After a spike in opioid overdoses this weekend, the Arlington County Police Department is urging residents to take advantage of local substance abuse resources.
On Sunday, ACPD investigated two fatal overdoses and one overdose that left another person in critical condition, according to a news release.
The Right Note is a biweekly opinion column. The views expressed are solely the author’s.
Two years ago, Arlington Democrats picked a new prosecutor in a contentious primary. Parisa Dehghani-Tafti was backed by George Soros to put social justice front and center in the prosecutor’s office.
When your home no longer feels quite right, it can be hard to know what to do next.
Maybe your family needs more space, your layout no longer works, or your 1940s Cape Cod is simply ready for a modern update. Deciding whether to remodel, rebuild, or move requires thoughtful planning and a clear understanding of the costs, timelines, and trade-offs involved.
There is no one-size-fits-all answer. Every home, lot, and family is different, which is why working with an experienced local builder can help you make a more informed decision.
Here are four key questions to ask before you decide.
For many Arlington homeowners, the neighborhood is the reason they bought the home in the first place. If your neighbors, schools, walkability, or favorite local spots make Arlington feel like home, remodeling or rebuilding may be worth exploring before deciding to sell.
If you plan to stay for the next five years, a thoughtful remodel or addition can help preserve the location and character you love while improving the home’s functionality. However, if you truly see this as your “forever home”, a larger renovation or a teardown-and-rebuild might be a better option to give you the space and comfort you need, without trying to force an older home to work around its existing limitations.
Some homeowners choose to phase renovations over time. That approach can work well, as long as you start with a clear master plan to ensure each stage supports the next and avoids costly rework later.
On the flip side, if you plan to sell soon, a smaller-scale remodel, such as a kitchen renovation, might make more sense to avoid overinvesting in a project that may not recoup its full value.
Arlington is unique because much of a home’s value comes from the land and location. This means that, in general, Arlington property values will always support just about anything you would like to do to your house or property. The real question is how much you want to invest.
A major renovation, addition, or new custom build may affect appraisal and financing differently. New construction often appraises higher initially than a similar remodeled home, but over time, a well-executed renovation can ultimately be worth more than a newly built home.
As you plan a renovation, you may reach a point where building new makes more sense than continuing to work around an older home’s limitations. A new build can provide a more functional layout, better efficiency, and stronger long-term value. On the other hand, some homeowners considering new construction may find that a thoughtful remodel and addition can accomplish everything they need while making their dollars go further.
That is why understanding the numbers early matters. (more…)
(Updated 2:45 p.m.) Two Arlington County police officers have been decertified due to a new state law that expands the kinds of offenses for which officers can be permanently banned from law enforcement work in Virginia.
The Arlington County Police Department found the two had lied during an internal affairs investigation. They were officially taken off the streets on May 12, according to the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services’ master list of 94 officers who have been decertified since 1999.
This year’s Very Godly VBS, inspired by The Titan’s Curse, invites children into the world of Camp Half-Blood to explore faith, courage, belonging, and community through storytelling, music, crafts, games, science, and reflection in a fun and welcoming environment for all.
Location: The Falls Church
The Arlies continue with a sweet category, but first, the results of last week’s voting.
Your favorite dog park is the Shirlington Dog Park, followed by Ethan Allen Dog Park at the Madison Community Center and the new Gateway Park dog park in Rosslyn. See the county’s list of Arlington dog parks here.
A collaborative Summer Solstice gathering hosted by Inner Seasons and Spiritual Enhancements.
The Summer Solstice marks the peak of the sun’s power, the moment in the Wheel of the Year when light is at its fullest expression. In many traditions, this is the season of radiance, visibility, and creative fire. It is the time when nature stands unapologetically in her fullness, inviting us to do the same.
Curious Arlingtonians want to know: what happened to the bears at Thomas Jefferson Park?
In 2017 a set of bear figures were carved into a tree stump during that summer’s Arlington County Fair, a local told ARLnow on Twitter. But the following summer, they were gone, with only saw dust and the bottom of the stump left behind.
The Penrose community helped save a wounded snapping turtle from being stuck in a window well last week.
On Wednesday (June 23), The Animal Welfare League of Arlington received a call from a concerned citizen about a rather large turtle inside of a window well of a Penrose house on the 800 block of S. Wayne Street.
It’s hard to believe, but the Fourth of July is just around the corner.
Fireworks viewing on the National Mall is a go this year. Like last year, there’s no formal viewing event in Arlington, but expect crowds to congregate at the usual spots, like the Iwo Jima memorial, Key Bridge, the Air Force Memorial, Rosslyn Gateway Park and Long Bridge Park.
YHS Lax, Other Teams Cap off Stellar Seasons — “The spring sports season was a busy and successful time, maybe the most accomplished ever, for high-school varsity teams and individuals in Arlington County, with many winning various championships. That spring campaign ended this weekend with some Virginia High School League Class 6 state championship games. One contest included the undefeated Yorktown Patriots in the boys lacrosse title match, which they won.” [Sun Gazette, Washington Post]
Neighborhood Leaders Don’t Like Route 1 Plan — “A coalition of civic associations representing surrounding neighborhoods suggests that a pending Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) report on improvements in the Route 1 corridor could turn out to be an ‘epic fail’ that does not address key issues. As a result, leaders of the organizations are urging the Arlington County Board to ask VDOT to go back to the drawing board and consider their concerns.” [Sun Gazette]
From Clarendon bars to crowded gyms, unmasked store clerks to house parties, Arlingtonians asked the county to investigate more than 1,000 reported cases of COVID-19 non-compliance.
The reports came in through a form that Arlington County launched last year to report lax social distancing and masking.
This Memorial Weekend: Argentine Festival USA Returns May 23
EVENT HIGHLIGHTS:
