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.
Recycling collection in Arlington (photo courtesy Arlington County)
The Thanksgiving holiday will mean closures of county facilities.
Arlington courts, libraries, community centers, vaccine clinics and government offices will be closed on Thursday and Friday. Thursday will also be a rare weekday off day for hard-working trash collection crews, who will resume collections a day delayed on Friday and Saturday.
Additionally, parking meters will not be enforced during the holiday.
From the county website:
Arlington County Government offices and services are operating on modified schedules for the Thanksgiving holiday, Thur., Nov 24, and Fri., Nov. 25, 2022.
Trash/Recycling/Yard Waste Curbside Routes – No collection Thursday. Thursday routes run on Friday, Nov. 25; Friday routes run on Saturday, Nov. 26.
Parking – Permit parking is always in effect unless specifically noted on the sign. Meters are not enforced on holidays.
All Arlington Public Library locations will be closed early at 6 p.m. on Wed., Nov. 23, and will be closed Nov. 24-25 for Thanksgiving.https://t.co/FD9DRa62eL
The website crashes suffered by Ticketmaster as millions of Swifties tried to secure tickets to her latest tour are reminiscent of those caused by Arlington parents eager to get their kids in coveted county summer camp slots.
As we reported last week, Arlington parks department officials are promising further improvements in the registration process and technology, but so far the clicking fingers of local moms and dads are undefeated.
See of Mike Mount’s local ‘toons in the ARLnow Press Club weekend newsletter. Your membership supports our reporting and includes the daily Early Morning Notes newsletter, previewing the stories we’re planning to cover that day.
Silver Diner construction in Ballston (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Arlington Man Arrested in Cold Case — “Police have arrested a 61-year-old man from Arlington County who allegedly abducted and raped a Fairfax County woman multiple times over three decades ago. Fingerprint and DNA analyses suggest George Thomas Jr. and his now-deceased brother, Gregory Allen Thomas, were the offenders in the 1988 rape of a 22-year-old woman who got attacked as she was leaving work in Bailey’s Crossroads.” [FFXnow]
Christmas Trees Delayed — “The first batch [of Christmas trees for the annual Optimist Club sale], which was coming in from Canada, got delayed because of that nasty storm that hit late last week and into the weekend.” [Sun Gazette]
CivFed Looking for More Money — “The Arlington County Civic Federation has been around longer than Arlington has been Arlington – its existence pre-dates the 1920 renaming of the county by several years – and current leadership is hoping to bring more focus on financial sustainability so the organization can continue for another century or more.” [Sun Gazette]
New Parklet in Pentagon City — “The National Landing Business Improvement District opened its first ‘parklet’ in the Pentagon City neighborhood. The space, with a painted bench, tables and chairs, is located in blocked-off parking spots on S. Fern Street near the intersection with 12th St. South.” [Patch]
Arlingtonian’s Air Travel Invention — “Roughly four years ago, LaPierre and his wife were traveling to Paris. He had thrown away his coffee before boarding, but she held onto hers, and there was really no good option for keeping it from tipping over on the flight. Between the feet? That’s how some people do it. ‘I’ve got to find a solution for this,’ he recalled.” [Washington Business Journal]
Another Gun Confiscated at DCA — “A California man tried to bring a handgun loaded with 14 bullets, including one in the chamber, onto a flight at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport last Friday but was stopped by officers. The gun was the 28th gun detected by Transportation Security Administration officers at Reagan National Airport so far in 2022.” [Patch]
Va. Home Sales Drop — “According to the October 2022 Virginia Home Sales Report released by Virginia REALTORS®, there were 8,828 homes sold in Virginia in October 2022. This is 3,828 fewer sales than last October, representing a sharp 30.2% decrease in sales activity. This is Virginia’s largest year-over-year decrease in sales in more than ten years.” [Press Release]
It’s Wednesday — Clear throughout the day. High of 57 and low of 34. Sunrise at 7:02 am and sunset at 4:51 pm. [Weather.gov]
This past week saw 44 homes sold in Arlington County.
The least expensive condo, single-family home or townhouse sale over the past seven days was $165,000 while the most expensive was $1.9 million.
Over the past month, meanwhile, a total of 15 townhouses were sold. Let’s take a look at some of the most and least expensive townhouses sold over the past month.
The local market has relatively few townhouses for sale compared to other housing types.
“In Arlington there are currently 549 homes for sale, of those 329 are condos, 185 are detached homes, and 35 are townhomes,” notes listing site Homesnap. “The median list price is $697,000 and the median sales price is $570,000. There have been 164 new listings in the last 4 weeks and 197 sales.”
Overlapping buildings and balconies in Ballston (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Former County Board Member Dies — “[Al] Eisenberg, who served a lengthy stint on the Arlington County Board, followed by a couple of years in the Clinton administration and then three two-year terms in the House of Delegates, died last week. He was 76 and had, for the past few years, been the victim of cognitive decline.” [Sun Gazette]
Armed Robbery Along Langston Blvd — “5700 block of Langston Boulevard. At approximately 3:10 a.m. on November 19, police were dispatched to the report of an armed robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined two unknown male suspects entered the business, brandished a firearm and demanded money from the employee. The suspects then stole a cash drawer containing an undisclosed amount of cash and fled the scene on foot.” [ACPD]
All Curative Testing Locations Closing — “On November 30, Arlington’s Courthouse Plaza, Virginia Highlands Park, and Quincy Park sites will close… On December 26 Curative will close the remaining sites. These include Sojourner Truth Public Charter School and LAMB Public Charter School in D.C., Arlington Mills Community Center, and Ben Brenman Park, Charles Houston Recreation Center, and Casa Chirilagua in Alexandria.” [DCist]
New Fitness Studio in Courthouse — “FitDistrict Studios & Energy Cafe invites you to join them for their Wellness Day & Grand Opening Event. FitDistrict has an indoor cycling studio, a hot yoga room, an interval studio and an attached Energy Cafe serving up healthy food and drinks! The event will be on Saturday, December 10.” [Event]
Metro Thanksgiving Schedule — “On Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov. 24, Metrorail and Metrobus will operate on a Sunday schedule, with trains operating from 7 a.m. until midnight. MetroAccess customers may make a reservation to travel on the holiday; however subscription trips will be canceled. The day after Thanksgiving, Friday, November 25, Metrorail will open at 5 a.m., closing at 1 a.m., and Metrobus and MetroAccess will operate normal weekday service.” [WMATA]
DJO Volleyball Team Reaches Semis — “As has been the case for a number of years, the Bishop O’Connell Knights enjoyed another highly successful and winning girls high-school fall volleyball season. The Knights compiled a 29-2 record, won the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference tournament championship as the No. 2 seed, and ended the season with a semifinal loss in the Division I private-school state tourney.” [Sun Gazette]
It’s Tuesday — Clear throughout the day. High of 53 and low of 31. Sunrise at 7:00 am and sunset at 4:52 pm. [Weather.gov]
Traffic on I-395 looking south as the sun sets on Thanksgiving Eve in 2019 (Staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Thanksgiving week is here and, based on past polls, that means about 45% of you are traveling.
Our 2015 morning poll on the topic found that most local Thanksgiving travelers — about 75% — will do so by car, while 20% will travel by plane.
With that in mind, we have three key tips for Thanksgiving road and air travelers.
1. If driving, leave earlier or later in the day
Expect plenty of traffic if you’re planning to drive to your destination on Wednesday, but you can avoid some of it by leaving earlier in the morning or later at night. The same applies for those driving back on Saturday or Sunday.
“Based on the traffic data, periods of heavy congestion are most likely to occur from mid-morning to evening on Wednesday, Nov. 23, afternoon on Saturday, Nov. 26, and all day on Sunday, Nov. 27,” said a VDOT press release last week.
Based on a VDOT map of past travel trends, there is likely to be a fair amount of traffic in and out of Northern Virginia on Tuesday as well, particularly around the evening rush hour.
VDOT will be suspending most work zones and lane closures from Nov. 23-28, but that will only marginally ease the traffic onslaught.
However, you’re unlikely to find much — if any — parking by the time Wednesday rolls around. Fortunately, as of publication, online reservations were still available for Terminal 2 and economy parking.
DCA parking availability as of Nov. 21, 2022
Meanwhile, if you’re flying out of Dulles International Airport, don’t forget that the new Silver Line extension to Dulles is now open.
3. Drive carefully (and if you don’t, State Police might stop you)
With so many people on the roads, sometimes after having a few drinks, Thanksgiving weekend is sadly a time of many serious crashes nationwide.
That’s why authorities regularly encourage drivers to be extra careful this time of year.
Virginia State Police announced this morning that it would be conducting extra patrols and enforcement for Thanksgiving. More from a press release, below.
For many Virginians, gathering with family and friends is the true meaning for Thanksgiving. Some will even travel long distances to share in these wonderful family moments. Just as important as it is to make sure those pies and casseroles make it to the dinner table safely, motorists need to make their own safety a priority, as well. Virginia State Police is reminding all drivers and passengers of all ages to buckle up this holiday weekend. Preliminary data show that 54% of those who have died in traffic crashes this year were not wearing a seatbelt or safety restraint.*
“The fact that more than half of those who have lost their lives in traffic crashes this year were not wearing a seatbelt is a tragic and inexcusable reality for Virginia,” said Colonel Gary T. Settle, Virginia State Police Superintendent. “Your family wants you to arrive safely and clicking a seatbelt can help that happen. Virginia State Police and your loved ones want you to arrive at your destination safely – ditch distractions, comply with posted speed limits, never drive buzzed or drunk, and, again, always buckle up.”
Clarice the kitten shares much of the same personality traits as her famous movie namesake — Clarice Starling.
She’s smart, curious, quiet and strong willed. But underneath she’s a big softy who loves to snuggle up and fall asleep in your lap cuddling.
Clarice arrived in foster care after having been rescued on her own from a parking lot. She quickly befriended the other kittens in her foster home, and she loves to chase and wrestle with them. She’s become great buddies with Hubbard, and they’d love to find a home together!
Clarice has also been around adult cats and dogs in her foster home and is very used to them.
Is Clarice the furry companion you’ve been looking for? Read her complete profile to learn more!
Want your pet to be considered for the Arlington Pet of the Week? Email [email protected] with a 2-3 paragraph bio and at least 3-4 horizontally-oriented photos of your pet. Please don’t send vertical photos — they don’t fit in our photo gallery!
(Updated at 11:30 a.m.) It’s been a rough fall for many, healthwise.
Flu and and RSV have been surging, straining hospital capacity, school staff and parental patience. Young children have been particularly hard hit, with the 0-4 age group recording the highest percentage of visits to medical offices for flu, according to the Virginia Dept. of Health.
Flu activity in Virginia and in the D.C. region is at the highest level on the CDC’s scale. In Arlington, meanwhile, Covid is still circulating, though at roughly the same level of daily cases as a month ago — 33 cases per day, as of today.
Although our percent positivity rate is not higher than it was earlier this fall, we have seen an increase in the number of people we are diagnosing with COVID the last few weeks compared to earlier in the fall. We’re also sitting a much higher percent positivity rate then we were this time last year. We are definitely having more positive tests a week than we did a year ago.
The Tripledemic that you’re hearing about on the news is real. The combination of COVID, Flu, and RSV is bringing more people to hospital ERs and causing more hospitalizations than we’ve seen over the last few years. Every year, emergency departments face a month or so of surging volumes because of the flu. I have seen flu surges in the fall, and I have seen them in March. Prior to the pandemic, I had never had a year as an attending physician without some sort of impact by a flu surge. What has me concerned about this year is how early the flu has impacted our community and the potential for how long the ER volume surge will continue. What’s to say we will not see an increase in COVID this winter as we did last winter?
Despite many continuing to work from home, people are still socializing, going to school and traveling, arguably more so than this time last year. It’s almost as if the non-Covid diseases that had been relatively quiet during the pandemic are now “catching up.”
Given how much disease is circulating out there, today we are wondering: how many separate times have you gotten sick already this fall?
Reagan National Airport (Flickr pool photo by Kevin Wolf)
Rāko Folo — “A sign outside of Courthouse coffee shop Rāko says the espresso machine is out of order, but a reader sent these photos suggesting that the business owes money to Arlington County.” Rāko was selected earlier this year to open a location at Amazon’s HQ2. [Twitter]
New 911 Mapping — “Today RapidDeploy, the leader in cloud-native mapping and analytics solutions for Public Safety, announces that RapidDeploy Radius Mapping has been selected by Arlington, Virginia as their new 9-1-1 map. Radius Mapping is currently live in multiple 9-1-1 centers in the Washington, DC area, including Alexandria and Montgomery County, with more coming before the end of the year.” [PR Newswire]
Yorktown Falls — “Momentum, a much-needed edge in athletic competition, was never on the side of the Yorktown Patriots’ offense during the football team’s 6D North Region tournament semifinal game against the host and top-seed Madison Warhawks. Fifth-seeded Yorktown’s season ended with a 21-7 loss in that Nov. 18 high-school contest in Vienna, snapping the Patriots’ four-game winning streak.” [Sun Gazette]
Turkey Trot Closures — “The Arlington Turkey Trot 17th Annual 5k Fun Run will take place on Thursday, November 24, 2022. The Arlington County Police Department will conduct the following road closures from approximately 7:00 a.m. until 10:00 a.m. to accommodate the race.” [ACPD]
Arlington Bishop’s Pro-Life Post — “The new pro-life chair for the U.S. Catholic bishops wants pregnant women who are struggling or feeling scared to know that they are not alone. ‘I would like to say and, in such a heartfelt way, for them to know that they are not alone,’ Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, told CNA hours after being elected to his new position Nov. 16.” [Catholic News Agency]
Alexandria Eyes Zoning Changes — “Alexandria could be on the verge of some of its biggest steps yet in the fight to make housing affordable in a city where housing prices continue to outpace wages. At a meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 22, the City Council could jump-start a process set to run through next year that could dramatically reshape pieces of the city’s zoning code in an effort to make land use more equitable and inclusive.” [ALXnow]
Backlash Over MLK Omission — “Virginia’s proposed changes to the state’s history standards in the classroom are receiving some criticism from Gov. Glenn Youngkin. Youngkin recently expressed disappointment with his administration’s latest proposed history standards, released last week. He acknowledged omissions and mistakes regarding how race relations would be taught, according to the Richmond Times Dispatch.” [WTOP, Fox 5]
It’s Monday — Clear throughout the day. High of 50 and low of 25. Sunrise at 6:59 am and sunset at 4:52 pm. [Weather.gov]
