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County to Open Temporary Library in Crystal City

Published July 19, 2016 at 11:30AM | Updated July 19, 2016 at 12:54PM

The Arlington County Board on Saturday approved an agreement with the Crystal City Shops that will allow the county to open the temporary library in a vacant retail space rent-free for at least nine months.

The county will pay nearly $1,900 per month for maintenance and utilities and incur one-time costs of $60,000 for a connection to the county’s fiber optic network and about $113,000 to renovate the space. The funds have already been allocated in the county’s Fiscal Year 2017 budget.

Around Town

LEGO Store Coming to Pentagon City Mall

By ARLnow.com

Published July 19, 2016 at 10:45AM

LEGO builders will be able to head to the mall to get their supply of the versatile plastic bricks starting this fall. The store is expected to open around Sept. 1, according to the mall website.

The nearest existing LEGO stores are in Tysons Corner and Woodbridge, according to the Danish company’s website.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 19, 2016 at 8:35AM | Updated July 19, 2016 at 10:28AM

Fairfax Wants Arlington’s Tourism Dollars — Fairfax County wants Arlington’s crown as the biggest tourism center in Virginia. “It’s our goal to beat out Arlington, and we’re going to continue giving it all we’ve got,” said Fairfax’s tourism chief, who is pushing for the county to build a new convention center. [InsideNova]

Free House in South Arlington — Here’s some truly affordable housing: a historic, all-steel Lustron house is being offered for free in south Arlington, to anyone willing to haul it away. [Twitter]

News

County Board Approves New Transit Plan, With an Asterisk

By ARLnow.com

Published July 18, 2016 at 5:00PM | Updated July 18, 2016 at 6:44PM

There’s an asterisk to the Transit Development Plan’s unanimous approval and the subsequent cheery press release, however. Responding to criticism from residents and the county’s own Transportation Commission, the Board directed County Manager Mark Schwartz to report back next year on possible improvements to the post-streetcar transit plan for Columbia Pike.

The Board’s guidance to Schwartz and county staff:

Weather

UPDATE: Severe Thunderstorm Warning Issued

By ARLnow.com

Published July 18, 2016 at 4:05PM

Update at 4:15 p.m. — The storm is arriving.

Hearing reports of downed power lines and a blown transformer as winds pick up ahead of storm. Some power outages reported.

News

Crime Report: Bike Thieves Arrested Near Barcroft Park

By ARLnow.com

Published July 18, 2016 at 3:30PM | Updated March 2, 2020 at 4:22PM

File photo

Police say the juvenile suspects were stealing bike from a bike rack in the area of Barcroft Park.

From an Arlington County Police Department crime report:

News

Police Investigating Reported Gunshot Fired in East Falls Church

By ARLnow.com

Published July 18, 2016 at 11:45AM

The incident happened around 8 a.m. on the 2600 block of N. Winchester Street, not far from the W&OD Trail.

Multiple people reported hearing a gunshot to police. One person reported hearing a woman screaming and seeing a group of men speed off immediately after hearing a loud bang.

News

Road Closure Due to Water Main Break in Crystal City

By ARLnow.com

Published July 18, 2016 at 10:45AM | Updated July 18, 2016 at 5:01PM

“The depth of the water main has made this a more complicated repair and weather is also slowing us down,” said Jessica Baxter. “The estimated completion is now midnight tonight. We’ll continue to monitor progress and communicate any updates.”

Update at 1:55 p.m. — The office building at 2001 Jefferson Davis Highway is affected too, the county has confirmed.

News

Car Plows Into Front of Cherrydale 7-Eleven

By ARLnow.com

Published July 18, 2016 at 9:45AM | Updated July 18, 2016 at 2:10PM

A car slammed through the front of the 7-Eleven store at 3901 Lee Highway in Cherrydale Friday night.

The crash happened just before 10 p.m. No injuries were reported.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 18, 2016 at 8:30AM | Updated July 18, 2016 at 8:58AM

County Looking at Fire Station Alternatives — The Arlington County Board on Saturday approved an agreement with Arlington Public Schools that would allow it to build a temporary fire station on the grounds of the new H-B Woodlawn school in Rosslyn. However, in response to parent concerns the Board directed county staff to look into potential alternative locations. [InsideNova, Arlington County]

Couple: Snow Melter Fumes Contaminated Our House — A couple who lives near Bluemont Park says diesel fumes from a snow melter that the county was using about 40 yards from their home this past winter has contaminated the home. The county paid for the couple to live in a hotel while the snow melter was running, in the wake of January’s blizzard. Now the couple wants the county to pay for a thorough cleaning of the home. [Washington Post]

Weather

Severe Thunderstorm Warning Issued

By ARLnow.com

Published July 16, 2016 at 4:30PM

Parts of Arlington, D.C. and other local jurisdictions are now under a Severe Thunderstorm Warning.

The National Weather Service is warning of strong storms packing damaging wind gusts.

News

UPDATED: Widespread Comcast TV Outage Reported

By ARLnow.com

Published July 16, 2016 at 4:05PM | Updated July 16, 2016 at 5:51PM

“We have identified the underlying cause and services are being restored,” said Jamie Debole, a Comcast representative, via email. “Customers’ services should now be working.”

Earlier: Comcast customers in Arlington, the D.C. area and much of the northeast U.S. are reporting issues with their cable TV service.