Last week, we invited the candidates running in competitive races in the June 20 Democratic primary to write a post about why Arlington residents should vote for them. Find information on how and where to vote here.
Below is the unedited response from Barbara Favola, incumbent for Virginia State Senate – 40th District. Challenger James DeVita did not submit a response prior to publication time.
As your senator, I promised to bolster public education, make health care more affordable, pass climate change policies and make Virginia safer with common-sense gun safety measures. I have made considerable progress on these promises while honoring the values of equity and inclusiveness.
The most important investment we can make is in public education. I advocated to increase resources to low-income schools, enhance teacher pay, encourage the teaching of our complete history and reinforce the practice of making schools a welcoming place for all students. These successes were achieved in-spite of a prevailing anti-public education narrative and with the help of a Democratic majority in the Senate.
In the area of health care, I was the chief patron on legislation to prohibit surprise medical bills, contain medical debt and expand community-based MH services. My efforts also resulted in more funding for MH counselors in our schools. I successfully advocated for legislation to prohibit conversion therapy.
As chair of the Senate Women’s Reproductive Health Care Caucus, I fight everyday so all Virginians can make their own health care decisions without the interference of politicians. In this past session, I put Governor Youngkin on the defensive when he opposed my bill to protect menstrual health data. I am committed to protecting bodily autonomy in Virginia’s constitution.
To honor our commitment to the next generation, I passed a clean energy bill that will challenge Virginia to achieve 100% of its electricity sales from renewable sources by 2045. I serve on the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee and am a solid vote to protect our environment and keep us in REGGI.
As a member and former Chair of the Virginia Advisory Committee on Sexual and Domestic Violence, I have immersed myself in these important issues and succeeded in passing legislation to remove firearms from those convicted of assault and battery of a household member. I was a co-sponsor of Virginia’s red flag law and co-sponsored other common-sense gun safety measures.
As chair of the Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee. I have overseen major reforms in the operations of our local jails and prison system. My legislation to remove the death penalty from those who were seriously mentally ill at the time the crime was committed laid the groundwork for a repeal of the death penalty.
Additionally, I serve on Senate Rules, Local Government, Agriculture and Natural Resources, and Transportation. I have earned a reputation as a lawmaker “who gets it done”, a compassionate and fair leader, and an individual who has developed relationships across the aisle. These traits enable me to shape major priorities in my role as Democratic Whip. I have earned endorsements from the Virginia Education Association, LABOR, the VA Sierra Club, Emily’s List, VA NOW, a “Candidate of Distinction” notice from Moms Demand Action and many other groups.
I have always fought for a Commonwealth that encourages a shared prosperity and celebrates our diversity. My knowledge and experience as an Arlington County Board member combined with my 12 years in the Senate gives me an insight into Arlington’s values that no other candidate can match. I respectfully ask for your vote in the June 20 Democratic primary.
Sincerely,
Barbara Favola (D)
(Updated at 9:35 a.m. on 03/22/23) A second candidate has emerged for the open seat in Arlington’s new 2nd District in the Virginia House of Delegates.
Last week, Kevin Saucedo-Broach, a former Chief of Staff for Del. Alfonso Lopez (D-Arlington), announced his candidacy for the district, created after a 2021 redistricting process.
Saucedo-Broach, the treasurer for the Democratic Latino Caucus of Virginia, will run against Adele McClure, the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus executive director, in the Democratic primary this June.
According to the Virginia Public Access Project, Saucedo-Broach and McClure, who announced her candidacy more than a year ago, are the only two candidates in the running. Former candidate for state Senate and County Board Nicole Merlene withdrew last year after buying a home outside of the district’s boundaries.
If elected, Saucedo-Broach — who identifies as bisexual — says he would be the first openly LGBT legislator of color in Virginia’s history.
“It would be an incredible honor to bring my hometown’s progressive values of openness, compassion, and justice to the House of Delegates,” Saucedo-Broach said in a statement.
As Lopez’s chief of staff, he says he helped pass legislation that allowed undocumented residents to pay in-state college tuition rates and receive financial aid, as well as another that established the first statewide LGBT governmental advisory body in the South.
“As someone who has spent over a decade organizing to elect progressives in Virginia, I can’t sit on the sidelines while MAGA Republicans like Glenn Youngkin step up the attacks on low-income, immigrant families like mine to push an extremist agenda,” he continued. “I am more than ready to fight back and to take that fight all the way to Richmond.”
Saucedo-Broach is outspoken on LGBT equality, healthcare and anti-poverty measures.
Glenn Youngkin and Virginia Republicans are successfully banning LGBTQ+ safe spaces in Virginia schools.
For many queer kids, school is the only safe space they have.
Virginia Republicans would prefer to force queer kids to shut up and stay closeted, consequences be damned. https://t.co/bhfp0tMKT2
— Kevin Saucedo-Broach (@kevsaucebro) January 29, 2023
I'm running because I believe that Virginia has the potential to lead the nation in ending poverty and fostering prosperity for all—if we elect leaders who are 100% committed against rigged politics that ignore the needs of the working class!
— Kevin Saucedo-Broach (@KSBforVA) March 19, 2023
The fourth-generation Arlingtonian says healthcare reform in particular motivated him to get involved in politics.
“I started organizing a decade ago to help expand Virginia Medicaid, because I was terrified of what would happen to my mom if she couldn’t afford health insurance,” Saucedo-Broach said. “The struggle to access vital primary and mental healthcare services has deeply impacted my entire family and I know that far too many other people in our community are struggling with it, too.”
He says his grandmother died by suicide in Arlington in 1992.
“I’m running for Delegate to ensure that all Virginians have access to the kinds of services that could have saved her life, so we might keep other families from suffering the same pain mine has,” he said.
Saucedo-Broach notes that he is a longtime volunteer with Arlington County Democratic Committee, a former chair of the local party’s Latino Caucus, and former executive board member for its LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus.
District 2 mostly consists of the Metro corridor communities of Rosslyn, Courthouse, Clarendon, Crystal City and Pentagon City, and the single-family home neighborhoods surrounding them.
The Democratic primary will be held on Tuesday, June 20.
Two bills that would have given online-only local news publications like ARLnow some of the same privileges afforded legacy media outlets failed in Richmond over the past few weeks.
In the House of Delegates, HB 1920 would have included online local news publications that employ at least one full time journalist in an exemption from local Business, Professional, and Occupational License (BPOL) taxes.
Current statute exempts radio stations, television stations, newspapers, magazines, newsletters and “other publication[s] issued daily or regularly at average intervals not exceeding three months.” Online publications are not considered an “other publication” in Virginia, in part because the state exemption was originally passed in the late 1980s, before the advent of the modern commercial internet.
ARLnow’s parent company, which is based in Arlington and pays a mid-four-figure BPOL tax annually — nearly 10% of the company’s net income for 2022 — appealed the exclusion from the media outlet BPOL exemption to the Arlington Office of the Commissioner of Revenue in the fall. The office rejected the appeal, citing a 2020 Virginia Tax Commissioner ruling against a food blog that was also seeking the exemption.
Introduced by Del. Patrick Hope (D-Arlington), the bill garnered support from other Virginia online-only local news publishers but Arlington County officials expressed concern about a loss of tax revenue. Several other online publications, including Axios, are also based in Arlington.
HB 1920 was ultimately “laid on the table” by a House finance subcommittee, with committee members expressing both interest in studying the bill’s financial impact and surprise that legacy media outlets are excluded from BPOL.
Also considered this year was SB 1237, proposed by state Sen. Mark Obenshain (R-Harrisonburg), which would have given local governments and businesses the option of placing legal notice ads in qualifying online local news publications. Currently, such notices must be placed in printed newspapers to satisfy legal requirements.
Obenshain argued that numerous online-only local news publications have as many or more readers than their print counterparts, while citing the continued closure of print newspapers across the country, including the Richmond-area Chesterfield Observer earlier this month.
Here in Arlington, residents and County Board members have at times expressed frustration with the county placing its legal notices in the relatively lightly-circulated Washington Times newspaper. Board members, however, said that doing so is the most cost-effective way to meet state notice requirements and placing notices in the Washington Post, for instance, would be considerably more expensive.
Arlington County spent more than $37,000 with the Washington Times, an unabashedly conservative daily paper owned by an offshoot of the Unification Church, between fiscal years 2018 and 2019, according to a Freedom of Information Act response to a resident’s query in 2020.
The owners of ARLnow, Page Valley News and the MadRapp Recorder were among those to testify in favor of the bill last week. It was opposed by the Virginia Press Association and the publisher of InsideNoVa on the grounds that newspapers provide a permanent physical record of such notices and Virginia newspapers publishers already post notices online.
The state Senate’s judiciary committee ultimately voted 6-9 against the bill, after expressing concerns about which publications would qualify under SB 1237 and whether notices would be lost if online publications closed.
The vote was largely along party lines, with six GOP members voting in favor. Among those voting against it were members of the Democratic delegation from Fairfax County: Sen. Jennifer Boysko, Sen. Chap Petersen, Sen. Dick Saslaw and Sen. Scott Surovell. Previous attempts to pass a similar bill on the House side by Del. Hope have also failed in committee.
Online-only local news publishers who supported the bill — there are currently more than a dozen such local sites throughout the Commonwealth — have vowed to try again to gain bipartisan support for a modified version of this year’s bill during next year’s General Assembly session.
Separately, a bill from Del. Alfonso Lopez (D-Arlington) to provide tax credits that would benefit both print and online local news publishers, also failed in a House finance subcommittee. The bill, HB 2061, had the support of the Virginia Press Association.
Some potentially unwelcome news if you’re a K-12 student in Virginia: some in the legislature want to effectively end snow days.
From our Alexandria sister site ALXnow:
A new bill could mean the end of snow days for Virginia public schools.
Currently, during severe weather conditions, schools have the option to switch to remote learning. House Bill 1666, pre-filed yesterday by Del. Danny Marshall (R-Danville) would change that to a requirement rather than an option: school divisions must declare unscheduled remote learning days to provide instruction and student services.
The school divisions are also not allowed to claim more than 10 unscheduled remote learning days per year without an extension granted by the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
While snow days are forever popular among students and teachers, the change is likely spurred on by concerns about learning loss in Virginia students over the last few years. Before disheartened teachers and students start shaking their fists at the state legislature, it’s worth noting that Alexandria City Public Schools had already started moving in that direction.
Last January, when a snowstorm made a mess of local roads, Alexandria city schools went into virtual learning mode, while Arlington Public Schools gave students a couple of days off.
What do you think of replacing snow days with virtual learning days? Right call to boost learning or wrong call that would take away a bit of childhood tradition and provide some restorative days off?
(Updated at 8:50 a.m. on 11/17/22) Arlington County is looking to the state legislature to help with some key priorities, including combating malicious 911 calls and predatory towing.
These are two of many issues that the county intends to have local legislators lobby for in the upcoming 2023 Virginia General Assembly session, which runs for 45 days beginning on Jan. 11, 2023.
The county’s legislative priorities address public safety, energy, transportation, criminal justice reform, affordable housing and mental health, among other things. The list of priorities was drafted with input from local commissions, advisory groups, county staff, the County Board and community members.
On Saturday, Ilana Creinin, the legislative liaison for Arlington County, told the County Board that “swatting,” or fake calls to emergency services with the intent to draw out a police response, are on the rise, and the county would support legislation that would combat it. Recent examples include a false active shooter call at Washington-Liberty High School in September and a false report of a shooting inside a home in October.
“We want to make sure we’re able to combat the act of making a hoax communication to 911,” Creinin said. “We’ve seen in some of our schools there’s been an uptick in instances of people calling in false communications.”
A county report outlining the priorities did not say what kind of legislation it would support.
Meanwhile, Arlington County is looking to support legislation that provides parity for Northern Virginia, compared with the rest of the state, when pursuing litigation against towing companies through the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.
County Board member Takis Karantonis said he is “very happy” to “see push for consumer protection against predatory towing in our region.”
Del. Alfonso Lopez supported a bill last year, which failed, that would have given residents and localities more ability to protect themselves against bad-actor towing companies. The bill responded to public scrutiny of Ballston-based Advanced Towing, which is frequently accused of unsafe and predatory towing practices, though such accusations fizzled in court after the previous state Attorney General sued the company.
One legislative priority carried over from last year would address the state mental health crisis caused by a workforce shortage and a lack of beds in state-run mental hospitals.
With fewer staff to run them, the Commonwealth closed more than half of these hospitals to new admissions, overwhelming local hospitals and the Arlington County Police Department and driving fatigued county clinicians and Arlington police officers to quit.
“As you know, we’re still going through a large mental health crisis in our state with both staffing shortages and also a lack of state hospital beds,” said Creinin. “We want to work toward solving this crisis.”
Others respond to actions taken or proposed by the Republican-controlled state house or the administration of Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-Va.).
Water Main Break in Rosslyn — Updated at 7:50 a.m. — “Emergency Water Main Repairs: Crew working on 8-inch main at [Fairfax Drive and N. Lynn Street]. Some 100 customers could be affected.” [Twitter]
New Va. Laws Taking Effect Today — “Several new laws become effective across Virginia on July 1. This includes legislation pertaining to health care, transportation, economic development and law enforcement.” [Arlington County, FFXnow, ARLnow]
Local Dems Set Up Roe Page — “The Arlington County Democratic Committee has created an online resource to provide information on abortion and the political implications of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling sending the matter back to states.” [Sun Gazette]
Local Brothers Write Birding Book — “Maxwell and Danté Julius stealthily slip through a dirt path that cuts a serpentine route through Arlington County’s Long Branch Park and Nature Center. They’re equipped with binoculars, cameras and a permeating curiosity about the native birds of their home county. Together, the high school brothers have created a ‘Guide to the Birds of Arlington, VA.’ But it’s much more.” [WUSA 9]
County Looking for Tree Adopters — “Arlington is home to approximately 750,000 trees – or three for every resident – and the local government is asking the public’s help in supporting them. The county government’s Adopt-a-Tree program is designed to help trees make it through dry seasons.” [Sun Gazette]
New Contract for Arlington-Based Raytheon — “The U.S. Army announced Tuesday its effort for a next-generation, software-centric ground system is transitioning to another phase. The service awarded $36 million each to software company Palantir Technologies and defense firm Raytheon Technologies for work on the Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node, which is currently under development. TITAN is expected to help connect sensors with users in the field to support beyond-line-of-sight targeting.” [C4ISRNET]
Missing Middle Piques Interest in F.C. — “It has become a very contentious issue in Arlington, with scores of citizens showing up at public meetings to weigh in, as Clark reported. It is clear to us that, despite smokescreen issues like trees and other environmental factors, the zoning change is feared most for its perceived potentially negative impact on home values, as well as for the issue of population diversity. The Arlington board will have a work session on the subject with the county manager on July 12 and is set to take a vote in the fall. Falls Church leaders should play close attention.” [Falls Church News-Press]
It’s July — Humid and partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 90 and low of 74. Sunrise at 5:48 am and sunset at 8:39 pm. [Weather.gov]
A would-be Democratic candidate for a House of Delegates seat in Arlington says she decided not to run due to home affordability concerns.
Nicole Merlene announced her intention to run for the newly-redrawn District 2 seat but late last month announced again that she had reconsidered.
“After much consideration I have made a personal decision not to seek the nomination for Virginia’s House of Delegates 2nd District in 2023,” she wrote at the time. “To those who have donated to me, you will receive a full refund of your kind contributions. Arlington has a bright future, and I am confident it will be well represented moving forward.”
(The only other Democrat to announce their intention to run for the seat so far is Adele McClure, Executive Director of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus.)
Merlene, a former ARLnow opinion columnist who previously sought the Democratic nod for state Senate and County Board, revealed in an email to supporters Tuesday that her decision actually stemmed from housing affordability: she was unable to find a home she wanted to buy and could afford in District 2.
She wrote:
It has been a lifelong goal of mine to own a home. After 5 months searching in the 2nd District it became obvious this wasn’t in the cards. A policy that I have always preached is that people of all backgrounds need an equal opportunity to build wealth — through affordable education, well paying jobs, and the greatest investment in the American economy, owning a home. It would not be of service to the 2nd District to serve for just one or two terms and then move, and it would be a disservice to myself to continue to rent just to run for office when I have the ability to invest in myself and own a home.
After ending my bid for office, the search for a home became open to the entire DC and northern Virginia area. Truth be told, my perfect first home was actually right here in Arlington, just not in the new 2nd District. I look forward to engaging with all of you as I continue to deepen my roots here as a homeowner. If you have any questions please feel free to reach out.
District 2 mostly consists of several Metro corridor communities — Rosslyn, Courthouse, Clarendon, Crystal City and Pentagon City — as well as the single-family home neighborhoods surrounding them.
Merlene, who previously said affordable housing would be one of her top campaign issues, tells ARLnow she was able to buy a small house along a main road in the Waycroft-Woodlawn neighborhood.
Merlene noted that she only formed an exploratory committee for the 2023 race and was not officially a candidate. Candidate filings are typically made starting in January.
Construction Milestone for HQ2 — “Metropolitan Park, the first phase of our second headquarters’ development in Arlington, Virginia, is taking shape as we celebrate an important milestone: the ‘topping out,’ or completion of the highest floor of the building. So much has changed since we began construction more than two years ago in National Landing, and we can’t wait to welcome Amazon employees and the Arlington community to Metropolitan Park in 2023.” [Amazon, Twitter]
Covid Rate Low in the ER — From Virginia Hospital Center emergency department chief Dr. Mike Silverman: “This past week was the best COVID week we’ve had in a long time in the ER. We actually didn’t have any positive cases among our ‘symptomatic’ patients and just a handful or so among all comers to the ER. Our percent positivity rate was <2%. Hospitalizations remains low and we are returning to normal with in-person meetings and some options about mask wearing in non-clinical areas.” [Facebook]
Girl Found, Parents Eventually Located — “The parents of the little girl who was found unattended on the Martha Custis Trail in Arlington, Virginia, have been found on Saturday night. The girl was found behind a Giant grocery store on Langston Boulevard-U.S. 29 and Spout Run Parkway just before midnight Saturday.” [WTOP]
Arlington Gets HUD Grant — “The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded more than $2.8 million in FY 2021 Continuum of Care (CoC) Competition Awards to Arlington. The awards will provide funding to help individuals and families experiencing homelessness move into permanent housing with access to supportive services, with the overarching goal of long-term stability.” [Arlington County]
Aircraft Company Opens Local Office — “California-based Stratolaunch, which is testing the largest aircraft ever built, has established a permanent D.C.-area office. It’s in National Landing, the Crystal City area of Arlington County, Virginia. Stratolaunch was founded in 2011 by the late Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft.” [WTOP]
APS Students Serve as Pages in Richmond — “Two students at Swanson Middle School recently finished an 11-week program as pages with the Virginia House of Delegates. This selective program welcomes eighth and ninth-grade students to Richmond from across the commonwealth to learn about the legislative process and assist the House of Delegates. Chandani Rathod and Jacqueline Ake were the only two students chosen from Arlington County.” [Arlington Public Schools, Twitter]
Yes, Traffic is Getting Worse — “With more people returning to work, the D.C. region has seen an increase in drivers and that number could continue to shoot up. ‘It has been a steady climb,’ said Mary DePompa, WTOP Traffic anchor. Despite the rise in gas prices, the boom in the number of drivers appears to be a recent trend.” [WTOP]
It’s Monday — Clear throughout the day. High of 67 and low of 41. Sunrise at 7:11 am and sunset at 7:22 pm. [Weather.gov]
Good news: Virginia is flush with cash.
State tax revenues have been unexpectedly robust — billions more than first anticipated — and that has Republicans and Democrats in Richmond at loggerheads over what to do with the money.
From the Virginia Mercury last month:
Virginia’s new governor marked his 30th day in office with a state tour meant to build support for his tax-cutting plans, which have gotten a mixed response in the politically split legislature.
Parts of it, such as a plan to give every Virginia taxpayer a one-time rebate of $300, have passed with strong bipartisan support. Other proposals, like eliminating the state’s grocery tax and suspending a scheduled increase in the gas tax, have been a tough sell in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
The budget remains in flux, with the state legislature adjourned until a special session is called, allowing lawmakers to work out their differences. While Republicans are calling for nearly $5.5 billion in tax cuts and rebates — plus, more recently, a temporary gas tax holiday — Democrats want more modest tax cuts, targeted to those with lower incomes, while boosting funding for priorities like education.
From the Richmond Times-Dispatch:
The House budget includes almost $5.5 billion in tax cuts and rebates, but the Senate continues to insist on deferring the centerpiece of the governor’s tax plan — the doubling of the standard deduction for income tax filers — until a joint subcommittee completes a comprehensive study of Virginia tax policy in the coming year. Doubling the standard deduction would reduce state revenues by $2 billion over two years.
The Senate has agreed to partial repeal of the 2.5% sales tax on groceries, but has balked at eliminating the 1% that goes directly to local governments and has approved a less generous tax exemption for military retirement income than the House. It also has approved smaller tax rebates this year than the House and rejected a 12-month rollback in the gas tax as meaningless to soaring prices at the pump.
In general, what do you think the state should do with its unexpected extra revenue, if you were to select one thing as Richmond’s top budget priority?
Whiskey Bar Coming to Clarendon — “Chicken + Whiskey is branching out into Northern Virginia. The Peruvian rotisserie chicken restaurant and whiskey bar, which got its start from a smaller location in Logan Circle in 2017, has inked a deal for a new location near the Clarendon Metro in Arlington County. The 5,708-square-foot restaurant is slated to open late this year or early next at 3033 Wilson Blvd.” [Washington Business Journal]
It’s Flood Awareness Week — “Flooding is the most common and costly natural disaster in the United States and it is becoming more frequent with climate change. As we head into the typical rainy season, Arlington County and Fairfax County are teaming up for Virginia Flood Awareness Week to get out key messages of being informed and prepared.” [Arlington County]
Bill to Limit Gov. Powers — “Five of Arlington’s seven-member General Assembly delegation voted in support of a measure that will limit the power of governors to act unilaterally for an indeterminate period in a crisis. Legislation sponsored by state Sen. David Suetterlein (R-Roanoke) on March 9 cleared the House of Delegates on a 91-8 vote, following earlier passage in the state Senate by a margin of 29-11. Gov. Youngkin is expected to sign the bill.” [Sun Gazette]
Arlington Kids Hold Ukraine Bake Sale — “Our boys and friends wanted to do something to help the people of #Ukraine – they decided on a bake sale. They raised $900+ today and it’s now headed to medical staff that are getting supplies to the Ukraine/Poland border. Nice job kiddos.” [Twitter]
Bishop O’Connell Swimmer Stands Out — “For Kate Bailey, her time to receive deserved recognition as a standout high-school swimmer in Arlington came this season in her final senior campaign. During past winter years, Bailey and other top local swimmers performed in the shadow of 2022 Yorktown High School graduate and Summer Olympian Torri Huske. With Huske now swimming in college at Stanford University, Bailey’s accomplishments this winter drew more attention.” [Sun Gazette]
It’s Monday — Partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 58 and low of 31. Sunrise at 7:22 am and sunset at 7:16 pm. [Weather.gov]
Giant Spiders May Drop In — “An invasive species of spider the size of a child’s hand is expected to ‘colonize’ the entire East Coast this spring by parachuting down from the sky, researchers at the University of Georgia announced last week… Andy Davis, author of the study and a researcher at Georgia’s Odum School of Ecology, tells Axios that it isn’t certain how far north the spiders will travel, but they may make it as far north as D.C. or even Delaware.” [Axios, Fox 5, NPR]
Anti-Growth Group Decries Route 29 Planning — “On March 6, ASF wrote to the Arlington County Board expressing concerns that significant new land use and zoning plans will cause seismic shifts for the communities now lining Langston Blvd. We believe the process — which will soon produce a new Preliminary Concept Plan that likely will be fast-tracked like other county planning processes — will neglect or defer costs of critically-needed new infrastructure, will displace those earning 60% or less than the Area Median Income, and will make it difficult for local entrepreneurs to stay in business.” [Arlingtonians for Our Sustainable Future]
Polish Pike Pierogi Purveyor Praised — “‘Oh my god, it smells so good it’s driving me crazy!’ my husband reported after picking up a pierogi order from chef Ewa Fraszczyk, who shares kitchen space with La Cocina VA, selling her pan-fried Polish dumplings from the nonprofit’s Columbia Pike café every Thursday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Arlington chef’s pierogi, all delicate and delicious, come six to an order ($10-$12) in four varieties.” [Arlington Magazine]
Apartment Child Care Bill Advances — “House members voted unanimously on March 8 in support of a measure by state Sen. Barbara Favola (D-Arlington-Fairfax-Loudoun) to amend the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act and permit child-care facilities in apartment units. That followed earlier, also unanimous, support in the state Senate.” [Sun Gazette]
Teen Stabbed in Va. Square Area — “At approximately 6:28 p.m. on March 8, police were dispatched to the report of a fight involving a group of approximately 6 – 10 juveniles. Upon arrival, the juveniles were no longer on scene and officers canvassed the area and located evidence of an injury in the 500 block of N. Quincy Street. At approximately 7:14 p.m., the juvenile male victim arrived at Virginia Hospital Center for treatment of stab wounds suffered during the fight. The victim’s injuries are considered serious but non-life threatening.” [ACPD]
Bus Driver Nearly Causes Wreck on I-395 — From public safety watchdog Dave Statter: “Watch: A ‘professional’ driver does no better trying to quickly get across 4 lanes of interstate highway. This one almost takes out a car–twice!! Must have been a fun bus ride.” [Twitter]
Takeout for a Cause at Four Courts — From Ireland’s Four Courts: “Stop in or order takeout on Thursday for dinner. We are donating 20 percent of our food sales to @PathForwardVA help #endhomelessness in Arlington.” [Twitter]
It’s Thursday — Overcast throughout the day. High of 52 and low of 35. Sunrise at 6:28 am and sunset at 6:12 pm. [Weather.gov]
