Housing and the County Budget — A new Greater Greater Washington article explores ways to add new housing at a time when Arlington County is facing a serious budget gap. [GGW]
Trails Treacherous for Cyclists — Despite efforts to plow local trails, many stretches in Arlington were still icy or snow-covered yesterday. [Twitter]
Gymboree Expected to Close — “Children’s clothing retailer Gymboree Group Inc. is expected to seek bankruptcy protection this week, with plans to close all 900 of its stores, according to people familiar with the matter.” The company has a Gymboree location at the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City mall. [Wall Street Journal]
A First for the Local Real Estate Market — “The Arlington real estate market for 2018 was essentially flat compared to a year before – while, for the first time, the average sales price of single-family homes topped the $1 million mark.” [InsideNova]
Update at 10 p.m. — Arlington Public Schools will be closed Tuesday.
“Because we anticipate hazardous driving and walking conditions on some neighborhood sidewalks and bus stops throughout the County due to freezing tonight, all APS Schools will be closed,” the school system said. School offices will open at 10 a.m.
(Updated at 2:25 p.m.) The snowflakes have finally stopped falling, and now Arlingtonians are starting to dig out from the first big snow storm of the new year.
With county schools and offices all closed (to say nothing of the federal government), traffic is light on area roads and highways. All Arlington Department of Parks and Recreation facilities have also since been closed, and all programs cancelled.
Update at 10:25 p.m. — Arlington County government will be closed Monday. As a result, there will be no curbside trash pickup Monday; service will resume when the county government reopens. Arlington snow crews are also reverting back to “Phase 2” of the county’s snow plan, meaning plows will stop treating neighborhood streets and will resume treating primary and secondary arterial streets only.
Arlington County government offices, courts, & facilities are closed tomorrow Monday, 01-14-2019. If possible, stay off the roads while snow removal efforts continue throughout the day. pic.twitter.com/gf3lrIabKr
Update at 3:30 p.m. — All Arlington Public Schools will be closed Monday, the school system just announced.
APS Alert: All APS schools and offices will be closed on Monday, January 14. Essential personnel should report to work at their scheduled time. Extracurricular activities, games, team practices, field trips, adult education classes, and programs on school grounds are canceled.
Few crashes or major problems have been reported on Arlington roads so far today (Saturday), but this weekend’s snowstorm is only getting started.
Many streets around the county are becoming increasingly snow-covered, though traffic is light and many seem to be heeding advice to stay at home rather than go out.
Update on 1/12/19 — Arlington is now under a Winter Storm Warning.
Winter Storm Warnings & Advisories are in effect for today into Sunday as snow overspreads from west to east. See images for details on start time, most likely snow amounts, & current advisories/warnings. For more, including probabilistic information, see https://t.co/t54l4ELo2o. pic.twitter.com/fQ6x1pW0BF
Crews Pre-Treating Roads — Arlington County crews are pre-treating arterial streets with brine ahead of expected snow this weekend. The forecast currently calls for “light to moderate snowfall,” with perhaps 3-4 inches of accumulation. [Twitter, Capital Weather Gang]
Long-Time Resident Marries in Family’s Cemetery — Austin Thomas, an 11th generation Arlingtonian, wed real estate agent Justin Kafka last summer in the rose garden of Arlington’s Columbia Gardens Cemetery, which Thomas’ family owns. [Arlington Magazine]
Snow Coming This Weekend — Gas up the snowblowers: accumulating snow is likely this weekend. By county ordinance, all snowfall under 6 inches must be removed from sidewalks within 24 hours of the last flakes. That gets bumped up to 36 hours for 6 or more inches of snow. [Capital Weather Gang]
New ‘Best of Arlington’ List — The 2019 “Best of Arlington” list is in. Among food-related winners, Ambar was named Best Restaurant, Barley Mac was named Best for Date Night and Matt Hill of Liberty Tavern Group and Hungry was named Best Chef. [Arlington Magazine]
Menorah Lighting in Clarendon Tonight — “Arlington Police Chief Jay Farr will light the menorah at a Chanukah Festival of Lights ceremony, to be held on Wednesday, Dec. 5 at 6 p.m. at Clarendon Central Park.” [InsideNova]
County Spraying Brine on Roads — Ahead of a possible snowstorm this weekend, the odds of which are increasing, Arlington County is applying brine to some local roadways. [Twitter]
Rare, Tropical Dragonfly Spotted in Arlington — “There was quite the discovery at this year’s Bioblitz in Glencarlyn Park. After a photo posted on the crowd-sourcing tracker, iNaturalist, started to spark a lot of interest… the consensus was that what had been photographed was a Great Pondhawk Dragonfly (Erythemis vesiculosa).” [Arlington County]
Frost Fest Rescheduled — Frost Fest at Pentagon Row, originally planned for Saturday, has been rescheduled due to expected rainy weather. It will now take place this Sunday from 4-7 p.m. [Twitter]
