A new spray tanning studio is hoping to bring a spritz of the islands to Clarendon.
Maui Glow Club opened its doors last week, offering “a glow so natural it looks like a vacation” above the Starbucks at 2690 Clarendon Blvd. This is the brand’s second location, following one that opened in Vienna in March.
Metrobus riders will soon have the ability to use credit and debit cards to pay for rides.
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) is adding the same “Tap-Ride-Go” ability to its buses as it currently has on the rail system, creating an alternative to cash and physical or phone-based SmarTrip cards.
This regularly scheduled column is written by Eli Tucker, Arlington-based Realtor and Arlington resident. If you would like to work with Eli and his team in Northern Virginia and the greater D.C. Metro area, you can reach him directly at [email protected].
Question: How much of an impact do you think the ROAD to Housing Act will have on housing affordability in Arlington?
Answer: The Road to Housing Act became law ten days ago, with the stated goal of improving housing affordability in the United States.
I don’t see many policies in the Act that will improve affordability in the Arlington/Northern VA/DC Metro markets, outside of incentives for more affordable multi-family housing, but there are policies that should improve affordability in other markets that are more saturated with institutional investors that own swaths of single-family homes (e.g. Atlanta and Phoenix) and for manufactured/mobile homes.
The Local Conversation Needs to Change
If we are going to improve affordability in our market, most of the change has to be done locally/regionally, not nationally, but it requires a paradigm shift in how we discuss and solve for housing affordability.
Affordability Disconnect: Near Term Expectations Not Realistic
A disconnect between housing affordability expectations and reality prevents the right community and political conversations from happening. We expect/demand housing affordability immediately, ignoring the difficulty, and consequences, of achieving it that quickly.
Stable and healthy housing affordability is a long-term process requiring gradual change over a 10-15+ year period.
Demand-Side Solutions Won’t Work
Demand-side solutions, such as lower interest rates or easier financing, artificially inflate home values, as seen during the COVID-era housing boom and early 2000s. They are not a good long-term solution to affordability because they push values even higher (along with your property taxes) and affordability gets worse when rates/lending normalize and no longer provide artificially low monthly payments.
Supply-Side Solutions Are Not Immediate
Most policy discussions focus on supply-side solutions: building more/faster and denser housing (e.g. Arlington’s Missing Middle/Expanded Housing Option), incentivizing more existing home sales, or disincentivizing concentrated ownership by companies and individuals. Econ 101 tells us that more supply = lower prices = affordable housing (winner winner!).
This is the only path to stable, long-term housing affordability…BUT, at current interest rates, prices must drop 30-35% in the United States to become affordable, at current income levels. A 30-35% drop in home values would devastate the economy, so a supply-side solution won’t (shouldn’t) provide immediate affordability. (more…)
The number of Arlington rental units that are financially accessible to those earning less than 80% of area median income (AMI) has skyrocketed rather than plummeted over the past decade.
Not because housing is becoming cheaper, but because incomes of local residents have risen faster than the cost of renting.
As the summer is winding down, Art House 7 is gearing up for August Classes! Offerings include painting, drawing, cartooning, mixed media, and printmaking. Some highlights: Animals of the Serengeti, k-2nd; Digital Art, 4th-6th grades; Painting Metal with Watercolor, Adults. Classes are 3-4 weeks: a short commitment for a lot of creative output. Check out everything on our website.
August Classes at Art House 7:
The current deputy chair of the Arlington County Democratic Committee has launched a bid to become the next chair, competing against another party leader.
Deputy Chair Paul Ruiz spent part of the Nov. 5 monthly party meeting working the room for support of his campaign to succeed Chair Steve Baker. He has said he wants to “build a Democratic committee that listens, builds up new leaders and leads with purpose.”
Join the Rosslyn BID and Arlington Arts at the 34th Rosslyn Jazz Fest 2026 featuring live jazz, food trucks, local vendors, and family-friendly activities in the heart of Rosslyn! This year’s lineup is bringing a diverse mix of performers and bands redefining the jazz music genre including Plena Libre, Sally Baby’s Silver Dollars, Parlor Greens, and Dogo du Togo & the Alagaa Beat Band.
Stephen Miller Case Update — “Late Wednesday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Lindsey Vaala denied the FBI’s petition for a warrant to search the smartphone owned by the suspect in the case, a 66-year-old retiree named Barbara Wien. The Justice Department plans to appeal, a source told Axios. The FBI wants to examine Wien’s phone to see if she lied to investigators or was part of a group that might pose a risk to Miller and his family.” [Axios]
Veterans Day County Closures — “Arlington County Government offices and services are operating on modified schedules for the Veterans Day holiday on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. Trash/Recycling/Yard Waste Curbside Routes – Regular collection. Parking – Permit parking is always in effect unless specifically noted on the sign. Meters are not enforced on holidays.” [Arlington County, Arlington County]
Vets Day Event at ANC — “The 72nd annual National Veterans Day Observance will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025, at 11 a.m. in the Memorial Amphitheater at Arlington National Cemetery.” [ANC/X]
Now Open at Pentagon City Mall — “Fashion Centre at Pentagon City… is redefining the shopping experience with two new openings, POP MART and Duck Donuts, both debuting on Saturday, Nov. 8. Together, the beloved global collectible retailer and local donut shop bring a mix of flavor, creativity and interactive energy to the center.” [Press Release]
Blue Wave May Benefit Metro — “Democrats will soon control top positions in Virginia, Maryland and D.C. That could lift transportation projects, including Metro funding. A new task force has a fresh proposal on how to fund Metro’s capital budget.” [WBJ]
Power Costs at Ballot Box — “Electricity costs were a key issue in this week’s elections for governor in New Jersey and Virginia, a data center hotspot, and in Georgia, where Democrats ousted two Republican incumbents for seats on the state’s utility regulatory commission.” [Associated Press]
Overreach Defines Va. Elections? — “Many will look at Tuesday and the Virginia GOP’s worst massacre of the 21st century and shrug it off as a blue state doing what a blue state does. That conclusion ignores abundant state political history and squanders two informative takeaways, writes columnist Bob Lewis.” [Virginia Mercury]
SNAP Payments Coming — “Governor Glenn Youngkin announced today that, following federal notification that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits would be paid this week, Virginia will pause the issuance of Virginia Emergency Nutrition Assistance (VENA) benefits to ensure full compliance with federal requirements.” [Press Release]
VDOT Preps for Winter — “It may not feel like it now, but winter weather is approaching. To prepare, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is stocking supplies and inspecting equipment to ensure crews and materials are ready for when the first snowflakes fall.” [Press Release]
Growing Season Over — “As of today, the growing season has been declared over for most of the region. Frost/freeze products will not be issued in these areas until spring.” [NWS/X]
New Legal Notice — Establishment seeks mixed-beverage license; objections due within 30 days. [Public Notices]
It’s Monday — Expect sunshine and a high of 49 degrees, accompanied by a northwest wind at 11-16 mph, gusting up to 25 mph. The night will be mostly clear with a low of 29 degrees and similar wind conditions. On Veterans Day, it will be sunny and breezy, with a high near 45 degrees and a west wind at 15-20 mph, gusting as high as 33 mph. [NWS]
Today’s Morning Notes are brought to you by Industrious. ARLnow has been in an Industrious office for years and we love the convenience — you get to focus on your work rather than worrying about brewing your own coffee or keeping the copy machine stocked. Industrious has several Metro-accessible coworking locations in Arlington.
Flickr pool photo by Jeff Vincent
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate is voting on the first steps to end the 40-day government shutdown Sunday after a group of moderate Democrats agreed to proceed without a guaranteed extension of health care subsidies, angering many in their caucus who wanted to continue the fight.
The group of three former governors — New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Sen. Maggie Hassan and Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine — said they would vote to reopen if the Senate passed three annual spending bills and extend the rest of government funding until late January. Senate Majority Leader John Thune endorsed the deal Sunday night and called an immediate vote to begin the process of approving it.
WASHINGTON (AP) — With the combination of the longest government shutdown, the mass firings of government workers and a fresh cut in federal food aid, the Capital Area Food Bank in Washington is bracing for the swell of people who will need its help before the holiday season.
The food bank, which serves 400 pantries and aid organizations in the District of Columbia, northern Virginia and two Maryland counties, is providing 8 million more meals than it had prepared to this budget year — a nearly 20% increase.
With a lopsided loss in their final regular-season football game Friday night (Nov. 7), the Washington-Liberty Generals finished third in the Liberty District standings.
The host Generals (7-3, 4-2) were blown out by the Langley Saxons, 42-7, in the high-school contest.
Good Friday evening, Arlington. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.
The following articles were published earlier today — Nov 7, 2025.
Since it’s Friday, we’ve also compiled a list of the most-read articles of the week, below.
Here is what’s going on Saturday in Arlington, from our event calendar.
Here are the events planned for Sunday:
The weather will start off partly sunny, eventually transitioning to full sunshine with temperatures reaching around 68°F and a mild west wind at 7 mph. On Saturday night, expect a slight possibility of showers after 1am, while the sky remains partly cloudy and temperatures drop to about 50°F. A gentle southeast wind will blow at 3-5 mph, with a 20% chance of rain. See more from Weather.gov.
“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
– Martin Luther King, Jr.
The MonumentCam screenshot above is used with permission of the Trust for the National Mall and courtesy of EarthCam.
We hope you have a great weekend, Arlington! If you have something to say about an issue of local note not covered today, feel free to post it as a letter to the editor on our new forum. 👋
