Opinion | ARLnow.com

Peter’s Take: The Case for a Fourth Comprehensive High School

Published February 11, 2016 at 1:00PM

Over the next few months, APS will develop a new version of its 10-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). The CIP identifies capital improvement projects, estimates their cost, and proposes how to finance them. The School Board will adopt this CIP as student enrollment continues to grow at all levels of instruction. If the latest projections are right, APS enrollment will reach levels last seen in the mid-1960’s.

The table below displays the latest projections for Arlington’s current three comprehensive high schools:

Progressive Voice: Recognizing Arlington’s Invisible Hungry

By Progressive Voice

Published February 11, 2016 at 12:15PM | Updated February 11, 2016 at 11:38PM

(Updated at 11:35 p.m.) When you think of an Arlingtonian on food assistance, what image comes to mind? The stereotypes are ready-made: the single mother trying to stretch a dozen eggs across two weeks. The low-income minority without sound employment options. The homeless.

We make assumptions about these individuals every day because their circumstances prevent them from engaging in civic life. We don’t see them at political meetings or bar crawling with the khaki crowd in Clarendon. They exist separate from us, if they exist to us at all.

Morning Poll: Virginia Presidential Primary Preview

By ARLnow.com

Published February 10, 2016 at 10:00AM | Updated February 10, 2016 at 10:31AM

Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders were the big winners in yesterday’s New Hampshire primary.

How will “outsider” candidates Trump and Sanders fare in Arlington, when the Virginia presidential primary takes place on Super Tuesday, March 1? Let’s find out.

Progressive Voice: A Proud Day for Arlington

By Progressive Voice

Published February 4, 2016 at 3:00PM | Updated February 4, 2016 at 4:18PM

By Lawrence Roberts

57 years ago this week, Arlington was at the epicenter of a quake that shook the foundations of the conservative, segregationist establishment in Virginia that was devoted to “Massive Resistance” against school integration.

Peter’s Take: Three New Acres Of County Parkland Annually

By Peter Rousselot

Published February 4, 2016 at 2:15PM

The Arlington County Board should adopt a formal numerical target of adding a minimum annual average of 3 acres of County parkland for the next 10 years. A recent paper produced by the Arlington County Civic Federation’s (ACCF’s) Parks & Recreation Committee presents a compelling case to support the adoption of this numerical target.

Parks are a critical core service

The Right Note: Our New County Manager

By Mark Kelly

Published February 4, 2016 at 1:30PM

In every press release, Arlington refers to itself as a “world-class residential, business and tourist location”. It ends the standard paragraph with “Arlington stands out as one of America’s preeminent places to live, visit and do business.” It is easy to find support for that statement and fault with it, depending on who you talk to in Arlington.

Our main economic engine, the federal government, is not going out of business any time soon. The question is, will Arlington put itself in a position to maximize the health of our economy to withstand any BRAC-like changes in the future? And, will it do it by empowering businesses to grow rather than by taxpayer-funded shiny objects like streetcars, swimming pools and gondolas?

Morning Poll: Grade Arlington’s Snow Removal Effort

By ARLnow.com

Published February 2, 2016 at 10:20AM

Life has largely returned to normal — students went back to school today for the first time since Wednesday, Jan. 20 — though there are scattered reports of continued mail delivery issues.

It was a Herculean task to clear two feet of snow from local roads. Though major arteries were plowed and made passable pretty quickly, as usually happens with large snow storms in Arlington the residential streets remained snow-covered and treacherous for days, prompting complaints.

ARLnow Weekend Discussion

By ARLnow.com

Published January 30, 2016 at 2:15PM

The weekend is here and the remnants of last weekend’s blizzard are continuing to melt.

Expect relatively mild temperatures this weekend and into next week, says the Capital Weather Gang.

Letter to the Editor: Thank You, Snow Crews

By ARLnow.com

Published January 29, 2016 at 9:00AM

The following letter to the editor was submitted by Abby Olin, a Falls Church resident, regarding the local snow removal effort.

Since you recently gave a platform to readers frustrated with the snow-removal progress, I want to take a moment to briefly thank everyone who has contributed to the advanced preparation and snow clearing efforts so far.

The Right Note: Missed Opportunity

By Mark Kelly

Published January 28, 2016 at 3:00PM | Updated January 28, 2016 at 11:38PM

Missed Opportunity

The announcement that Acting County Manager Mark Schwartz was elevated permanently to the top post comes as a surprise to no one. It does represent a missed opportunity to change course in Arlington.

Progressive Voice: Arlington Women, Educating & Empowering

By Progressive Voice

Published January 28, 2016 at 1:15PM

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in the column are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of their organizations or ARLnow.com.

A recent posting on the Governing website noted:

Peter’s Take: Improving Va. State Government Transparency

By Peter Rousselot

Published January 28, 2016 at 12:45PM

I have written several columns focusing on how the Arlington County government can improve the transparency of its activities. This column focuses on how the Virginia state government can improve its transparency.

Virginia is a “Dillon Rule” state. That rule prohibits localities like Arlington from enacting ordinances unless expressly authorized to do so. For that reason, Arlington citizens have a greater stake in state government transparency than we would have if Virginia were a “Home Rule” state.