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Morning Notes

Published December 1, 2021 at 7:30AM

Jerome Bracey hangs an ornament on the tree in the plaza at Pentagon Row (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Carbeque on I-395 — A car was engulfed in flames on I-395 near Shirlington Circle last night. Southbound and HOV lanes were blocked as firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze. Most lanes reopened by 8:30 p.m. [Twitter, Twitter]

YHS Runner Advances to National Meet — “Yorktown High School’s Owen McArdle has qualified to run in a national-championship race. By virtue of finishing fifth in 15:05.49 at the Eastbay South Regional boys championship high-school cross country meet, the senior earned a spot in Eastbay’s boys national meet Dec. 11 in San Diego. The top 10 finishers in region meets earn a berth to race in the nationals. The winning time at the South Region meet was 15:00.31.” [Sun Gazette]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published October 27, 2021 at 7:30AM

Another APS Sexual Harassment Incident — “The most recent case of sexual harassment being discussed on social media happened at Swanson Middle School. Students told their parents two weeks ago cheerleaders were being called sexual names and having their body parts touched inappropriately during the school day. The Swanson Middle School principal sent out a letter alerting families… Some say that was only revealed after the community caught wind of the incident which makes them now question — how many situations are not brought to light?” [Fox 5]

Two Libraries Reopening on Sundays — “The slow resumption of Arlington library hours continues on Oct. 31, when Central Library and the Columbia Pike branch will resume Sunday service for the first time since the onset of the pandemic. Those two libraries will be open 1 to 5 p.m. on Sundays.” [Sun Gazette]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published September 2, 2021 at 7:30AM

New Rosslyn Food Hall Now Open — “Assembly, the area’s latest food hall, located above the Rosslyn Metro stop in Arlington, hopes to entice you by taking a something-for-everyone approach, including plenty of healthy-ish options. Their lineup includes Great Lake Diner; Charo’s vegetarian tacos; Asian street food stall Beng Beng; GiGi’s salads, smoothies, and grain bowls; Big Day Coffee; sandwich joint Sammy Pickles; modern-minded bodega PNTRY; and Fog Point, a 40-seat sit-down oysters and seafood restaurant with a separate entrance.” [DCist]

Abduction Suspect Arrested in Va. Square — “The victim was inside a business when the suspect approached and attempted to engage her in conversation. The suspect then left the business, but remained seated outside. When the victim left the business, the suspect followed her into a neighboring building and onto an elevator, where he again attempted to engage her in conversation, advanced towards her, grabbed her waist and touched her buttocks. The victim attempted to step away but the suspect prevented her from exiting the elevator.” [ACPD]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published August 30, 2021 at 7:30AM | Updated August 30, 2021 at 9:00AM

Local Real Estate Market Slowing — “When it comes to housing prices and sales, red-hot Arlington County cooled a bit last month compared to last summer — a modest slowdown that the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors says was typical throughout the region. NVAR reports the median price of a home that sold in Arlington County last month was 9% lower than a year ago, and the average number of days on the market, or how long it took to sell a home, was up 35% compared to last July.” [WTOP]

County Board Still Opposes Gondola — “This week, all five members of the Arlington County Board confirmed to the Washington Business Journal their position hasn’t changed. Even the two new Democrats to join the board since it penned that 2017 letter — current Chair Matt de Ferranti and Takis Karantonis — said in interviews that they remain unconvinced, despite the proponents’ recent success in pushing the District to budget $10 million toward the purchase of a potential D.C. landing site near the Key Bridge.” [Washington Business Journal]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published August 13, 2021 at 7:30AM

Vax Mandade for County, APS Employees — “Arlington County Government and Arlington Public Schools (APS) will implement a COVID-19 vaccination mandate for employees. This joint action, effective August 30, is a necessary step to help keep the community safe and is consistent with COVID-19 public health guidance. This policy will also apply to interns, volunteers, substitutes, and contractors… All unvaccinated employees will be required to be tested at least weekly for COVID-19 to limit the potential spread in the workforce and in the community. Testing will be provided at no cost to the employee.” [Arlington County]

Mask Mandate for Va. Schools — “Virginia will require all students, teachers and staff in K-12 schools to wear masks indoors this fall, even if they are vaccinated, Gov. Ralph Northam (D) announced Thursday. The mandate, set forth in a public health emergency order, is sure to stir controversy and anger amid an already fractious debate over education in the state.” [Washington Post, Gov. Ralph Northam]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published August 11, 2021 at 7:30AM | Updated August 11, 2021 at 9:51AM

Amazon Makes $1 Million Donation — “Amazon today announced it will continue its commitment to the Right Now Needs Fund in Northern Virginia for the upcoming academic year with an additional $1 million investment to support students attending Arlington Public Schools, Alexandria City Public Schools, and Fairfax County Public Schools. The Fund, in partnership with Communities In Schools NOVA, helps remove barriers to learning and works to meet the basic needs of thousands of schoolchildren from underserved communities.” [BusinessWire]

New Portion of DCA Has WeWork Vibes — “There’s a cool WeWork feel to @Reagan_Airport’s new section of Terminal C. Prefer these or old school airport seating? Smart marketing on bottom of departure screens, too.” [Twitter]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 29, 2021 at 7:30AM

Manafort Home Up for Sale — A house in the Clarendon area that was once sought as a forfeiture to the federal government as part of the case against Paul Manafort is now up for sale. The house is owned by Manafort’s daughter, though the feds once argued that it was paid for by Manafort with money transferred from a shell company in Cyprus. The 4 bedroom, 3.5 bath home is listed for $2.35 million. Manafort was pardoned by President Trump late last year. [Realtor.com]

Northam Announces Mental Health Funding — “Governor Ralph Northam today announced that the Commonwealth will commit $485 million in federal and state funding to address pressing challenges in Virginia’s behavioral health system. The plan includes targeted investments to alleviate pressure on state mental health hospitals, strengthen community-based services, and increase support for substance abuse treatment and prevention programs. The Governor made the announcement at the Arlington County Community Services Board and was joined by Senator Adam Ebbin and Delegates Mark Sickles, Patrick Hope, and Alfonso Lopez.” [Press Release, Twitter, Twitter]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 26, 2021 at 5:00AM | Updated July 26, 2021 at 9:02AM

Haze and heat over the National Mall, seen from the Netherlands Carillon (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Prelude to Speed Cameras in Arlington — “This week the D.C. region’s Transportation Planning Board announced it is awarding a $60,000 grant to help Arlington with its plans to install the first-ever speed cameras in the county. The TPB says the money will go towards consulting services to help Arlington County install speed cameras in a fair, data-driven manner.” [WJLA]

NAACP Wanted Stronger Police Oversight — “Despite the County Board’s recent adoption of a Community Oversight Board (COB) ordinance, we are disappointed that the County Board refused to adopt the General Assembly-approved authority for the COB to be truly independent and to make binding disciplinary determinations. Nevertheless, we will work with all parties to ensure that the process is equitable and transparent.” [Press Release]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published July 16, 2021 at 7:30AM

Peak Heat, Statistically Speaking — “Based on history, we are now at the hottest point of the summer. While it can still be brutally hot in the weeks ahead (and probably will be at times), we are about to begin our gradual descent into winter, using average temps.” [Capital Weather Gang, Twitter]

Arlington Home Prices Keep Rising — “A total of 369 properties went to closing last month, up 62 percent from 228 in June 2020… The average price of single-family homes in the county was $1,217,376 last month, up 9.8 percent from $1,109,179.” [Sun Gazette]

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Dittmar Looks to Use Furnished Apartments as Hotel Rooms

By Jo DeVoe

Published July 12, 2021 at 11:00AM

Facing high rates of pandemic-era apartment vacancies, Dittmar Company is looking to recoup its losses through short-term rentals.

The Tysons-based developer and property management group is asking the Arlington County Board for permission to convert up to 75 furnished apartment units in three Arlington buildings into flexible hotel rooms.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published June 16, 2021 at 7:30AM

High School Graduations Underway — “We are proud of the perseverance our seniors have shown this year. To honor them, we will hold in-person, outdoor events for the graduates of comprehensive high schools and programs, June 11 – June 18, on school grounds.” Wakefield and Washington-Liberty’s graduation ceremonies will be held today, and Yorktown’s will be held on Friday. [Arlington Public Schools]

Arlington Real Estate is Red Hot — “Homes that sold in Northern Virginia in May were on the market for an average of 13 days… In Arlington County, NVAR says sales are happening even faster. ‘When properties hit the market in May they were as good as sold the second they became active on the MLS,’ said Reggie Copeland, president-elect of NVAR and a principal broker at C.R. Copeland Real Estate.” [WTOP]

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How Telework Could Impact Arlington’s Office and Real Estate Markets

By Jo DeVoe

Published June 10, 2021 at 3:55PM | Updated June 11, 2021 at 8:40AM

(Updated at 8:40 a.m.) Some federal agencies are looking to continue remote and hybrid working options for employees post-pandemic — a shift with potential impacts on Arlington’s office and residential real estate markets.

The Biden administration expects White House staff to return for full-time, in-person work in July, but on Thursday federal agencies were told that they will be able to offer increased work-from-home flexibility, even after the pandemic. Remote work may become a permanent option for some federal workers, just as is happening for many private-sector workers.