County Board | ARLnow.com

Morning Notes

Published September 18, 2017 at 9:00AM | Updated September 18, 2017 at 9:23AM

County Board Approves Construction Contracts — At its meeting Saturday, the Arlington County Board approved a pair of contracts: a $2.5 million contract to build phase two of the Washington Blvd Trail project and a $6.6 million contract to remove an elevated roadway through part of Crystal City. [Arlington County]

Firefighters Save Kittens — “A passerby heard the kittens crying from a compost box and saw one of them with its neck stuck between the posts. The Good Samaritan flagged down a nearby firetruck and the firefighters were able to free the kittens. Animal Control was then called to the scene to help locate all of the kittens and bring them to safety.” [WJLA]

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University of Virginia Looking to Expand Business School in Rosslyn

By Chris Teale

Published September 12, 2017 at 11:00AM

1100 Wilson Blvd (via Google Maps)

The University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business could expand into two upper floors of a Rosslyn office building.

Under plans before the Arlington County Board for its Saturday (September 16) meeting, building owner Monday Properties wants to convert existing office space at 1100 Wilson Blvd on the 30th and 31st floors to educational use. Just over 39,000 square feet of space would be converted.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published September 7, 2017 at 8:55AM

ACPD Sending Supplies to Houston — The Arlington County Police Department is sending relief supplies to Houston Police, “who have been tirelessly serving those affected by Hurricane Harvey,” the department announced yesterday in a tweet. [Twitter]

More on County Board Debate — At Tuesday night’s Arlington Civic Federation debate, the two independent candidates blasted the County Board for supposedly being too pro cozy with business interests. Charles McCullough “several times ripped the county government for extending millions of dollars in ‘payola and corporate welfare’ in an effort to win economic-development successes,” while Audrey Clement “portrayed Arlington leaders as sharing a matrimonial bed with the development community, rubber-stamping new projects to reap the tax revenue they generate.” [InsideNova]

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Arlington GOP Criticizes County Board’s Response to DACA Decision

By Chris Teale

Published September 6, 2017 at 12:00PM | Updated September 6, 2017 at 12:58PM

The County Board joined other local and statewide elected officials in condemning Trump’s decision.

Members called the decision an “act of cruelty” that will “will tear apart families, cause substantial economic damage to our nation and further divide Americans.”

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County Board Candidates Offer Differing Ideas to Add Affordable Housing

By Chris Teale

Published September 6, 2017 at 10:00AM | Updated October 17, 2022 at 11:27AM

County Board candidate Charles McCullough

The three candidates for Arlington County Board agreed on the need for more affordable housing at a forum Tuesday night, but offered differing methods on how to achieve it.

Speaking at a forum hosted by the Arlington County Civic Federation at Virginia Hospital Center, the traditional kick-off for the fall campaign season, Audrey Clement, Erik Gutshall and Charles McCullough all argued more can be done.

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County Board Releases Statement on DACA Decision

By ARLnow.com

Published September 5, 2017 at 5:45PM

The Arlington County Board has joined other local elected officials in criticizing President Donald Trump’s decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program for undocumented immigrants.

In a statement released Tuesday afternoon (below), the County Board called the decision an “act of cruelty” that will “will tear apart families, cause substantial economic damage to our nation and further divide Americans.”

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County’s Bike Plan Getting a Refresh

By Chris Teale

Published August 30, 2017 at 12:00PM

Arlington County is updating the section on bicycling in its Master Transportation Plan, and is asking residents to help shape how it should now look.

The Bicycle Element of the plan last received an update in 2008, and now staff from the county’s Department of Environmental Services said the time is right for a revamp given the new “technologies, facilities and best practices” around bicycling. Staff said they will get feedback from a wide range of people, including those in civic associations and business organizations.

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County Board Candidates Gear Up For Campaign Season’s Final Push

By Chris Teale

Published August 23, 2017 at 11:00AM | Updated August 23, 2017 at 11:18AM

Democratic nominee Erik Gutshall and his campaign team in front of the caucus results

It may appear overshadowed by this year’s statewide races and political strife nationally, but the three Arlington County Board candidates are hard at work preparing for the fall campaign season.

Things get into high gear as the Arlington County Civic Federation hosts its first candidate forum, the traditional curtain-raiser on the final few months before Election Day. The forum will be held on Tuesday, September 5 in Virginia Hospital Center’s Hazel Auditorium (1701 N. George Mason Drive).

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Four Mile Run Working Group Member Criticizes ‘Pressure’ For Arts District

By Chris Teale

Published August 22, 2017 at 3:45PM | Updated August 22, 2017 at 4:39PM

Jennie Dean Park (Staff photo)

A Four Mile Run Valley Working Group member says some colleagues and the county are trying to turn property near Jennie Dean Park into an “arts district,” against the wishes of others on the group.

Michael Grace, who sits on the group as its liaison to the Parks and Recreation Commission, said the Arlington County Board is under “incessant pressure” from some members to repurpose five properties adjacent to the park at 3630 27th Street S. in Shirlington.

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New Residential Parking Requests on Ice For Staff Program Review

By Chris Teale

Published August 18, 2017 at 1:45PM | Updated August 18, 2017 at 2:25PM

Requests to add new residential permit parking zones or change current zones will be on hold for around two years so county staff can study the program’s effectiveness.

The moratorium, approved 3-2 by a divided Arlington County Board, freezes 16 active petition requests and prevents residents from filing more until after staff’s review.

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Local Candidates United With County Board in Call to Rename Jefferson Davis, Lee Highways

By ARLnow.com

Published August 18, 2017 at 10:30AM

Then-County Board candidate Erik Gutshall

Arlington County Board candidate Erik Gutshall and incumbent House of Delegates candidates Mark Levine, Patrick Hope, Richard “Rip” Sullivan and Alfonso Lopez praised the County Board’s stand. In a statement, an excerpt of which is below, all five applauded what they described as “a powerful statement from the Arlington County Board rejecting racism and bigotry.”

The county will need to first obtain the legal authority to rename both stretches of state highway within its borders, an uphill battle in the GOP-controlled General Assembly. But the incumbents pledged to try to do so, so the county can choose “who in our history we want to honor and celebrate.”

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Arlington Is Seeking the Authority to Rename Lee Highway and Jefferson Davis Highway

By ARLnow.com

Published August 17, 2017 at 5:25PM

(Updated at 5:35 p.m.) Arlington is thinking about renaming two state highways named after Confederate leaders, but needs authorization from the state legislature to do so, according to a statement released by the Arlington County Board late Thursday afternoon.

In the statement, County Board Chair Jay Fisette says the county is “united against racism and bigotry” in the wake of the events in Charlottesville this past weekend.