Four community improvement projects are on this weekend’s Arlington County Board agenda.
The Board is expected to approve the $3 million slate of projects as part of its Neighborhood Conservation program. The somewhat controversial program, previously on the budgetary chopping block, awards funding to modest infrastructure improvement projects requested by local community groups.
Next week, county officials will present details and ask for feedback on a long-awaited project to restore a pond along the W&OD Trail.
On Tuesday, October 1, Arlington’s Department of Environmental Services will present a draft plan for digging the Swallow Pond in Glencarlyn Park deeper, and restoring some of the wild habitat in and around the pond.
Virginia Hospital Center executives celebrated when they finally earned permission to expand the hospital’s North Arlington campus and execute a long-planned land swap with the county — but one of the consequences of the deal has some employees and parents feeling blindsided.
VHC is gearing up to send Arlington its property at 601 S. Carlin Springs Road in Glencarlyn, in exchange for gaining control over a piece of land at 1800 N. Edison Street. The latter property is adjacent to its existing facilities along N. George Mason Drive, and will be a key part of the hospital’s hotly debated expansion plans.
Arlington transportation planners’ latest attempt at crafting the future of the county’s cycling infrastructure has left neighbors, bicyclists and environmental advocates both pleased and disappointed.
The first draft of the 5o-page document, known as the bicycle element of the county’s Master Transportation Plan, originally included 26 cycling infrastructure projects including new trails and on-street bikeways. Since then, county staff has cut a few bike trails from the document, including two major projects: the Arlington Hall trail in Alcova Heights and another connecting the former Northern Virginia Community Hospital in Glencarlyn to Forest Hills, which were chopped after outcry from neighbors and environmentalists.
Police say the officer saw a vehicle driving with its lights off just before 1 a.m. this morning (Thursday) in Lyon Park. The officer then saw a man running from the 7-Eleven parking lot at 2704 Washington Blvd, toward the car. The man was stopped and a black ski mask was found in his possession.
Police believe the man, 21-year-old Arlington resident Camron Richards, was about to rob the 7-Eleven when another car pulled into the parking lot, spooking him. He was charged with attempted robbery in connection with the incident.
The incident happened around 12:40 a.m., on the 5900 block of Arlington Blvd. Police say a 48-year-old woman was walking down the street when a man came up to her and tried to steal her purse.
A male friend of the victim, who was walking in front of her, intervened and tried to stop the robbery. A second suspect then stepped in and stabbed the 53-year-old man in the chest and slashed him across the face with a knife, according to Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.
The incident happened at the 7-Eleven store on S. Carlin Springs Road across the street from Kenmore Middle School. Police say the trio entered the store late Monday night, stole some booze and shoved the clerk on their way out.
From this week’s Arlington County crime report:
The incident, which happened on the unit block of S. Carlin Springs Road in the Glencarlyn neighborhood, was reported around 2:00 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 2. The victim told police that a man blocked her way and insisted that she kiss him in order to get past.
“Becoming increasingly concerned, the victim attempted to kiss the suspect on the cheek to placate him when the suspect grabbed the victim’s head and forcing a mouth-to-mouth kiss,” Arlington County Police said in a crime report. “As the victim was leaving, she was chased by the suspect who grabbed her by the arms before she could enter her vehicle. The suspect then forced one of her hands onto his crotch.”
Six projects are slated to receive $3.5 million in funding in the fourth and final round of appropriations from 2012’s $11 million Neighborhood Conservation Bond.
The projects are:
School Board Chair Abby Raphael sent a letter to community members last month notifying them that the Board was considering diverting $4.5 million in design funds — slated for a new elementary school next to Kenmore Middle School in Glencarlyn — to relieving middle school overcrowding in North Arlington.
The elementary school was originally supposed to open in Glencarlyn in 2017. The plans are not the only changes Arlington Public Schools facilities could be due for when the Capital Improvements Plan for 2015-2024 is adopted in June — a move or expansion for H-B Woodlawn is also on the table.
Despite voters approving $4.5 million in design costs for the school in a 2012 referendum, the Board is looking at diverting that investment to prepare for middle school overcrowding in the coming years, which is projected to be more serious than the capacity issues in elementary schools.
School Board Chair Abby Raphael, in a letter sent to parents and community members who have inquired about the issue, says its updated projections call for elementary schools in Arlington to be 3 percent over capacity in FY 2019, while middle schools are projected to be 16 percent over capacity in the same time period.
Tonight (Friday), starting at 6:00 p.m., an opening celebration will be held for the newly-renovated High View Park, located at 1945 N. Dinwiddie Street, within the boundaries of the John M. Langston Civic Association.
Renovations to the park include new play areas, an ADA accessible route from Cameron Street, new benches, and a picnic area.
