(Updated at 6:45 p.m.) One lane of Columbia Pike is back open in each direction after the road was shut down between S. Monroe Street and S. Oakland Street due to a fire at a chicken restaurant.
A significant kitchen fire broke out at the El Rancho Peruvian Style Chicken & Latin Grill restaurant on the 3600 block of Columbia Pike around 5:00 p.m. Firefighters had to tear out the restaurant’s duct work to battle the blames, we’re told.
Yorktown student Ryan Carroll was announced the winner of Rep. Jim Moran’s Eighth District Congressional Art Competition during a ceremony at Artisphere in Rosslyn last night. The annual nationwide Congressional Art Competition was started in 1982 to “provide an opportunity for members of Congress to encourage and recognize the artistic talents of their young constituents.”
Carroll will soon have his work, entitled “Lady of Rain,” displayed inside the Capitol building for the next year, along with the winners from other states across the country. The second place winner, Washington-Lee High School student Erin Daniell, will receive $100 to go toward art supplies.
Taste of Arlington is the county’s largest food festival, attracting some 15,000 attendees every year. More than 35 local restaurants — including newcomers — Memphis Barbeque, Zoe’s Kitchen, World of Beer and Cava Mezze — are expected to participate in this year’s event.
Taste of Arlington is held on Wilson Boulevard in front of Ballston Common Mall. Arlington County police will be closing some roads in the area to accommodate the event. The following streets are scheduled to be closed from 2:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Sunday.
Editor’s Note: This sponsored column is written by Nick Anderson, beermonger at Arrowine (4508 Lee Highway).
Last week we looked at the most common forms of traditional German Lager found today. This week we’re going to run through some of the maltier and stronger styles of Lager out there, and look at examples of each that shouldn’t be too difficult to come by.
From affordable condos to million dollar mansions, dozens of open houses are planned around Arlington this weekend.
See our real estate section for a full listing of open houses. Here are a few highlights:
The restaurant, which is currently under construction on Pentagon Row in the old PR Grill space, is expected to open on June 13 after two days of mock service. The company has several locations in the District and Maryland, but this will be the first Nando’s Peri Peri in Virginia. A location is also planned for Old Town Alexandria.
In addition to its signature Portuguese chicken offerings, the Nando’s menu includes sandwiches, wraps, pitas, sides, salads and “appeteasers.” The restaurant also serves wine, beer and sangria.
Update at 11:05 a.m. — A record 12,700 people in the D.C. area biked to work today, according to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
Hundreds of bicyclists — from the young to the old, bike novice to expert — gathered at Gateway Park in Rosslyn this morning for the D.C. area’s annual Bike to Work Day.
Artomatic Starts Tonight — Artomatic, described as “the D.C. area’s biggest unjuried arts extravaganza,” will kick off in Crystal City tonight. The five-week event is being held in a former Department of Defense office building at 1851 S. Bell Street, and will feature 10 floors of work by local artists. Artomatic was last held in the District in 2009. [Express]
Affordable Housing Push — A coalition of Arlington affordable housing advocates are preparing a public relations push to make the case for more affordable housing in Arlington. Supporters will be attending community events over the next six month to educate residents about the loss of affordable housing in the county. Currently, affordable housing initiatives are about 5 percent of Arlington County’s $1 billion budget. [Sun Gazette]
Two to three lanes of Ft. Myer Drive have been shut down between Lee Highway and Wilson Boulevard until further notice. The closures are due to a major, 16-inch water main break at the 1812 N. Moore Street office building construction site near the Rosslyn Metro station.
The break happened around 12:30 this morning, according to police. The Metro station was briefly closed for inspections after the break but has since reopened. The pickup spots for some buses have been moved as a result.
Wavro will be facing Democrat Libby Garvey and perennial Green Party candidate Audrey Clement in November, following Garvey’s recent defeat of a better-known Republican candidate in a very low-turnout special election — an election that was billed as the GOP’s best chance of getting on the Board since 1999.
Wavro’s chances are especially long due to the other, higher-profile races that are on the bill for November 6 — the presidential race, a U.S. Senate race and a House of Representatives race — all of which are sure to draw droves of Democrats to the polls in Arlington.
Bike to Work Day was created in 1956 to encourage commuters to try riding their bike to work as a healthy alternative to sitting in traffic. In metro D.C., participation has ballooned from a few hundred riders to 11,000 last year.
Arlington County is hosting three pit stops tomorrow: Rosslyn (Rosslyn Gateway Park, 1300 Lee Highway), Ballston (FreshBikes Bike Shop, 3924 Wilson Blvd) and Crystal City (Crystal City Water Park, 1750 Crystal Drive).
A pair of bocce courts may soon be coming to a small strip of green space near Ballston Common Mall.
Arlington County park planners have proposed a set of improvements to a barren, triangular park at the corner of N. Randolph Street and N. Glebe Road, adjacent to the Ballston public parking garage.
