The Arlington County Police Department has released surveillance video of Tuesday’s smash and grab robbery at Pentagon City mall in the hopes the public can help identify the suspects.
Pentagon City mall
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(Updated at 2:50 p.m.) A group of robbers got away with $609,000 worth of Rolex watches in a smash and grab robbery at Pentagon City mall this morning.
According to police, four men wearing ski masks and gloves entered the Tourneau watch store, near the main S. Hayes Street entrance to the mall, around 10:30 a.m. The men smashed the front of a display case with a hammer, then grabbed 23 Rolex watches valued at $609,000, police said.
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Pentagon City Mall Renovations — Coming on the heels of the news that Ballston Common Mall will be getting a revamp, the owners of Fashion Centre at Pentagon City announced plans to renovate that mall as well. Although no formal plan has been revealed, changes could include adding office space or apartments. Renovations for the 24-year-old mall would be paid for out of a pot of about $1 billion that Simon Property Group Inc. has set aside for updating its properties. [Washington Business Journal]
Fire Hydrant Color Meaning — Arlington doesn’t have one standard color for fire hydrants; instead, the county adopted a coloring system in the 1990s indicating the flow of water at each particular hydrant. Blue hydrants have water flow above 1,500 gallons per minute (gpm), green is between 1,000 and 1,500 gpm, orange is 500 to 1,000 gpm and red is below 500 gpm. The color scheme allows firefighters to quickly determine if one hydrant will be enough to fight a fire, or if a water relay system is necessary. [Washington Post]
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The Arlington County Police Department has released surveillance footage of today’s smash-and-grab robbery at the Zales jewelry store in the Pentagon City mall.
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Update at 5:10 p.m. — Police have released surveillance video of the robbery.
A group of men armed with hammers smashed a jewelry store display counter at the Pentagon City mall and fled with handfuls of jewelry.
School Enrollment Surging — Enrollment in Arlington Public Schools is now projected to increase from 22,657 pre-K to 12th grade students today to 30,777 students by the 2023-24 school year. The projections suggest that enrollment will near 27,000 by the 2017-18 school year, breaking the previous record for APS enrollment. [Sun Gazette]
Ukrainian Mayor Presents Library With Sculpture — Viktor Anushkevychus, the mayor of Ivano-Frankivsk, Arlington’s sister city in Ukraine, presented Arlington Central Library with a metal sculpture of a tree yesterday. [Arlington Public Library]
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On Thursday, Jan. 3, a man posing as a police detective entered two stores in the Pentagon City mall, flashed a badge and said he needed to seize a number of wristwatches as “evidence in a case,” according to ACPD. Store employees weren’t fooled, and they asked the man to leave the store. Then, they called the real police.
“The suspect is described as a black male, approximately 5’8” tall and 170 lbs,” according to an ACPD press release. “At the time of the incident he was wearing dark colored jeans, a gray jacket and a red and black plaid hat.”
The Williams-Sonoma gourmet food and cookware store at Pentagon City mall is closing after this week.
The store’s last day in business will be Sunday, Jan. 20, according to a sign at the entrance. Until then, the store is offering display items for up to 50 percent off.
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Streetcar Referendum Might Be Necessary — Arlington County might be forced to hold a bond referendum for the Columbia Pike streetcar if it’s unable to sell a certain type of revenue bond to partially fund the $250 million project. For now, the project is awaiting word on whether it will receive up to $75 million in federal funding. [Sun Gazette]
Higher-End Stores at Pentagon City Mall — The Fashion Centre at Pentagon City has undergone a transformation that brought higher-end “aspirational luxury” stores to the mall. Recent addition to the malls include Oakley, Sperry, Mezlan and Cole Haan. Among the stores that have recently left is Aeropostale, which was forced out by a Microsoft Store. [Washington Post]
The auditions will take place at the mall from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Previously only open to women, this latest round of tryouts are open to both men and women, between the ages of 18 and 27. A list of eligibility requirements and a required 100+ question application are both available via the DC50 website.
The auditions will be followed by a private screening for the new show The Carrie Diaries, a “prequel” to the hit HBO show Sex and the City. The screening will take place at 5:00 p.m.; interested viewers must register online.
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A man robbed the Currency Exchange store at the Pentagon City mall on Chrismas Eve by implying that he had a weapon, according to police.
No weapon was seen, but the man was able to flee the scene after obtaining cash. From this week’s Arlington County crime report:
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(Updated at 1:20 p.m.) Two new stores are coming to the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, while another is closing at Pentagon Row.
A new Oakley store and a new Sperry store are both under construction on the second level of the shopping mall. The stores are directly adjacent to one another. Oakley is best known for its sunglasses, while Sperry is best known for its boat shoes. Oakley also sells clothing and Sperry sells other types of footwear.