Author: ARLnow.com

Days Inn Site for Sale — The site of a shuttered Days Inn at 2201 Arlington Blvd is on the market, entitled for an eight-story, 251-unit multifamily building. The 2.4-acre property was approved for redevelopment in July 2023 but the owner did not proceed. Cohn Property Group expects to issue a call for offers by mid-April. [WBJ]

Knox Eyes Crystal City — Cybersecurity startup Knox Systems is nearing a deal for office space in Crystal City that would house up to half of its planned 120-person workforce. The company, which helps tech firms meet federal cybersecurity compliance standards, recently closed a $25 million Series A round. [WBJ]

Memorial Bridge Closure Saturday — Memorial Bridge and Circle will close from 7–10 a.m. Saturday for the Rock ’n’ Roll Half Marathon. Visitors to Arlington National Cemetery should use the Route 110 exit ramp to access the cemetery via Memorial Avenue. [Arlington National Cemetery, ANC/X]

ACFD’s Busiest Engines — Arlington’s three busiest fire engines of 2025: E102 in Ballston led with 3,330 calls, followed by E105 in National Landing with 3,287 and E104 in Clarendon with 3,179. [ACFD/X]

Sands Capital Raises $1.1B — Arlington investment firm Sands Capital has raised $1.1 billion for its third global innovation fund, the largest raise of its kind in the firm’s 34-year history. The oversubscribed fund will target late-stage AI, industrial technology and infrastructure companies. [WBJ]

100KM Closes First Fund — Arlington venture capital firm 100KM Ventures closed its first-ever fund at about half its $25 million target, citing a tough fundraising climate for emerging managers and diversity-focused funds. The firm has made 11 investments so far in early-stage companies with diverse leadership teams. [WBJ]

F.C. Budget Update — Falls Church is expected to fare better than its neighbors as local governments across N. Va. confront budget shortfalls tied to federal layoffs, a weakening office market and the Iran conflict. A budget vote is expected in early May. By contrast, Fairfax County is projecting a shortfall approaching $300 million, while Arlington faces a gap of about $25 million. [FCNP]

Va. Session Wrap-Up — “The just-concluded Virginia general assembly session in Richmond, now with a Democratic Party “trifecta” in charge, turned out better than expected due to the fact that revenues to the state did not nosedive, due to federal program cuts, as many had feared. Falls Church’s state delegate Marcus Simon laid out the picture to the monthly luncheon of the Falls Church Chamber of Commerce at the Italian Cafe Tuesday.” [FCNP]

It’s Thursday — Expect mostly sunny skies with a high near 55 degrees and a gentle south wind at 5 to 7 mph. Thursday night will be partly cloudy with temperatures dropping to around 40 degrees. [NWS]

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Local Co. Makes $200M Drone Deal — Crystal City-based AeroVironment has acquired California drone designer and manufacturer ESAero for $200 million in cash and stock, strengthening its capabilities in unmanned aerial systems increasingly used in global conflicts. The deal is AV’s second acquisition in less than a year. [WBJ]

AV Lasers on 60 Minutes — 60 Minutes featured AeroVironment and CEO Wahid Nawabi on a segment its Locust laser system, which destroys drones at a fraction of the cost of interceptor missiles. “The cost per shot goes from $4 million a shot to less than $5 a shot,” Nawabi said. The segment also revealed the Army is using the lasers to shoot down cartel drones along the Mexican border. [CBS News, 60 Minutes/X]

Sunrise at the Tomb — Arlington National Cemetery offered a rare sight Tuesday morning as the sunrise aligned perfectly with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, marking the tomb’s 100th anniversary year. [Fox 5]

Sister City Mayor Leads — Incumbent Arnaud Robinet led the first of two rounds of voting in the election for mayor in Arlington’s Sister City of Reims, France, held March 15. Robinet, leading a center-right coalition, won 44% of the vote to National Rally candidate Anne-Sophie Frigout (21%) and Eric Quénard (18%), who led a center-left coalition. All three advance to the final round of voting on March 22. — Scott McCaffrey

D.C. Self-Driving Update — “As self-driving taxis, like Waymo, continue to be tested on D.C. Streets, DDOT is restarting a study to potentially give the vehicles a green light.” [NBC 4]

It’s Wednesday — Expect mostly sunny weather with a high near 42 degrees and light, variable winds shifting to the south at 6 mph in the afternoon. Wednesday night will be partly cloudy with a low of around 31 degrees. [NWS]

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Flickr pool photo by Tom Mockler

Big Gusts Last Night — An intense line of storms Monday evening produced a 68 mph wind gust at Reagan National Airport — the strongest recorded there since 2019, according to the Capital Weather Gang. Temperatures dropped more than 20 degrees in under 30 minutes. Several trees came down in Potomac, Md. and a power pole was reported down in Alexandria. [CWG/X, WWG/X]

Monday Trash Runs Today — Arlington suspended curbside collection Monday due to the severe weather. Uncompleted Monday routes will run with regular Tuesday routes today. [Arlington DES/X]

Attempted Purse Snatching — A woman was entering a residential building in the 1800 block of Columbia Pike around 3 a.m. Saturday when two women approached and attempted to steal her purse, according to police. The victim ran away after a brief struggle and no injuries were reported. [ACPD]

Hurtt Keeps GOP Chair — Matthew Hurtt was the only candidate to seek the Arlington County Republican Committee chair’s post before the recent filing deadline, and will continue serving in that capacity through early 2028, party officials said Monday. Committee members will gather Monday, March 23 to plan strategy for upcoming elections. — Scott McCaffrey

Tysons Casino Bill Advances — The Virginia Senate voted 22-16 Friday to accept a revised casino bill that would allow a temporary facility near a Silver Line Metro station in Tysons without a voter referendum. Sen. Barbara Favola (D-Arlington) opposed the measure. All gaming revenue from the temporary facility would go to Fairfax County Public Schools. [FFXnow]

Kennedy Center to Close — The Kennedy Center’s board voted Monday to shut down operations for two years following this summer’s July 4 celebrations. The board also replaced Trump ally Richard Grenell with Matt Floca as CEO and executive director. [Associated Press]

Gas Prices Surging — The average price of regular gas in Virginia is $3.52 per gallon and rising amid the conflict with Iran, with the 26.9% national increase over the past month the largest since Hurricane Katrina, according to CNN. [Washingtonian]

D.C. Sheds 22K Fed Jobs — D.C. lost over 22,000 federal jobs in 2025 as a result of DOGE-driven workforce cuts, carrying $3.66 billion in annual pay, according to new OPM data. The city’s budget had anticipated the losses, projecting 40,000 fewer federal jobs by 2029. [WTOP]

It’s Tuesday — Mostly sunny skies today with increasing cloudiness, a high near 40 and west winds of 12–15 mph, gusting to 26 mph. Colder tonight with skies clearing and a low around 27. [NWS]

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