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Morning Notes

Published April 20, 2011 at 7:30AM | Updated April 20, 2011 at 1:21PM

HOT Lanes Lawsuit Bill Reaches $2 Million — The county emerged victorious in February when VDOT abandoned its plan to build High Occupancy Toll lanes on I-395. But the legal battle has proven costly. The lawsuit Arlington filed against the project has cost county taxpayers nearly $2 million. [Sun Gazette]

East Falls Church Dissent Goes Both Ways — Sometimes it can be hard to please everybody in Arlington. Charlie Clark reports that there were three different camps at Saturday’s County Board meeting with respect to the board’s vote on the East Falls Church development plan. One group wanted more development than was called for, another vocal group wanted less development, and the people who drafted the plan thought it struck a good balance. [Falls Church News-Press]

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Cuccinelli Rips Arlington For HOT Lanes Suit

By ARLnow.com

Published February 15, 2011 at 10:38AM

This time, Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is taking a few pointed shots at the county for its lawsuit against High Occupancy Toll lanes on I-395.

Forget the fact that the county has agreed to withdraw the lawsuit and the state has, for now, decided not to move forward with the I-395 portion of the HOT lanes project. In a statement, Cuccinelli piled on and called the lawsuit “dirty,” “legal thuggery” and “wildly unfounded.”

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BREAKING NEWS — Judge Dismisses Dog Mural Lawsuit

By ARLnow.com

Published February 11, 2011 at 4:08PM | Updated February 11, 2011 at 5:13PM

Kim Houghton, the owner of Wag More Dogs (2606 S. Oxford Street), sued Arlington County after zoning officials declared her store’s mural of dogs, bones and paw prints — which faces the Shirlington dog park — to be a form of commercial speech and in violation of the county’s sign ordinance. U.S. District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema dismissed the lawsuit today “with prejudice.”

Undeterred, Houghton vowed to keep fighting.

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Arlington Will Withdraw HOT Lanes Suit

By ARLnow.com

Published February 8, 2011 at 6:15PM

Arlington County announced tonight that it will be withdrawing its controversial lawsuit against the proposed High Occupancy Toll lane project on I-395. VDOT revealed last week that it’s no longer pursuing HOT lanes on the Arlington and Alexandria portions of I-395, at least partially due to Arlington’s suit.

The county issued the following press release about its decision to halt legal action against the HOT lanes plan.

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TV Discussion of HOT Lanes Gets Heated

By ARLnow.com

Published February 8, 2011 at 9:16AM

In case you missed it from Friday (we did), County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman was a guest on TBD’s NewsTalk with Bruce DePuyt program.

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Local Officials Celebrate HOT Lanes Decision

By ARLnow.com

Published February 3, 2011 at 1:51PM

Arlington County officials and local lawmakers are celebrating VDOT’s decision to scrap its plan to build High Occupancy Toll lanes on the Arlington and Alexandria portion of I-395.

Here’s the county’s official press release:

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County Emerges Victorious As State Gives Up HOT Lanes Plan

By ARLnow.com

Published February 3, 2011 at 5:01AM | Updated February 3, 2011 at 10:36AM

Virginia Transportation Secretary Sean Connaughton announced today that the state is no longer pursuing its I-395 HOT lanes plan, which the county blocked by filing suit in 2009. VDOT is also canceling plans to upgrade the Shirlington and Eads Street interchanges.

Just hours before the project’s demise was first revealed by the Washington Post, County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman sent a five-page letter to two top Virginia lawmakers further explaining Arlington’s effort to block the HOT lanes project.

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Richmond Bites Back on HOT Lanes Suit By Blocking Tax Bill

By ARLnow.com

Published January 21, 2011 at 4:12PM | Updated January 21, 2011 at 4:47PM

The lawsuit, which has thus far cost the county about $1.5 million in legal fees, was filed in order to block VDOT’s plan to build High Occupancy Toll lanes on I-395. The suit has been ruffling feathers in Richmond ever since, but on Wednesday it came back to bite the county on a key legislative priority.

Del. Tim Hugo (R) of Fairfax County used his chairmanship of a House finance subcommittee to delay action on HB 1513, Del. Bob Brink’s bill that would extend Arlington’s 0.25 percent hotel tax surcharge for another three years.

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Views at Clarendon Lawsuit Dismissed, Again

By ARLnow.com

Published December 27, 2010 at 8:45AM | Updated December 27, 2010 at 4:36PM

In 2004, the county gave its blessing to a plan that would build an eight story affordable apartment complex, known as The Views at Clarendon, on top of the First Baptist Church of Clarendon. The plan was touted for its ability to increase the affordable housing stock in Clarendon while paying for the construction of a new church sanctuary.

The developer would buy property from the church, thus supporting the sanctuary construction, and then pay for the apartment building’s construction with the help of nearly $50 million in loans and tax breaks from the county, the state and the federal government.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published December 20, 2010 at 6:00AM

Santa Visits Cherrydale — More than 300 children swarmed the Cherrydale Fire Station on Sunday afternoon, taking home free presents, stuffed stockings and fresh memories of Santa Claus. The children were beneficiaries of the 80th annual Christmas celebration sponsored by the Cherrydale Volunteer Fire Department. — Michael Doyle

End in Sight For HOT Lanes Suit? — After more than $1 million in legal costs, could the county’s lawsuit over HOT lanes on I-395 be nearing an end? Arlington “has had several positive negotiations that could lead to a settlement outside of court,” reports Ben Giles of the Washington Examiner, citing an interview with County Attorney Stephen MacIsaac.

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Score One for Cuccinelli’s Health Care Lawsuit

By ARLnow.com

Published December 13, 2010 at 1:36PM | Updated December 13, 2010 at 2:49PM

Today, in response to Cuccinelli’s lawsuit, a federal judge ruled that a key provision in the health care law which requires individuals to obtain health insurance is unconstitutional. Obama administration lawyers are planning to appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In a short Twitter message, Cuccinelli refrained from taking a long victory lap.

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County Prepares to Fight Sign Lawsuit

By ARLnow.com

Published December 8, 2010 at 2:00PM | Updated December 8, 2010 at 2:48PM

County Attorney Stephen MacIsaac says the county has a number of arguments to counter the lawsuit’s claims. The suit argues that regulators are infringing on a small business owner’s free speech by deeming a large mural painted on the side of her building a commercial sign and not artwork.

“I think it should be fairly apparent under the sign ordinance that this is a sign,” MacIsaac said. The mural is “clearly an effort to promote this woman’s business… to depict it as public art, I think, is a bit of a stretch.”