Arlington County is seeking input on its rules for public signage, including sandwich boards outside businesses and political signs in median strips.
A public feedback form is open through Nov. 30, inquiring about respondents’ comfort levels with existing signage in sidewalks, medians and other public places as part of the county’s Commercial Market Resiliency Initiative.
County staff are gearing up to start public outreach on potentially tighter regulations for impermeable surfaces in Arlington’s low-density residential neighborhoods.
Arlington County currently regulates lot coverage in these neighborhoods, but incremental changes to properties — such as adding patios and walkways — can cover more and more of a parcel with surfaces that don’t absorb water. This can increase the risk of flooding and more intense heat in surrounding areas.
Looser parking restrictions for businesses have arrived in Arlington.
The Arlington County Board unanimously voted on Tuesday to reduce parking minimums for many commercial establishments, while also removing some red tape around off-site parking and shared parking lots.
Looser parking requirements could encourage more gyms and shops to fill Arlington’s commercial real estate vacancies, the county believes.
The Arlington County Board on Saturday unanimously voted to have staff research possible changes to the Arlington County Zoning Ordinance and advertise requests to amend it. In addition to slashing parking minimums for gyms, the county is considering whether to allow parking lots to designate more spaces for compact cars.
A year into new stormwater requirements for single-family home projects, homebuilders and remodelers say even the improved process is laborious and expensive, costing homeowners extra money.
On the other hand, Arlington County says that permit review times have shortened and that the program will be evaluated for possible improvements.
(Updated 4:05 p.m.) Arlington restaurants can now apply to increase the number of diners they are permitted to serve indoors and outdoors, according to Arlington Economic Development.
The county is allowing restaurants to temporarily up their maximum capacity so that the eateries can keep using — and possibly expand — their pandemic-era temporary outdoor seating areas (TOSAs), even as indoor capacity restrictions have lifted, the AED newsletter to local businesses said.
Responding to increasing storms, flooding and ongoing development, Arlington County will be changing its stormwater management regulations for single-family home construction projects.
The new requirements — and how they came about — have developers worried.
Arlington was almost poised to get rid of a “redundant” regulation for contractors this past weekend.
The Arlington County Board was slated to consider revising a chapter of county code related to home improvement regulations during its meeting this past Saturday, November 16. Specifically, members were scheduled to vote on nixing a requirement for home improvement contractors to match county regulations with state regulations.
At least one County Board member could be pushing to change setback regulations in a bid to provide more of a buffer between homes.
Arlington County Board member Libby Garvey recently visited an infill residential development on N. River Street, near McLean, with several neighbors she said were upset that a developer clear-cut trees on the lot and is planning to build several homes that could be located close to the neighbors.
Arlington may soon be making electric scooters a more or less permanent fixture of the county’s streets and sidewalks.
The County Board will vote on an ordinance change during its meeting this Saturday, November 16 to allow e-scooter companies to operate in Arlington — provided companies fulfill the requirements of a new permitting system starting next year.
Food trucks lovers in Arlington may now have more opportunities to buy their meals on wheels thanks to newly loosened regulations.
The Arlington County Board approved a series of code changes during its meeting this weekend that open up more parking areas for food trucks and also allow the trucks to operate later into the night. Members voted unanimously in support of the changes as part of their consent agenda for the Saturday, September 21 meeting.
The Arlington County Board is scheduled to vote Saturday (May 18) on a series of changes that would loosen restrictions on Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs).
ADUs are residential dwellings built on existing properties that are separate from the primary residence, like a basement apartment or a standalone structure — sometimes called a “granny flat.”
