News
Sleet falling on the W&OD Trail (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Tribute Event for Crash Victims — “Figure skating champions and legends will glide across Capital One Arena ice next month as headliners of an exhibition to raise funds to support families of the victims of a midair collision near Reagan National Airport that killed 67, officials announced Wednesday. The March 2 tribute, titled “Legacy on Ice,” will be co-hosted by 1988 Olympic champion Brian Boitano.” [Washington Post]

Group Wants Trump to Investigate APS — “America First Legal (AFL) sent a formal complaint to the U.S. Department of Education to investigate five Northern Virginia school districts for Title IX violations against female students. AFL argues that Alexandria City Public Schools, Arlington Public Schools, Fairfax County Public Schools, Loudoun County Public Schools, and Prince William County Public Schools have bathroom and locker room policies that violate Title IX and President Donald Trump’s Executive Order.” [WJLA]

Armed Standoff in Arna Valley — “ACPD has taken a suspect into custody in the 2600 block of 27th Road S. following an earlier report of a person with a firearm. No injuries were reported. Police remain in the area investigating the incident.” [ACPD/X]

Sen. Warner Sounds Alarm — “Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence… wrote to White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles about the risks to our national security of allowing unvetted DOGE staff and representatives to access classified and sensitive government materials.” [Press Release]

Gov’t Leases in Question — “The General Services Administration and Department of Government Efficiency are reaching out to all agencies with ‘non-firm term leases’ in an initial step toward chopping the feds’ massive leased portfolio, a major D.C. law firm told its clients Tuesday.” [WBJ]

Federal Layoffs Likely — “The Trump administration is planning widespread layoffs among the federal workforce soon, leaving employees who don’t accept its deferred resignation offer at risk of losing their jobs.” [CNN]

Va. Bracing for Gov’t Downsizing — “House Speaker Don Scott (D-Portsmouth) on Tuesday evening announced the formation of an Emergency Committee on the Impacts of Federal Workforce and Funding Reductions, a bipartisan panel tasked with assessing the economic fallout and crafting solutions to protect the commonwealth.” [Virginia Mercury/FFXnow]

Rosslyn-Based Politico Targeted — “The executive branch will stop spending money on Politico subscriptions after paying millions of dollars to the news outlet last year, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a briefing Wednesday.” [Axios]

It’s Thursday — Expect rain mainly before 1pm, with a high temperature near 49°F. Light southeast winds will shift to southwest at 5-10 mph in the morning, and may gust up to 20 mph. There’s a 90% chance of precipitation, with new amounts between a tenth to a quarter of an inch possible. For Thursday night, it’ll be mostly cloudy with a low around 40°F. Southwest winds at 6-8 mph will become northwest after midnight. [NWS]


Around Town

Good Wednesday 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 5, 2025.

📅 Upcoming events

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

🌧️ Thursday’s forecast

Expect rain mainly before 1pm, with a high temperature near 49°F. Light southeast winds will shift to southwest at 5-10 mph in the morning, and may gust up to 20 mph. There’s a 90% chance of precipitation, with new amounts between a tenth to a quarter of an inch possible. For Thursday night, it’ll be mostly cloudy with a low around 40°F. Southwest winds at 6-8 mph will become northwest after midnight. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.”
– Steve Jobs

🌅 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.


Sponsored

Every year, for just a few minutes, one of Arlington’s most iconic works of public art comes to life exactly as its artist intended.

On Saturday, Aug. 1, at approximately 9:32 a.m., visitors will gather in Rosslyn to witness the annual shadow alignment at Nancy Holt’s Dark Star Park (1979–84). At that precise moment, the shadows cast by the sculpture’s spheres and poles align with permanent shadow forms embedded in the ground—a phenomenon Holt designed to commemorate the anniversary of Rosslyn’s founding.

The alignment lasts only a few moments, but it has become a beloved Arlington tradition, drawing residents, visitors, artists and architecture enthusiasts alike to experience the intersection of art, astronomy, and history. If the weather cooperates, the park transforms into a striking demonstration of how light, time and place can become part of a work of art.

Created between 1979 and 1984, Dark Star Park was Arlington’s first County-commissioned public artwork and remains one of the nation’s earliest examples of integrated public art—where sculpture, landscape architecture and the surrounding environment function as a single work. Rather than placing an object within a park, Holt made the entire park the artwork, incorporating spheres, pools, steel poles, tunnels, earthworks and carefully positioned plantings into an immersive landscape.

Nancy Holt (1938–2014) was a pioneering artist whose work spanned poetry, film, photography, land art and large-scale public sculpture. Throughout her career, she explored perception, time and humanity’s relationship with the natural world. Dark Star Park remains her most significant urban installation and one of the few major works by the artist that can be experienced in an accessible city setting.

Whether you’ve attended for years or have never visited before, Dark Star Park Day offers a rare opportunity to experience a public artwork that changes with the movement of the sun—and reminds us that some of the most memorable moments in art happen not inside a museum, but out in the world around us.

Dark Star Park Day

When: Saturday, Aug. 1, beginning around 9 a.m.; shadow alignment at approximately 9:32 a.m.
Where: Dark Star Park, 1655 N. Fort Myer Drive, Rosslyn

 


Around Town

ARLnow and sister site ALXnow were unable to post to Facebook most of the day today.

The issue cropped up Wednesday morning without warning or explanation. When we tried to post a link to one of our articles on the network, either directly or through our social media management system, it produced an error message (below).


Event

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.


News

The Arlington Electoral Board believes three, rather than four, early-voting locations should be fine for June’s primary election.

Board members voted 3-0 Tuesday (Feb. 4) to ask County Board members to consider removing Long Bridge Aquatics & Fitness Center from the list of early-voting sites for the primary.


News

Local residents are being asked to join millions around the globe taking part in the 2025 Great Backyard Bird Count.

Held from Friday, Feb. 14 through Monday, Feb. 17, the observations that result will help scientists better understand global bird migrations, noted the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, which is working to coordinate state events.


Around Town

A second Toastique is underway in Arlington.

The D.C.-born gourmet toast and juice franchise is making its way to National Landing, the company confirmed with ARLnow. It’s unclear at this point where exactly the cafe will open, or even whether it will open in Crystal City or Pentagon City.


Around Town

Lapu Lapu, a Filipino eatery offering to-go breakfast sandwiches, is expected to open this spring in Crystal City, according to the National Landing BID.

The Gaithersburg-based shop hopes to make its Northern Virginia debut at 1417 S. Fern Street by April. Named after a national hero of the Philippines, Lapu Lapu combines Filipino cuisine with American breakfast sandwiches.