Good morning, Arlington. Dana here. It’s Monday, August 23: National Sponge Cake Day and Jeremy Lin’s 33rd birthday.

Morning Status

• Today’s Weather: A chance of showers and thunderstorms through most of the day. Mostly cloudy otherwise, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 90.
• Tomorrow’s Weather:  Sunny, with a high of 92.
• Sunrise: 6:27 a.m.
• Sunset: 7:45 p.m.

What We’re Covering Today

Morning Notes

• County Board Member Talks Gondola — “Christian Dorsey (D) said the county will have to decide whether it makes sense to commit public money to the project. ‘It’s a fairly short walk from the Rosslyn Metro station to that station in Georgetown,’ he said. In 2017, the county board said in a letter that it would not fund the gondola project despite agreeing to commit $35,000 to a feasibility study. ‘We viewed it as more of a luxury concept than an essential transportation service,’ Dorsey said.” [Washington Post]
• Alexandria Mayor Gabs About Gondola — “‘Gondola, yes or no?’ Sherwood asked. ‘Anything that provides new transportation options is a good thing,’ Wilson said. ‘We’ve experimented more with ferries. The river is typically the challenge.'” [ALXnow]
• Some Residents Remain Amazon Averse — “Amazon’s efforts to integrate its massive HQ2 campus into its Arlington community have come in all shapes and sizes. And while some of its neighbors acknowledge those efforts, they point to some key unanswered questions around the tech giant’s engagement strategy and eventual effects on their terrain. Still, many remain positive about the latest, and biggest, corporate addition to their communities.” [Washington Business Journal]
• GMU Mulls Ways to Enliven Arlington Campus — “More vibrant outdoor areas and the potential of mid-level pedestrian bridges connecting academic buildings are among the possibilities to help the Arlington campus of George Mason University as it grows and evolves. Efforts should be focuses on ‘bringing some life and energy’ to areas like the exterior courtyard area fronting Fairfax Drive, said Gregory Janks, the consultant leading an effort to reimagine Mason’s Fairfax, Arlington and Prince William campuses.” [Sun Gazette]
• New Bikeshare Station in Arlington Mill — From Capital Bikeshare: “STATION ALERT: Check out the newly installed station at 8th Rd and S Frederick St in Arlington.” [Twitter]
• JBG Sells Hotels to Fund Development — “JBG Smith Properties is selling off two hotels near Reagan National Airport as it readies for still more construction in and around Arlington and Alexandria… In an earnings call this month, JBG Smith CEO Matt Kelly said the company would use asset sales, along with ground leases and recapitalizations, to harvest some of the value of its properties as it readies an extensive development pipeline totaling nearly 10 million square feet.” [Washington Business Journal]
• Ballston: Manhattan Near the Potomac — “Three [census] tracts make a slice of Ballston the highest-density residential neighborhood in Greater Washington. For decades, Arlington’s plans have encouraged high-rise residential and office on the blocks immediately along the Orange Line corridor, while strictly limiting additional homes even a short walk away. All those people in close proximity can support a wide array of dining choices and retailers, including multiple groceries and pharmacies; the tract’s 94 Walk Score makes it a ‘walker’s paradise.'” [GGWash]
• Local Storms Not Getting Significantly Worse — “One local weather expert says he hasn’t seen much evidence to suggest D.C. storms in recent years have been getting more severe, or even more frequent. ‘In some years we have a lot, in some years we have very little, depending on how the day-to-day weather trends add up over the course of the year,’ said Christopher Strong, a Sterling, Virginia-based warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service.” [DCist]

The following are preview of stories we’re planning to cover later today. Note that some stories may be pushed back, depending on the day’s news. 

Long Bridge Aquatic Center Opens: Arlington’s first free-standing aquatics center opened today (Monday) to the public. Work began on the 92,000-square-foot Long Bridge Aquatics & Fitness Center — the second of four phases to redevelop Long Bridge Park — three years ago. But the history of the controversial project goes back to 2012. In addition to swimming pools, a lazy river, a “splashground” and a fitness gym, the center will have a timeline of the project’s “long, rich history,” a county employee told us earlier this summer.

Startup Monday: A total of 29 Arlington companies made Inc. Magazine’s list of the 5000 fastest-growing private firms in the country. Olympic Media placed the highest out of Arlington’s representatives, in 13th. Buoyed by viral political campaign ads, the company has grown by 20,330% over the last three years.

Covid-19 Update: Has the “delta” wave of coronavirus cases in Arlington peaked? The average daily case count was little changed over the past week as of Friday.

New Restaurant Alert: Peruvian restaurant and pisco bar Inca Social is under construction in the former Kona Grill space in Rosslyn.

In case you missed it: these articles were not planned in advance but published after our last Press Club email.

Glebe Road Closure: The planned nine-day closure of N. Glebe Road near Chain Bridge is getting longer. The work zone was damaged Friday by significant flooding of Pimmit Run and the toppling of two trees and some utility lines. The damage is expected to cause significant delays for the project and the road’s reopening.

How Did a Chair Get in This Tree?: Following up on a quirky reader tip, we ruminate on how a plastic chair got stuck near the top of a tree in Rosslyn’s Hilltop Park. A likely explanation that sounds unlikely: it was blown into the tree by last month’s tornado.

Stolen Vehicle Crashes in Ballston: A man driving an alleged stolen car was arrested after trying to evade a traffic stop, only to crash long N. Glebe Road in Ballston.

Weekly Planner

Looking for something to do this week? Here are a few interesting options.

Encore Learning presents: Balancing Civil Liberties and Public Health During a Pandemic (info)
Virtual | 3-4:30 p.m. Monday

6th Annual Northern Virginia Elected Leaders Summit (info)
George Mason University Van Metre Hall (3351 Fairfax Drive) and virtual | 8-10 a.m.

Coffee Breaks at Summer House — Free coffee from local cafes (info)
National Landing’s Gateway Green (101 12th Street S.) | 8:30-10:30 a.m. Tuesday

Back to School Bike Checks (info)
Penrose Park (2200 6th Street S.) | 4-6 p.m. Wednesday

Wes Anderson Movie Nights at Westpost — This week’s movie is Rushmore (info)
Westpost, formerly Pentagon Row (1201 S. Joyce Street) | 8-11 p.m.

Feel free to discuss today’s Early Morning Notes among your fellow Press Club members in the comments below.