Still making plans to ring in the New Year?
Numerous restaurants, bars and venues across Arlington have planned festivities with champagne and live entertainment leading up to midnight on New Year’s Eve. From the Clarendon Ballroom to the Sheraton Pentagon City Hotel, here are just a few of many options to kick off 2025 in Arlington.
Arlington’s real estate market reflects the broader community — it’s diverse, dynamic, and never boring.
This weekend’s local open houses offer a snapshot of Arlington’s wide variety real estate offerings, from affordable condos to multi-million dollar homes. One highlight: a 1 million house with a finished walk-out basement, fenced rear yard and deck.
Let’s take a look at that and some other upcoming open houses, below.
Saturday, Dec. 21
Sunday, Dec. 22
If you’re in the real estate market we have a great agent for you: longtime ARLnow real estate columnist Eli Tucker. Let Eli and his team expertly guide you through the unique market dynamics in Arlington. Start by filling the form below. It will support ARLnow’s local news mission and you’ll get some perks in the process.
While summer is often a slower season for many businesses, BizLaunch has been hard at work supporting Arlington entrepreneurs and preparing an exciting lineup of fall programs. From business growth strategies to inspiring founder stories, there are plenty of opportunities ahead for small business owners looking to learn, connect and grow.
Arlington Growth Accelerator
Ready to take your business to the next level?
The Arlington Growth Accelerator is a selective, cohort-based leadership program designed for established businesses poised for growth. Offered in partnership with SCORE, the program features six hybrid half-day sessions that guide participants through the development of a practical four-year growth strategy focused on operations, financing and long-term success.
Participants will leave with:
Whether you’re planning your next phase of expansion or looking to strengthen your business foundation, this program provides the tools and support to help you grow with confidence. Join us for an info session about the program on Aug. 5 at 12:00 p.m. Program kicks off Sept. 25.
Chefpreneur Chat: Unidos Somos Más (Together We Are More)
Join us Oct. 13 from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. for a special Chefpreneur Chat celebrating this year’s Hispanic Heritage Month theme, Unidos Somos Más (Together We Are More).
Hosted by BizLaunch in partnership with Arlington Public Libraries, this interactive event will spotlight the entrepreneur behind Panamericana Bakery. Attendees will enjoy a live fish preparation demonstration while hearing firsthand how the business was built and grown in Arlington.
The conversation, moderated by Dov & Company, will explore entrepreneurship, culture, community and resilience. Guests will gain practical insights from a successful business owner while celebrating the contributions of Hispanic entrepreneurs who help shape Arlington’s vibrant business community.
To continue the celebration, BizLaunch will also launch a social media campaign highlighting stories of collaboration, partnership and the collective impact of Hispanic-owned businesses across Arlington. Sign up for our newsletter to be the first to know when registration for this event opens.
Stay Connected
Fall is just getting started.
In addition to a full lineup of educational programs and networking opportunities, BizLaunch will soon open registration for its annual, 2027 BizLaunch Transformational and PitchFest program, a five-week cohort experience where participants compete for cash prizes while strengthening their businesses.
Stay up to date on upcoming events, workshops and resources by subscribing to the BizLaunch newsletter. Learn more at www.bizlaunch.org.
The holidays are here and in less than two weeks we will be in a new year.
Before we welcome in a new year, it’s time to highlight the voices that made community discussions on ARLnow so engaging in 2024. We’ve gone back and checked the stats to compile the top choices for “Commenter of the Year” as part of our ARLnow Readers’ Choice awards.
Don’t see your favorite ARLnow commenter listed? Write them in.
Polls will close in two weeks, so don’t wait to vote!
Voting for Best Hill to go Sledding on in Arlington is still taking place. Be sure to cast your vote before voting closes next Friday at 9 a.m.
Two weeks ago, we voted on Arlington’s best place to get a massage. The results are now official:
Plans for a four-sports-field complex on the campus of Kenmore Middle School have started working their way through the county government’s advisory process.
One of the key challenges still to be worked through as the process moves forward: How to manage parking issues around the new facility.
Live standup comedy in Arlington on Friday July 31 starring Jim Bryan, Kim Villamera, and Greg Billet.
Friday, July 31, 2026
A “Jew-ish” deli with something of a cult following is coming to Crystal City early next year.
Call Your Mother, known for its bagels that blend New York and Montreal styles, plans to open a new kiosk at the Water Park along Crystal Drive in “early 2025,” according to property owner JBG SMITH.
New Startup Hub in Crystal City — “A group of partners including JBG Smith Properties, Amazon Web Services Inc. and Virginia Tech plans to launch a 40,000-square-foot business incubator space and accelerator program in Crystal City next year to support defense tech startups. The still-to-be-determined space will also house an office for a San Francisco venture capital firm launching a fund to invest in young companies operating with this focus.” [WBJ]
Local Picked for Ambassadorship — “Congratulations to Arlington Republican… Leah Francis Campos on her nomination as the next US Ambassador to the Dominican Republic.” [Twitter]
‘Fill the Cruiser’ Deemed Success — From ACPD: “Our Community Engagement Division elves have been hard at work over the past week collecting Fill the Cruiser stationary boxes, sorting 4,400+ toys donated by our community & distributing them to groups & organizations across Arlington for children in need ahead of the holidays.” [Twitter]
ACFCU Gets Big Grant — “Arlington Community Federal Credit Union, a member-owned financial cooperative serving Arlington, Falls Church, Fairfax, and Alexandria, Virginia, is proud to announce they were awarded $960,000 from the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) Financial Assistance Award program.” [ACFCU]
Overhead View of Collected Leaves — From Arlington’s Dept. of Environmental Services: “Don’t worry, the mystery drones are friendly and impressed by Arlington’s 50K cubic yards of leaves collected this fall by Solid Waste folks. Vacuum truck season has ended but yard waste is taken year-round from the green curbside cart and in paper bags.” [Twitter]
Officials Get Drone Briefing — “Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner, U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, and Gov. Glenn Youngkin received a classified briefing at the Capitol from the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Justice, and the FBI regarding the ongoing investigation into the unexplained drone sightings in Virginia.” [Press Release]
Va. to Get First Fusion Plant — “Virginia could soon make history as the home of the world’s first nuclear fusion power plant, state officials and private sector leaders announced Tuesday. Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), a fusion power company founded in 2018 in Cambridge, Mass., unveiled plans to build the groundbreaking facility on a 100-acre site.” [Virginia Mercury, New York Times, FCNP]
D.C. Adding Population — “The U.S. Census Bureau released new population data that shows the District of Columbia’s population grew by approximately 15,000 people from July 2023 to July 2024, bringing the city’s population to 702,250 residents. This marks the first time since 2019 that DC’s population has surpassed the 700,000 milestone.” [PoPville]
Death Investigation in F.C. — “Police were dispatched near the intersection of Park Ave. and N Washington St. for the report of an unresponsive male on the sidewalk. Bystanders were attempting life saving measures upon arrival… Based on the preliminary investigation, the death appears to be from natural causes and there is no apparent threat to the community.” [City of Falls Church]
It’s Friday — Expect mostly cloudy conditions with a high near 43, coupled with a 50% chance of rain. Later in the evening, the chance of rain will lessen to 30% before 1 am, while temperatures will dip to around 32. The northwest wind will increase to 6-11 mph with gusts up to 18 mph. [NWS]
Flickr pool photo by John Sonderman
Good Thursday 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 — Dec 19, 2024.
Here is what’s going on Friday in Arlington, from our event calendar.
Expect mostly cloudy conditions with a high near 43 and a calm wind turning northeast at 5 mph in the afternoon, coupled with a 50% chance of rain. Later in the evening, the chance of rain will lessen to 30% before 1 am, while temperatures will dip to around 32. The northwest wind will increase to 6-11 mph with gusts up to 18 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: It goes on.”
– Robert Frost
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.
After a tough stretch of eight games in 14 days, including playing five of the stronger teams in the area, the Yorktown Patriots girls squad has a 2-6 overall record opening the 2024-25 basketball season
Yorktown has lost to top high-school teams like the Madison Warhawks, 49-39, South County Stallions, 46-34, Oakton Cougars, 64-46, Chantilly Chargers, 48-42, and defending 6D North Region champion Centreville Wildcats, 70-42. The Patriots’ wins were over the Westfield Bulldogs, 52-36, and Osbourn Eagles, 47-12.
With the winter break kicking in, the sports schedule for varsity high-school teams in Arlington will be limited until Dec. 26, but there are some games and events this weekend.
The Yorktown girls and boys teams and the Bishop O’Connell boys have basketball games Friday (Dec.20) and there are other sports that day, plus a few on Saturday. There is then a lull until things pick up post-Christmas.
