Author: Jo DeVoe

Feature

Rosslyn Tech Company LiveSafe Acquired

By Jo DeVoe

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring Shirlington Gateway. The new 2800 Shirlington recently delivered a brand-new lobby and upgraded fitness center. Experience a prime location and enjoy being steps from Shirlington Village. Spec suites with bright open plans and modern finishes are under construction and will deliver soon!

(Updated on 10/13/20) Rosslyn-based tech company LiveSafe has been purchased by Tampa-based Vector Solutions.

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Schools

Tracks, Fields to Temporarily Close as Students Resume Athletic Workouts

By Jo DeVoe

High school athletes can start working out in-person next week, regardless of whether they chose distance- or hybrid-learning, Arlington Public Schools has announced.

Starting Monday, Oct. 12, APS will be using stadiums, tracks and fields for student workouts and athletic activities. While students exercise, the facilities will be closed to public use.

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News

Ashton Heights Scales Back N. Jackson Street Halloween Festivities

By Jo DeVoe
Halloween decorations along N. Jackson Street (Staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Homes on N. Jackson Street in Ashton Heights may put up Halloween decorations this year, but most will not hand out treats in order to discourage trick-or-treating and follow state and national health guidelines.

The Virginia Department of Health recommends that people avoid traditional trick or treating because it is a “higher risk activity.” North Jackson Street neighbors — noted for having the most elaborate Halloween decorations in Arlington — decided that respecting this guidance would mean foregoing the usual Halloween revelry.

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News

New APS Enrollment Figures Show More Than 1,000 Fewer Students Than Last Year

By Jo DeVoe
The Arlington Public Schools Syphax Education Center (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated at 4:50 p.m.) Arlington Public Schools is seeing a sharp decline in enrollment this year as families cope with remote learning during the pandemic.

From September 2019 to September 2020, PreK-12 enrollment fell from 28,020 to 26,895 — a 4% drop — according to APS’ official Sept. 30 count. That’s an even bigger drop than the preliminary numbers at the beginning of September, which showed enrollment of 27,109.

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News

Why Arlington Streets Never Closed During the Pandemic

By Jo DeVoe

As the summer approached with lockdowns in place, many cities, including D.C. and Alexandria, closed some streets to drivers and expanded walking and biking options.

Arlington did not, although many residents supported the idea, according to an ARLnow poll from April that found support for closing streets among 80% of respondents.

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Around Town

Alexandria’s Spice Kraft Indian Bistro Takes Over Delhi Club

By Jo DeVoe
Delhi Club, soon to be Spice Kraft, in Clarendon (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

Delhi Club (1135 N. Highland Street) is under new management, and will soon take on a new name: Spice Kraft Indian Bistro.

For now, the change is unofficial and the restaurant continues to do business as Delhi Club, said general manager and co-owner Anthony Shankar. Delhi Club’s doors will reopen as Spice Kraft Indian Bistro by the end of the month, he said.

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Around Town

New Video Tackles Arlington’s History of Race and Housing

By Jo DeVoe
Black residents in a historic photo, from "Race and Housing" video (via Alliance for Housing Solutions/YouTube)

In 1900, Black people comprised more than a third of Arlington’s population and lived in 12 neighborhoods in the county.

Over the last 100 years, however, the population and the variety of places Black people can afford to live has dwindled, according to a new video from the Alliance for Housing Solutions, a local advocacy organization.

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News

New Affordable Housing Project in Buckingham Breaks Ground

By Jo DeVoe
Groundbreaking for The Cadence apartments in Buckingham (staff photo by Jo DeVoe)

The empty Red Cross building (4333 Arlington Blvd) in Buckingham will come down in a few weeks to make way for a new apartment building called The Cadence.

The building, developed by Wesley Housing Development Corporation, will have 97 units, all set aside for low- and moderate-income households. It is part of a complex that includes 19 nearly complete market-rate townhouses a stone’s throw away.

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Around Town

Arlingtonians Rally to Support Old Dominion Cleaners, Raise $15K

By Jo DeVoe
Charlene and Tien Nguyen, the owners of Old Dominion Cleaners, are the beneficiaries of a GoFundMe that has raised almost $15,000 in a week to keep their business afloat. (Photo via Matt Mendelsohn)

Charlene Nguyen was 18 years old when she fled communist Vietnam for Virginia.

She landed a job at Arlington’s Old Dominion Cleaners (4036 Lee Highway) in 1985, and finally lay to rest the two years she spent living in fear of communists and surviving on meager portions of rice.

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Schools

Arlington Public Schools Proposes New Elementary School Boundaries

By Jo DeVoe

(Updated at 11:50 a.m.) About 1,400 elementary students would be reassigned to new school buildings next fall, according to a proposed change in boundaries that Arlington Public Schools released Monday evening.

The boundary proposal follows an elementary school building swap approved by the School Board in February, to account for the new Reed School building in Westover coming online and the former home of the Key Spanish immersion program near Courthouse being converted to a neighborhood school.

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Around Town

VIDA Fitness Ballston Focuses on Precautions to Increase Memberships

By Jo DeVoe
The 'Sweat Box' where High Intensity Interval Training inside the Ballston location of VIDA Fitness (file photo)

Since VIDA Fitness Ballston opened on June 27, about 500 members have had the 30,000 square feet to themselves.

The regional, high-end fitness chain usually sees up to four times that many people join before opening day and in the first three months. But the coronavirus has hurt the boutique gym’s ability to attract members.

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