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.
Police blocking N. Quincy Street after student struck by driver (via traffic cam/SafetyVid)
A student suffered a serious leg injury after being struck by the driver of a pickup truck near Washington-Liberty High School this morning.
The crash happened just after 8 a.m., near the intersection of N. Quincy Street and 14th Street. The circumstances of the crash are unclear but the student was quickly taken via ambulance to the trauma center at Virginia Hospital Center.
Contrails above Arlington on a sunny May day (courtesy photo)
‘Mob’ Attack Investigated — Four men in ski masks and armed with what appeared to be firearms attacked a group of eight people leaving a residence in the 300 block of N. Bryan Street late Saturday night, police said. Two victims sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The suspects fled in a black sedan. [ACPD]
Pentagon City ‘Circus’ — Arlington’s $11 million Army Navy Drive “Complete Street” project is unsafe almost every weekday because of car carrier deliveries to the Fashion Centre, says local public safety watcher Dave Statter, who shared video of four carriers arriving simultaneously. [Dave Statter/X]
Digital Equity Grants Return — Arlington County is offering up to $500,000 in grant funding for nonprofits and Virginia higher education institutions tackling the digital divide. Eligible projects target older adults, people with disabilities, English language learners and low-income households. Pre-applications are due June 5. [Arlington County]
DoubleTree’s Viral Stairwell — “The stairwell in the Doubletree in Arlington, VA goes straight for 13 floors instead of wrapping around,” music publicist Eric Alper said in a tweet that drew 1.2 million views and 28,000 likes. [Eric Alper/X]
Single-Stair Reform Advances — “The state’s Board of Housing and Community Development advanced a proposal to allow single stairways in four-story buildings, setting it up for potential adoption in the next state code requirements.” Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg (D-Henrico) is leading the effort to spur housing on smaller lots, though firefighters caution it raises safety risks. [Virginia Mercury]
Metro’s Gold Line Pitch — “Randy Clarke sees Metro’s future in the Gold Line: A zippy, dedicated bus route from Georgetown to the new Commanders stadium.” The transit agency’s general manager pitched the dedicated-bus project, which would initially connect Union Station and RFK, before eventually connecting to Rosslyn, in a podcast interview. [Axios]
Heat Wave Topples Records — “The D.C. region is sweltering under a heat wave which is already setting records, with a possibility of more record-breaking heat through Wednesday.” The Dulles record of 91 degrees for May 18, set in 1987, was broken by the 93 degree reading recorded Monday afternoon. [WTOP]
It’s Tuesday — Expect another sunny and hot day with a high near 97 and southwest winds of 5–12 mph, gusting to 20 mph. Dulles’ May 19 record high of 92 degrees, set in 1997, could fall. Overnight will be partly cloudy with a low around 75. [NWS]
Want more local news from around the region? Check out our newest sister site, WSHnow.
Expect a sunny day with a high temperature of around 96°F and a southwest wind blowing at 6 to 10 mph. Tuesday night will be partly cloudy, with temperatures dropping to about 75°F. A south wind will persist at around 10 mph, with gusts reaching up to 20 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“The only thing standing between you and your goal is the story you keep telling yourself as to why you can’t achieve it.” – Jordan Belfort
Thanks for reading! If you have something to say about an issue of local note not covered today, feel free to post it as a letter to the editor on our new forum.
Address:5934 N. 16th Street Neighborhood: Westover Type: 6 BR, 4 (+1 half) BA single-family detached; not a rental Listed: $2,495,000
Noteworthy: Cost saving energy upgrades and expansive layout featuring a gourmet kitchen, a stunning great room, and an extraordinary primary bedroom suite with two exceptional walk-in closets
Introducing this meticulously updated 3-level, 6-bedroom, 4.5-bathroom residence in the sought-after Westover neighborhood of North Arlington.
Set on a serene neighborhood street, this distinguished home features a traditional feel with a thoughtful renovation and numerous updates and a spacious yard. It has a warm, cozy interior featuring four fireplaces. Enjoy the chef’s kitchen connected to a family room with access to the rear yard and patio. There is also a light-filled great room with vaulted ceilings, and an extraordinary primary suite with two large walk-in closets, a spa-like bathroom, a sitting room, and a balcony. The primary bedroom suite offers a luxurious retreat, while the second floor accommodates five total bedrooms. The lower level has a separate entry and boasts a guest suite with a versatile recreational space, including a sixth bedroom and a fourth full bathroom, a recreation room and a yoga/fitness space. Outside, enjoy a stone patio and built-in fire pit area. Conveniently located near parks, trails, and Metro, this home offers suburban tranquility with easy access to urban amenities. It is a short walk to Westover Village, Swanson Middle School, and Cardinal Elementary School. It is within the Yorktown High School zone.
With many updates, including geothermal heating and cooling, fully paid-for solar panels, and an EV charger, this residence is ready to welcome you home. The utility costs are very low for a home of this size. Opportunity knocks. This is not your cookie cutter home. Schedule your showing today of this distinguished and unique property!
Arlington County government headquarters (file photo by Jay Westcott)
Last week, we asked ARLnow readers a straightforward question: if given a binary choice, would you rather see Arlington County raise taxes or cut services in next year’s budget?
Of the more than 1,200 votes counted as of this morning, about two-thirds favor cutting services, while the remaining third would rather see another tax hike.
The County Board, in the budget it adopted last month, went the other way and raised the property tax rate by two cents to preserve the Cherrydale library, the county’s competitive gymnastics program and the Barcroft Sports & Fitness Center, among other items in the budget.
Baked into that poll, however, was an assumption: that the primary levers available to the Board are tax rates and service levels.
There’s likely no easy, conventional way to squeeze much additional productivity out of the county government machinery — already relatively technology forward in its approach and having undergone years of trimming around the margins. But there’s at least one other possibility on the table: doing more with less by leaning on a technology that has been reshaping just about everything else.
Arlington County government has already started experimenting with artificial intelligence. Last summer, the county quietly rolled out AVA — the Arlington Virtual Assistant — a chatbot connected to the main county website plus specialized sites for the library system, elections and Arlington Transit. Residents can use it to ask questions about parking tickets, library card fees and the like. Before that, the county implemented AI-enabled routing of non-emergency calls.
That’s a modest start. The broader question is whether AI tools could eventually take on heavier lifts — automating permit reviews, responding to public records requests and other service queries, summarizing public comments, coding backend county systems, or handling other back-office work that today requires county staff.
All of that is possible with existing AI technology — and happening at business large and small — it’s just a matter of implementing it effectively and being willing to weather the inevitable blowback. At a time when there’s a lot of AI skepticism, even small-scale uses of the technology in a public setting — for instance, W-L’s plan to have AI read names at high school graduation — quickly become controversial.
The skeptics’ case ranges from doubts about AI’s actual capabilities to concerns about environmental and social impacts. AI systems can also be biased, can hallucinate confidently wrong answers and can carry significant privacy implications when fed government data. Replacing experienced civil servants with software risks degrading services in ways that aren’t obvious until something goes wrong.
Still, with another tough budget year on the horizon and personnel costs a major driver of county spending, it’s worth asking whether efficiency-via-AI is an option locals would theoretically support, if it meant being able to avoid service cuts and tax hikes.
Sun and shade on a Clarendon sidewalk Sunday evening (courtesy George Brazier)
Board OKs Townhouse Plan — County Board members on Saturday voted 4-0, with JD Spain, Sr., abstaining, to approve the proposed 47-townhouse Waverly Ridge development at 2134 N. Taylor Street in Waverly Hills. The 2.8-acre site is located just south of Langston Blvd. and currently is home to several unoccupied single-family homes. An abandoned earlier plan had called for a senior-living facility on the site. —Scott McCaffrey
Apartment Stairwell Robbery — “The male victim was in the stairwell of a residential building when the two male suspects entered the building. One suspect approached and struck the victim with what appeared to be a firearm… The suspects then assaulted the victim further, threatened him with the firearm and demanded his clothing and personal belongings before fleeing the scene.” The incident was reported in the 900 block of S. Buchanan Street Thursday night. [ACPD]
Clarendon Offices For Sale — Two Clarendon office buildings at 3001 and 3003 Washington Blvd have hit the market as owner KBS Real Estate Investment Trust III winds down. “They’re winding down this REIT vehicle, and they’re returning their proceeds to their investors,” a Newmark exec told the Washington Business Journal. [WBJ]
Boulevard Opens on Wilson — “A polished American restaurant named Boulevard opened this spring along Wilson Boulevard, complete with a separate rooftop bar that’s giving a Tulum-meets-Mykonos vibe.” The 8,000-square-foot space at 2915 Wilson Boulevard, the former Wilson Hardware, features bao bun sliders, pasta, sushi rolls and a third-story rooftop bar called Solset. [Eater]
Plane Pizza Party — Passengers on a Southwest Airlines flight delayed at National Airport got an unexpected treat: the pilot “stepped off the plane, ordered pizza for the entire flight, then served it to each passenger himself,” the airline said. [Fox 5]
Douglas Park Garbage Faceoff — “Garbage standoff in Douglas Park: American Disposal faced off with Bates on the right to [s]ervice Randolph [Street].” [Amac/Bluesky]
Beyer Welcomes F.C. Return — “I was grief-stricken to lose Falls Church! I am very happy to have the opportunity to represent this wonderful community again,” U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) told the Falls Church News-Press. The April 16 redistricting referendum moves Falls Church back into Beyer’s 8th Congressional District, which spans “from Arlington to Yorktown” under the new map. [Falls Church News-Press]
Spanberger Signs Assault Weapons Ban — “Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger has signed legislation banning the sale and manufacture of certain semi-automatic firearms, prompting immediate lawsuits from gun-rights groups.” The law, which takes effect July 1, makes it a misdemeanor to buy, sell, transfer, import or manufacture an “assault firearm,” defined to include semi-automatic rifles or pistols accepting magazines of more than 15 rounds. The NRA and U.S. Department of Justice have both filed or pledged legal challenges. It’s one of a number of bills signed by Spanberger last week. [WTVR, Virginia Mercury, WDBJ, WTOP]
Trump’s Heroes Garden Planned — “President Donald Trump plans to build an exhibit of statues featuring prominent Americans in a tightly regulated park along the Potomac River, potentially opening a new legal fight over whether his administration is ignoring the approvals process that typically governs Washington’s monumental core.” The National Garden of American Heroes would be built in West Potomac Park. Survey work has also begun at the proposed triumphal arch site between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery. [Associated Press]
World-Record Fireworks Eyed — “Trump allies want to smash the Guinness World Record for the world’s biggest fireworks show, planning over 30 minutes of pyrotechnics in D.C. this July 4.” Breaking the record — set in the Philippines in 2016 — will take more than 810,904 fireworks. The day has been declared a National Special Security Event, with the Secret Service taking the lead on coordinating security. [Axios]
Single-Stair Plan Advances — “This week, the state’s Board of Housing and Community Development advanced a proposal to allow single stairways in four-story buildings, setting it up for potential adoption in the next state code requirements.” Backers say the change could unlock housing on smaller lots, while firefighters have raised safety concerns. [Virginia Mercury]
Commercial Space Rebounds — “Commercial space across Greater Washington continues to fill up as companies move beyond remote work.” CBRE’s Ian Anderson said regional office, retail and industrial occupancy has risen for three consecutive quarters, totaling 3 million square feet, with the gains mostly concentrated in Northern Virginia. [WBJ]
Homelessness Ticks Up — “Homelessness in the D.C. region ticked up slightly from 2025 to 2026, according to a new report from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.” The region reported 9,790 people experiencing homelessness, up 131 or about 1% from 2025. D.C. saw the largest numerical increase, and Montgomery County saw the largest decline (down 26%). [WTOP]
It’s Monday — Expect sunny skies and a high near 95 today, with southwest winds 1–10 mph and gusts up to 20 mph. Overnight will be mostly clear with a low around 72. [NWS]
Today’s Morning Notes are brought to you by Industrious. ARLnow has been in an Industrious office for years and we love the convenience — you get to focus on your work rather than worrying about brewing your own coffee or keeping the copy machine stocked. Industrious has several Metro-accessible coworking locations in Arlington.
Expect sunny skies with a high of 84°F and calm winds shifting to southwest at 5 to 9 mph in the morning. Saturday night will be partly cloudy, with a low around 65°F and a southwest wind at 5 to 8 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” – Lao Tzu
We hope you have a great weekend, Arlington! If you have something to say about an issue of local note not covered today, feel free to post it as a letter to the editor on our new forum. 👋
Selling a home in Arlington means competing in one of the most active real estate markets in the country — and having the right agent can make the difference between a good outcome and a great one.
Here are the nominees for “Best Real Estate Agent for Sellers in Arlington” as part of our ARLnow Readers’ Choice awards.
Pedestrian promenade in Courthouse (courtesy George Brazier)
Arch Contract Shortcut — The Trump administration planned to begin work at the proposed Triumphal Arch site at Memorial Circle by using an existing, unrelated White House engineering contract — a move that would bypass competitive bidding, the Washington Post reports. The arch site, near the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery, sits on National Park Service land. [Washington Post]
Car Carrier Crunch — “Four car carriers at once this morning,” Dave Statter wrote, after auto haulers blocked bus lanes and a bus stop outside the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City. He called the recurring scene a daily indictment of the county’s $11 million safety investment in Army Navy Drive. [Dave Statter/X]
Summer Travel Season — “More than 19 million travelers are expected to take to the skies” at the region’s airports between May and August, MWAA said. Reagan National’s new arrivals include Busboys and Poets near the D Gates and Colada Shop near the C Gates, while Dulles is preparing for new nonstop service to Taipei in late June. [MWAA]
Busboys Lands at DCA — “Busboys and Poets is now open!” the airport announced. The restaurant is located near the D Gates and open daily from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. [Reagan Airport/X]
ACPD Marks Police Week — The Arlington County Police Department is observing National Police Week, which began Sunday and honors officers who died in the line of duty. VHC Health staff stopped by evening roll call to deliver snacks and thank officers for their service. [ACPD/X, ACPD/X]
East Potomac Design Reveal — Interior Secretary Doug Burgum unveiled the proposed design for the East Potomac Golf Links renovation, calling for “championship-quality golf at affordable, highly discounted rates” from Fazio Golf Design. The course’s future remains in limbo amid a lawsuit over the Trump administration’s takeover and lease termination. [Fox 5, Secretary Burgum/X]
Bus Fare Policy Backlash — Amalgamated Transit Union Local 689 condemned WMATA General Manager Randy Clarke for a “despicable and callous decision” to require bus operators to quote fares to all passengers, reversing a 2017 policy the union says has reduced operator assaults. The new fare-quote policy takes effect May 24. [PoPville]
State Revenue Beats Forecast — Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) announced that April revenues grew 6.9% compared to the previous April, and Virginia’s general fund revenues are running 7.3% ahead year-over-year through the first 10 months of Fiscal Year 2026. “Revenues for Fiscal Year 2026 are ahead of expectations,” Spanberger said, while warning that national uncertainty and federal workforce cuts remain concerns. [Press Release]
It’s Friday — Expect sunny skies today with a high near 72 and northwest winds around 12 mph, with gusts up to 20 mph. Tonight will be mostly clear with a low around 53. [NWS]
The weather will be sunny with a high of around 71°F and northwest winds blowing at 10 to 13 mph, with gusts up to 20 mph. Friday night will be mostly clear with a low near 53°F and calm winds. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“Self-care is never a selfish act—it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on earth to offer to others.” – Parker Palmer
Thanks for reading! If you have something to say about an issue of local note not covered today, feel free to post it as a letter to the editor on our new forum.
Address:1527 N. Randolph Street Neighborhood: Cherrydale Type: 5 BR, 4 (+1 half) BA single-family detached – 4800 sq. ft. Listed: $2,395,000
Noteworthy: Built in 2006 and renovated with the quality and finishes of a custom home
Walk to Ballston Metro, restaurants, library, bike trail and more from well-designed, thoughtfully renovated home in the Cherrydale community. Kitchen features MK Designs cabinetry, SubZero, Bertazzoni, and Bosch appliances, quartz tops, and tile backsplash. Adjoining the breakfast nook is the family room with gas fireplace, flanked by built-ins. A door opens to the deck and large level rear yard. The mudroom and butler’s pantry leads to the drywalled garage with epoxy-painted floor. Large rec room with plank flooring, built-in cabinetry and areas for media, table sports, and working out. A den off the rec room provides office or reading space. Desirable details: high ceilings, refinished wood floors on two levels, all closets fitted with drawers, designer lighting, extensive moldings and built-ins, fresh neutral decor. A delightful home awaits those who value condition and style and an enviable location.
A Metro Transit Police vehicle escorts a family of geese on I-66 (via Dave Statter/X)
A family of geese — walking, instead of flying — backed up traffic on westbound I-66 in Arlington for more than an hour this afternoon.
A Metro Transit Police K-9 officer was the first to respond, protecting the birds alone for about 45 minutes, according to a post on X from longtime D.C.-area public safety chronicler Dave Statter. Virginia State Police and Arlington County Police later joined the effort.
