The temperature climbed into the 70s today, and many locals — Arlington County police included — spent the day outside biking, walking or running.
The warm weather isn’t expected to last, unfortunately. A cold front is predicted to sweep through the area tomorrow afternoon, possibly causing some thunderstorms.
This week, 20-year County Board veteran Jay Fisette announced he would not seek re-election.
Just a little more than five years ago, the Board was made up of Fisette, Chris Zimmerman, Walter Tejada, Mary Hynes and Barbara Favola. Between School Board and County Board service, they had each been elected multiple times over. After November it is likely that four of the five members of the Board will be in their first full term serving the County in any elected capacity. And this new perspective is certainly a good thing.
By: Nicole Merlene
For decades, Arlington has been at the forefront of community planning and development trends in the D.C. metro region, leading to significant economic successes.
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.
ARLnow.com reported last week that the APS Advisory Council on School Facilities and Capital Programs (FAC) has published a valuable report.
It’s February on the calendar but the weather forecast for the next three days looks more like May.
Arlington — and indeed much of the country — is experiencing what could be described as an early spring, despite what the groundhog said. Blooms are forming on trees, outdoor restaurant patios are open and it’s not uncommon to see shorts and short sleeves being worn outdoors.
It’s been a busy week, especially for local wildlife. On Tuesday, animal control officers rescued a raccoon that got stuck in a drain at Wakefield High School. Then, earlier today, a curious creature dubbed the “trash raccoon” hitched a ride on a garbage truck from Rosslyn to Falls Church.
In other news, are IOTA Club’s days numbered? The new owner of Market Common Clarendon is proposing major changes to the development, including the possible demolition of the building that holds the well-loved cafe, outdoor bar and live music venue. IOTA co-owner Jane Negrey Inge told us, however, that she didn’t expect the renovations to happen “any time… soon.”
By now, you have probably heard about the controversy over signs at Yorktown High School. There is little doubt the signs were intended to make a political statement about issues surrounding the Trump Administration, albeit in an clever way.
You may support the posting of the signs as statements our community supports or you may oppose them as political propaganda. For the purposes of furthering the discussion, what if a teacher posted a sign in his or her classroom at Yorktown that said the following, complete with red, white and blue color scheme?
By: Emma Violand Sanchez
The Trump Administration’s words and actions regarding immigration and refugee ban have sparked fear in many communities across America, including Arlington County. They have also sparked broad discontent among Americans who believe, as I do, that the United States has been and IS a nation of immigrants — a land of opportunity where newcomers can, through hard work and perseverance, achieve better lives for themselves and their families.
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 January, I discussed 10 steps that the County Board should take in 2017 to improve Arlington’s model of civic engagement. I noted that the goal should be to reach the broadest possible consensus and ensure a legitimate, fact-based process to inform real-time decision-making.
Arlington schools have called in an outside consultant to evaluate their enrollment projections. No matter who makes them, projections outside of the next one to two years are extremely difficult to make. Nowhere was this more evident than Washington-Lee High School which was built too small because of bad projections in the other direction.
The Arlington School Board should continue to proceed with caution in the efforts to create more seats for more students.
By: Matt de Ferranti
If the past three weeks are prologue, we will be called upon frequently over the next four years to oppose policies that threaten longstanding American and Arlington values.
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.
ARLnow.com reported last week that APS has hired a consultant to study the way APS projected enrollment during the recent high school boundary adjustment process.
