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

Fire at Clarendon business shuts down Wilson Blvd

By ARLnow.com
Small fire at Wilson Hardware in Clarendon (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated at 2 p.m.) Wilson Blvd is blocked at N. Fillmore Street due to a reported fire in a commercial building in Clarendon.

Initial reports suggest a small fire broke out on or just below the roof of one of the businesses — reportedly nightlife venue Wilson Hardware — along the 2900 block of Wilson Blvd. Firefighters are on the scene, with ladders stretched to the roof of the building, and have reportedly extinguished the flames.

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News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Sunny and wet Ballston (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Interest Rates Could Slow Development — “Arlington County leaders are preparing for a difficult economic environment for multifamily development, even as they say they’re optimistic about the region’s future… [I]f the Federal Reserve pushes the federal funds rate to 3.5% by year-end as it has targeted, that could have serious repercussions, said Shooshan Co. Chairman John Shooshan, speaking at Bisnow’s Future of Arlington County event on Thursday.” [Bisnow]

Talent Driving Local Tech Strength — “Northern Virginia has become a magnet for the industry, with the Dulles Technology Corridor continuing its growth along the Silver Line and Amazon HQ2 going up in Arlington… Taylor said the upcoming Virginia Tech Innovation Campus in Alexandria and George Mason’s Fuse at Mason Square in Arlington are two projects that will be pivotal to ‘churning out more talent.'” [Axios]

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News

Arlington dropping Covid emergency declaration as cases hold steady

By ARLnow.com
Covid cases in Arlington as of 7/21/22 (via Virginia Dept. of Health)

The news this morning brought a good reminder that Covid is very much still circulating.

President Biden has tested positive for the virus and is receiving antiviral treatment and has “very mild” symptoms, the White House said. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) was among those wishing the president well.

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News

UPDATED: Ground stop at National Airport after report of drone in the area

By ARLnow.com
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated at 2:45 p.m.) Departures from Reagan National Airport are delayed as a result of a ground stop caused by an unauthorized drone in the area.

The ground stop went into effect around 1 p.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration website, though as of 1:45 p.m. it appears to have been lifted.

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News

Two people to be charged after W-L fireworks incident

By ARLnow.com
Response to incident at Washington-Liberty High School in 2022 (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Two juvenile suspects are being charged with fire code violations after police say they set off fireworks at Washington-Liberty High School, prompting an active shooter panic.

Shortly before 8 a.m. Tuesday, Arlington’s emergency communications center received multiple 911 calls about shots being fired in the school. W-L was locked down and police responded en masse, conducting an extensive search of the school which only yielded evidence of fireworks.

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Weather

Heat Advisory today amid sweltering conditions, storm chances

By ARLnow.com
Hot weather amid a heat wave in July 2021 (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated at 11:15 a.m.) It will be hot and humid today — so bad that the National Weather Service has issued a Heat Advisory for Arlington, D.C. and other parts of the area.

The advisory will go into effect later this morning.

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News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
A runner passes a construction site in Courthouse (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Capital Plan, Bond Referenda Approved — “The Arlington County Board has unanimously approved a $3.9 billion ten-year Capital Improvement Plan that focuses on stormwater management and flood response, climate and environmental programs, parks, transportation, and community infrastructure over the next decade… [as well as] bond referenda totaling $510.5 million to be put before Arlington voters on the November ballot.” [Arlington County]

GOP Group Wants Fewer Vote Drops — “A Republican group seeking to have Arlington election officials reduce the number of 24-hour voting dropboxes in the county got something of a cold shoulder at the July 14 Electoral Board meeting… Representatives of a national Republican voter-integrity effort asked that the number of dropboxes be reduced from nine to as few as three, citing both cost and ballot-integrity issues.” [Sun Gazette]

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Around Town

Four additional local businesses, including two restaurants, to open at Amazon HQ2

By ARLnow.com
Peruvian Brothers co-owner Giuseppe Lanzone with alpacas (Photo courtesy of Peruvian Brothers)

A donut shop, a child care center, a facial spa and Peruvian restaurant are coming to HQ2.

Amazon announced the latest small business additions to its forthcoming Pentagon City campus, which are expected to open next year with the completion of the first phase of HQ2 construction. (The second phase was approved earlier this year.)

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Opinion

This month’s Mike Mount cartoon: Neighbors

By ARLnow.com
" I want to say yes, but my introvert self reminds me I already don't like the few neighbors I already have." (cartoon by Mike Mount)

This month’s highlighted cartoon by noted local satirist Mike Mount wades into the “missing middle” housing issue.

For all the talk on one side of the debate about parking, school capacity and neighborhood character, and on the other about welcoming new residents and providing more reasonably priced housing, there may be those with a more simplistic view, the cartoon suggests.

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News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Rooftop sunset in Rosslyn (Flickr pool photo by Jeff Vincent)

SFH Prices Up 11 Percent — “Something may have to give, eventually, but, for now, average single-family-home sales prices in Arlington continue to spike, according to new data. The average sales price of the 108 existing single-family homes that went to closing across the county in June stood at just over $1.35 million, up 11 percent from the already red-hot market of June 2021.” [Sun Gazette]

CAIR Backs Arlington House Bill — “The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today expressed its support for legislation that would rename a memorial currently dedicated to Confederate General Robert E. Lee in Arlington, Va.” [Press Release]

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