County Board | ARLnow.com

Amazon Signals It Could Sign Agreement with Local Unions to Govern Arlington Construction

Published February 13, 2019 at 3:30PM | Updated February 13, 2019 at 5:01PM

Amazon is showing an increasing willingness to sign a collective bargaining agreement with local unions before it sets to work building new office space in Arlington, perhaps meeting a frequent demand of activists concerned about the tech giant’s labor practices.

Though the company cautions that nothing is set in stone until county officials formally sign off on an incentive deal to bring the tech giant’s new headquarters to Crystal City and Pentagon City, Amazon is sending signals that it’s open to the prospect of striking a “project labor agreement” with construction workers who could someday erect the company’s future home in Arlington.

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EXCLUSIVE: Arlington Spent $4.1 Million on a 10-Mile Dark Fiber Network, But No One’s Using It

By Alex Koma

Published February 7, 2019 at 3:15PM

Workers install some ConnectArlington fiber around the county (via Arlington Department of Environmental Services Flickr)

Four years ago, Arlington officials spent $4.1 million to build a 10-mile fiber optic network aimed at allowing local businesses to get cheaper access to higher-speed internet — since then, the fiber has just sat in the ground, almost totally unused.

At the time, county leaders championed the construction of the “dark fiber” network as a transformative step for Arlington. Though the county is barred by state law from offering internet service itself, officials envisioned smaller internet service providers working with local tech firms to “light” the fiber, providing county businesses with a powerful new option to access the internet at blazing-fast speeds.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published February 6, 2019 at 7:30AM | Updated February 6, 2019 at 8:48AM

Longtime Election Director Retiring — “Linda Lindberg, who has served for 16 years as elections chief in Arlington, on Feb. 2 formally announced she would not seek re-appointment and would retire over the summer. The move had been expected, and Lindberg’s service drew praise from members of the Arlington Electoral Board.” [InsideNova]

Northam Signs HQ2 Bill — “Amid fallout over a racist photo, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam has signed legislation which would carry out the state’s promise to Amazon for up to $750 million in incentives if it creates almost 38,000 jobs at its new Arlington County headquarters.” [Washington Post, Washington Business Journal]

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County Eyes Legal Action to Recover $200,000 Payment Connected to Canceled Land Deal

By Alex Koma

Published February 5, 2019 at 10:00AM

Arlington officials could soon be headed to court to claw back $200,000 the county handed over as part of a since-canceled agreement to buy a two-acre property in Fairfax County.

The County Board agreed back in 2016 to buy several parcels of land along the 6700 block of Electronic Drive in Springfield, with plans to use the property as space for a new maintenance facility for its Arlington Transit buses.

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‘Never Let a Crisis Go to Waste’: Amazon Prompts Debate Over How to Make Arlington Homes Affordable

By Alex Koma

Published February 4, 2019 at 3:30PM | Updated October 17, 2022 at 11:27AM

Arlington leaders agree that Amazon’s impending arrival in the county demands urgent action to address housing affordability — but there’s a lot less agreement on what sort of policy response is necessary to hold down the area’s skyrocketing housing costs.

Some of the changes officials are envisioning are relatively modest ones, expanding on existing efforts that began long before the tech giant announced its plans to bring 25,000 workers to the area. After all, many have argued that the new headquarters set to pop up in Crystal City and Pentagon City won’t prompt the sort of explosion in gentrification that Amazon’s opponents fear.

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County Manager, Other Top County Employees Score Pay Raises

By Alex Koma

Published January 31, 2019 at 5:00PM | Updated January 31, 2019 at 7:31PM

Arlington leaders are doling out raises for County Manager Mark Schwartz and several other senior county employees.

The County Board signed off on modest pay hikes for Schwartz, County Attorney Steve MacIsaac, County Auditor Chris Horton and County Board Clerk Kendra Jacobs at its meeting Tuesday (Jan. 29).

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Cristol Launches County Board Re-Election Bid As a ‘Problem Solver’ for Amazon, Budget Issues

By Alex Koma

Published January 31, 2019 at 11:00AM

Arlington County Board Member Katie Cristol

Arlington County Board member Katie Cristol says she’s running for re-election, becoming the first candidate to jump into the race for two Board seats on the ballot this fall.

The Democrat, who is a fresh off a year rotating in as chair of the five-member Board, told ARLnow that she announced her decision to seek a second term in office to supporters today (Thursday).

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County Leaders Finally Ready to Advance Zoning Changes Aimed at Expanding Local Childcare Options

By Alex Koma

Published January 30, 2019 at 4:30PM

Arlington officials could soon advance zoning changes designed to make it easier for more childcare providers to open up shop in the county, as part of a lengthy push to increase access to daycare options for local parents.

County leaders have batted around a variety of potential changes for months now, but they finally seem ready to pass a suite of zoning tweaks impacting both large childcare centers and smaller “family daycare” homes. The proposals will go before the Planning Commission’s Zoning Committee for the first time tonight (Wednesday), and could make their way to the County Board sometime later this spring.

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County Board Delays Consideration of Amazon Incentives, After Targeting February for a Vote

By Alex Koma

Published January 30, 2019 at 3:30PM

Arlington leaders are pushing back their consideration of an incentive package to seal the deal for Amazon’s new headquarters by at least a month.

Ever since the tech giant announced its plans to bring 25,000 workers to the county in mid-November, the County Board has pledged to hold a public hearing and vote on the logistics of its offer to Amazon no earlier than its Feb. 23 meeting.

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Arlington Launches New Transparency Tool to Help Taxpayers Navigate County Budgets

By Alex Koma

Published January 30, 2019 at 11:00AM

With a budget well over $1 billion, Arlington’s checkbook can feel a bit overwhelming to the average taxpayer — but the county is launching a new resource to help change that.

The county rolled out the first phase of “Arlington Wallet” yesterday (Tuesday), unveiling a new online tool to help Arlingtonians get a clearer look at how officials are spending money each year.

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County Board Signs Off on New Ballston Childcare Center, Despite Local Opposition to the Project

By Alex Koma

Published January 30, 2019 at 10:00AM | Updated January 30, 2019 at 11:13AM

The location of a new childcare center at 4001 Fairfax Drive in Ballston (via Arlington County)

Arlington officials have given the green light for a new childcare center to set up shop in Ballston, in a debate that forced the County Board to weigh its years-long effort to expand access to childcare in the county against the vocal opposition of neighbors to the project.

The Board voted unanimously last night (Tuesday) to award the Bright Horizons Children’s Center with the permits it needs to open a new location on the first and second floors of a building at 4001 Fairfax Drive.

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County Repeals Controversial Parking Restrictions in Forest Glen, Arlington Mill Neighborhoods

By Alex Koma

Published January 29, 2019 at 9:00AM | Updated January 29, 2019 at 10:33AM

Map showing RPP restrictions that will be lifted in the Forest Glen neighborhood (via Arlington County)

(Updated at 9:55 a.m.) The Arlington County Board has done away with parking restrictions on a handful of streets in two South Arlington neighborhoods, putting to rest a contentious dispute that has dragged on for years between Forest Glen and Arlington Mill residents.

The Board voted unanimously Saturday (Jan. 26) to end zoned parking on eight streets in the area. As part of the county’s “Residential Parking Program,” the county previously barred anyone without a permit from parking on the roads from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. each day.