By Lawrence Roberts
In the March 31 Progressive Voice column, I explored the impact of the Dillon Rule on Arlington County – how Arlington cannot exercise its governing will unless the governing authority has been provided by the Virginia General Assembly. Moreover, the General Assembly can pass laws preventing localities from addressing matters of concern to the locality.
Anyone can still register to comment, and do so anonymously, but the change gives us an upper hand in battling trolls and spammers.
The overarching goal is to restore civility to the comments section so that thoughtful community conversation — and yes, witty and irreverent banter as well — can once again flourish without being drowned out by a bunch of jerks.
The event is taking place at Celtic House, at 2500 Columbia Pike, from 6:30 to 8 p.m.
(Feel free to take advantage of the $5 Wednesday wing special or stick around afterward for Celtic House’s weekly trivia night at 8:30.)
By Abby Raphael
One in five women has been sexually assaulted while in college, according to a 2016 report of the Bureau of Justice Statistics. This statistic does not begin to capture the reality of being a victim of sexual assault. At Duke University, students organize an annual photo exhibition of survivors. These stories about the assaults, and the reactions of friends, family, and campus officials, can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/dukebreakingout.
A new report by The 2030 Group recommends strategies that localities in our region should pursue to re-accelerate private-sector economic growth.
The report was prepared under the leadership of Dr. Steven Fuller, a distinguished, long-time — regional economist at the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University (GMU). Bob Buchanan, President of The 2030 Group, was a co-leader.
On Tuesday, the Arlington Civic Federation voted to recommend a 1-cent tax rate reduction to the Arlington County Board. The Board should adopt the recommendation.
The CivFed resolution noted that over the past five years, the average homeowner saw a $1,113 increase in taxes and fees. A 1-cent reduction this year would not cut a homeowner’s tax burden. It would only stop property taxes from increasing quite as much.
This week was, quite frankly, a disappointing week for comments on the site.
Without going into detail, there were way too many assumptions being made about groups of people, way too many off-topic political trolls and way too much mean-spiritedness.
When following issue discussions in Arlington, it seems that most people understand that federal law is the supreme law of the land and that County actions cannot contravene federal laws pursuant to the “supremacy clause” of the U.S. Constitution.
However, it is not as well known how Arlington’s actions are constrained by state law.
Last week’s ARLnow.com story about a recent Arlington County survey has reignited a multi-year debate over the wisdom of building an Aquatics Center at Long Bridge Park.
For reasons I have outlined in multiple prior columns, that particular Aquatics Center — a facility that is likely to cost much more than $80 million to build and at least $4 million a year to operate — is a foolish waste of taxpayer dollars. This is especially true given the:
The draft plan envisions a tree-lined Lee Highway that’s more pedestrian- and bike-friendly, with mid-rise development concentrated in “mixed-use activity nodes.”
The rationale behind the plan, and the community process that helped inform it, is to set an aspirational vision for future development and transportation improvements along the Lee Highway corridor. The community can thus have more of a voice than if it were to just let piecemeal development take place along the corridor without a unified plan.
Whether you’re heading out of town, heading down to the Tidal Basin to see the cherry blossoms or just relaxing at home this weekend, ARLnow.com wishes you a happy Easter and — to those fortunate enough to have one — a happy spring break.
Enjoy the sunny, mild weather while it lasts. The D.C. area’s hot, sticky summer is only a few weeks away, despite what the calendar says.
Just prior to its adjournment earlier this month, the Virginia General Assembly passed a resolution honoring Arlington School Board Chair Emma Violand-Sánchez. Dr. Violand-Sánchez was first elected to the School Board in November 2008. She plans to retire at the end of this year after completing her second term on the Board.
Discussion
