Barbara Favola’s state Senate campaign is defending a telephone poll that erroneously identified Democratic primary opponent Jaime Areizaga-Soto as a Republican.
The poll, conducted on behalf of the Favola campaign, asked residents negative questions about both candidates. In a statement, the Favola campaign said calling Areizaga a Republican was a “clerical error.”
Update at 4:45 p.m. — The Washington Post reports that Favola has ordered her pollster to stop calling Areizaga-Soto a “Republican” during the poll.
The Jaime Areizaga-Soto state Senate campaign, criticized last week for its negative campaign mailers, is now fighting back against a telephone poll apparently conducted on behalf of opponent Barbara Favola’s campaign.
The latest mailer shows Favola between Gov. Bob McDonnell and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli with the headline “These politicians have a lot in common” — a reference to the fact that all three have accepted donations from local real estate developer, philanthropist and Republican political donor Preston Caruthers. (Favolva accepted a $5,000 donation from Caruthers.)
“I’m disappointed that my friend Jaime Areizaga-Soto has been persuaded that victory in the primary can be achieved through slick negative campaign mailings,” Del. Bob Brink said in a statement said in a statement last night.
The plan, which we reported on in April, envisions a “Bluemont Village Center,” featuring new mixed-use developments along a stretch of Wilson Boulevard (west of Ballston) currently flanked by single-story shops, restaurants and an older Safeway supermarket. The plan was generated by the Bluemont Civic Association, with the volunteer help of a Virginia Tech graduate student, as part of its Neighborhood Conservation plan process.
The plan is only intended to guide future development along Wilson Boulevard, but its renderings of imagined 4 to 5 story buildings has elicited a strong response from residents who object to the potential increase in density.
The suit was filed in response to the County Board’s denial of a request by Bishop O’Connell high school to add lights to its athletic fields.
The Diocese issued the following statement tonight about its legal action.
The animal rights group has written a letter to Arlington Parks Division Chief Caroline Temmermand with a “friendly suggestion” — to ban unsterilized dogs from the county’s dog parks.
“Dogs who haven’t been ‘fixed’ are nearly three times as likely to bite as are dogs who have been sterilized,” a PETA rep told ARLnow.com. Plus, the rep said, dogs that haven’t been spayed or neutered “can contribute to the animal overpopulation crisis.”
‘Arlington Rap’ guy Remy Munasifi has teamed up with the libertarians at Reason Magazine to produce a new parody video about the much-maligned Transportation Security Administration.
Board Approves Energy Plan Framework — Last night the County Board approved an ambitious set of goals to dramatically reduce energy usage and cut carbon emissions in Arlington over the next 40 years. With the goals set, a new county panel will now set out to figure out how to implement them. Speakers at last night’s board meeting — including members of the local business community — were generally supportive of the energy plan, although a few individuals criticized the additional regulations it will likely impose. [Sun Gazette, Arlington County]
Local Green Group Criticized — Arlington-based Conservation International is being criticized by environmental activists for helping to “greenwash” large corporations in exchange for donations. [Huffington Post]
Yesterday we officially launched our new discussion forums section — a message board where the conversation isn’t limited to the articles we publish.
Here are a few of the interesting items posted in the past 24 hours.
The plan calls for the creation of a mixed-use “neighborhood center” with open spaces, a public plaza and ground level retail. Some of the new development will be built on the Metro Park and Ride lot. The single family neighborhoods surrounding the station, meanwhile, will be preserved.
The height of the new residential buildings — a major source of concern for East Falls Church residents — will range from nine stories along I-66 to three stories closer to the single family homes. Lee Highway, Washington Boulevard and Sycamore Street will be redesigned to add bike lanes, on-street parking, trees and pedestrian improvements. The plan is also expected to add 100-250 units of committed affordable housing to the East Falls Church area.
Earlier this month Arlington County released a decidedly pessimistic study of the 43-year-old amphitheater and its surrounding grounds. The study, conducted by Neale Architects, concluded that bringing the amphitheater up to current code standards would require $2.5 million for an extensive renovation or a $3.5 million for a completely new facility, not including significant costs associated with Americans with Disabilities Act, Resource Protection Area and floodplain compliance.
The study “found a number of existing conditions that represent a hazard to public safety, including open trenches; steep grades; deteriorated benches; tilting walls; crumbling paving,” according to the county’s Lubber Run Amphitheater web site.
The board’s 3-1 vote to reject the proposal came after nearly 75 speakers — including neighbors, student athletes, nuns and local gadflies — spoke both strongly in favor and strongly against the O’Connell lighting plan.
(Board member Barbara Favola recused herself due to her work for Marymount University. The lighting proposal called for Marymount’s athletic teams to be granted partial use of the fields.)
