First, the board is scheduled to vote on its FY 2012 budget, which has been the subject of numerous work sessions, public forums and community discussions. Then the board is scheduled to vote on the controversial East Falls Church development plan, which is several years in the making.
A significant amount of citizen input is expected for both items.
Last week, residents of N. Danville Street and several other Lyon Village streets noticed county staff measuring street widths. Staff were reportedly checking to see if the streets were too narrow for trash trucks and fire trucks, as was the case with N. Edgewood Street in Lyon Park.
According to Lyon Village Citizens Association President H.K. Park, the county is considering restricting parking to one side of Danville and other neighborhood streets that county staffers have deemed too narrow. On Monday, the LVCA will meet to discuss the possible parking changes with county staff.
In a presentation to the county board yesterday, county staff revealed that Artisphere admission and ticket income is projected at $174,202 for the financial year ending on June 30, 75 percent below the $789,912 in revenue that planners expected.
The shortfall was first reported in the Sun Gazette Editor’s Notebook blog.
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.
Tax Rate Hearing Sparsely Attended — Compared to the three-hour, 75-speaker bonanza that was the March 22 budget hearing, last night’s County Board tax rate hearing was an intimate, low-key affair. The board heard a half hour of testimony from two polar opposite sides: those who want the tax rate lowered and those who want to see the tax rate raised. [Sun Gazette]
DCA Controller Suspended — An air traffic controller suspected of snoozing on the job while two planes landed has been suspended by the Federal Aviation Administration. While some are calling the incident a major safety failure, one retired pilot says the air safety system worked as intended when a regional air traffic controller stepped in to guide the planes. [Christian Science Monitor]
Dremo’s Coming to the Pike? — The owner of the late, lamented Dr. Dremo’s Tap Room is in talks with the landlord of the former Ski Chalet store at 2704 Columbia Pike. The building would give Dremo’s a spacious new home in a funky old building, complete with parking, room for outdoor seating, and access to plentiful bus routes. We’re pretty sure an ARLnow.com commenter was the one who first floated the idea. [Pike Wire]
Dozens Testify At Budget Hearing — More than 75 people spoke at last night’s annual County Board budget hearing. Representatives and supporters of various local human services agencies asked the Board to increase funding for their causes. Also present at the hearing were supporters of increased funding for arts organizations, bicycling infrastructure and Arlington Public Libraries. [Sun Gazette]
Although Arlington will benefit from rising property values this year in the form of higher tax collections, the Board still must make tough choices when it comes to deciding what to fund and how to fund it.
County Manager Barbara Donnellan has recommended keeping real estate taxes steady at 95.8 cents per $100 in assessed value, following a year in which the rate jumped 8.3 cents. The Board gave itself the flexibility of raising that rate slightly by advertising a 96.8 cent rate.
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.)
On New Year’s Day, County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman kicked off the year by declaring that the board wanted to be seen a “facilitator, a partner to small business” in 2011.
The subtext of his comment was that the county was looking to reverse course from 2010, when a series of mini-controversies over enforcement of county ordinances had some entrepreneurs questioning Arlington’s commitment to small business.
Sign Goes Up at Penrose Square Giant — The Giant supermarket that will be opening at the corner of Columbia Pike and South Adams Street this summer is teasing residents with a new sign. The sign went up recently on the side of the new Penrose Square apartment complex, in which the 60,000 square foot store will be located.
Fitness Center Coming to the Pike This Summer — Just up the street from the aforementioned Giant, a new 12,000 square foot Xsport Fitness Center is planning on opening on the ground floor of the Siena Park apartment building this summer. Xsports plans to stay open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. [Pike Wire]
The board formally set the goal of creating a comprehensive, year-round homeless shelter — a long-standing local priority that’s currently in the early stages of implementation. At the moment, Arlington County is only served by an emergency winter shelter. By building a new year-round shelter, the board hopes to cut the number of unsheltered homeless in the county by half.
The board also set the goal of finding permanent housing for 95 percent of all homeless families and elderly homeless individuals. Five years ago the board set essentially the same goal for 2010, but was only able to find housing for 44 percent of homeless families. Factors cited for the failure of meeting the 2010 goal included “poor credit history; limited number of slots in transitional programs; mental health and/or substance abuse issues; underemployment/ unemployment and lack of job skills or readiness.”
Bishop O’Connell Lights Decision May Be Delayed — County Manager Barbara Donnellan recommended the County Board put off any discussion of Bishop O’Connell High School’s request to add lights to its athletic fields until June, to give staff more time to analyze the controversial issue. [Sun Gazette]
Look Who’s Coming to Dinner in Shirlington — Sen. Jim Webb was spotted having dinner at T.H.A.I. Shirlington Friday night, according to a blog. [Shirlington Village Blogspot]
