Launched in January 2010, ARLnow.com is the place for the latest news, views and things to do around Arlington, Virginia. Started by a Pentagon City resident who has spent the past several years working in local TV news, ARLnow.com seeks to distinguish itself with original, enterprising, up-to-the-minute local coverage.
Raindrops fall on ornaments on Shirlington’s Christmas tree (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Traffic Impacts for ‘Wreaths’ — “On Saturday, December 17, several thousand volunteers will descend upon the Cemetery and help lay wreaths on every gravesite throughout the property beginning at 8:00 a.m. The public can anticipate large crowds and heavy pedestrian traffic related to the event. Traffic is expected to be impacted in and around the immediate area and motorists are advised to allot for extended travel times and seek alternate routes to reduce road congestion.” [ACPD]
Strange Claim About Arlington Cop — From Dave Statter: “Who You Gonna Call? For Roger Stone it’s not Ghostbusters (an obvious choice in this case) It’s a friend. A police officer ‘who works in Arlington’ is Roger’s expert on demonic portals — at the White House.” [Twitter, Mediaite]
Home Sales Down in N. Va. — “It’s a given, based on current market conditions, that home sales are down significantly on a year-over-year basis in November across the region. What’s interesting is how consistent those declines were in November among the five major localities in Northern Virginia… Add up the five localities, and home sales for the month stood at 1,844, a decline of 46.3 percent from the 3,437 transactions of November 2021.” [Sun Gazette]
It’s Friday — Partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 46 and low of 35. Sunrise at 7:22 am and sunset at 4:49 pm. [Weather.gov]
Signs outside the post office on N. George Mason Drive in August 2020 (staff photo)
The post office on N. George Mason Drive would be renamed in honor of a late local postal worker under a bill that just passed the House of Representatives.
The House on Monday unanimously passed Rep. Don Beyer’s bill, H.R. 7082, to honor local letter carrier Jesus Collazos by renaming the North Arlington Post Office at 2200 N. George Mason Drive in his memory. Collazos, who emigrated from Colombia in 1978 and served 25 years as a USPS postal carrier in Arlington, lost his life to COVID-19 early in the pandemic.
The Senate will now need to approve the legislation before it can be signed into law.
From our reporting on the renaming proposal last year:
On Nextdoor, residents remember Collazos for the way he went the extra mile to help elderly residents and always knew someone who could help with a home improvement project. They also were overwhelmingly supportive of the renaming.
“Jesus Collazos was a neighbor,” said one resident of the Leeway Overlee neighborhood. “We called him the ‘Mayor of 24th Street.’ Sorely missed and it would be such a great tribute to his contributions to our community to name a post office in honor of him.”
A Tara-Leeway Heights resident recalled how Collazos helped her mother later in life. He came up to the door, knocked and opened it, announcing himself and putting the mail on the TV stand.
“My mom thought so highly of him,” she said. “He just did stuff like that. He was a person who really ‘saw’ those around him.”
Another poster from Tara-Leeway Heights said Collazos was well-connected in Arlington.
“If we needed the name of someone to help with anything having to do with the house, he knew someone,” the poster said. “He made us all feel like we were his friends. We miss him terribly. He made such a positive impact on everyone he met.”
Beyer delivered the following remarks from the House floor, the Congressman’s office said, as Collazos’ family looked on from the House Gallery.
Madame Speaker, I rise today to speak in support my bill, H.R. 7082, which would designate the post office on 2200 North George Mason Drive in Arlington as the Jesus Antonio Collazos Post Office Building.
Jesus was the epitome of the American Dream.
He was born in 1953 in Colombia and grew up in a modest, hard-working family.
Even at a young age, he was passionate about education and wanted to help his community and did so by helping teach literacy while still a high school student.
After graduating high school, Jesus attended the Universidad de San Buenaventura Cali to pursue a degree in accounting.
In 1978, Jesus immigrated to Washington, D.C. to reunite with his mother and sisters in hopes of seeking a better future.
In 1980, Jesus married the love of his life, Luz Miriam, who is here today with their children, Vanessa and Michael.
After working in accounting positions at various hotels, he applied to the United States Postal Service as a letter carrier, where he would embark on a 25-year career.
He made an impression early on and was given a temporary assignment in leadership which turned into a permanent offer.
He ultimately turned it down to remain a mail carrier.
This turned out to be the right decision as Jesus preferred to spend his days outdoors, building relationships on his route, and connecting with the neighborhood.
Covid cases in Arlington as of Dec. 15, 2022 – 13 week view (via Virginia Dept. of Health)
Don’t look now, but Covid cases are on the rise again in Arlington.
Daily case averages are still well below the levels seen earlier in the year, but the trajectory is upward, Virginia Dept. of Health data shows. As of Wednesday, the seven-day case average in Arlington was 57 cases per day, high highest point since September.
According to CDC data, Arlington County’s weekly case rate per 100,000 people is 154, while the weekly Covid hospital admission rate is 7.7 per 100,000 people. The threshold between the CDC’s “low” and “medium” Covid levels is 200 cases and 10 admissions.
Just in time for the rise in cases, the federal government today is restarting its free Covid tests by mail program. The tests can be ordered here.
VDH, meanwhile, announced yesterday that bivalent booster shots are now available to all children six months of age and older in Virginia.
Parents of young children in Virginia are now able to seek a free bivalent pediatric COVID-19 vaccine for their children aged six months and older, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) announced today, following the recommendation of the vaccines by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on December 9.
The Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent vaccine, previously available only to persons aged five years and older, is now available for children aged six months through four years as a third primary series dose. At this time, children aged 6 months through four years who received three doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to complete their primary series are not authorized to receive a booster dose of bivalent vaccine. The Moderna bivalent vaccine, previously available for persons aged six years and older, is now available for children aged six months through five years as a booster dose at least two months after completion of a Moderna primary series.
Both bivalent vaccines target the original strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that first emerged in Wuhan, China in late 2019 and the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants of the Omicron variant that emerged in the United States in November 2021.
VDH advises parents to discuss this option with their child’s healthcare provider. Vaccination opportunities may be found at Vaccinate.Virginia.gov.
Virginia Hospital Center emergency department chair Dr. Mike Silverman, in his weekly public Facebook post, encouraged parents to consider the bivalent booster for their kids. He also noted that flu and RSV are are still prevalent in the community amid a particularly active fall for respiratory illnesses.
Within VHC, the number of patients we have hospitalized with COVID is similar to last week (and higher than last month). The emergency department remains quite busy. November was among our highest volume months ever, for the most part attributed to Flu and RSV cases. Among our COVID population, we saw another week over week increase in the number of patients testing positive in our “symptomatic” population with a higher percent positive rate than the previous week. That number is 3-4 fold higher than in early November. Among all our testing, we had about twice as many positives as just a few weeks ago.
The CDC reports that “there have been at least 8.7 million illnesses, 78,000 hospitalizations, and 4,500 deaths from flu so far this season,” making this the worst flu season in a decade. Although the number of patients we’re seeing with the flu has declined a bit over the past month, there’s still a lot of flu in the community and I highly recommend getting your flu shot. And fortunately, the flu vaccine this year appears to be a “good match” for the circulating strains, meaning the vaccine works better than average this year.
The FDA approved the bivalent booster for those 6 months to 5 years old. This booster can serve as the 3rd shot after the primary two shot series is complete. This will go to the CDC for review and should be available soon. Please talk to you pediatrician about vaccination. I continue to see a lot of young children that are not vaccinated.
Covid cases in Arlington as of Dec. 15, 2022 – 26 week view (via Virginia Dept. of Health)
A slow and gloomy day at the Christmas tree stand on Langston Blvd. at N. Harrison Street (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Longtime Dry Cleaner Closing — “Pentagon Row Cleaners are closing their doors permanently on December 31st after 20+ years in business.” [Twitter]
Garvey Wins Regional Gov’t Award — “At its Annual Membership Meeting and Awards Luncheon today, the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) presented its three highest honors to area public and private sector leaders. Arlington County Board Member Libby Garvey, Northern Virginia Transportation Authority CEO Monica Backmon, and the Amazon Housing Equity Fund, represented by Director Catherine Buell, were each recognized for their service and contributions to the region.” [MWCOG]
Hit and Run Caught on Camera — From Dave Statter: “#caughtoncamera: Hit & run at Exit 8C. At 8:37 am, driver holds up Boundary Channel ramp, makes the move, sends another vehicle flying across I-395S & then drives off onto Rt. 1S.” [Twitter]
No Ice Yet — “Still just plain rain across Arlington, with temperatures bottoming out around 33. The county is opening on time.” [Twitter]
It’s Thursday — Rain throughout the day. High of 47 and low of 33. Sunrise at 7:21 am and sunset at 4:49 pm. [Weather.gov]
The least expensive condo, single-family home or townhouse sale over the past seven days was $157,000 while the most expensive was $2,425,000.
Over the past month, meanwhile, a total of 56 single-family homes were sold. Let’s take a look at some of the most and least expensive homes sold over the past month.
Arlington Public Schools will open on a two-hour delay on Thursday due to expected freezing rain, the school system just announced.
APS follows Fairfax County Public Schools in announcing a two hour delay tonight. Other Northern Virginia districts have announced weather plans ranging from two hour delays to closures.
From APS:
CODE 2: All APS schools and offices will open two hours late Thursday, Dec. 15. The Extended Day program will also open two hours late and morning field trips are canceled. Custodial and maintenance staff and food service workers should report to work at their regularly scheduled time. All other employees should report to work two hours past their usual start time. For updates about Pool Operations, go to www.apsva.us/aquatics. For information about Arlington County operations go to www.arlingtonva.us.
More on the storm timing from the National Weather Service:
Here's a quick look at timing in regards to the wintry precip tonight into Thursday AM. Plan accordingly for slick roads & travel delays. Most locations change to rain late Thursday AM into the afternoon (outside of western MD). Drier conditions Friday. #VAwx#MDwx#WVwx#DCwxpic.twitter.com/UPDbPgz9dO
Metro, meanwhile, said today that it’s tracking the weather and will respond to hazardous conditions as necessary.
Metro is keeping an eye on the sky and advising customers to be prepared for potential service impacts to Metrobus service tomorrow, December 15, if icy conditions materialize.
Metrobus plans to provide regular scheduled service tomorrow. However, if road conditions are observed to be hazardous, Metrobus customers may experience delays or detours as outlined in Metro’s light snow plan, which adjusts service on a route-by-route basis to keep buses off of steep hills, narrow roadways, and other challenging route segments during inclement weather.
Customers can review planned detours in advance to see how their service may be affected by clicking here. If conditions require that a route be detoured, customers will be notified via MetroAlerts email and text messages. Customers are also encouraged sign up for MetroAlerts and to follow @wmata, @metrobusinfo, and @metrorailinfo on Twitter for the latest service information.
Customers should allow additional travel time and use caution on platforms, escalators, parking lots and other areas that may be slippery.
Elsewhere across the system, Metrorail is expected to operate on a normal weekday schedule. MetroAccess will operate normally, with extra travel time possible based on road conditions.
VDOT is encouraging drivers to stay off the roads after the frozen precipitation starts falling overnight.
Motorists should avoid travel as frozen precipitation will create icy roadway conditions in portions of the Commonwealth tonight and tomorrow morning. Pavement temperatures will be at or near freezing levels. Temperatures will drop overnight and could cause treacherous conditions during the morning commute, primarily in the northern, northwestern and parts of central Virginia. As a reminder, bridges, overpasses and shaded areas tend to freeze first.
Freezing rain is forecasted to begin around 9 p.m. tonight in northwest Virginia and will continue through the morning.
Most Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) crews did not apply liquid pretreatment to roads in areas where the event is forecasted to start as rain, as the pretreatment application will wash away and be ineffective. VDOT crews are ready to treat roadways with salt, sand and abrasives once icy conditions begin to develop. Wreckers are pre-staged along certain routes and tree crews are available to handle downed trees.
Motorists should be vigilant, pay attention to weather forecasts in areas where they plan to drive, and delay travel in the impacted areas.
Adiam Berhane, left, at Caffe Aficionado in 2013 (staff photo)
Caffe Aficionado closed in Rosslyn following police raid in 2016 (staff photo)
Drinks at Caffe Aficionado in 2014 (staff photo)
Clark Donat and Adiam Berhane (photo courtesy ACPD)
Police activity in 2016 at Gaslight Square in Rosslyn, related to the Cafe Aficionado fraud case (staff photo)
Police activity in 2016 at Gaslight Square in Rosslyn, related to the Cafe Aficionado fraud case (staff photo)
Police activity in 2016 at Gaslight Square in Rosslyn, related to the Cafe Aficionado fraud case (staff photo)
Police activity in 2016 at Gaslight Square in Rosslyn, related to the Cafe Aficionado fraud case (staff photo)
The former owner of a coffee shop in Rosslyn has been convicted of an extensive credit card fraud scheme.
Adiam Berhane, 50, was the co-owner of Caffe Aficionado in Rosslyn, which was open from 2013 until 2016, when the cafe was shut down following a police raid. Federal prosecutors said Berhane used the cafe to process fraudulent payments after obtaining stolen credit card information from the internet — and last week a federal jury in Alexandria agreed.
“A federal jury convicted a Washington, D.C. woman today on multiple charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, trafficking in unauthorized access devices, aggravated identity theft, unlawful possession of 15 or more access devices, and possession of access device-making equipment with intent to defraud,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia said in a press release Friday.
According to prosecutors, Berhane used the stolen credit card info to create fake cards, which were then used in the cafe and to purchase gift cards as well as luxury goods from several local stores. While Caffe Aficionado might have been a front for illegal activity, it was also well regarded for its coffee, garnering 4.5 stars on Yelp and some critical acclaim.
“Caffe Aficionado sits all alone, atop Rosslyn,” one local critic wrote in December 2013. “Even if this ranking is temporary, hopefully it will draw attention to what is one of the finest coffee shops in the area. I love this place, and you will, too.”
Arlington County police were initially tipped off about the crime when someone from out of town, with no connection to Arlington, reported fraudulent attempted credit card charges at the cafe. Most of the fraud involving the coffee shop, however, involved redemption of gift cards purchased with cloned credit cards, according to federal prosecutors.
“More than a third of Caffe Aficionado’s income from June 2013 to July 2016 came from a pattern of highly unusual redemptions of American Express gift cards, with the pattern beginning several months before Caffe Aficionado actually opened in approximately October 2013,” said the press release.
Berhane’s business partner, Clark Donat, pleaded guilty to multiple financial crimes in 2017, including credit card fraud, money laundering and racketeering. Court records show he received a 25 year prison sentence with 11 years suspended. He was not charged in the federal case.
Berhane was initially charged in Arlington County, but a couple of years of legal wrangling — including accusations that defense attorneys had to process thousands of pages of documents by hand under rules set by then-prosecutor Theo Stamos — ultimately resulted in the local charges being dropped in 2019. Federal prosecutors then took up the case.
Under federal sentencing guidelines, Berhane will face between 2 and 196 years in prison.
Berhane was previously convicted of a credit card fraud scheme in New York City in the early 2000s. She told ARLnow in early 2014 that what set Caffe Aficionado apart was the service.
“I think it’s all about service. Follow the Golden Rule, it’s not that hard,” she said.
The press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office is below.
The ramp from Washington Blvd to the GW Parkway (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Gunfire Damage Discovered by Maintenance — “At approximately 9:58 a.m. on December 12, police were dispatched to the late report of suspicious circumstances. Upon arrival, it was determined that a residential maintenance crew responded to a service request from December 10 and observed an apparent bullet hole inside the apartment. Responding officers recovered evidence of a firearm being discharged. No injuries were reported. The investigation is ongoing.” [ACPD]
ACFD Message to Motorists — “DRIVERS: Please do not block the entrance to our fire stations!! Blocked entrances like the one seen here in #Ballston prevent our units from responding to emergencies. When minutes and seconds matter, a blocked box like this could be the difference between life and death!” [Twitter]
New Electoral Board Member — “Arlington Circuit Court Chief Judge William Newman Jr. on Dec. 8 appointed Republican Richard Samp to a three-year term the Arlington Electoral Board, succeeding Democrat Matthew Weinstein effective Jan. 1. The switch will give Republicans a two-to-one majority on the body for the first time in eight years, with Samp joining fellow Republican Scott McGeary and Democrat Kim Phillip on the body.” [Sun Gazette]
Kanninen Reflects on School Board Tenure — “With her term expiring along with the year of 2022 on Dec. 31, Kanninen on Dec. 7 spoke before the Arlington County Democratic Committee, whose banner she ran under during election victories in 2014 and 2018. ‘We are in a good place to continue our path forward,’ Kanninen told Democrats. ‘We’re building back strong [post-pandemic] and making Arlington Public Schools better than ever.'” [Sun Gazette]
Blood Drive in Courthouse — “Fire Works American Pizzeria and Bar and Inova Blood Donor Services are partnering on a holiday blood drive in the Courthouse area of Arlington. An Inova Blood Donor Services Bloodmobile will be parked in front of Fire Works, near Clarendon Boulevard and North Adams Street, on Monday, Dec. 19 from 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.” [Patch]
Potomac Yard Metro Update — “Metro on Tuesday announced May 2023 as the rough expected opening date for the new Potomac Yard station, currently under construction along the Blue and Yellow lines. According to Metro, construction on the Potomac Yard station is 90% complete as of Tuesday.” [NBC 4, WMATA]
It’s Wednesday — Mostly cloudy throughout the day. High of 40 and low of 26. Sunrise at 7:21 am and sunset at 4:49 pm. [Weather.gov]
Freezing rain clings to trees in Westover in 2021 (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)
Freezing rain will likely fall early Thursday, prompting a Winter Weather Advisory from the National Weather Service.
Arlington could see dangerous, icy conditions on local roads tomorrow morning, forecasters say. Eventually, the frozen precipitation will switch over to just plain rain as temperatures rise during the day.
Gusty winds are also expected on Thursday.
From from NWS:
…WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 10 PM THIS EVENING TO 1 PM EST THURSDAY…
* WHAT…Freezing rain expected. Total ice accumulations of a glaze to around one tenth of an inch.
* WHERE…Portions of central, northeast and northern Maryland, The District of Columbia and northern Virginia.
* WHEN…From 10 PM this evening to 1 PM EST Thursday.
* IMPACTS…Difficult travel conditions are possible. The hazardous conditions will likely impact the morning commute on Thursday.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS…Wintry precipitation begins this evening, then becomes more intense tonight into Thursday morning. Warmer air should push in Thursday afternoon changing the precipitation to rain.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
Slow down and use caution while traveling.
When venturing outside, watch your first few steps taken on steps, sidewalks, and driveways, which could be icy and slippery, increasing your risk of a fall and injury.
Ice Storm Warnings and Winter Weather Advisories have been issued. Significant icing is likely along and west of the Blue Ridge tonight through Thursday. Ice amounts of 0.25-0.75" are expected. Further east, up to 0.10" of ice is expected north & west of I-95. pic.twitter.com/RamBGLy4gN
The Capital Weather Gang says Arlington is on the approximate line between some ice accumulation and mostly wet roads, with northern portions of the county likely seeing more ice.
D.C.-area forecast: Thursday morning icy spots for some, then a soaking afternoon rain https://t.co/nRN5vXUCxN
VDOT, meanwhile, says it’s preparing to do battle with Mother Nature and try to keep roads passable.
From a VDOT press release:
The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is mobilizing its equipment and resources in preparation for a winter weather event to impact parts of the Commonwealth Wednesday night into Thursday.
Incoming rain throughout Virginia is forecasted to shift to sleet and freezing rain in the northern, northwestern, and central areas of the Commonwealth beginning around 10 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 14 and going through the morning of Thursday, Dec. 15. This weather event is expected to impact VDOT’s Staunton, Salem, Culpeper, Northern Virginia and Lynchburg districts.
VDOT is paying close attention to the forecast and preparing for what could be a significant icing event. District crews will not apply liquid pretreatment to roads in areas where the event is forecasted to start as rain, which will wash away the pretreatment application. Crews are preparing equipment and will be ready to treat roadways with salt, sand and abrasives as precipitation transitions to sleet or freezing rain.
Motorists should pay attention to weather forecasts in areas where they plan to drive and delay travel on Thursday morning in the impacted areas, especially along the I-81 corridor, Culpeper and Northern Virginia regions.
Safety and Travel Resources
When winter weather arrives, residents and motorists should plan travel ahead of time, check road conditions, prepare an emergency car kit, follow forecasts and announcements and limit travel based on conditions. […]
Statewide Improvements for the 2022-2023 SeasonIn addition to its traditional year-round snow preparation, VDOT made improvements to address items from the Snow Removal and I-95 Incident Performance Audits by the State Inspector General and the Winter Weather Event and I-95 Interagency After-Action Report by CNA:
Improved contracting to be more flexible, competitive and attractive to contractors to address equipment and personnel shortages.
Improved communications and command structure for better internal and interagency cooperation during crisis events.
Assigned staff to drive routes and report on conditions to supplement traffic cameras.
Acquired a system to allow two-way communications between drivers and VDOT within a defined geographic area.
Continued participation in winter weather exercises, led by The Virginia Department of Emergency Management, to foster interagency cooperation.
Resources and Readiness
In addition to operational improvements, VDOT maintains a number of resources to contend with inclement weather.
$220 million statewide budgeted for winter weather in 2022-2023
11,493 pieces of equipment (VDOT-owned and contracted equipment combined, as of Nov. 30)
Approximately 1,148 vehicle contracts in process, and is continuing to receive additional contract bids (as of Nov. 30)
More than 696,000 tons of salt, sand and treated abrasives, and more than 2.3 million gallons of liquid calcium chloride and salt brine.
