Around Town

Got a pesky boxwood that needs a bit of trimming or row of cabbages overdue for planting? Maybe it’s time to visit Arlington Public Library’s tool lending program “The Shed.”

“The Shed houses 157 garden tools and generates close to 700 checkouts each growing season,” APL spokesman Henrik Sundqvist told ARLnow. “We have made strides each year to reach more residents as we continue our outreach efforts in the community.”


Schools

Starting next month, Arlington Public Schools’ Stratford Program will be officially renamed the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Program.

The secondary school program is for students with special needs. A seven-member renaming committee of teachers, parents, and students decided to rename the program after Eunice Shriver Kennedy, founder of the Special Olympics and long-time activist for people with intellectual and physical disabilities.


News

Two shopping centers along Columbia Pike are slated for redevelopment, according to new county planning documents.

Developers want to replace the Fillmore Gardens Shopping Center at the intersection of the Pike and S. Walter Reed Drive with a six-story building with apartments and ground-floor retail, according to a presentation last week to the county’s Form Based Code Advisory Working Group.


News

The Arlington County Board granted new Ballston bar Bronson a permit for an outdoor patio and live music, following initial wariness from staff and neighbors over bad experiences with its predecessor, A-Town Bar and Grill.

The County Board reviewed a use permit application from Bronson — which is currently under construction atat 4100 N. Fairfax Drive and billed as a German craft beer bar — on Saturday. It unanimously approved the bar’s request to seat patrons along the sidewalk and to host live music.


Schools

The Arlington County Board has approved zoning changes to make it easier for county schools to add temporary trailers to school grounds.

After a brief discussion, Board members voted unanimously on Saturday (June 15) to allow Arlington Public Schools administrators to add so-called “relocatable structures” to schools without needing to go through the county’s lengthy use permit amendment process.


Traffic

(Updated at 4:25 p.m.) The National Park Service is ready to move ahead with plans to make Memorial Circle safer and easier to navigate.

NPS finalized a study last week, stating its plans did not negatively impact the surrounding environment or historical character of the area. The agency can now move forward on making the nexus of roadways safer for drivers, pedestrians, and bicyclists.


News

This week, Arlington County Board members will consider a proposal that would allow them to raise their salaries for the first time since 2012.

Members are scheduled to vote tomorrow (Tuesday) to raise the maximum level at which they can set their salaries, choosing from one of three possible options:


Opinion

It’s Friday and that means it’s time to turn your attention away from primary politics and focus on the weekend ahead.

On Tuesday, incumbent prosecutor Theo Stamos lost her bid for re-election to challenger Parisa Dehghani-Tafti in an upset that some experts say is unprecedented in Arlington. And on the national election stage, presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg visited Arlington for a private fundraising event.


Around Town

Development may be surging around the Ball Family Burial Grounds on N. Kirkwood Street, but the fate of the historic site remains uncertain.

The gravesite of the family who is the namesake for Ballston is located in the middle of Virginia Square’s newest development hub, which includes plans to rebuild the YMCA and repurpose American Legion Post 139 as mixed residential buildings.


Events

The annual Columbia Pike Blues Festival returns tomorrow (Saturday) with live music and several road closures.

The festival will run from 1-8:30 p.m. at the intersection of Columbia Pike and S. Walter Reed Drive. This year’s music lineup includes soul and blues artists Sugary Rayford, Thornetta Davis, Hardway Connection, Lauren Calve Band, and Funky Miracle.


News

A proposed streetscape improvement project has revealed rising construction costs in Arlington County due to ongoing work to add new lanes to I-66 and I-395 — and associated projects.

“We believe the shortage of qualified contractors resulting from the abundance of work generated by the I-66 & I-395 Express Lanes projects is contributing to the higher than expected bid prices,” according to a county staff report.


Around Town

Drivers may soon see an old school bus tooling down Wilson Blvd and delivering books, thanks to funding from an Arlington-based nonprofit.

Read Early and Daily (R.E.A.D.) recently received a $50,000 ‘A Community Thrives’ national grant from the Gannett Foundation. R.E.A.D. secured the grant by pitching a traveling book bus that would bring books to people in Arlington who have trouble accessing them.


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