Around Town

Over the past decade and a half, ARLnow has occasionally covered news of neighboring Falls Church that is of potential interest to our Arlington readers.

Now we’re making it official — and more frequent.


Sponsored

This column is sponsored by Arlington Arts/Arlington Cultural Affairs, a division of Arlington Economic Development.

The sound of summer is here in Arlington with free outdoor concerts and a music festival!

The Lubber Run Amphitheater Free Summer Concert Series kicks off on June 6 (continuing through August 2), and the 29th Annual Columbia Pike Blues Festival takes place on Saturday, June 13!

Free Summer Concerts at Lubber Run Amphitheater
June 8 – August 2

Both Country music icon Reba McIntyre and crooner Michael Bublé hit the red button for DMV Blues Diva Carly Harvey’s “blind audition” for NBC’s The Voice last fall. Now you can hear Carly Harvey Sing Amy Winehouse to kick off the Free LUBBER RUN AMPHITHEATER Summer Concert Series, at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 6, 2026.

The concert series continues with Afrobeat band Dogo Tu Togo (Fri., June 12); Latin-jazz from Rumba Club (Sat., June 13); and the majestic Arlington Philharmonic (Sun., June 14, *6:30pm start time); The Grandsons 40th Anniversary (Sat., June 20); and the educational ensemble Mama Elena (Sun., June 21, 11:00 a.m.), continuing our tradition of Sunday morning performances for the whole family; and a Simon & Garfunkel Tribute performance (Fri., June 26).                            

Presented by Arlington Arts in cooperation with the Arlington County Department of Parks and Recreation and with the collaboration of the Lubber Run Amphitheater Foundation, the Lubber Run Amphitheater Concerts take place on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, June 6 through August 2. Concert times are 8:00 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, with Sunday morning family performances beginning at 11:00 a.m. (unless otherwise noted), two of which are co-presented with Arlington Public Library. (more…)


Around Town

The iconic poles and concrete orbs of an art installation in Rosslyn are celebrating their 40th anniversary this week.

Members of the public are invited to celebrate Dark Star Park Day this Thursday, Aug. 1. At approximately 9:32 a.m., the park “performs a special effect” that happens only once a year.


Event

Get ready for one of Arlington’s biggest summer events! Voted Arlington Magazine’s Best Festival, the Columbia Pike Blues Festival is back on Saturday, June 13 with a brand new location at Penrose Square for a full day of live music, local food, shopping, family fun, and nonstop Pike vibes.

Come out and enjoy live blues performances all day long, explore 60+ local vendors, grab food and drinks from Pike favorites, and bring the whole family for activities in the Kids Zone, face painting, popcorn, and more. Don’t forget to stop by the CPP tent for exclusive Columbia Pike merch and festival goodies available throughout the day.


News
“A little piece of serenity (and treats) at Ballston” (photo courtesy Gale Harris)

Shot Fired in Ballston Apartment — “600 block of N. Glebe Road. At approximately 2:18 p.m. on July 25, police were dispatched to the report of a shooting. Upon arrival, it was determined the suspect was allegedly cleaning his firearm inside a residence when the weapon discharged, causing damage to the interior of the home. Responding officers located the suspect on scene. No injuries or other property damage were reported and a firearm was recovered.” [ACPD]

Flyover Planned Today — From AlertDC: “The U.S. Military will conduct a flyover in the NCR, at the Arlington National Cemetery, on Monday, July 29, 2024 at 12:30 PM.”

More on Huske’s Gold — “Forgive Torri Huske for poking her head out of the water and looking a little stunned when she spotted the scoreboard on the opposite side of Paris La Défense Arena on Sunday night. It was a lot to take in. Just three years after she missed the podium by a hair, Huske’s name was atop all the others, making her the surprise Olympic champion in the women’s 100-meter butterfly.” [Washington Post, NBC 4, ARLnow]

More on Arlington CIP — “The Arlington County Board voted Tuesday, July 23, 2024, to adopt a $5.2 billion FY25-FY34 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). The plan was informed by more than 3,100 community members who weighed in on their top priorities.” [Arlington County]

Youth Baseball Team Wins Tourney — “As far as the usual preceding tournaments, the Arlington Babe Ruth Storm Black 10-under All-Stars did not play in a no longer existing district tournament and finished second in the state with a 5-1 record. Still, the baseball team was well prepared and good enough to move on and win the recent Southeast Region Babe Ruth Tournament in Alexandria to earn a berth into the World Series.” [Gazette Leader]

Aqueduct to Use Chemical for Algae — “Three weeks after the lifting of a boil water advisory for all of D.C. and most of Arlington, Virginia, the Washington Aqueduct can now add a new chemical to its water treatment process to prevent future problems when algae in the Potomac River threatens the main water source for much of the region.” [WTOP]

It’s Monday — Expect sunny conditions with a high of 92 degrees and southwest winds between 6 to 10 mph, followed by a 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms mainly after 5pm. For Monday night, the forecast continues with a 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms amidst mostly cloudy skies, a low around 73 degrees, and a south wind around 9 mph. [NWS]

Today’s Morning Notes are brought to you by Industrious. The ARLnow team loves the convenience of our Industrious office — we get to focus on work rather than worrying about brewing our own coffee or keeping the copy machine stocked. Industrious has several Metro-accessible coworking locations in Arlington.


News

Yorktown High School grad Torri Huske is an Olympic champion in Paris.

The Arlingtonian edged fellow American Gretchen Walsh by 0.04 seconds to finish at 55.59 seconds and win gold in her signature 100-meter butterfly event. Three years ago, in Tokyo, Huske narrowly missed the podium in the same event by 0.01 seconds.


Around Town

Good Friday 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 — Jul 26, 2024.

Since it’s Friday, we’ve also compiled a list of the most-read articles of the week, below.

  1. DEVELOPING: Underground utility fire reported after sound of explosion in Crystal City (13945 views)
  2. Recovery houses for up to eight people proposed for single-family Arlington neighborhoods (13313 views)
  3. GW Parkway closure to detour traffic onto Arlington roads for the next two weekends (10626 views)
  4. UPDATED: Power outage reported in Pentagon City and Crystal City (10360 views)
  5. Family of longtime local cook fundraising after cancer diagnosis (10127 views)
  6. Arlington trades ‘View of DC’ access in Rosslyn for $14 million Gateway Park investment (7144 views)
  7. ACPD: Man breaks into home, demands resident’s car after showing military ID (6855 views)
  8. Affordable housing complexes near Rosslyn and in Long Branch Creek designated as ‘revitalization areas’ (6187 views)
  9. Man who pushed woman out of moving car near Ballston sentenced (5664 views)
  10. ACPD: Men with hammers rob eye care office in Pentagon City (5169 views)
  11. Arlington named ‘fittest city’ in America for seventh straight year (5119 views)
  12. Land purchase for new Columbia Pike fire station approved (4197 views)
  13. Pentagon City Sector Plan re-approved, allowing RiverHouse plans to keep moving forward (4172 views)

📅 Upcoming events

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

Here are the events planned for Sunday:

☀️ Saturday’s forecast

Expect sunny skies and a high around 88 degrees with north winds at 6 mph turning east in the afternoon. Saturday night will bring mostly clear conditions, a low of 68 degrees, and southeast winds at 5 mph becoming calm in the evening. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.”
– Derek Bok

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

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

We hope you have a great weekend, Arlington! Feel free to discuss the most-read stories of the week, the upcoming weekend events or anything else of local interest in the comments. 👋


News

A months-long protest encampment in front of Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s house has been removed.

The round-the-clock, pro-Palestinian protest started in January of this year along the 400 block of N. Chain Bridge Road in Arlington. It featured protesters holding signs, waving flags and — occasionally — dumping fake blood on the street in front of a motorcade.


News

Virginia’s three-day tax holiday begins next Friday, Aug. 2, marking a weekend of discounted shopping for back-to-school season and hurricane preparedness supplies, among other goods.

Starting Friday and ending on Sunday, Aug. 4, eligible items will be sold across the state without sales tax.