(Updated at 1:40 p.m.) Arlington County will be holding a virtual public meeting tonight to discuss a trio of road projects set for later this year.
The county plans to repave and re-stripe portions of Wilson Blvd in the Dominion Hills and Boulevard Manor neighborhoods, Potomac Avenue in Potomac Yard, and Clarendon Blvd in the Courthouse and Rosslyn neighborhoods. The work is expected to take place this summer and fall, following the current public engagement process.
(Updated at 12:25 p.m.) Five arterial streets in Arlington are being considered as candidates for a Complete Streets overhaul.
The county’s Complete Streets program adds safety features to roadways that improve the experience of road users other than drivers, including pedestrians and cyclists. The changes are usually made in conjunction with repaving projects.
It looks like shuttered Italian restaurant Alto Fumo (2909 Wilson Blvd) is being replaced by another Italian restaurant.
The restaurant closed earlier this month and, while at least one manager said the location was planning to reopen, the closure was permanent. Signs outside the building indicate that the new restaurant will offer options similar to Alto Fumo, however, and will open sometime this spring.
Barry’s Clarendon — the first Virginia studio for international fitness chain Barry’s Bootcamp — is getting ready to open its location at 2825 Wilson Blvd next week.
The gym will open on Saturday, Jan. 25, according to a press release.
A quick-service variant of the local Lebanese Taverna franchise, called LEBTAV, is now open in Ballston.
The new restaurant is at the corner of Wilson Blvd and N. Quincy Street in what was once Taylor Gourmet.
(Updated at 4:05 p.m.) A cyclist was struck by a driver at the intersection of Wilson Blvd and 10th Street N., near Clarendon., Friday morning.
Initial reports suggest the cyclist had severe injuries, including head trauma. The crash was first radioed in around 10:30 a.m. by a police officer who was on a traffic stop nearby.
An independent coffee shop in Clarendon has shuttered its doors, with plans in the works to rebrand under new ownership.
Blümen Cafe, located roughly between Clarendon and Courthouse at 2607 Wilson Blvd, closed earlier this month. The cafe first opened in 2016, in the former CD Cellar space, and served teas, coffees and pastries, with an international flair.
(Updated at 10:10 a.m.) The reconfiguration of Clarendon’s worst intersection is one step closer to finishing as crews begin paving.
Working began repaving the roads that together form the notoriously dangerous “Clarendon Circle” — a.k.a. the intersection of Wilson, Clarendon, and Washington Blvds — this past weekend.
Arlington Office Market Improving — Arlington County landing Amazon HQ2, a selection announced one year ago this month, has helped move its office market in the right direction after years of struggles. The office vacancy rate in National Landing, the newly branded area comprising the Crystal City and Pentagon City neighborhoods, dropped from 19.6% in Q3 2018 to 16% as of Sept. 30, the lowest level since 2012, according to JLL.” [Bisnow]
Chamber Supports Keeping Dillon Rule — “Facing a possible Democratic majority in the General Assembly, @ArlVAChamber is standing firm in its support of the Dillon Rule. Why? A Dem majority could allow localities like Arlington to raise the minimum wage.” [Twitter, InsideNova]
A new Japanese restaurant is coming to Rosslyn in conjunction with the upcoming Gong Cha Tea Shop.
Permits have been filed for Toryumon Japanese House at 1650 Wilson Blvd, across from the new Arlington Public Schools facility The Heights.
(Updated at 1:50 p.m.) Three out of four lanes of Wilson Blvd in Ballston were blocked by utility work Monday morning.
The work, at the intersection of Wilson and N. Randolph Street, near the mall, was to replace a blown electrical transformer in a utility vault that’s in the middle of the westbound lanes of Wilson. Crews from Dominion Energy were on scene, along with a large, mobile crane.
Completion of the Ballston Quarter pedestrian bridge over Wilson Blvd could be delayed by another three months.
The Arlington County Board is set to discuss extending the completion deadline of the under-construction bridge from September 1 to December 1 at its meeting tomorrow (Saturday). The delay is at the request of the mall’s owner, which is building the bridge as a condition of Ballston Quarter’s recent renovations.
