Arlington police are contacting immigration enforcement more than they used to.
As of last week, the Arlington County Police Department had contacted Immigration and Customs Enforcement 17 times since the start of the year. This is ACPD’s highest rate of voluntary cooperation with the federal agency since the county began publishing these numbers in 2022, according to data provided to ARLnow.
A nonprofit providing meals to older Arlington County residents is on track to receive county funding for the first time.
The county plans to provide $105,000 in direct support to the Arlington Meals on Wheels program in the coming fiscal year. This is the first time that the nonprofit has asked for local funding in response to a growing community need.
When Eddie Kaufholz and his family moved to Arlington nearly five years ago, they were not thinking about starting a business. They wanted to live in a place that was diverse, interesting and full of opportunity, with a school system they could rely on. Arlington fit.
In the years that followed, working out of a home office off Columbia Pike, he consulted with organizations across Northern Virginia and around the country: nonprofits, advocacy groups, mid-sized companies, agencies of various sizes. The work itself was good. But somewhere across all those projects, he started to notice a pattern.
”The agency model has gotten really bloated,” Kaufholz says. ”Layers, handoffs, middle management. The senior people who pitch the work often disappear once it starts. The idea with PILLAR was to strip all of that down; keep senior people on the work, approach each client with humility and care, do world-class strategy and execution, and pass the efficiency back to the client instead of absorbing it as agency margin.”
That thinking, slowly, became PILLAR, the Arlington-headquartered creative, communications and marketing agency Kaufholz founded.
PILLAR, he says, is built on an old idea. ”An idea that has always been possible but rarely practiced: that an agency should be structured to serve the work itself.” The team that delivers the work is assembled around the specific needs of each client and only stays as long as the work calls for them.
”The senior strategist on your kick-off call is the senior strategist writing your messaging,” Kaufholz says. ”Every person on a project is there because the work specifically calls for them.”
PILLAR’s recent work has spanned human rights, executive leadership, higher education, advocacy and direct-to-consumer ecommerce. The roster has included national nonprofits, a national multimillion-dollar direct-to-consumer brand and a number of institutions navigating significant moments of strategic change. The model is built to scale up to be the agency of record for a national brand, or to scale down to design a logo for a neighborhood nonprofit. PILLAR takes equal pride and care in both.
What Kaufholz did not understand when he started, he said, was how much the County itself would matter in making any of it possible. (more…)
About two dozen bus stops in Arlington and Falls Church are scheduled to be eliminated at the end of June as part of a Metrobus “redesign” project.
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) plans to remove at least 19 Arlington Metrobus stops and three Falls Church stops on June 29, the agency told ARLnow.
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
Heavy fire in a duplex sent a plume of thick smoke up over Arlington’s Green Valley neighborhood this morning.
The blaze broke out shortly before 10:45 a.m. Arriving firefighters reported encountering a structure “fully involved” on the 2400 block of S. Monroe Street, a block away from Drew Elementary School.
Join Arlington for Palestine and NAACP Arlington Branch for a movie night and community discussion about Israeli apartheid.
We will watch two short Palestinian films about life under Israeli apartheid, hear from a member of Arlington for Palestine about their trip to Palestine last year, and discuss together what all this means to us living in Arlington .
Jersey Mike’s is now open on Columbia Pike.
The New Jersey-born sandwich franchise opened over the weekend on the ground floor of Westmont Apartments as the building continues to fill out its retail bays.
All-day festivities in honor of Cinco de Mayo are coming to Shirlington this weekend, shutting down a portion of Campbell Avenue.
An outdoor celebration with live music and food deals is happening at Guapo’s Restaurant on Saturday. The party at 4028 Campbell Avenue starts at 11 a.m. and will last all day.
Police are looking for a suspect involved in a robbery and assault near Arlington’s western border.
The incident happened around 10:30 p.m. on the 6100 block of Wilson Blvd, near Upton Hill Regional Park. Two suspects allegedly beat and stole the purse of a woman one of them knew, before fleeing on foot.
The City of Falls Church plans to spend more on paving roads in the coming year, but it will still have unfunded needs.
The proposed Fiscal Year 2026 budget includes $1.4 million for road-paving initiatives, up from $870,000 in the coming fiscal year.
Arlington GOP Stands With Reid — “The Governor called John Reid after allegations were brought to his attention about a concerning web presence. It is appropriate for the Governor to make that call and to have a frank conversation with a candidate about an issue — any issue — he sees as potentially problematic on the campaign trail. What is not appropriate is an unelected, unaccountable consultant leaking the details of that call to the press to gin up a scandal.” [Arlington GOP, Daily Mail]
‘Kids on Bikes’ Cause Mayhem — “It’s kids on bikes time: With the warmer weather, @ArlingtonVaPD officers are dealing with groups of young teens on bicycles connected to some low-level criminal activity. ACPD chased a group on Friday along S. Hayes and S. 12th (video 1) after a man who apparently tried to stop some harassment was pepper sprayed.” [Dave Statter/X]
Video: Smoking School Bus — “Along Route 50 from Rosslyn to Arlington Forest a private school bus belching smoke caught the attention of a lot of drivers and police a short time ago. Many were concerned because there were children on the bus. @ArlingtonVaPD caught up with it at N. Park and got the kids off the bus. @ArlingtonVaFD confirmed it was a mechanical issue with no fire.” [Dave Statter/X]
Connelly’s Cancer Has Returned — “Rep. Gerry Connolly, who has represented Virginia’s 11th district for nearly 20 years, will not seek another term in Congress, he announced today (Monday). The 75-year-old congressman, who was diagnosed with esophageal cancer late last year, has seen a re-emergence of the illness, according to a statement.” [FFXnow, Rep. Don Beyer/X]
ACPD Announces Awards — “On Friday, the Arlington County Police Department came together to celebrate the extraordinary dedication, service and achievements of our sworn and professional staff at our annual Departmental Awards Ceremony. Award recipients, nominated by their peers for exceptional acts of service, were recognized in the categories of Purple Star, Lifesaving, Meritorious Action, Police Service and Leadership.” [ACPD/Facebook]
Nearby: Pricy Starter Homes — “Great Falls is one of 233 communities nationwide where the value of a typical “starter home” now tops $1 million, according to a new Zillow analysis. At just over $1.2 million, the typical value of a Great Falls starter home is six times the national average. Great Falls is the lone Virginia community to make the 2025 list.” [FFXnow]
Debanking Task Force Formed — “The Task Force will investigate allegations of “debanking,” when banks refuse customers access to credit and other financial services based on impermissible factors under current federal and state law. This initiative will address allegations of debanking in the Commonwealth of Virginia by investigating allegations of debanking actions taken against Virginians, and if appropriate, seeking civil relief against banking institutions in federal or state court.” [DOJ]
It’s Tuesday — Expect sunny weather and a high near 85 with a south wind at 9-14 mph, gusting up to 25 mph. On Tuesday night, there’s a 20% chance of showers and possible thunderstorms. The night will otherwise be mostly cloudy with a low around 67. [NWS]
