Opinion | ARLnow.com

Morning Poll: Fire Station No. 8

Published September 30, 2015 at 11:00AM

Following resident outcry from those who didn’t want the Lee Highway fire station to move from their neighborhood, and from those who didn’t want it to move to theirs, last week the Arlington County Board approved the creation of a task force to study the issue and come up with a recommendation.

Now, the county is also conducting a survey of residents via its “Open Arlington” website. The survey, which closes on Oct. 6, is intended to “gather input on the proposed project criteria and the possible direction this task force may take.”

ARLnow Weekend Discussion

By Heather Mongilio

Published September 25, 2015 at 6:00PM

If the rain holds off, you can head down to Wilson and Clarendon Blvds for the annual Clarendon Day.

The free festival will have food, five different stages of live music and entertainment, a kids zone and the annual chili cookoff.

Letter to the Editor: Save Stratford’s Visual History

By ARLnow.com

Published September 25, 2015 at 3:30PM

The following letter to the editor was submitted by Joan K. Lawrence, Chair of the Arlington Historical Affairs and Landmark Board.

The recently posted “Peter’s Take” commentary calling for the rejection of historic designation for the Stratford School is both premature and uninformed. Arlington does not create local historic districts lightly. There are many public hearings involving the Historical Affairs and Landmark Review Board (HALRB), the Planning Commission and the County Board, as well as the School Board, when the property in question is a school. This process is still in progress.

Peter’s Take: Rosslyn Food Truck Pilot Worth Trying

By Peter Rousselot

Published September 24, 2015 at 2:00PM

On Aug. 17, Arlington County launched a six-month food-truck-zone pilot program in Rosslyn:

The program — designed to create pedestrian-friendly food truck access for area workers and residents — sprang from discussions among food truck owners, local restaurateurs and County and [Rosslyn] Business Improvement District [BID] staff. Participation is voluntary, meaning food trucks can park in other areas of Rosslyn and the County, provided owners observe the parking rules for those streets.

The Right Note: Back to Basics Election?

By Mark Kelly

Published September 24, 2015 at 1:30PM

The Right Note is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in the column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

Last year, the County Board election was a referendum on shiny object budgeting by the County Board. The Board chased vanity projects like the streetcar, Artisphere and aquatics center without broad community support. The result was that an otherwise qualified Democrat nominee lost two elections he would have most certainly won nearly any other year.

Progressive Voice: Eliminating Traps

By Larry Roberts

Published September 24, 2015 at 1:00PM

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

Medical evidence trumped ideology in Richmond last week when the state Board of Health voted to scale back regulations that had threatened to put many abortion providers out of business.

ARLnow Weekend Discussion

By Heather Mongilio

Published September 18, 2015 at 6:30PM

The Capital Weather Gang may have declared summer over in the D.C. area, but National Weather Service’s predictions for this weekend look pretty summery. NWS expects a high of 86 degrees for Saturday and a high of 78 degrees on Sunday.

One way to enjoy the beautiful weather may be a trip to the Air Force Memorial, located off of Columbia Pike, to say happy birthday. The Air Force turned 68 years old this week.

The Right Note: Has It Come to This?

By Mark Kelly

Published September 17, 2015 at 2:00PM

The Right Note is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in the column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

Today is Constitution Day. It is a time to remember the document on which our nation was founded.

Progressive Voice: Adopt the Affordable Housing Master Plan

By Harrison Godfrey

Published September 17, 2015 at 1:30PM

This Saturday, the Arlington County Board will consider whether to adopt the proposed Affordable Housing Master Plan (AHMP) and accept an Implementation Framework (IF).

Together, these documents represent the best of Arlington’s values and an important first step towards addressing housing affordability. Board members should adopt them.

Peter’s Take: Reject Stratford Historic Designation Now

By Peter Rousselot

Published September 17, 2015 at 1:00PM

It’s time for the County Board to vote to reject historic designation for Stratford. The mere possibility that Stratford might receive such a designation is substantially hurting APS’ ability to design a new middle school to add desperately needed seats.

The current process–which relies on the false hope that a reasonable compromise can be reached between the Historic Affairs and Landmark Review Board (HALRB) and APS staff–already has proven that no such reasonable compromise will occur. Why prolong the agony?

Morning Poll: Registered Commenters Only?

By ARLnow.com

Published September 14, 2015 at 10:15AM

Most people say they enjoy reading the comments, even though they might not agree with what’s being said. A vocal minority, however, say they dislike the comments — they don’t like the general tone and disagree with many viewpoints.

The one constant: everybody seems to have an opinion and no one can be dissuaded from reading the comments, even if they profess to not liking them.

Progressive Voice: Women’s Issues Key in 2015 Election

By Progressive Voice

Published September 10, 2015 at 2:00PM

Labor Day is the traditional start of campaigns in Arlington, and the time between now and Election Day will be full of candidate debates, forums, joint appearances and neighborhood events.

Arlington County is attractive to many because of its history of smart growth, walkable urbanism, a population with the highest levels of educational attainment, and an unemployment rate half the size of the nation’s average.