Opinion

ARLnow Weekend Discussion

By Katie Pyzyk

Following Thursday’s strong storms — which spawned a rare Arlington tornado — and today’s chillier temperatures, the weekend should warm back up. That’s just in time for APS students’ first days of spring break.

Local small business news created quite a buzz this week, as long-time retailer Casual Adventure announced it will close and CarPool poured its final beers after months of surviving on borrowed time. Despite previous rumors of it “not doing well,” the owner of Clarendon restaurant Oz said that the Aussie-themed eatery has experienced a turnaround.

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The Right Note: Two Controversial Ideas for APS

By Mark Kelly

Just as with our county budget, no one can argue with a straight face that our school budget is strained. We are consistently tops in the region in per pupil spending.

In the past I have asked for an explanation of what makes up the difference between the reported $18,957 per pupil spending and the $22,032 of actual spending. Per pupil spending would increase by $564 under the proposed FY 2018 budget.

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Peter’s Take: McAuliffe Is Right on Virginia Medicaid Expansion

By Peter Rousselot

Peter’s Take is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

On March 27, Virginia’s Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe announced that he was renewing his call for Virginia to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act:

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The Right Note: The Tax And Spend Cycle Endgame Is In Sight

By Mark Kelly

Imagine you are building a new house. You live in Arlington, so you have a budget of $1 million. Your builder comes back to you and says for $1 million, you may have to cut a few things off your wish list.

Instead of marble tile in your bathrooms, you will have to go with another natural stone or maybe even ceramic. They are going to have to downgrade your hardwood floors and kitchen appliances slightly. And, you may only be able to finish half of the basement, so your media room may have to be a little bit smaller.

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Peter’s Take: Addressing Arlington’s Long-Term Budget Gap

By Peter Rousselot

Peter’s Take is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

In a March 9 column, I analyzed County Manager Mark Schwartz’s proposed 2-cent property tax rate increase to generate $14.8 million to close a gap in the FY 2018 operating budget.

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Letter to the Editor: Funding Metro, Schools Is Possible Without Tax Rate Hike

By ARLnow.com

The following letter was sent to members of the County Board, ARLnow.com and other community organizations by Bluemont resident and local activist Suzanne Smith Sundburg, who says the proposed tax rate hike is regressive and unnecessary. Arlington County is in the midst of its annual budget process.

Dear Chair Fisette and members of the Arlington County Board,

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Morning Poll: Moving Out of the Area?

By ARLnow.com

Slower job growth and a high cost of living were blamed as possible reasons for the outflow.

We have previously predicted that Arlington will struggle to retain millennial residents as they start having families due to the high cost of housing and childcare. Those millennials may seek greener pastures outside the region, particularly in the kinds of cities that saw a net influx of domestic migration: Phoenix, Dallas, Seattle and Houston.

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