A street corner in Rosslyn transformed into a red carpet scene for an hour this morning, all to make a little girl’s wish come true.
Five-year-old Addy — who is suffering from a Wilms Tumor, a form of kidney cancer that affects young children — wished to become a pop star. Through the efforts of the Make-A-Wish Foundation’s Mid-Atlantic chapter, Addy’s wish played out in front of the WJLA building in Rosslyn, on the corner of N. Lynn Street and Wilson Blvd.
Crystal City will soon be the home to dozens of early stage technology companies, housed in the just-opened Crystal Tech Fund coworking space.
Located on the 10th floor of 2231 Crystal Drive, the $50 million Crystal Tech Fund — founded by Paul Singh, an early partner in the venture capital firm 500 Startups — provides office space to companies while also giving each of them significant capital investments and entrepreneurial mentorship.
In the fourth quarter of 2013, Arlington reported about $813 million in taxable retail sales in its March economic indicators study today. Over the same period in 2013, Arlington had about $786 million, a drop of 3.3 percent. The change can’t be attributed to the unusually snowy winter, either: nearly all of the snow this winter fell in the first quarter of 2014, after these numbers were recorded.
While the retail industry — which includes everything from restaurants to grocery stores to stands in the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City — lost $27 million in sales year-over-year, Arlington’s workforce grew 1.4 percent while its unemployment rate dropped from 3.9 percent in January 2013 to 3.3 percent in January.
Several cherry trees were chopped down this week, while fully flowered, for a new landscape design in Rosslyn.
The trees were several of about a dozen planted in front of the Colonial Village Shopping Center, home to the new Ben’s Chili Bowl, along Wilson Blvd. Xtra Care Landscaping & Design was hired by the strip mall’s property manager to remove the trees, according to an Xtra Care employee.
Vihstadt won by a significant margin — 57 percent to Democrat Alan Howze’s 41 percent — in a special election that saw an unofficial tally of 22,209 votes. Democrats saw the result partly as a result of not enough voter turnout, while Vihstadt’s supporters — Republicans, Democrats, Greens and independents among them — viewed the election as a referendum of County Board policy.
“John’s overwhelming victory tonight is a testament to the growing number of Arlingtonians who are tired of a County Board that dictates its own priorities instead of listening to the voices and concerns of the community,” the Arlington County Republican Committee, said in a press release.
Update at 10:25 a.m. — One southbound lane of Route 1 has reopened, according to Arlington County. A tow truck is on scene and all lanes are expected to reopen shortly.
An RV has caught fire on southbound Route 1 in Crystal City, causing police to shut down the southbound lanes to traffic at the tail end of this morning’s rush hour.
The site, at 2631 Shirlington Road, is currently occupied by Redman Fleet Services, a towing and truck service company that has a contract with the Arlington County Police Department. Big box retailer Walmart was thinking about building a store there in 2011, which prompted the County Board to change its zoning ordinance so it could regulate the design and plans for Walmart or other “big box” retailers.
The plans for the Walmart ultimately fell through, and the run-down two-story warehouse and large car storage lot on 2631 Shirlington Road remain. The building, however, has been approved for demolition and, in its place, a five-story facility referred to as “Shirlington Self Storage” has been proposed to take its place.
As the weather has warmed up, Arlington’s box turtle population is coming out of hibernation and making its way onto roads and lawns. That has led county naturalists to ask for the community’s help in helping to protect the shelled reptiles.
While turtles have effective defensive mechanisms against predators, Arlington’s only native land turtle species is vulnerable to cars and lawn mowers, Long Branch Nature Center naturalist Cliff Fairweather wrote in an email to neighborhood newsletter editors.
As of this morning, the polls around the county for the Arlington County Board special election are reporting very light turnout.
“I don’t know if it’s the dreary weather, but it’s been quiet,” Arlington County General Registrar Linda Lindberg told ARLnow.com. “There’s no waiting at the polls in Arlington.”
Arlington polls open at 6:00 a.m. tomorrow and will remain open until 7:00 p.m. Voters who are unsure about where they can vote can go to the Virginia State Board of Elections polling place search function. Other questions about voting tomorrow can be answered on Arlington County’s election website.
Arlington Treasurer Frank O’Leary, who doubles as an election turnout prognosticator projects the total voter turnout to be between 30,000 and 33,000 after the latest absentee ballot count came in at 1,910.
Four Sisters Grill, a Vietnamese fast-casual restaurant coming to the former Fat Shorty’s space in Clarendon, is planning to open next week.
Owner Hoa Lai, the executive chef at Four Sisters Vietnamese Restaurant in Merrifield and owner of the new venture, said he plans to open the restaurant to the public on April 17. After holding a soft opening last month, Lai told ARLnow.com he pushed back his planned opening date to “iron out some of the kinks.”
(Updated at 6:05 p.m.) The $3 million renovation to Rocky Run Park in the Courthouse area are complete and the park is now open to the public.
The renovations, which were approved by the County Board in November 2012, include two lighted basketball courts, a lighted synthetic turf for drop-in play, a new playground area with equipment for 5-12 year-olds, a picnic shelter and bathrooms. The park, at 1109 N. Barton Street, had its mature trees preserved while the equipment and facilities were reorganized around them.
