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Morning Notes

Published December 9, 2020 at 7:30AM

A man crosses Columbia Pike during the evening rush hour (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

County Lauded for LGBTQ Inclusiveness — “Arlington scored 100 points out of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign’s 9th annual Municipal Equality Index for its high standards of inclusiveness and protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer communities. While Arlington has been a top-ranked community in the past, this year it was recognized for adding gender identity/expression protections to its Human Rights ordinance and providing all-gender bathrooms in County-owned offices and facilities.” [Arlington County]

Traffic Cam Feeds Back On — After a few weeks of Arlington’s web-based traffic camera feeds being off due to technical issues, the feeds are back on. The traffic cameras can also now be viewed on the My Arlington mobile app. [Twitter]

News

County Board Chair Libby Garvey, Other Va. Officials Band Together to Advocate for Virtual Meetings

By Jo DeVoe

Published December 2, 2020 at 3:55PM | Updated December 2, 2020 at 4:27PM

Virtual Arlington County Board meeting on August 25, 2020, featuring Dr. Reuben Varghese

Working remotely started as an experiment but is now a permanent option for some U.S. companies. Now, the trend may be coming for public meetings.

Virtual public meetings began in the spring after an emergency order from Gov. Ralph Northam authorized them. Normally, according to Virginia code, in-person meetings are required. Existing law lets officials attend up to two meetings virtually, if a majority is present in-person, and they must state for the record their reason for staying away.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published December 1, 2020 at 6:00AM | Updated December 1, 2020 at 9:15AM

Major Metro Cuts Proposed — “With sharply reduced ridership and lacking fresh federal relief, Metro is proposing a new operating budget with a nearly $500 million deficit. Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld said Monday the proposed 2021 budget includes closing Metro rail at 9 p.m., ending weekend service, closing 19 stations and reducing the number of trains, which would result in longer wait times.” Among the stations that would close under the proposal are the Arlington Cemetery, Clarendon, East Falls Church and Virginia Square stations. [WTOP, Washington Post]

County Working on New Payment System — “Arlington officials continue to work on developing a one-stop online presence so the public can pay for a wide array of local-government services from their computers or smartphones. The initiative, being worked on by the treasurer’s office and Department of Technology Services, would go beyond the current CAPP [Customer Assessment and Payment Portal], which allows local residents to pay certain taxes, utility bills and parking tickets online.” [InsideNova]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published November 25, 2020 at 7:30AM | Updated November 25, 2020 at 8:36AM

Thanksgiving County Closures — “Arlington County Government offices, courts, libraries & facilities will be closed on Thursday, Nov. 26 & Friday, Nov. 27 for Thanksgiving. Courts will close Wednesday Nov. 26 at noon… Metered Parking: Not enforced on Thurs. Nov. 26 or Fri., Nov. 27.” [Arlington County]

Development Plan for Silver Diner Site — “The Donohoe Cos. is targeting Clarendon’s Silver Diner for a major redevelopment. The company has yet to file specific plans with Arlington County for the triangular parcel at 3200 Wilson Blvd., a block from the Clarendon Metro station, but it has outlined a mixed-use vision for the newly dubbed ‘Bingham Center’ on a project page on its website. Specifically, the developer envisions 286 apartments, a 224-room hotel, 15,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, a public park and ‘a new public street designed with the principals of a woonerf (a curbless pedestrian-friendly street).'” [Washington Business Journal]

News

County Details Commonalities Among Local COVID Cases

By ARLnow.com

Published November 23, 2020 at 1:35PM

Leaves and a face mask on the ground in Crystal City (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

Going to work or eating at a restaurant are two of the most commonly-reported activities among Arlingtonians who recently tested positive for COVID-19.

That’s according to new information released by Arlington County.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published November 20, 2020 at 7:30AM | Updated November 20, 2020 at 9:47AM

Visitors enjoy the US Marine Corps War Memorial in Rosslyn (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

Police Called for Man Spitting on Bus Passengers — An incident on a bus prompted a police response Thursday afternoon. Per ACPD spokeswoman Ashley Savage: “At approximately 1:38 p.m., police were dispatched to the report of a disorderly subject on a Metro bus in the area of Columbia Pike and S. Dinwiddie Street. The suspect left the area prior to police arrival and a search by responding officers returned with negative results… The call for service alleged the subject was acting disorderly and spitting on individuals on the bus.”

Arlington Company Is Among Fastest-Growing — Ballston-based Hungry is the fastest-growing technology firm in the D.C. area and the 18th fastest growing tech company in the nation, according to a new list from Deloitte. Another Ballston tech company, Evolent Health, ranked No. 402 in the U.S. [Deloitte]

News

County Staff Propose Changes to Residential Permit Parking Program

By Jo DeVoe

Published October 28, 2020 at 10:00AM | Updated October 28, 2020 at 11:38AM

(Updated at 11:40 a.m.) Arlington County staff are recommending adding a pay-to-park option in residential zones for short-term visitors, while expanding who can petition for Residential Permit Parking restrictions.

These are two of the changes to the program staff are proposing that the County Board adopt. The changes will be reviewed and refined before the Board votes early next year, and come three years after a moratorium was placed on new parking restrictions so a review of the program could be conducted.

News

Arlington County Discouraging Halloween Partying and Large Crowds

By ARLnow.com

Published October 26, 2020 at 10:15AM | Updated October 26, 2020 at 11:32AM

(Updated at 11:30 a.m.) Arlington County is asking those planning on partying or gathering in large crowds on Halloween to reconsider their plans.

“With Halloween falling on a Saturday this year, many partygoers may be looking to celebrate in popular nightlife destinations around Arlington, but events that involve large gatherings of individuals can increase the risk of COVID-19 transmission and are not recommended,” the county said in a press release on Friday.

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UPDATE: Arlington County’s Website Is Back Up

By ARLnow.com

Published October 21, 2020 at 3:00PM | Updated October 21, 2020 at 7:49PM

Update at 7:45 p.m. — The county website is back up, though some users who accessed the site while it was down may still have their visits redirected to the temporary page, for now.

Earlier: Bad news: More than 24 hours later, Arlington County’s website is still down as of Wednesday afternoon. Good news: the county’s voting information pages and payment portal are among the things currently up.

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UPDATED: Arlington County’s Website Is Still Down

By ARLnow.com

Published October 20, 2020 at 3:55PM | Updated October 20, 2020 at 9:58PM

(Updated at 10 p.m.) Arlington County’s website has been down for most of the day and remains down as of Tuesday night.

The county is working to fix the technical difficulties, which brought down the website completely. The homepage was working this morning, while many interior pages were bringing up error messages, before the entire site went down.

News

County Considering Making Office-to-Apartment Conversions Easier

By ARLnow.com

Published October 13, 2020 at 3:45PM

WeWork / WeLive in Crystal City, in 2016 (file photo)

Arlington County officials are considering new administrative guidance to streamline the process of converting office buildings into residential buildings.

Such conversions would remain subject to County Board approval, but a new set of guidelines being considered by county staff would make the review and recommendation process easier.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published October 13, 2020 at 6:00AM | Updated October 13, 2020 at 10:46AM

County Launching Race Conversations — “Today, Arlington County launched a new effort to address racial equity and disparities in our community. Called Dialogues on Race and Equity (DRE), the effort is part of the County’s broader commitment to racial equity… DRE will include a series of virtual community conversations with individuals, nonprofit organizations, civic associations, faith organizations, and businesses.” [Arlington County]

Local Nurses Hold Food Drive — “Nurses at the Virginia [Hospital] Center are going above and beyond to give back to the local community… Nurses launched the ‘Together We Can’ campaign where they collected canned goods. All together, they collected 10,000 cans and donated them directly to the food assistance center.” [WJLA]