Arlington’s Committee of 100 hosted a panel discussion last night about the local “criminal justice reform movement” — part of a bipartisan, nationwide public policy conversation that’s playing out at all levels of government in nearly every state.
Panelists included Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti, Public Defender Brad Heywood, and Sheriff Beth Arthur.
As part of our response to COVID-19, travel has ground to a halt. Automotive vehicles miles traveled is down around 90% in Arlington County according to Streetlight Data, while transit service has been cut drastically across the board. As Virginia starts to slowly move into its phased reopening plan, Arlington needs to prepare for the return of travel.
COVID-19 is likely to impact our transportation choices for months, if not years to come. What do we want our transportation system to look like post-COVID?
At its meeting this weekend, the Arlington County Board is set to formally approve an ordinance granting the county emergency powers to hold public meetings online instead of in person.
That codified what has been the county’s improvised practice during the pandemic, including during the recent county budget process. County Board meetings are being held online, as are public information sessions about things like plans for the revamped Metropolitan Park in Pentagon City and proposed changes to a crash-prone section of Route 50.
The organization Women in Government Relations held an excellent webinar last week on fine-tuning one’s executive presence in this new normal.
The panelists who represented national corporations and associations focused on the changing culture due to COVID-19. Specifically, they conveyed how we can look at past outcomes and determine how to achieve similar results now by changing our tactics through intentionality and over-communication.
On May 6, a select group of Arlington Democrats voted to endorse Takis Karantonis as their candidate in the special election to fill the seat vacated due to the tragic illness and death of Erik Gutshall.
(Full disclosure: My husband was a member of the closed caucus and I serve with Takis Karantonis on the board of the Alliance for Housing Solutions.)
Another week of business as abnormal has come and gone, as Arlington continues to adjust to life during a pandemic and prepare for a gradual reopening of the state.
Not helping matters is the generally wet and cool weather, which has been keeping people inside when the outdoors and sunshine might be what we need most right now — other than a vaccine, obviously. More May-like temperatures appear to be a week away.
Congratulations to Takis Karantonis for his victory in the Arlington County Democrat’s special election nomination process. Takis is a longtime leader in our community having served as the executive director of the Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization, the president of his civic association, and is genuinely a person of good character. I will be proud to support him in the upcoming July 7th special election.
Fill out your absentee voting application here. Due to COVID-19 you may cite “my disability or illness” as your reason for voting by mail.
Arlington County’s parks are closed, a safety precaution intended to prevent overcrowding and the spread of the coronavirus.
While trails are open, the closure of parks has reduced recreation options for those seeking to get outside as the weather gets warmer. That, along with the county deciding against closing vehicle lanes for extra space, may be factors contributing to more crowded sidewalks and trails.
The Rouse property is a 9-acre parcel of privately-owned land, located in the Dominion Hills neighborhood at 6407 Wilson Boulevard (corner of N. McKinley Road). On March 4, ARLnow.com reported this property might be for sale for “around $30 million” (roughly double the current assessed value):
“The property is listed as a ‘generational’ site in the county’s Parks Master Plan (page 162).”
Last Thursday as I tuned into the County Board’s special meeting to pass the Fiscal Year 2021 budget, I began clicking on the links to the Board reports accompanying the agenda. One of the measures to be voted on was the Pay Plan to take effect July 1. Knowing the Board had originally planned a $10,000 pay raise for themselves, I searched the document to ensure the raise had been scrapped.
In less than 60 seconds, I located County Board pay on page 28. It called for a 3.5% pay raise. I double checked my figures with several Board watchers and online sources to make sure I had it right. Board Members are currently paid $55,147, and the Chair $60,662, and the Pay Plan was set to raise that pay to $57,077 and $62,785.
By Maurine Shields Fanguy
For many Arlingtonians, a School Board election may be far from top of mind. So many in our community are struggling to hold down jobs or to keep businesses afloat. Others are facing unemployment–many for the first time ever. Families in dire financial circumstances are cobbling together a patchwork of meals for their children from Arlington Public Schools (APS) and groceries from generous community organizations.
May has arrived, and with it some warmer, sunnier weather — at least for now.
The past week saw literally more local news than we could cover, so we’ll be trying to catch up on some of the stories we have not gotten to yet on Monday.
