John Vihstadt | ARLnow.com

Morning Notes

Published July 24, 2018 at 8:30AM

‘Life-Threatening’ Flooding Possible Throughout D.C. Region — The flash flood watch for Arlington continues through early Wednesday morning, with a “water hose in the sky” expected to blast the region with rain over the next two days. [Twitter, Washington Post]

Defense Spending Juices Hiring in Northern Virginia — From Arlington to D.C.’s more far-flung suburbs, the Trump administration has meant big business for contractors in Northern Virginia. Federal employment numbers may be shrinking, but the area added 12,800 jobs over the past year, including 5,700 federal contractors. [Washington Post]

News

Vihstadt Backs Kaine Over Stewart for Senate, Says the Republican Nominee ‘Sows Fear’

By Alex Koma

Published July 23, 2018 at 2:45PM

County Board member John Vihstadt at Rosslyn streetscape announcement

Ahead of his own tough re-election bid, independent County Board member John Vihstadt says he plans to support Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) this fall, spurning Republican nominee Corey Stewart.

Vihstadt, the first non-Democrat to sit on the Board since 1999, has long defied easy political characterizations. He won office in 2014 with the backing of both the county’s GOP and Green Party, earned the endorsement of several elected Democrats and has donated to Republicans and Democrats alike over the years.

News

Podcast: Democratic County Board Nominee Matt de Ferranti

By Alex Koma

Published July 20, 2018 at 2:45PM

Matt de Ferranti is running for County Board as a Democrat

Fresh off a commanding primary win, Democrat Matt de Ferranti has the next four months to make his case to Arlington voters about why they should oust incumbent County Board member John Vihstadt in his favor.

De Ferranti, a lawyer and local political activist, has the benefit of running as a Democrat in deep blue Arlington, particularly in a midterm cycle that’s shaping up to be quite favorable to Democrats at the top of the ticket. But Vihstadt, the Board’s lone independent, won his seat in another midterm year, back in 2014, and has incumbency to lean on as he campaigns for another term.

News

Vihstadt Amasses Robust Campaign War Chest to Fend Off de Ferranti

By Alex Koma

Published July 17, 2018 at 3:45PM | Updated July 17, 2018 at 4:17PM

County Board member John Vihstadt speaks after being sworn in

(Updated at 4:15 p.m.) County Board member John Vihstadt is assembling a sizable campaign war chest to support his re-election bid, with roughly three times as much cash on hand as Democratic challenger Matt de Ferranti.

Vihstadt, the Board’s lone independent, reported having just over $99,870 in the bank through June 30 on campaign finance documents released yesterday (Monday). He reported raising about $21,700 in the month of June alone, and has now pulled in a total of nearly $112,000 in contributions since last January.

News

Vihstadt Argues for Another Delay of Long Bridge Park Aquatics Center

By Alex Koma

Published July 9, 2018 at 10:55AM

Long Bridge Park aquatics center family pool (via Arlington County)

County Board member John Vihstadt is renewing his push to delay the construction of the Long Bridge Park aquatics center.

Vihstadt is waging a lonely battle against the oft-postponed project as the county’s budget picture grows increasingly grim. He says the $60 million the county’s set to spend on the new pool would be better spent on building new schools or buying additional park land, particularly considering that Arlington is feeling a financial squeeze at the moment.

News

With a Low-Turnout Primary Win Under His Belt, de Ferranti Looks to November

By Alex Koma

Published June 13, 2018 at 1:45PM

Matt de Ferranti scored a decisive, 20-point win in his bid to become the Democratic nominee for the Arlington County Board — but with that success comes the daunting task of figuring out how to beat an incumbent who twice put up double-digit margins of victory four years ago.

De Ferranti, an advocate for Native American education, didn’t have much trouble overcoming cybersecurity professional Chanda Choun in yesterday’s primary. He earned more than 7,000 of the roughly 11,500 votes cast, and lost just two precincts to Choun, even though both were first-time candidates.

News

De Ferranti Touts Experience, Choun Promises a ‘Different Voice’ Ahead of County Board Primary

By Alex Koma

Published June 11, 2018 at 1:45PM

For about a month, it seemed as if Matt de Ferranti would be the only Democrat to throw his hat in the ring and run for County Board this fall.

With the Board’s lone non-Democrat, independent John Vihstadt, up for re-election, local party activists have been eyeing 2018 for years now. Yet, when de Ferranti announced his bid in January, he didn’t have much in the way of competition from his fellow Democrats, a stark departure from the surge in Democratic candidates in other races across the state.

News

County Funds New Study to Help Solve DCA Aircraft Noise Woes

By Alex Koma

Published June 4, 2018 at 10:50AM | Updated June 4, 2018 at 11:45AM

(Updated at 11:45 a.m) Arlington is teaming up with some of its neighbors to the north to somehow find a solution to the persistent problem of aircraft noise generated by Reagan National Airport.

County Board members Libby Garvey and John Vihstadt announced last Friday (June 1) that Arlington and Montgomery County, Maryland have agreed to both chip in funds for a consultant to study the issue starting this year.

News

Democratic County Board Hopefuls Clash Over Gondola Funding, How to Beat John Vihstadt

By Alex Koma

Published May 3, 2018 at 1:45PM

The two contenders for the Democratic nomination for Arlington County Board spent most of their May 2 debate in agreement on a wide range of issues — with one gondola-sized exception.

Chanda Choun and Matthew de Ferranti took turns emphasizing the need for more affordable housing and economic development in the county during the forum, which was held in Ballston and hosted by the Arlington County Democratic Committee. Both Democratic hopefuls had plenty of criticisms of the record of the man they’re hoping to knock off this November: County Board member John Vihstadt, an independent.

News

Democratic County Board Contenders Debate Tonight

By Alex Koma

Published May 2, 2018 at 2:45PM

The two Democrats vying for the chance to run for a seat on the Arlington County Board this fall will square off in another debate tonight.

The Arlington County Democratic Committee will host the debate between Chanda Choun and Matthew de Ferranti at 7 p.m. at the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association building in Ballston. Karen Nightengale, president of Arlington’s chapter of the NAACP, will moderate the event.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published February 22, 2018 at 8:15AM

Record Warm Temperatures — Yesterday’s high temperature of 82 degrees was the hottest it has ever been this early in the year. Records were set at all three D.C. area airports. [Twitter, Capital Weather Gang]

Fatal Fall in Clarendon — The man who fell from the roof of a building in Clarendon last week died, police confirmed Wednesday. “The subject was transported to the hospital by Arlington County Fire Department medics where he was later pronounced deceased,” said Arlington County Police spokeswoman Ashley Savage. “The police department is conducting an active death investigation and nothing in the investigation has lead us to categorize the death as suspicious.” [Twitter]

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published January 29, 2018 at 9:15AM

ARLnow’s Eighth Birthday — Today is the eighth anniversary of the founding of ARLnow.com. Here is our first post ever.

Sexual Harassment FOIA Folo — In a follow-up to our FOIA request seeking any records of sexual harassment or assault allegations against senior Arlington officials since 2000 — no such records were found — we asked about any such cases, against any county employee, that were handled by the County Attorney’s office over the past decade. The response from the county’s FOIA officer: “There are no records responsive to your request because no such cases exist.” The last publicly reported case was that against an Arlington police officer in 2007.