News

Plans for a four-sports-field complex on the campus of Kenmore Middle School have started working their way through the county government’s advisory process.

One of the key challenges still to be worked through as the process moves forward: How to manage parking issues around the new facility.


News

County Manager Mark Schwartz has been directed to consider both program cuts and tax increases as he works to fill a fiscal 2026 budget gap currently estimated at $30 million to $40 million.

County Board members on Tuesday night (Dec. 17) voted unanimously to approve budget guidance providing Schwartz the ability to propose tax increases he deems necessary. That could include another increase to the real-estate tax rate.


News

The median sales price of Arlington single-family homes in 2025 could peak at around $1.4 million in early summer before retreating slightly, according to a new forecast.

The prediction, which also anticipates a year-over-year decline in county home sales next year, comes from the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors (NVAR) and the George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis.


News

As the Arlington NAACP approaches its first leadership change in two years, the organization aims to build on its advocacy efforts.

On issues ranging from housing and education to voting rights and criminal-justice reform, “our branch has been leading the way,” outgoing president Michael Hemminger said at the body’s last meeting of the year, held Monday (Dec. 16).


News

Distilling the essence of Libby Garvey’s 28 years in Arlington public life would have required far longer than the 75 minutes allotted at the Tuesday (Dec. 17) County Board meeting.

But a number of local civic and political leaders gave it their best shot.


News

County Board members on Saturday (Dec. 14) rebuffed a staff-proposed increase in trespass-towing fees across Arlington, opting to keep the base rate at $135 for passenger vehicles.

At the same time, Board members followed a staff recommendation in rejecting — for now — a “second-signature” requirement before any tows can occur.


Sports

Members of the state-champion Meridian High School varsity golf team were honored Dec. 10 by the Falls Church School Board.

“That’s an impressive achievement — we’re really proud,” School Board Chairman Tate Gould said in reaction to the team’s Virginia High School League Class 3 state crown, achieved during competition on the Heritage Oaks Golf Course in Harrisonburg.


News

Arlington County Board members approved higher fees for access to county-operated electric-vehicle charging stations this past Saturday (Dec. 14), among other actions.

“We’re not trying to make big bucks. We’re just trying to meet our costs,” Board chair Libby Garvey said after the vote to raise the base fee from the current 14.52 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) to 17.46 cents.


News

Incoming County Board member JD Spain, Sr., used his ceremonial swearing-in ceremony to promote the spirit of collaboration and community.

During the Dec. 14 ceremony, Spain — a Democrat — pledged to support a community “where everyone feels valued and safe.”


News

Arlington’s likely 2025 County Board chairman has economic-development and property-repurposing initiatives atop his to-do list for the coming year.

“One out of four square feet [of office space in the county] is unoccupied,” Takis Karantonis on Dec. 10 told members of Arlington Senior Democrats. “It’s the highest for us ever, and one of the highest in the nation. What is worse, it’s not looking like the business is coming back.”


Schools

Dec. 12 was a graduation day of sorts for Arlington’s two departing School Board members.

“Your work has made a real difference,” Board chair Mary Kadera told Cristina Diaz-Torres and David Priddy at the meeting, the body’s final one of the year.


Schools

Arlington School Board members Thursday night (Dec. 12) voted unanimously to implement a bell-to-bell ban on student use of phones in county schools starting Jan. 6.

“Our schools are places of learning,” Superintendent Francisco Durán said just before the vote, saying his recommendation was “a policy that will protect that instructional space.”


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