One entrance to Central Library has temporarily closed, kicking off several months of renovations to stop water from getting into the building and its parking garage.
The public entrance to the library on N. Quincy Street closed last week and is currently fenced off. Much of the patio has been torn up into piles of bricks as the $2.3 million project, first approved in the county’s 2025-2034 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), gets underway.
A staff proposal to remove a net of two days of instruction for Arlington elementary schoolers brought noncommittal comments from School Board members.
The proposal would rearrange instructional time in October and March to accommodate parent-teacher conferences at the elementary school level. It would result in 178 days of class, leading to some heartburn among School Board members who have pledged not to go below 180 days each year.
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Home Built for Hangouts — Yuri and Michelle Sagatov tore down a ranch house they bought for $870,000 in 2019 and built a $2.8 million, 7,000-square-foot home with four connected pavilions, a sunken conversation pit and a basement sports room — because they didn’t want their kids “just disappearing into their rooms.” [WSJ]
Pentagon City High-Rise Sold — An affiliate of Pantzer Property Management paid $211.5 million on Aug. 14 for the 440-unit Witmer apartment building at 710 12th Street S., about $480,680 per unit — below its $252.46 million assessed value. Pantzer has renamed the building The Point National Landing. [WBJ]
Flyover This Afternoon — From AlertDC: “The U.S. Military will conduct an aircraft flyover in the National Capital Region (NCR) over Arlington National Cemetery on Thursday, August 20, 2026, at 1:15PM.”
Remembrance Ride Reaches Pentagon — About two dozen veterans on a multi-state motorcycle ride that began at the 9/11 Memorial in New York arrived at the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial on Tuesday. The ride benefits Wounded Warrior Project’s Project Odyssey, a trauma recovery program. Riders visit Arlington National Cemetery next. [WUSA9]
Beyer Announces ICE Investigation — “Democratic congressmen from Northern Virginia announced an investigation into recent encounters people had with Immigration and Customs Enforcement that the lawmakers call “ICE brutality.” U.S. Rep. Don Beyer said his office confirmed at least four of what he calls unjustified, violent encounters with ICE agents just within the past two weeks.” [NBC 4, C-SPAN]
Bus Crash Victim Had Signal — A 59-year-old man killed by a Metrobus in Bailey’s Crossroads on Sunday had a walk signal and was in the crosswalk when the bus, turning right from Columbia Pike onto Carlin Springs Road, struck him, Fairfax County police say. He was the 13th pedestrian killed in Fairfax County this year. [FFXnow]
Carjacking Spree Guilty Plea — A D.C. man, 21, pleaded guilty Monday to conspiracy, carjacking and firearms charges tied to a 2024 spree across D.C., Maryland and Virginia, including two Bailey’s Crossroads holdups near the Arlington line. The plea agreement calls for 16 to 24 years in prison. Sentencing is set for Jan. 29. [FFXnow]
Spanberger Signs Readiness Order — Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) signed an executive order Tuesday creating what she called a “unified readiness framework” for disasters and other crises. Agencies handling emergency management, public safety and public health will each name a Unified Readiness Coordinator and share data for statewide planning. [Virginia Mercury]
Summerween Comes Early — “Something wicked this way comes. Yes, we’re referring to Summerween. It may be hotter than an apple crisp oat milk macchiato outside, but Washington is busy romanticizing sweater weather.” [Axios]
Storm Chances Return Today — Scattered strong to severe storms are expected this afternoon into early evening, with the best chance near and east of I-95. Storms could bring damaging winds, hail and an isolated tornado. NWS has placed the area from D.C. eastward in a level 2 out of 5 severe risk. [Capital Weather]
It’s Thursday — Expect a partly sunny day with a high near 87 and light southeast winds. Rain showers arrive around midday and showers and thunderstorms become likely by midafternoon, with an 80% chance of precipitation and a quarter to a half inch of rain possible. Storms taper off after 8 p.m., with an overnight low around 69. [NWS]
New Legal Notice — ABC port-of-entry restaurant license: on/off-premises wine, beer, mixed beverages. [Public Notices]
There’s more local news to explore. Check out WSHnow, with stories from around the region.
Good Wednesday 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 — Aug 19, 2026.
Here is what’s going on Thursday in Arlington, from our event calendar.
Expect showers and thunderstorms throughout the day, becoming more likely after 3pm, with a high near 87°F and increasing clouds. Winds will be calm, shifting to southwest at about 6 mph. There’s a 60% chance of rain, with potential rainfall between a tenth and a quarter of an inch, higher in storms. Thursday night will also see likely showers and thunderstorms before 11pm, then a chance of showers until 1am, with mostly cloudy skies and a low around 69°F. Light north winds are expected, with similar precipitation amounts as earlier. See more from Weather.gov.
“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.”
– Plato
The MonumentCam screenshot above is used with permission of the Trust for the National Mall and courtesy of EarthCam.
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The new president of the Arlington Education Association (AEA) says she hopes for a cooperative relationship with school leaders over the coming year.
“The strongest districts are built on collaboration, transparency and mutual respect,” Danielle Jones said at the Aug. 13 School Board meeting.
A membership-only, indoor golfing facility meant for avid golfers looking to improve is now open in a high-rise near Ballston.
The Golf Yards opened earlier this month in Three Ballston Plaza at 1100 N. Glebe Road, offering members 24/7 access to eight golf simulators, putting/short game areas and a high-performance gym. The seventh-floor space is already nearing its membership cap, co-founder David Stillman told ARLnow.
A new all-you-can-eat spot for sushi, sashimi and nigiri is open in Penrose Square.
MoMoGoGo opened its doors at 2501 9th Road S. this past weekend, serving rolls in an atmosphere heavily inspired by Japan — with booths designed after Japanese gazebos, faux maple leaves and screens displaying scenes from the land of the rising sun.
A pop-up book sale, live music and an event honoring furry friends are all coming to the Rosslyn Farmers Market over the next week.
A book sale by Turning the Page — a nonprofit that hosted another event in Crystal City last month — will take place today (Wednesday) from noon to 6 p.m. at 1800 N. Lynn Street. The event promises over 3,000 gently used books, plus CDs, DVDs and vinyl records.
Update at 2:35 p.m. — Video posted to social media shows a truck, possibly bearing a U.S. Capitol Police logo, carrying an apparent explosive containment vessel and receiving a police escort on Washington Blvd around noon.
It’s still unclear whether an actual explosive device was found and removed during today’s incident.
