During an online town hall discussion today, county officials announced that a new walk-thru testing center for COVID-19 is coming to Arlington.
Assistant County Manager Jim Schwartz said the county is currently planning to open the site somewhere on the southern side of Arlington County. The site would be an addition to other drive-thru locations currently operating in Arlington.
With a candidate filing deadline just a week away, Arlington Democrats are scrambling to nominate a candidate for the special election to fill Erik Gutshall’s former County Board seat.
Barring an intervention by state lawmakers and Gov. Ralph Northam, in support of which the local party has gathered more than 750 petition signatures, the nominee will be chosen by dozens of party insiders in a closed caucus next Wednesday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eVo6A3VOn8
A petition calling for Amazon to halt construction on its $2.5 billion HQ2 project in Pentagon City due to noise has attracted a raft of local media coverage.
VHC Staff Honored by NYSE — Two radiation therapists at Virginia Hospital Center, Melinda Mack and Amanda Sprecher, were honored during the opening bell ringing at the New York Stock Exchange yesterday. [Twitter]
Tomorrow is Arlington’s ‘Community Day’ — “A beloved Arlington tradition, Neighborhood Day brings communities together to enjoy the great outdoors and strengthens ties between neighbors. In our currently socially-distant world, Neighborhood Day 2020 (May 2) is swapping out the traditional outdoor get-togethers and focusing on how Arlingtonians can build community while staying apart.” [Arlington County]
The Arlington County Board today adopted a budget for the coronavirus era.
Gone is the good budget year and the idea of expanding programs and services. In its place is a focus on preventing service reductions while supporting the most vulnerable members of the community.
Amazon’s development arm wants to use a portion of the Pentagon City park next to its future HQ2 for construction of the new, permanent office campus.
Seattle-based Acorn Development is asking the Arlington County Board tonight for permission to use a sizable portion of Metropolitan Park — a patch of open space one block from Costco, used primarily by nearby apartment residents — as a staging ground for construction equipment.
County Board Defends COVID-19 Response — “Arlington leaders continue to push back against accusations they could be doing more to address the COVID-19 crisis within the county’s 26 square miles. A number of civic-activists used the public-comment period of the County Board’s April 25 meeting (held ‘virtually’ after the government received state authority to do so) to rap officials for not imposing more aggressive regulation of daily life.” [InsideNova]
More Contributions for Small Biz Grant Fund — “The Arlington County Industrial Development Authority has joined Arlington Economic Development’s (AED) efforts to help small businesses… [The authority] approved a contribution of $326,000 of its own funding. Together with the $674,000 of funding from the County, and the recently announced contributions of $100,000 each by the Crystal City and Rosslyn Business Improvement Districts, total GRANT program funding has reached $1.2 million.” [Arlington County, Rosslyn BID]
The Arlington County Board has voted unanimously to approve a new, 175-unit assisted living facility along Lee Highway.
The elder care center will replace a handful of single-family homes on a large parcel of property at the corner of Lee Highway and N. Taylor Street. In addition to more homes for seniors in need of memory care and assisted living services, the project includes environmentally-conscious features and a new 10,000+ square foot public open space.
County Board Candidates So Far — “Announced Arlington County Board special election (to replace Erik Gutshall, who sadly was forced to resign while being treated for brain cancer) Democratic candidates… so far are: Barbara Kanninen; Chanda Choun; Nicole Merlene.” [Blue Virginia]
Arlington Allocates $300k for Emergency Help — “Arlington County Manager Mark Schwartz has allocated $300,000 from the FY 2020 budget to meet increased demand for emergency financial assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The money will be provided from the FY 2020 budget contingency fund to Arlington Thrive, a nonprofit that provides financial assistance to County residents who experience sudden crisis.” [Arlington County]
(Updated at 5:40 p.m.) Arlington residents will select a new County Board member on July 7, following the resignation of the late Erik Gutshall.
Gutshall resigned from the Board just 10 days before passing away from brain cancer on Thursday, April 16.
Some changes might be made to a planned redevelopment project in the Virginia Square area.
The Arlington County Board is set to consider a request to add 15 apartment units to the 7-story building approved by the Board last June. The project, which has yet to start major construction, will replace a State Farm insurance office and other small commercial buildings near the corner of Washington Blvd and N. Kirkwood Road.
Board Members Remember Erik Gutshall — “The four remaining Arlington County Board members – Chair Libby Garvey, Christian Dorsey, Katie Cristol and Matt de Ferranti – spent several minutes each remembering former Vice Chair Erik Gutshall, who died on Thursday after an 8-week battle with brain cancer.” [Blue Virginia]
School Board Discusses Distance Learning — “There’s both positive and negative news as Arlington Public Schools has pivoted to distance-learning in an effort to squeeze in some education during the COVID-19 lockdown. The good news? At least things have not gone as badly as in neighboring Fairfax County, where that school system’s attempt to re-start instruction collapsed in a technical debacle and ensuing recriminations last week. The bad news? Arlington school officials acknowledge that their efforts are not going to be able to replicate what could be accomplished during more normal time.” [InsideNova]
