News

Sometimes, things are not as they first appear. That seems to be the case with an incident in Clarendon early this past Saturday morning.

Police say an officer patroling the bar district “observed a subject with a knife and detained him without incident” around 2:15 a.m. But soon, police say it became clear that the man with the knife was actually a would-be Good Samaritan and the victim of a crime.


Around Town

(Updated at 3:40 p.m.) Many businesses have been forced to shift their expectations and approaches this year, and Kinder Haus Toys in Clarendon is no exception.

The toy store, located at 1220 N. Fillmore Street, already faced the test of keeping up with online competition before the pandemic. Its business challenges were exacerbated by the pandemic and state mandates that required the store to temporarily close earlier in the year.


News

The first incident happened around 10 a.m. on a Tuesday in September. A woman was walking on the Custis Trail when she noticed a man following her. The man then caught up to her and groped her, before fleeing, according to Arlington County police.

Then, on the afternoon of Monday, Oct. 9, the man followed two different women in Clarendon and Courthouse, even following them into businesses, prompting calls to police, according to ACPD.


Around Town

The owners of The Lot, the popular outdoor beer garden near Clarendon, are planning a new seasonal pop-up in a familiar space.

“[We] are converting the iconic Clarendon Ballroom into a rotating, multilevel pop-up and event venue,” The Lot co-owner Mike Bramson confirmed this afternoon, after an inquiry from ARLnow.


News

Return of First Students Delayed — “As we have shared, we were aiming for an October 29 start for Level 1, which includes approximately 225 students with disabilities who need in-person support to access distance learning. We are now moving the start date back to Wednesday, November 4, to ensure all operational metrics are met and staff are well equipped and ready to support our students at each school.” [Arlington Public Schools]

County Crushes Census Count — “You did it, Arlington County: With the Census Count completing on October 15th, 99.98% of Arlington was officially counted. Thank you to our Complete Count Committee for your tireless, infectious enthusiasm for ensuring that everyone counts!” [@kcristol/Twitter, YouTube]


Around Town

The Spirits of ’76, a bar in Clarendon that opened just before the 2016 election, is closing just before the 2020 election.

The bar at 3211 Washington Blvd is just off the main drag of Clarendon, on a block in which restaurants have struggled. It opened in October 2016 with Americana decor, a robust whiskey list, and a menu of American comfort food.


News

A proposal for a large outdoor café in Clarendon is set to be considered by the Arlington County Board this weekend.

The owner of the Clarendon Square office building at 3033 Wilson Blvd is requesting permits to operate an outdoor café and kiosk in an open area of the property, catty-corner from the Clarendon Metro station.


Around Town

Today, 85 years after opening its first location in Connecticut, Colony Grill (2800 Clarendon Blvd) began serving Arlingtonians its famed thin-crust bar pie, sizzling with hot oil and topped with peppers known as “stingers.”

The location, three years in the making, is the first outside southern Connecticut and Port Chester, New York. Construction on the two-story establishment at Market Common Clarendon began in February and only lost a week or two to delays related to the pandemic, said co-owner Ken Martin.


News

Two. D.C. men are facing a battery of charges after police say they were seen prowling local neighborhoods and trying to break into cars.

The arrests were made Monday morning after a resident reported a suspicious vehicle, accompanied by two people on foot looking into parked cars, along N. George Mason Drive in the Yorktown neighborhood. The vehicle was later spotted in the Clarendon area, and the pair arrested after a foot chase.


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