Author: ARLnow.com

Launched in January 2010, ARLnow.com is the place for the latest news, views and things to do around Arlington, Virginia. The ARLnow staff byline is used for the Morning Notes and reporting done by an editor or other member of our full-time staff.

News

Metro Steps Up Patrols in Response to Boston Explosions

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 6:30 p.m.) Metro Transit Police have stepped up patrols in response to this afternoon’s deadly explosions at the Boston Marathon.

“Metro Transit Police Chief Ronald Pavlik has ordered all day-shift patrol officers to remain on duty through this evening’s rush hour to increase the security posture of the transit system,” Metro said in a press release. “Metro is taking this step in an abundance of caution. There is no specific or credible threat against the Metro system at this time.”

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Around Town

New Development Coming to Walter Reed Drive

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 5:00 p.m.) Construction is getting started on a new five-story condominium building and townhouse development on Walter Reed Drive.

The development, called Columbia Place, will consist of 14 two-bedroom, two-bath condominiums in a mid-rise building, and 8 single-family townhomes. Developer Evergreene Homes says the townhomes will be four stories, with two-car garages and rooftop terraces.

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News

Police: Sexual Predator Targeted Young Immigrants

By ARLnow.com

Miguel Angel Pinedo-Valdivia, 50, has been charged with Attempted Forcible Sodomy in connection with an incident on Thursday, April 11. Police say Pinedo-Valdivia, who has ties to residences in Arlington County and Maryland, picked up a 17-year-old boy outside a restaurant on the 4100 block of Columbia Pike, offering the boy potential work.

“The victim, being in the country only a few months, was tricked into a back seat of a vehicle thinking he had an offer of employment,” said Arlington County Police Department spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

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Feature

Pet Safety: It’s Time for the Canine Car Cutoff

By ARLnow.com

Editor’s Note: This new sponsored column on pet safety is written by Terry Haas, a pet care professional. Terry owns Loyalty Pet Care and its Safety Furst division.

She didn’t know her actions would cause her dogs harm, and unfortunately for many dogs, she’s not alone. According to Alice Burton, Chief of Animal Control Animal Welfare League of Arlington, it happens more often than you might think.

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News

Daycare Owners Arrested Outside Weenie Beenie

By ARLnow.com

Around 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, police received several calls for a vehicle containing numerous young children who were not in proper children’s car seats. Police pulled the vehicle over as it was leaving the Weenie Beenie parking lot on the 2600 block of Shirlington Road, according to Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

Inside the 2004 Ford Explorer, officers found seven children, ages 5 months to 3 years, and, according to police, “none of them were buckled in with any type of safety restraints.” One child was on the lap of a woman in the front passenger seat, four were in the back seat, and two were in the rear cargo area, Sternbeck said.

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News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Memorial Bridge in Need of Renovations — The 81-year-old Arlington Memorial Bridge, which was once a functioning drawbridge, is in urgent need of repairs. The repairs could cost as much as $250 million and close the span for three months. [Washington Post]

Free Stuff on Tax Day — Among other Tax Day offers around town today, April 15,  California Tortilla is offering free chips and queso to anyone who comes in and uses the secret code “1040.” The restaurant has locations in Courthouse and Crystal City. If you’ve procrastinated and need some free tax advice, check out our three Q&A sessions with local tax pro Bobby Grohs.

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News

Man Struck By Train at Rosslyn Metro Station

By ARLnow.com

Around 10:30 a.m., the 20-year-old Arlington resident “intentionally placed himself in path of arriving Blue Line train at Rosslyn,” according to Metro spokesman Dan Stessel. The train operator applied the emergency brakes and the man only suffered a non-life-threatening leg injury, Stessel said.

The man was transported to George Washington University hospital.

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News

Report: Arlington Lacks Robust Internal Auditing

By ARLnow.com

Suzanne Smith Sundberg, a member of the Arlington County Civic Federation Revenues and Expenditures Committee, has written an eight page report detailing what she characterizes as a lack of audit oversight over the county’s finances.

The county eliminated two internal auditing positions during budget cuts in 2010, Sundberg writes, a move that raised red flags with her committee at the time. Recent news items have supported their concern and point to need to create a permanent internal auditing office, she says.

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News

Police Seek Victims of Accused Rapist

By ARLnow.com

Woodbridge resident Joshua Terrell Franklin, 24 was charged last week with the December 2012 rape of a prostitute in a Crystal City hotel room.

“The suspect, in response to an online advertisement, hired a woman to perform sexual acts,” police said in a press release. “Shortly after arriving at the victim’s hotel room, the suspect forced the victim to perform sexual acts at gunpoint. ”

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