus during McDonnell’s nearly four years in office comes in at around $2 billion. [Washington Times]
County Labor Day Closures — Arlington County has posted a list of programs and services that will remain operational while the county offices are closed for Labor Day on Monday, September 2. Libraries, parks, pools, courts and schools will all be closed. [Arlington County]
The Arlington County Democratic Committee held its annual Labor Day chili cook-off on Monday.
This year’s event, which was attended by dozens of local Democrats and many of Arlington’s elected officials, included a pie-eating contest.
A number of local Democratic notables participated in a eating contest, which challenged competitors to finish a pie as quickly as possible, without using their hands. Rep. Moran’s son, Patrick, won a decisive victory, followed by Paul Holland in second place and Ben Tribbett in third place.
A panel of judges chose Sheriff Beth Arthur’s “Jailhouse Chili” as the best of the 14 chili entries, but a “popular vote” of attendees resulted in Commissioner of Revenue Ingrid Morroy’s “Taxes Chili with a Caribbean Twist” being named the “top of the ticket.” Among the runners-up in the popular vote were Del. Patrick Hope’s “Hope for the Best” chili, the Rep. Jim Moran “Victory 2012” chili, and Arlington School Board candidate Noah Simon’s “School House Rock” chili.
Other attendees at the event included 2013 Virginia lieutenant governor candidate Aneesh Chopra, state Senator Barbara Favola, County Board member Chris Zimmerman, School Board Chair Dr. Emma Violand-Sanchez, Clerk of the Circuit Court Paul Ferguson, and ACDC Chairman Mike Lieberman.
