Traffic is a nightmarish in Rosslyn tonight (Friday) — at least for those heading through the intersection of Wilson Blvd and N. Lynn Street.
Due to lane closures from utility work and the on-going Central Place construction project, Lynn Street — which is often traffic-clogged even without construction — is down to one lane just before 19th Street. That led to major backups on Lynn Street, which led to backups on Wilson Blvd due to cars repeatedly “blocking the bock” in the intersection.
Three people were hurt in a rollover accident in Bluemont Monday night.
The two-vehicle crash happened around 10:00 p.m., at the intersection of Wilson Blvd and N. George Mason Drive.
Wilson Blvd Sidewalk Improvements Delayed — Arlington County Board members were apologetic on Saturday after a resident complained about the state of sidewalks along Wilson Blvd in the Bluemont area. The first phase of an improvement project, which will only consist of repaving and restriping the road, is now not slated to take place until the spring. County leaders promised to try to implement the second phase, which will actually improve the sidewalks, sooner rather than later. [InsideNova]
Bar to the Rescue in Crystal City? — Crystal City property owner Vornado hopes Highline, a new bar coming to the neighborhood, will help its growing tech community there after work. Vornado is trying to restyle Crystal City — which has lost government tenants for millions of square feet of office space, as a result of BRAC — as a tech hub. [Washington Post]
The bar and its neighbor, Northern Virginia Mixed Martial Arts, are being displaced so the building can be torn down to make room for a new hotel, which was approved in March.
Tonight’s party will feature “bench dancing,” 16-ounce cocktails and Fireball shot skis.
Signs reading “Marine Corps Marathon Drive” will adorn street poles on Wilson Blvd. from N. Lynn Street to N. Moore Street in honor of Sunday’s annual marathon.
The signs will remain through race day to signify how much the Marine Corps Marathon has become a part of the Arlington community.
Wilson Whitney, co-owner of Rhodeside Grill at the corner of Wilson and Rhodes, estimates he lost as much as $3,000 during the closure, largely because he wasn’t given proper notification of the closure.
“I was given no notice or warning this was going to take place,” Whitney wrote in an email. “This has virtually closed down our restaurant… I could have at least staffed and stocked accordingly or maybe even closed for some of our own improvements.”
The armed men approached the victim on the 6000 block of Wilson Blvd around 11:20 p.m. Sunday. Wearing ski masks, the men took the victim’s cell phone and a bible, then fled on foot into a wooded area, according to Arlington County police.
Police K-9 units, along with Fairfax County and U.S. Park Police helicopters, were brought in to try to find the suspects, who were described only as Hispanic males. The men were not located and remain at large.
A cement truck accidentally dumped a small load of cement in the left lane of westbound Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn this morning.
The cement lay on the street for about an hour and a half before crews came to clean it up at approximately 10:30 a.m., according to a police officer at the scene. The cement was still wet when it was removed, avoiding a much longer, more laborious cleanup process had it dried.
Earlier this summer, county road crews reconfigured the eastbound (downhill) lanes on Wilson Blvd approaching N. Lynn Street in Rosslyn.
Instead of having one lefthand turn lane and two straight through lanes, the middle lane was converted to a second lefthand turn lane.
The Board acted in line with its Master Transportation Plan in lowering the speed limits on the key local arteries.
The speed limit on Wilson Blvd and Clarendon Blvd was lowered from 30 to 25 mph between Rosslyn and Washington Blvd.
The Department of Environmental Services conducted studies to examine the viability of changing speed limits on several streets. Information was gathered regarding factors such as vehicle speeds, collisions, traffic volumes, pedestrian and bicyclist activity and development patterns. Studies were performed in the following areas: N. Meade Street from Arlington Blvd to Marshall Drive (formerly Jackson Avenue), Clarendon Blvd from Washington Blvd to N. Oak Street, Wilson Blvd from Route 110 to Washington Blvd, and N. Sycamore Street from Washington Blvd to 17th Street N. and N. Roosevelt Street from 17th Street N. to the county line.
The studies indicated that speed limits along N. Meade Street, Clarendon Blvd and Wilson Blvd could be decreased from 30 miles per hour to 25 miles per hour. The N. Sycamore Street/N. Roosevelt Street studies indicated the speed limit could be lowered from 35 miles per hour to 30 miles per hour.
Arlington County is mulling a proposal to narrow Wilson Boulevard west of George Mason Drive from four lanes to two through lanes and a center turn lane.
The proposal was conceived and endorsed by the Bluemont Civic Association (BCA) last fall, as part a recommendation to widen the sidewalks along Wilson Boulevard in the neighborhood.
