As part of an expansion to 24 more stations, users at Rosslyn, Clarendon, Courthouse, Crystal City will now be able to access the free wireless internet. Free Wi-Fi is now offered at 30 underground Metro stations throughout the system.
Metro said it expects that all other underground Metro stations — which includes the likes of Ballston, Virginia Square and Pentagon City — to have free Wi-Fi by mid-2018.
By Brianna Hurwitz
Ring in the “new year new you” this New Year’s Eve at the top local bars and restaurants hosting events in Arlington listed below. Guarantee you and all your friends celebrate in style and watch the New Year’s Eve ball drop by purchasing your early bird ticket now before tickets sell out. Visit NewYearsEveDMV.com or Eventbrite.
Happy New Year (a day and some change early) from ARLnow.com!
Apparently, according to our recent poll, more than half of you will be just staying at home on New Year’s Eve. Sad!
Scanner traffic indicates that today officers are stopping at businesses that are holding celebrations tomorrow night. Police are doing preemptive safety checks, asking management about things like how many people each business expects for its celebration and how many employees or additional security staff will be present.
There are no known, specific threats to public safety in Arlington, according to police spokesman Capt. Bruce Benson, but ACPD will have extra officers in the Clarendon area on Saturday evening. Extra officers will also be on duty throughout the county to patrol for drunk drivers.
Teardown Business Booming — Arlington is one of the Northern Virginia areas that continue to see significant home teardown rates following the recession. The high land values make it more economical for many builders to tear down old homes and construct new ones rather than renovating existing structures. [Wall Street Journal]
Tech Company Moving to Arlington — Online stock video business VideoBlocks says it is moving from its long-time home in Reston to Arlington in 2017. The tech company’s growth is making the current 7,500-square-foot space too cramped, so the goal is to find an approximately 20,000-square-foot space in Arlington. [DC Inno]
Struggling Skyline Sold — Vornado has taken its properties in Skyline off of its balance sheet after the 2.6 million-square-foot, half-vacant complex sold at a foreclosure auction last week. The cancelled Columbia Pike streetcar project would have run to Skyline, with Fairfax County set to pay 20 percent of the project’s cost. [Washington Business Journal]
More on ‘Pop-Up’ Hotel — The inauguration will be the big test for WhyHotel, the “pop-up” hotel in the new Bartlett apartment building in Pentagon City. Developer Vornado sees this as an experiment that could yield temporary revenue while a building is leased up. Arlington County planning commissioner Erik Gutshall says the county could benefit from additional tax revenue and a more lively streetscape. [Washington Post]
While one might think of New Year’s as a time to get dressed up and head into the city — or, if you’re a parent, stay home and go to sleep at 12:05 a.m. — it seems that going out here in Arlington is also a popular choice.
Already, NYE parties at Don Tito and A-Town are completely sold out, according to their respective Eventbrite pages. Another big local NYE event at Sehkraft Brewing is nearly sold out, as of 10 a.m. Wednesday.
Want to stay in Arlington (or, at least, within a stone’s throw of Arlington) but still go out for New Year’s Eve?
Good news: With just over a week and a half until New Year’s Eve, there are plenty of local options still available for New Year’s procrastinators. A list of NYE parties that you can walk back from, if necessary, is below.
2015 was an eventful year in Arlington and with a changing economy and a new slate of County Board members, 2016 promises to be an interesting 12 months as well.
What are your New Year’s resolutions for Arlington? Feel free to discuss in the comments.
Free Late Night Metro Rides Tonight — Metrorail will run through 3 a.m. tonight, to accommodate New Year’s Eve revelers. Rides from midnight to 3 a.m. will be free, courtesy of Miller Lite. Tomorrow, on New Year’s Day, Metro will operate on a Sunday schedule, with service starting at 7 a.m. [Twitter, Twitter]
Last Minute NYE Options — Procrastinated on your New Year’s Eve plans? Our event calendar has some good suggestions, with events along the Orange Line and Columbia Pike. Some NYE events at popular Orange Line bars have already sold out of advance tickets. [ARLnow]
Where are those plans taking you? Many, no doubt, will stay in Arlington — either at home or at a bar, although Virginia ABC laws preventing establishments from offering an open bar puts a damper on the kind of parties one can attend at bars and clubs.
Many will also likely head into the District to take advantage of the myriad NYE parties, although transportation back is always a challenge. Wait for Metro, try to get one of the few available cabs, pay Uber’s top surge price, or designate a driver and try to find parking — the decision isn’t always ideal.
