county government | ARLnow.com

Pike ‘Super Stops’ Redesigned, Cost Nearly Cut in Half

Published May 6, 2014 at 3:30PM | Updated May 6, 2014 at 3:56PM

Model of new design for Columbia PIke transit stops

(Updated at 3:55 p.m.) The county’s plan for “Super Stop” bus stops on Columbia Pike, which led to the much-maligned $1 million Super Stop at the corner of the Pike and S. Walter Reed Drive, has been scrapped in favor of a more affordable design.

The county announced this afternoon that the new plan calls for building the 23 additional transit centers along the Pike for about 40 percent less than the previous budget, dropping the total price from $20.9 million to $12.4 million. The cost of individual stations will be between $362,000 and $672,000.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published April 29, 2014 at 8:45AM

New County Website Now Live — The newly-redesigned Arlington County website is now live. The site is designed to be “more resident-focused, as opposed to county hierarchy-focused.” [Arlington County]

Congressional Candidates Weigh in on Streetcar — Several Democratic candidates for Congress are weighing in with their thoughts on the Columbia Pike streetcar project. Among those weighing in, candidate Don Beyer supports the project while Bruce Shuttleworth supports it “with reservations” and Mark Levine supports a voter referendum on the issue. [Blue Virginia]

News

Residents Want Open Space, Outdoor Movies in Courthouse Square

By Ethan Rothstein

Published April 22, 2014 at 1:30PM | Updated April 22, 2014 at 1:57PM

The survey was conducted as part of the county’s “Envision Courthouse Square” initiative, which is trying to get the public involved in the process of planning the future development of the 9-acre area surrounding the county’s large surface parking lot.

That lot in particular was the subject of many survey respondent’s suggestions, who desire to see it become an underground parking lot with a different use for the surface area up top.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published April 21, 2014 at 9:10AM

Vihstadt Backs Off Independent Auditor Push — Newly-elected County Board member John Vihstadt is backing off a campaign promise to push for an independent auditor for Arlington County. Vihstadt “learned of the internal auditing that the county does and its plans to make that role more robust.” He plans to evaluate the effectiveness of the county’s auditing project around mid-year. [Washington Post]

Howze Won Pike Precincts — Democratic County Board candidate Alan Howze, who lost to John Vihstadt in the April 8 special election, narrowly won the precincts around Columbia Pike. Opponents of the planned Columbia Pike streetcar say the slim victory — Howze supports the streetcar while Vihstadt does not — is proof that even Columbia Pike residents who stand to benefit from the streetcar are lukewarm on the project. [InsideNoVa]

News

Arlington Expanding Fiber Network to Businesses

By Ethan Rothstein

Published April 2, 2014 at 10:00AM

The county’s unused fiber optic capacity, or “dark fiber,” will provide not only significantly faster data speeds for businesses — the county says the speed is “unprecedented” — but also a more secure connection that can be used between contractors and federal agencies like the Pentagon.

Officials expect the program to provide an economic boost to the county.

News

County Asks Residents to ‘Envision Courthouse Square’

By Ethan Rothstein

Published March 19, 2014 at 10:30AM

The first community planning workshop for “Envision Courthouse Square” will be held at Key Elementary School (2300 Key Blvd) in the cafeteria on Wednesday, March 26.

The county has dubbed a 9-acre area around the county’s large surface parking lot “Courthouse Square.” A mix of county- and privately-owned land and buildings, Courthouse Square could potentially be transformed into a mix of new developments, roads and open space.

News

County to Review Big Assessment Increases

By ARLnow.com

Published March 3, 2014 at 1:30PM

The county said Friday evening that it will take a look at “all commercial real property assessments with a 50% or greater increase from calendar year 2013.”

There are nearly 90 such properties, including Rien Tong restaurant (3131 Wilson Blvd), which saw its assessment increase 197 percent, and Spider Kelly’s (3171 Wilson Blvd), which saw its property valuation increase 83 percent.

Schools

Arlington Schools, Gov’t Closed Monday

By ARLnow.com

Published March 2, 2014 at 8:35PM | Updated March 2, 2014 at 9:40PM

It’s at least the fifth time Arlington Public Schools have closed due to snow this school year.

“Essential personnel are to report to work as scheduled,” said APS spokeswoman Jennifer Harris. “Extracurricular activities, interscholastic contests, team practices, field trips, adult and community education classes, and programs in schools and on school grounds are canceled.”

Around Town

No Paving Planned for Pockmarked Pike Stretch

By ARLnow.com

Published February 7, 2014 at 3:30PM | Updated February 7, 2014 at 3:50PM

There’s little relief in sight for drivers and bus riders traveling down some rough portions of Columbia Pike.

Arlington County is planning to finish repaving the section of the Pike from S. Wakefield Street to Four Mile Run Drive by April, but so far the county has no plans to repave the increasingly pockmarked eastern portion of the Pike, including the “Pike Town Center” business district, within the next six months. Potholes are expected to be filled by this spring, but a full repaving could be several years away.

Feature

Arlington Property Values Up 5.8 Percent

By ARLnow.com

Published January 22, 2014 at 1:00PM

Arlington County said today that its overall 2014 real estate assessments rose 5.8 percent. The growth was “fueled primarily by strength in the residential market, as well as new construction of commercial properties,” the county said.

The assessments for residential properties — single-family homes, condos and townhouses — rose 5.3 percent, to an average of $552,700.

Weather

UPDATED: County Facilities Closing at Noon

By ARLnow.com

Published January 21, 2014 at 10:45AM | Updated January 21, 2014 at 11:28AM

(Updated at 11:25 a.m.) Arlington County government offices, facilities, public schools, pools, community centers and courts are closing at noon today due to the winter storm currently bearing down on the area.

All afternoon and evening activities at Arlington public schools have been canceled.

News

Feds Close, County Gov’t Remains Open

By ARLnow.com

Published January 21, 2014 at 7:55AM

Non-emergency federal employees will have the day off, unless their office requires them to telework.

“Telework-Ready Employees who are scheduled to perform telework on the effective day of the announcement or who are required to perform telework on a day when Federal offices are closed must telework the entire workday or request leave, or a combination of both, in accordance with their agency’s policies and procedures, subject to any applicable collective bargaining requirements,” according to the Office of Personnel Management.