News

Smoke at Crystal City Metro Station — Firefighters from Arlington, Alexandria and Fort Myer responded to a report of smoke on the mezzanine level of the Crystal City Metro station around 3:30 p.m. yesterday. The smoke, it turns out, came from a faulty elevator belt, not from a fire. Just as quickly as they arrived, firefighters packed up their gear and headed back to their stations.

More Costs for Arlington Energy Plan — It will cost almost $500,000 in consultant fees and staff salaries to implement Arlington’s ambitious Community Energy Plan over the next year. The plan, which is designed to reduce the county’s greenhouse gas emissions, is up for adoption by the County Board on Tuesday. [Sun Gazette]


News

The County Board is set to vote on the permit application at its meeting on Saturday. The permit would allow the beer garden to host concerts, open mic nights and other forms of live entertainment.

The presidents of four surrounding civic associations have all written letters to the County Board in favor of live entertainment at the beer garden. The leaders said their associations voted overwhelmingly in favor of a compromise plan between Westover Market and neighbors.


News

Hundreds of federal and local law enforcement officers completed a 240-mile memorial bicycle ride in Pentagon City today.

The officers, accompanied by dozens of police cars and motorcycles from law enforcement agencies across the country, completed the annual Road to Hope bike ride on Eads Street, in front of the DEA building. A crowd of DEA employees and the agency’s Black and Gold Pipes and Drums Corps greeted the riders, who were clad in matching red, white and blue bike gear.


Events

Couric, an Arlington native, is a graduate of Jamestown Elementary, Williamsburg Junior High and Yorktown High. On Wednesday, May 18, she will return to Arlington to sign her new book, The Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons from Extraordinary Lives, at the Pentagon City Costco (1200 S. Fern Street).

The book signing will start at 11:00 a.m., according to Costco’s web site. Couric recently announced that she will be leaving the CBS anchor chair in June, when her contract expires.


News

(Updated at 12:55 p.m.) The all-clear has been given after a bomb threat at Wakefield High School.

The school was evacuated after the threat was called in to 911 at 10:45 a.m., from a pay phone within the school, according to police spokeswoman Det. Crystal Nosal. The school One class was in the midst of Advanced Placement testing at the time.


Events

The annual Lyon Park-Ashton Heights house tour will be held this weekend.

This year’s event will mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of Ashton Heights. The tour will feature homes built between 1904 and 2009. Along the way there will be antique cars, retro costumes, old documents and demonstrations of green technology.


News

In this week’s Arlington County crime report, cops busted a man who they say was exposing himself in view of children.

INDECENT LIBERTIES-ARREST, 05/10/11, 5200 block of S. 7th Road. On May 10 at 8 pm, a witness called police about a man exposing himself in view of children. Police located the suspect near Tyrol Hill Park. Thomas Boushier, 63, of Arlington, was charged with Indecent Liberties with Children. He was held without bond.


Around Town

Mixed Signals During Fire Alarms at Senior Facility — During fire alarms at The Jefferson senior living facility in Ballston, a recorded voice tells residents to evacuate the 21-story building via the stairwell. Except, for safety reasons, most residents are supposed to remain in their condo with the door shut. This has confused some elderly residents, who risked injury by attempting to walk down long flights of stairs during fire alarms. While acknowledging the inconsistency, both building management and the fire department say they can’t change the recorded message due to “liability” reasons. [Washington Post]

Politico Reporters to Speak at Rosslyn Lecture Series — Politico White House reporter Julie Mason and congressional reporter Jonathan Allen will be the speakers at Rosslyn’s “Rooms with a View” lecture series next week. Mason and Allen will discuss “Washington’s divided political landscape” and take questions from the audience. The event is free (RSVP required). It will be held on Thursday, May 19, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Boeing conference center at 1200 Wilson Boulevard. [Rosslyn BID]


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