Good morning, Arlington. Scott here. It’s Monday, September 20: National String Cheese Day and author George R.R. Martin’s 73rd birthday.

Morning Status

• Today’s Weather: ☀️ Mostly sunny, with a high near 79.
• Tomorrow’s Weather:  Mostly cloudy, with a high near 81. A slight chance of rain in the afternoon.
• Sunrise:  6:50 a.m.
• Sunset:  7:03 p.m.

What We’re Covering Today

Morning Notes

• Board OKs More Small Biz Money — “The Arlington County Board voted 5-0 today to approve the Small Business GRANT 2.0 program, which will provide direct financial assistance to small businesses as they continue to recover from the devastating impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.  The GRANT 2.0 program will provide immediate funds to businesses and nonprofits to aid in their short-term recovery.” [Arlington County]
• Amazon Ramps Up HQ2 Hiring — “That job posting is one of roughly 2,700 openings newly unveiled by Amazon for its HQ2 campus, 99% of which are full-time corporate roles. The slew of new openings was added to the company’s jobs site earlier this week, ahead of Wednesday’s annual Amazon Career Day, held virtually… This is one of the bigger hiring pushes by the tech giant, which disclosed this month that its latest HQ2 employee tally tops 3,000, nearly double its last count in December.” [Washington Business Journal]
• Amazon Charts Path to Net Zero Carbon — “Amazon.com Inc.’s design for the second phase of its HQ2 development must be carbon-neutral to comply with both Arlington County’s policy, as well as the tech giant’s own climate pledge to reach that status by 2040… The company’s consultant, Seattle-based Paladino and Co. Inc., found that carbon neutrality is “likely feasible” based on the current PenPlace [HQ2] design.” [Washington Business Journal]
• Another Video of Columbia Pike Flooding — “We needed some scuba gear out on Columbia Pike” during Thursday’s flash flooding near S. Greenbrier Street. [Twitter]
• Lots of Locals Want to Work at the Polls — “Arlington has too many people wanting to serve as poll officials in the upcoming election. Way, way too many. About 440 are needed and more than 1,100 expressed interest in serving, said Eric Olsen, Arlington’s deputy registrar. He called it, without hyperbole, ‘an extraordinary amount of interest.'” [Sun Gazette]
• Remembering the Alexandria Canal — “The canal was completed in 1843. It roughly followed today’s Metro blue line and South Eads Street in Crystal City. Canal shipping, though interrupted by the Civil War, continued until 1886, by which time, railroads had rendered it obsolete. In modern times, remnants of the Aqueduct Bridge are visible from both the Virginia and Georgetown sides of the Potomac.” [Falls Church News-Press]

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

New County Logo Poll: We’ll ask readers what they think of the new Arlington County logo, selected by the County Board at its Saturday meeting. The new logo is below.

New Plastic Bag Tax: The County Board voted to place a 5-cent tax on plastic bags from grocers, which will go into effect next January. Fairfax County and the City of Alexandria are also implementing similar taxes, meaning it will be in effect in much of Northern Virginia next year. The money collected will be put towards ensuring low-income residents have reusable bags and aren’t over-burdened by the new charge, as well as environmental clean-up initiatives.

Crystal City Oktoberfest Event: Oktoberfest is coming back to Crystal City on October 2. The event boasts Oktoberfest classics like German beers and cuisine, and some local touches like dog-themed events. The event is free to attend, with drink purchases benefitting the Animal Welfare League of Arlington. Pre-registration is required though, as is either proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test.

Agenda: Our weekly events post for the week includes a bevy of local events.

Startup Monday: Rosslyn-based Bitpath is working to roll out a new use for an older technology: TV broadcasting. It says the architecture for broadcast TV can transmit data efficiently. This innovation comes as the number of devices competing for fast, high-quality data streaming is increasing, slowing down some networks.

For Five Coffee Coming to Rosslyn? We’re looking into a tip that For Five Coffee Roasters is coming to Rosslyn. A new cafe would be a welcome addition to the neighborhood, which has seen a few coffee options close during the pandemic.

Langston Blvd Mural and Events: There’s a new mural going up along Langston Blvd. Also, events are planned to celebrate Route 29’s new name, replacing Lee Highway.

And in case you missed it, here’s what we covered Friday but didn’t plan in advance: 

Marines to the Rescue During Pike Flooding: A group of Marines in their dress blue uniforms braved floodwaters along Columbia Pike to help a stranded motorist. Video of the rescue has gone viral on TikTok, racking up more than 800,000 views as of this article’s publication. It appears to have taken place on Columbia Pike near the Pentagon on Thursday, amid a torrential downpour that flooded a number of roadways around Arlington.