Around Town

Good Tuesday evening, Arlington. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.

🕗 News recap

The following articles were published earlier today — Feb 18, 2025.

📅 Upcoming events

Here is what’s going on Wednesday in Arlington, from our event calendar.

❄️ Wednesday’s forecast

Expect snow mainly between 1pm and 4pm today, with cloudy skies and a high near 27. Light northwest winds will reach 5 to 9 mph by afternoon. There’s a 60% chance of precipitation, accumulating less than half an inch of new snow. Tonight, a slight chance of snow before 7pm and isolated showers after 4am, lows around 22, and north winds at 3 to 7 mph. The chance of precipitation is 20%. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“Whether you think you can, or think you can’t — you’re right.”
– Henry Ford

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

The MonumentCam screenshot above is used with permission of the Trust for the National Mall and courtesy of EarthCam.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.


News

Mass resignations, layoffs and turmoil within the federal workforce present sweeping and potentially unprecedented challenges for Arlington’s economy, experts say.

As President Donald Trump’s plans to dramatically shrink the federal government have begun to take shape in recent weeks, so have projections for wide-ranging economic fallout throughout the D.C. area.


Sponsored

Welcome to Kami’s Korner where we’ll take a deep dive into Arlington’s condominium market by focusing on what’s coming next. From emerging developments to shifting trends, this space will spotlight the opportunities and insights shaping the future of condo living in Arlington.

If you are in the market for a new Arlington condominium today, bring a flashlight. There is absolutely nothing to see and it’s a total ghost town. This isn’t a lack of buyer interest. I start by blaming the lingering, multi-year COVID hangover where no projects got designed, financed, or approved for several years since we didn’t know if the world would continue. Construction costs then further paralyzed commercial real estate and rising interest rates also crashed the party. No model units exist, no fancy preview sales offices or even a basic website landing page.

Want a place under 1,500 square feet? Pack your bags for Alexandria. Want a completely different suburban vibe? Enjoy the commute from McLean or Reston. The big local guessing game is simple. Who actually crosses the finish line first? Will it be 1501 Langston Boulevard? The upcoming tower at One Rosslyn? Or the old Key Bridge Marriott site known as Potomac Overlook?

Place your bets now. None will begin before roughly 2029 if all goes well.

If you are in the market and don’t want to wait until 2029 for these new communities to make a buying decision, you might consider the latest luxury condominium in Arlington in Rosslyn, Pierce. This stunning community sold out in 2024 and there hasn’t been another new condominium community since. Let’s look at some of what the community offers.

A Real Option: Pierce

With 104 residences spanning 27 floors, Pierce offers expansive floor plans with premier interior finishes. At the height of sophisticated condominium living in Rosslyn, it boasts showstopping Potomac River and DC skyline views through dramatic, floor-to-ceiling windows, generous private balconies, high-end finishes, and excellent floor plans. It has some of the best views in town and has aged well. Full disclosure on the building management: My friend is the board president and my company hired the resident manager so the building is run flawlessly. The finances are actually in order.

The Bragging Rights (By The Numbers)

Buying here requires serious financial muscle. Of the 104 residences, 38 were under $1.5M, 51 were from $1.5M–$2.5M, and 15 were over $2.5M. Pierce’s average size is 1,894 sq ft, making the average price $1,910,000. With an average price per square foot of $1,033/sq ft, it is one of the top five residential buildings in Northern Virginia.

Who Lives There

The typical buyer isn’t a single 20-something. 65% of the buyers were couples and the average age among the buyers was 53. 35% were from Northern Virginia and another 33% were from out of the area, which was driven by the volatile job market during COVID. 65% of those buyers in Virginia were already in Arlington and 20% were retired. Just 13% actually commute into DC so Northern Virginia’s economy is doing just fine. About 60% used a trusted agent to make their purchase and that is typical across all similar new communities.

(more…)


Around Town

Two new on-site restaurants are planning to open at The Key, Rosslyn’s forthcoming Hilton hotel.

Signage for Locket, a restaurant with “fine American cuisine,” and Scott’s Coffee Shop & Mart have appeared at 1900 Fort Myer Drive. Both plan to open alongside the hotel this fall, a representative for Dittmar Company, the building’s property manager, told ARLnow.


News

Firefighters from Arlington and other local departments are on scene of a fire in Falls Church.

A one-story building is on fire at the Falls Green apartment complex at 501 Roosevelt Blvd, just north of the Eden Center shopping center.


Schools

Commercial advertising at Arlington Public Schools’ athletic facilities? It may be on the horizon.

The county school system currently bars advertising at its fields and stadiums, but a proposed policy revision could change that.


News

A pair of Arlington men are each facing a felony charge for alleged violent incidents over the weekend.

The first happened Friday afternoon in the Arlington Heights neighborhood, just south of Route 50. Police say two men got into a verbal dispute that escalated to one attacking the other with a pocketknife.


Schools

Arlington school leaders are making strides in reducing chronic student absenteeism, but the results have been uneven.

Twenty-eight county schools showed year-over-year declines in chronic-absentee rates in the second quarter of 2024-25. But 11 posted an increase, Superintendent Francisco Durán told School Board members last week.


News

Arlington’s Ethiopian community works hard to successfully integrate into the broader community while retaining and celebrating its traditions.

That was the view of panelists as a Black History Month program convened Thursday (Feb. 13) by the Arlington Historical Society.


News
Looking east over westbound Langston Blvd in Rosslyn (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

County Board Frowns on Bill — “A plan to change up Arlington County’s local government structure has advanced through the state legislature, potentially giving this Northern Virginia community the ability to reshape how many people it elects to its top governing body and how it elects them. But there’s one key player that isn’t on board: the Arlington County Board itself.” [Washington Post]

Real Estate Rumors Overblown — “This is factually incorrect. Many homes in this graphic aren’t even in Arlington. In Jan 2025, Arlington home prices were up 3% YoY, and sales increased 5%. A 5% sales increase ≠ “Everything is being put on the market.” The map is inaccurate at best, misleading at worst.” [Matt Leighton/X, MoCoShow]

Trauma for Crash Responders — “More details about the Reagan National crash are emerging, including how first responders were exposed to an enormous amount of jet fuel that had pooled in the river, essentially swimming in a pool of gasoline… ‘We’re talking about the cumulative effects of the trauma, of the horrible scene that they encountered, but also the physical effects.'” [WTOP]

Beyer Posts Resources for Feds — “Please know that your work is essential to the functioning of the U.S. government… It’s my hope that the resources provided below will address your questions and concerns, and provide you with as much information as possible. This page will continue to be updated as we navigate the changes brought by the new administration.” [Rep. Don Beyer]

New Tool for Mapping Vulnerability — “Arlington County released the Community Vulnerability Index Map (CVIM), a new tool to help identify concentrations of vulnerable populations in Arlington. The map ranks census tracts from the highest to the lowest concentrations of vulnerable populations and can assist in answering the Racial Equity Lens questions.” [Arlington County]

It’s Tuesday — Expect mostly sunny skies and a high near 36 degrees, accompanied by a northwest wind blowing at 11 to 15 mph with gusts reaching up to 25 mph. As Tuesday night arrives, anticipate increasing clouds and a low temperature around 20 degrees, along with a north wind blowing at 8 to 10 mph. [NWS]