Construction crews seem to be making fast progress at the Clarendon Center properties. What were just hollow stacks of floors earlier this year now have bricks, windows and architectural accents.
The two structures — the regal-looking south building and the art deco-y north building — are expected to take on retail tenants as soon as December, and that seems very much possible given the pace of construction.
Paving Update — Now that the section of Wilson Blvd near Whitlow’s is paved with smooth blacktop, workers are focusing on Washington Blvd. As of Sunday afternoon, one lane between North Highland Street and Pershing Drive was torn up, awaiting fresh asphalt. TBD reports that the repaving of Washington Blvd will stretch into next week.
Flames Seen From Plane Engine — The Associated Press reports that flames were seen coming from the engine of a US Airways plane landing at Reagan National Airport. The captain of the flight from Charlotte, N.C. declared an emergency but landed without incident. No flames were seen after it landed.
Instead of “Fu Bar” — a military reference that also hinted at an envisioned Asian influence — the deck above Whitlow’s on Wilson will now be called… drumroll, please… Wilson’s on Whitlow’s.
Get it?
Late night joggers and cyclists beware. From Arlington County spokesperson Susan Kalish:
The Ballston Beaver Pond, as it’s called, was initially designed to collect stormwater runoff from I-66. But that started to change in the 1990s when beavers moved in and dammed up the drainage system, creating a pond and wetlands to form. The Beaver Pond is now a habitat frequented by muskrat, geese, ducks, heron, egrets, redwing blackbirds, fish, turtles and the occasional beaver.
The Beaver Pond is located next to a bike trail that connects Ballston and the Custis Trail, just north of the ramp from Fairfax Drive to I-66.
Mad Rose will be “an American style restaurant and bar with about 150 indoor seats, two bars, great food, and great times,” according to a new Facebook page.
The owners hope to open the restaurant “sometime this fall.” They also hope to open an outdoor patio at some point this spring. It promises to be “one of the largest patios in all of Arlington,” according to the page.
That’s to be expected. But one area of the Pike is particularly hazardous for drivers at the moment.
The asphalt on two patched-up sections of road between South Barton Street and South Wayne Street has begun to sink, causing a violent jolt for motorists traveling at speed. Some drivers who spot the big bumps early suddenly hit the brakes, presenting the risk of a rear-end collision.
You might have noticed them around town: brick sidewalks torn up by utility work or some other sort of construction project. You’ll see a small pile of bricks (or “pavers”) by a street lamp and patches of asphalt where the bricks were removed.
We were recently asked whose repsonsibility it is to put the bricks back by a reader who was unhappy with the fact that the brick sidewalk in front of the Hyde Park Harris Teeter had been torn up more more than a month (it has since been fixed).
Heat It Up — Mother nature will attempt another run at triple digit temperatures today. The predicted high is 98 degrees. A Code Orange air quality alert has been issued for the region.
Mail Carrier Charged With Stealing Mail — An U.S. Postal Service employee at the Arlington Main Post Office has been charged with stealing mail. Alva Jackson is accused of swiping envelopes she thought might contain gift cards. Jackson, who worked as an Arlington mail carrier, was caught with 134 stolen pieces of mail in her house, according to charging documents. More from the Washington Examiner.
It’s not very often that a hotel completely closes its doors, especially during the summer tourist season, but the Hyatt in Crystal City has done just that to allow for major renovations to the front of the hotel.
A reconstruction of the front entrance, the hotel lobby, and the parking garage entrance is underway. For major construction, it’s taking place at a speedy pace — the hotel is scheduled to reopen on Friday, we’re told.
This morning a reader asked about a “bizarre” construction project happening at the corner of Wilson Boulevard and North Quinn Street, near Ray’s Hell Burger.
We dutifully checked it out and yes, it was pretty weird. First of all, you don’t typically see that much construction debris sitting out in the open near a main thoroughfare. When we arrived workers were busy laying brick next to the building and doing some sort of metal work inside. We asked the workers what was being built — and got no response.
Shuttle buses will run every 10 minutes between the stations. Orange Line riders should add 30 minutes to their travel plans.
The work and the split will also be in effect on the weekends of June 5-6 and June 12-13.
