ARLnow.com | ARLnow

Arlington County Board Approves Arts Grants

Published July 15, 2019 at 9:00AM

Fifteen local arts organizations and three individual artists will collectively receive just over $200,000 in grants from Arlington County.

The County Board approved the $215,810 in annual arts grants at its meeting on Saturday. The grant recipients were recommended by the Arlington Commission for the Arts, which considered 27 grant applications from 19 nonprofit arts organizations and eight individuals.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 15, 2019 at 6:00AM

Officials Pledge Action on Flooding — “Perhaps sensitive to growing community disenchantment over past performance in addressing heavy-rain incidents, County Board members on July 13 pledged to find ways to improve local-government efforts to address the impact of flooding. ‘We have to up our game,’ acknowledged County Board Chairman Christian Dorsey.” [InsideNova]

Residents Demand Stormwater Fixes — “Alexandra Lettow was near tears as she described the losses her family suffered in Monday’s flooding to neighbors and county officials gathered at a home in Arlington’s Waverly Hills neighborhood… It was at least the seventh time the neighborhood had flooded in 19 years.” [Washington Post]

News

Police Investigating More Car Thefts, Break-ins

By ARLnow.com

Published July 12, 2019 at 2:30PM

File photo

A recent spate of car thefts and break-ins in North Arlington is continuing.

Arlington County Police are investigating two car thefts and seven car break-ins in the Lyon Park neighborhood this week. The crimes were first reported Wednesday morning on the 2900 block of 2nd Street N. and the 300 block of Edgewood Street, about a half mile south of Clarendon.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 12, 2019 at 7:30AM

HQ2 to Include Banana Stand, Local Businesses — “Schoettler said the outdoor areas will likely include elements from its Seattle headquarters, such as a community vegetable garden and a banana stand… Amazon’s in-house food program will only serve about one-quarter of the HQ2 workforce, encouraging the majority of the employees to each lunch at nearby businesses. And because Amazon will own the buildings, Schoettler said it will be able to curate the retail to focus on locally owned businesses.” [Bisnow, WAMU, Washington Business Journal]

County Again Recognized for Tech Savvy — “Arlington County is once again among the top ranked digital counties in the nation. The Center for Digital Government and National Association of Counties 2019 award designated Arlington second place in the 150,000-249,999 population category.” [Arlington County]

Traffic

TRAFFIC ALERT: Fallen Tree Blocks I-66 Ramp Near Rosslyn

By ARLnow.com

Published July 11, 2019 at 5:20PM

Tree blocking I-66 ramp on Lee Highway

A tree has reportedly fallen, blocking the ramp from westbound Lee Highway to I-66, near Rosslyn.

Both lanes of the ramp are currently blocked. Drivers, including the driver of a commuter bus, could be seen heading back up the ramp in reverse. An Arlington County Police officer and VDOT sign truck are now on scene and blocking off the ramp.

News

Arlington County Board to Consider Closing 23rd Street Tunnel in Crystal City

By ARLnow.com

Published July 11, 2019 at 2:30PM

Crystal City pedestrian tunnel

A pedestrian tunnel under Route 1 in Crystal City is too difficult to maintain, county officials say, so the Arlington County Board is considering a plan to close it.

The closure has been in the works for several years. County staff, VDOT, Arlington police and local business owners are all in support of closing the tunnel, citing “maintenance costs, underutilization, loitering, perceived safety concerns, and the realignment of 23rd Street per the Crystal City Sector Plan.”

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 11, 2019 at 8:45AM

Amazon and Local Real Estate — “Amazon has yet to break ground in Northern Virginia for its second headquarters, but residents are already turning away persistent speculators, recalculating budgets for down payments on homes and fighting rent increases.” [New York Times]

Low Young Adult Home Ownership — “Arlington ties with Richmond for the lowest home-ownership rate among young adults in the commonwealth, according to a new analysis… only 16 percent of young adults living in Arlington were homeowners – perhaps not surprising given the cost of real estate in the county.” [InsideNova]

Weather

Flash Flood Watch Issued for Arlington, Region

By ARLnow.com

Published July 11, 2019 at 7:30AM | Updated July 11, 2019 at 1:43PM

(Updated at 1:45 p.m.) As Arlington continues to recover from Monday’s flash flooding, another Flash Flood Watch has been issued.

The National Weather Service says more heavy rain and flooding is possible today, in addition to storms and damaging winds. The watch takes effect starting at 2 p.m.

News

UPDATED: Arlington County Declares Emergency After Major Flash Flooding

By ARLnow.com

Published July 10, 2019 at 10:10PM | Updated July 11, 2019 at 11:26AM

Flooding along 14th Street N. near Westover in 2019 (file photo)

Update at 11:20 a.m. — Arlington County’s Solid Waste Bureau has issued the following statement about trash collection in the wake of Monday’s flooding. In it, the county apologizes for notices of “improper trash preparation” issued to flood-impacted residents “during this difficult time.”

The County continues to take special measures to assist residential curbside customers in trash collection efforts following this week’s damaging storm. We have identified areas that experienced extensive flooding and will have additional County trash collection trucks sent out daily to monitor these areas and collect items set on the curb. This will continue through Saturday, July 21 and will be extended if necessary. The County will also continue to monitor other areas and expand this service if necessary.

News

Arlington Investigating Cyber Attack on County Payroll System

By ARLnow.com

Published July 10, 2019 at 4:55PM | Updated July 10, 2019 at 5:22PM

Arlington County government offices/headquarters at 2100 Clarendon Blvd

(Updated at 5:20 p.m.) Arlington County has revealed a cyber attack that penetrated the county’s payroll system.

In a statement, the county says a number of employees were impacted by the intrusion, but did not specify the exact number or impacts. The intrusion appears to be the result of a “phishing” email targeting county employees and not a hack, the press release suggests.

Around Town

Changes Coming to ‘The View of DC’ Observation Deck in Rosslyn

By ARLnow.com

Published July 10, 2019 at 11:00AM | Updated July 10, 2019 at 9:44PM

(Updated at 9:45 p.m.) The View of DC, the observation deck on the 31st floor of Central Place Tower in Rosslyn, appears to be closing to ticketed guests.

On the venue’s website, tickets are only available through Friday, July 26. A somewhat cryptic message on the website (below) suggests that the observation deck will “pivot” to being primarily a private event venue.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 10, 2019 at 7:30AM

Latest Flood Stats — “As of Tuesday morning, the Department of Environmental Services had received 151 calls about damage to private property, storm drain backups, indoor flooding and roadway flooding; The County also investigated more than 30 drainage complaints.” [Arlington County]

Record-Setting Rain Rate — “The 3.30 [inches of rain] recorded between 8:52-9:52 a.m [at Reagan National Airport] was Washington, D.C.’s highest hourly precip report in records dating back to 1936.” [Twitter]