News

Winning Lotto Ticket Sold — ” A $1 million winning ticket in Virginia’s New Year’s Millionaire Raffle was sold in Arlington, along with four other winning $1 million tickets across the state, according to the Virginia Lottery. Winning ticket No. 485284 was bought at the Harris Teeter at the corner of South George Mason Drive and Columbia Pike in Arlington.” [Patch]

Garvey Is ‘Ultimate Survivor’ — “Marginalized and at times even ridiculed by Arlington’s political establishment for her opposition to the Columbia Pike streetcar project, County Board member Libby Garvey a decade later has emerged unscathed.” [Gazette Leader]

Garvey Likely to Be Chair — “Presume nothing until the final votes have been cast the evening of Jan. 2, of course, but odds certainly favor Libby Garvey being elected by her colleagues to what would be her third one-year stint chairing the Arlington County Board over a dozen years in office.” [Gazette Leader]

F.C. Tops Va. Wealth Generation List — “A new study from the Smart Asset financial advisory firm released today shows that the City of Falls Church ranks Number One among all jurisdictions in Virginia in ‘experiencing the most wealth generation over the last 10 years.’ The study measured increases in median income, investment income and home values.” Arlington is No. 6 on the list. [Falls Church News-Press]

More Candidate Announcements Expected — “Political junkies will be able to get another fix on Jan. 3, as the monthly Arlington County Democratic Committee rings in the new year with more candidate announcements.” [Gazette Leader]

APS Students Off For Primary Day — “Arlington students will get the day off, but teachers will be expected to show up, for Virginia’s dual presidential primary on March 5. Arlington School Board members on Dec. 14 approved without comment a staff proposal to make the day a teacher workday. While that will reduce the total number of instructional days from 180 to 179, the school system still has enough time on the schedule to meet the state-mandated 990 hours of instructional time.” [Gazette Leader]

Mob Assault in Pentagon City — “At approximately 9:21 p.m. on December 26, police were dispatched to the report of a fight. Upon arrival, it was determined the group of juvenile victims were in the area when a group of approximately 15 suspects approached them and attempted to steal one victim’s clothing items. The victims attempted to leave the area during which one of the suspects struck another victim. The victims then entered a nearby business when the suspects followed them and a physical altercation ensued inside the store, causing property damage.” [ACPD]

Group Pushing for Performance Space — “An arts-advocacy group begins 2024 as it did 2023 – on the hunt for a location and funding to support a dedicated, community-based performance center in Arlington. ‘Our number-one goal for 2024 is to locate a site for a new performing-arts center, to allow us to move forward on this critical project with a capital campaign,’ said Janet Kopenhaver, president of Embracing Arlington Arts.” [Gazette Leader]

Amazon HQ2 Employment Update — “Five years and a month after choosing Arlington County as the home of its second headquarters, Amazon.com Inc. has secured its place as the county’s top private employer, leapfrogging a pair of mainstays… HQ2’s headcount continues to stand at 8,000, an Amazon spokesperson said Tuesday. It has not changed since June, when the ribbon was officially cut on Metropolitan Park’s two, 22-story high-rises.” [Washington Business Journal]

Bethesda Woman Brings Gun to DCA — “Bethesda woman was prevented from bringing a loaded 9mm handgun onto her flight at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Christmas Eve, according to the Transportation Security Administration. The 9mm gun was loaded with six bullets when TSA officers detected the weapon among the woman’s carry-on items. The gun was the 39th that TSA officers at Reagan National Airport have detected at the airport’s checkpoints so far this year.” [Patch]