It’s still far from clear what the district boundaries will be, but two more congressional candidates pitched their case to Arlington Democrats last week.
Del. Dan Helmer (D-10), of Fairfax County, became the first candidate seeking the redrawn 7th Congressional District seat to launch a bid in front of county Democrats.
Telephone Scam Alert — “The scam has been around for years, but we’re hearing about Arlington residents again getting “jury duty” calls from someone falsely claiming to be local law enforcement. Reminder: this is a scam, do not pay them or give them personal information.” [ARLnow/Bluesky]
ACPD St. Paddy’s Event — “As part of the Department’s anti-drunk driving educational efforts, the Arlington County Police Department is hosting an interactive event highlighting the impacts alcohol has on motor skills — because even one drink is one too many to get behind the wheel. This event is free and open to the public. DATE: Saturday, March 14, 2026. TIME: 8-10 p.m. LOCATION: N. Hudson Street at Wilson Boulevard in Clarendon.” [ACPD]
Driver Flees After Crash — “Hit & walk crash: Here’s the crash at Army Navy & S. Joyce in Pentagon City around 1 a.m. After sitting in his car for more than 4 minutes, the driver in the intersection got up and walked away. @ArlingtonVaPD
found him on Columbia Pike after he passed the Air Force Memorial.” [Dave Statter/X]
Serious Assault on the Pike — “Officers located the injured victim in the lobby residential building. The preliminary investigation indicates at approximately 6:30 p.m., the victim was inside a residence with two male suspects, who are known to him, when they became involved in a verbal dispute that escalated into a physical altercation. The suspects subsequently fled the scene. The victim sustained serious, non-life threatening injuries and was transported to an area hospital.” [ACPD]
Metro Assault Suspect on Bail — “A Maryland man accused of assault and battery on a Metro train was released on bail after being arrested by Metro Transit Police, according to court records… Betancur had an active arrest warrant through the Arlington County General District Court for assault and battery offense on a Silver Line train at the Clarendon Metro Station around 10:09 p.m. on March 1.” [WJLA]
Data Center Budget Debate — “Virginia Democrats wield total control over state government, but leaders of the state Senate and House of Delegates are heading for a showdown over a few key provisions of the biggest legislation the General Assembly will consider this year: the budget. At the heart of the dispute is a disagreement over how to tax data centers — those high-tech facilities that provide the backbone of the internet.” [Washington Post]
Va. Bill on Jan. 6 Teaching — “Virginia lawmakers have passed a bill that prohibits schools from teaching that the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection was a peaceful demonstration or that there was massive fraud in the 2020 presidential election, the first Democratic state to try to shape how such events are taught. Democrats, who control the state House and Senate, expect Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) to sign the measure.” [Washington Post]
New Legal Notice — Application for on/off-premises beer, wine, mixed-beverage restaurant license; objections due. [Public Notices]
It’s Monday — Expect sunny skies and a high temperature near 72 degrees, accompanied by a calm wind shifting to the south at around 5 mph in the afternoon. As night falls on Monday, the sky will remain mostly clear, with the temperature dropping to a low of around 48 degrees. [NWS]
Today’s Morning Notes are brought to you by Industrious. ARLnow has been in an Industrious office for years and we love the convenience — you get to focus on your work rather than worrying about brewing your own coffee or keeping the copy machine stocked. Industrious has several Metro-accessible coworking locations in Arlington.
A cold and snowy winter has produced large numbers of potholes in Arlington, though perhaps not as many as some might expect.
About 190 pothole fill requests have been filed in Arlington since Feb. 1, Peter Golkin, a spokesperson for the Department of Environmental Services, told ARLnow. About 50 were pending as of Wednesday.
Falls Church officials this week sketched out more details in what would be the largest affordable-housing effort in city history.
“What you’ve laid out today is really exciting,” said Jim Coyle, vice chair of the city’s Economic Development Commission, at a March 2 joint work session between that body, the City Council and Planning Commission.
Clocks will skip ahead an hour at 2 a.m. Sunday for daylight saving time in most of the U.S., creating a 23-hour day that throws off sleep schedules, plunges early-morning dog walks into darkness and inspires millions of complaints.
In Virginia, the push to end the twice-a-year clock change has stalled. A Virginia House committee this week recommended dropping the issue until 2027. The state is one of half a dozen that have adopted bills to switch to permanent standard time in one legislative chamber in the last two years, though Virginia’s measure included a caveat: the change would only take effect if Maryland and Washington, D.C., also made the move.
Arlington’s two main political parties are driving opposing messages as early voting on Virginia’s congressional redistricting referendum began this morning (Friday).
The Arlington County Democratic Committee’s rank and file voted to support the redrawing of the commonwealth’s 11 congressional districts at a Wednesday meeting.
Metro Funding Advances — Maryland and Virginia lawmakers are advancing funding proposals supporting the DMVMoves plan, which calls for $460 million in new annual capital funding for Metro starting in fiscal 2028, according to Metro. [WMATA/X]
Peak Bloom Predicted — The National Park Service projects cherry blossom peak bloom will arrive between March 29 and April 1 this year. [National Mall NPS/X]
Jones Sues Over Tariffs — “These illegal tariffs are nothing more than a tax on Virginia families and when a President tries to impose them without legal authority, it is our responsibility to step in and defend the rule of law,” Attorney General Jay Jones said. The coalition suit challenges tariffs of up to 15% imposed under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. [Press Release]
Median Signs Debate — In a letter to the County Board, Dave Schutz argues against banning political signs from road medians, saying the move would disadvantage apartment dwellers. “In areas dominated by apartments, median signs are often one of the primary ways residents know an election is happening.” [Letter to the Editor]
It’s Friday — Foggy conditions clear up before 11am, then showers are possible in the late afternoon. Expect mostly cloudy skies with a high near 54 degrees and an east wind blowing at 5 to 8 mph. For Friday night, there’s a 30% chance of showers, with a low temperature around 45 degrees under mostly cloudy skies. [NWS]
Flickr pool photo by ksrjghkegkdhgkk
Update at 10:25 p.m. — The bridge and the lanes have reopened.
Earlier: Northbound S. George Mason Drive is closed between S. Columbus Street and Four Mile Run Drive due to an outside fire.
Arlington County’s firefighter union is speaking out against a proposal to remove four vacant firefighter positions from the payroll.
The current county budget draft proposes to consolidate the Arlington County Fire Department’s two heavy rescue companies, relocating them under a single roof at Fire Station 1 (500 S. Glebe Road). This would reduce ACFD’s total authorized staffing by four full-time employees.
The Virginia Department of Health has partially lifted a recreational water advisory for the Potomac River, though the warning remains in place for a 4.7-mile stretch upstream of Chain Bridge.
VDH issued the advisory on Feb. 13 out of caution following a sewage spill in the Potomac that occurred Jan. 19 and subsequent sewage discharges in early February. The situation has been monitored by Virginia, Maryland and D.C. since then, and a bipartisan group of D.C.-area lawmakers recently sought additional federal funding for the repairs and cleanup.
A bounty hunter has pleaded guilty to illegal brandishing in an incident where he is accused of unlawfully detaining a Green Valley resident, falsely claiming to have a warrant for his immigration arrest.
Matthew Mallory has also entered a no contest plea to a charge of trespassing in connection to the June incident, where prosecutors say he lied about having a document from the Department of Homeland Security in order to enter a home and detain a victim at gunpoint.
A bill seeking to permit by-right multifamily development in commercial zones was defeated in the Virginia Senate yesterday (Thursday) despite limitations proposed by Arlington’s state Sen. Barbara Favola (D-40).
The Senate voted 17-22 on HB 816 by Del. Dan Helmer (D-10). The House did not vote on the companion bill SB 454 by state Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg (D-16) but referred it back to the House Counties, Cities and Towns committee.
