All county government offices, libraries, courts, community centers, and nature centers will also be open.
Roads are gradually being cleared, dark homes are lighting up and residents are attempting to return to a sense of normalcy following Superstorm Sandy.
All classes and activities have been canceled Monday at Arlington Public Schools in advance of the storm, which is now expected to drop 5 to 10 inches of rain and pack wind gusts up to 70 miles per hour between tonight and Tuesday.
Metro has suspended all rail, bus and MetroAccess service starting Monday. Service will remain suspended “until further notice.” ART bus service has also been suspended Monday.
Christmas trees will be collected from Jan. 3-17 on normal trash collection days. All stands, lights and decorations should be removed, since the trees will be ground into mulch.
“Residents are reminded to place the tree on the curb no later than 6 am on your regular trash collection day,” the county said on its trash collection website. “Residents that do not have curbside recycling service, such as those living in townhouses, apartments, or condominiums, may also bring their Christmas trees to the Solid Waste Bureau during the Christmas tree collection season. Please call 703.228.6570 to schedule an appointment between 8 am – 3 pm, Monday through Friday.”
The biannual event is being held at Thomas Jefferson Middle School (125 S. Old Glebe Road) from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15.
Residents will be able to drop off various types of large or hazardous items, including small metal items, computers, televisions, cell phones, other electronics, fluorescent bulbs and tubes, paint products, fuels and petroleum products, lawn and garden chemicals, poisons, pesticides, automotive fluids, car care products, propane gas cylinders, photographic chemicals, swimming pool chemicals, household cleaners, mercury, flammable solvents, fire extinguishers and corrosive materials.
Can-Scrubbers LLC recently started operating in Arlington, Falls Church and McLean. The company has a small, oddly-shaped blue truck that uses “high pressure hot water and highly effective degreasing cleaners” in an automated process to clean out filthy trash cans.
Can-Scrubbers says their process is “eco-friendly” since cleaning your own cans will likely “send contaminated waste material into the street and ultimately down storm drains and into our precious streams and rivers.” The company says it stores waste water in the truck, then filters it and sends it through the sanitary sewer. Also, the company says that its cleaning agents are biodegradable.
Trees will be picked up for recycling between Monday, Jan. 3 and Friday, Jan. 14. The county is asking residents to remove all ornaments, lights and stands, and to place the tree outside by 6:00 a.m. on their regular trash collection day. Do not place the tree in a plastic bag, say county officials.
Apartment, condo and townhouse dwellers who don’t have curbside garbage pickup can drop off the trees for recycling at the county’s Solid Waste Bureau (4300 South 29th Street) provided they show proof of Arlington residency.
It works like this: Using only solar power (even in the shade), the receptacles compact trash so efficiently that each holds about 5 times as much refuse as a normal garbage can. That means it can save 4 out of every 5 collection trips, for an 80 percent fuel savings.
And not only does the Big Belly compactor save fuel, it also saves money at a time when the county is cutting back on the frequency of trash collection along the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor due to budget constraints. Plus, the devices can potentially save money on pest control by keeping rodents out of the trash.
It’s a good time to be an Arlingtonian. This weekend is jam-packed with fun outdoor community events. The weather should be gorgeous — the only problem will be finding time to do everything.
Trashy Pick Up Artists — Dubbed the “Pick Up Artists,” four recent college grads from Maryland are on cross-country journey to pick up trash and educate people about sustainability. On Saturday, Davey Rogner and Kelly Klein, 24, and Kim Alexander and Jeff Chen, 23 will kick off their 240 mile trek across Virginia in Arlington. Volunteers interested in helping them out should meet at the Clarendon Whole Foods (2700 Wilson Boulevard) at 10:00 a.m. According to the organizers, this event has been cancelled due to the permits from VDOT not coming in.
Although Alexandria, the District and Montgomery County, Md. stopped plowing during the height of today’s blizzard, Arlington crews kept trucking. County snow removal crews were slowed down due to high winds and low visibility, but they did not stop their effort to keep main roadways passable, according to Department of Environmental Services spokesperson Myllisa Kennedy.
Due to the fact that it will take several days to clear neighborhood roads, the county has decided to suspend trash collection service for the rest of the week. Trash collection will resume Monday.
