News
Aerial view of Long Bridge Park, Crystal City and Pentagon City (staff photo)

Fancy Gun Seized at Airport — “A Georgia woman was cited by police after Transportation Security Administration officers at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport intercepted a teal-colored gun with black floral designs on it among the woman’s carry-on items. The 9mm firearm was loaded with three gun magazines, totaling 30 bullets packed next to the gun.” [Press Release]

TSA Display at DCA — “Sandals. A baseball hat. An adorable stuffed panda. They all sat on a table in Ronald Reagan National Airport, and they all hid potentially deadly explosives. They weren’t the real thing but mock-ups of the kind of items the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has discovered over the years.” [WTOP]

USS Arlington at Weekend 5K — “Officers and crew of the USS Arlington visited Arlington and on Sept. 7 participated in the 2024 Arlington Police, Fire & Sheriff 9/11 Memorial 5K Run, where the ship’s contingent finished first in the ‘military teams’ category. The ship’s commander, U.S. Navy Capt. Ian Scaliantine, addressed the crowd and spoke of the honor it was for the USS Arlington sailors to participate in the race.” [Gazette Leader]

Another Win for Yorktown — “The Yorktown Patriots won the night of Sept. 6 to improve to 2-0 but head coach Bruce Hanson was not happy with how his football team played in the non-district high-school game. Too many mistakes and uneven play was how Hanson described the 28-13 home win over Jackson-Reed.” [Gazette Leader]

Good Signs for Local Economy — “Greater Washington’s economy is showing glimmers of improvement across several key data points. Apartments are filling up, visitors are going out and a record number of residents are employed. Those are the latest findings from CBRE’s REVIVE Regional Vibrancy Index.” [Washington Business Journal]

It’s Tuesday — Expect sunshine and a high temperature close to 85 degrees, complemented by a northwest wind at around 7 mph. Tuesday night will be mostly clear with a low temperature near 59 degrees; the northeast wind at approximately 5 mph will become calm during the evening. [NWS]


Around Town

Good Monday 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 — Sep 9, 2024.

📅 Upcoming events

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

☀️ Tuesday’s forecast

Expect sunshine and a high temperature close to 85 degrees, complemented by a northwest wind at around 7 mph. Tuesday night will be mostly clear with a low temperature near 59 degrees; the northeast wind at approximately 5 mph will become calm during the evening. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.”
– Vince Lombardi

🌅 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

“The show frolics in jewel tones, with movement, dance, ingenious prop use and piquant stage business” –The Washington Post

“Fuses acrobatics, mime, design, and music to provide a rich and novel re-interpretation of a classic tale.” –DCTheaterArts

Synetic Theater invites Arlington audiences to experience an evening of bold, inventive storytelling with its Teen Company’s production of Cyrano de Bergerac, paired on select evenings with a pre-show performance of The Boy Who Cried Wolf by the Pre-Teen Ensemble. With just six performances, this limited run offers a rare chance to see the next generation of Synetic artists in action. (more…)


News

Arlington has fallen from No. 1 to No. 2 in a ranking of the most educated “cities” in the country.

The new ranking from Forbes Advisor spotlights Arlington’s status as having the nation’s highest percentage of residents aged 25 and older with bachelor’s degrees and graduate degrees — 78% and 43%, respectively. That’s a hair above last year’s percentages of 76% and 42%.


Schools

A series of recent internal audits at Arlington Public Schools have revealed inconsistencies in the school system’s financial management practices.

The audits, which reviewed spending from 2022 to 2024, found that APS lacks clear policies for managing purchasing card usage, fuel expenses and school activity funds. They also highlighted limited training for employees overseeing these areas and weaknesses in oversight systems.


Around Town

Ruffino’s Spaghetti House is under new ownership, with plans to spruce up the menu and decor while still serving up customer favorites, management said.

New owner Henry Saavedra is reviewing the menu of Italian cuisine and plans to cut some items and add a few new ones — but regulars shouldn’t fret, he told ARLnow.


Around Town

Another Compass Coffee is slated to open a couple of blocks away from the local chain’s current Ballston location.

The new location will replace a coffee shop that just shuttered last week.


Opinion

If the cool mornings are any clue, cold and flu season is upon us — and that means many people are thinking about vaccinations.

Covid and flu vaccinations are currently available at many local pharmacies and medical offices.

“To ensure communities are protected this season, the CDC is recommending that everyone over age six (6) months get an annual flu shot AND an updated COVID-19 vaccine,” pharmacy chain CVS said in a late August press release, announcing the availability of vaccines.

“The ideal time to get vaccinated is in September or October, to restore and enhance protection against the most common viruses currently circulating before peak season starts,” the release continued. “Pharmacies are one of the most common places people choose to get vaccinated.”

According to CVS, 46% of people plan to get a flu shot and 60% of people planning to get the flu vaccine would like to get a Covid vaccine during the same visit.

We were wondering how that compares with vaccine plans in Arlington. Are you planning to (or did you already) get the jab?


News
Four Mile Run in the Shirlington area (Flickr pool photo by Jason Gooljar)

New Development Proposal in Courthouse — “The Meridian Group has proposed to redevelop an aging office it owns in Arlington’s Courthouse neighborhood with a 16-story residential-over-retail building. Meridian applied Thursday for a rezoning and major site plan amendment for 2500 Wilson Blvd., four blocks west of the Court House Metro station. The 1.4-acre site is currently home to a five-story office built in 1986, which Meridian’s application describes as ‘obsolete.'” [Washington Business Journal]

Arlington Companies Make Fortune List — “Two firms headquartered in Arlington have seen their rankings go up in the newly released 2024 ‘Global 500’ list of the world’s largest companies. Boeing and Raytheon were among seven Virginia firms making the annual ranking by Fortune.” [Gazette Leader]

Local GOP Calls Out Letter — From the Arlington GOP: “An Arlington Republican — and fairly new resident — displayed a Trump sign on her lawn. An anonymous neighbor sent her this creepy message in the mail.” [Twitter]

Wakefield Wins — “Wakefield Varsity Football just won their first game in 2 years, 39-12. What a team effort. Thanks, Warriors.” [Twitter]

It’s Monday — Expect sunny skies and a high of around 78 degrees, accompanied by a southwest wind at 5 to 7 mph. Monday night will be clear, with the temperature dropping to around 56 degrees and the southwest wind maintaining a speed of approximately 6 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 Jason Gooljar


Announcement

Is your summer camp calendar still open? Consider Art House 7 for your kids, a creative, well-loved space with a fabulous range of quality summer camps for ages 5-14. Your kids will love the imaginative themes and fun teachers. We’ll be making pottery, painting, drawing, printmaking, and sculpting. Among our camp themes: modern masters of art, “green” art, animals, fairytales, and folk stories. Our weekly camps are morning or afternoon, Monday-Friday.

Art House 7 is near the Lee Harrison Shopping Center in Arlington. We have a 2-story studio and free parking.