Author: ARLnow.com

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.

Arlington is now reporting more than 100 Covid cases per day

By ARLnow.com
Covid cases in Arlington as of 4/22/22 (via Virginia Dept. of Health)

(Updated at 11:10 a.m.) The number of daily Covid cases in Arlington now stands at an average of just over 100 per day for the first time since February.

Arlington crossed the 100 daily case mark on Thursday, according to Virginia Dept. of Health data. The county remains in the CDC’s “Medium” Covid level due to the elevated case counts, though hospitalizations remain low — fewer than two per week per 100,000 in population, per the CDC.

Last week county officials blamed Arlington’s “Medium” Covid level on a number of factors, including increased testing before the start of spring break and delayed reporting of test results.

Despite the minor milestone, Covid cases have only risen modestly over the past couple of weeks; VDH reported about 90 daily cases on April 9.

Arlington Public Schools, which was back in session this week after the past week’s spring break, has reported 198 student cases over the course of the week. APS encouraged — but did not require — “precautionary at-home testing” using school-provided rapid tests, prior to students returning to classrooms.

There is some evidence, meanwhile, that there may be significantly more Covid cases than are being reported by the state health department, due to the proliferation of at-home testing.

Wastewater data in Arlington, last sampled on April 13, shows the level of Covid detected in the county’s sewage rising quickly since the end of March.

Wastewater Covid detection levels in Arlington (via Biobot)

Similarly, the test positivity rate in Arlington has seemingly outpaced the rate of new cases. The positivity rate currently stands at just under 12%, from a low of 2.7% in mid-March.

Arlington test positivity rate on 4/22/22 (via VDH)

Police investigating another series of catalytic converter thefts

By ARLnow.com
Police cars (file photo)

Arlington County police are investigating a series of several catalytic converter thefts.

The three vehicle break-ins and thefts were reported early Wednesday morning in three south Arlington neighborhoods: Pentagon City, Long Branch Creek and Columbia Heights.

More from an Arlington County Police Department crime report:

GRAND LARCENY AUTO/LARCENY FROM AUTO (Late) (Series), 2022-04200038/04200039/04200069, 1400 block of S. Walter Reed Drive/1500 block of 28th Street S./Army Navy Drive at S. Lynn Street. At approximately 5:45 a.m. on April 20, police were dispatched to the late report of a grand larceny auto in the 1400 block of S. Walter Reed Drive. Upon arrival, it was determined that between approximately 7:00 p.m. on April 19 and 5:45 a.m. on April 20, the unknown suspect(s) stole the victim’s vehicle, which was later recovered in the 1600 block of S. Edgewood Street, broke the front passenger window and stole the catalytic converter. During the course of the investigation, it was determined two additional vehicles had front windows broken and the catalytic converter stolen. There is no suspect(s) description. The investigation is ongoing.

A series of eight catalytic converter thefts was reported last month in the Fairlington neighborhood.

There have been numerous reports over the past few months of a rise in catalytic converter thefts in the D.C. area. The exhaust emission control devices are a popular target for thieves because they contain several valuable precious metals.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Walking in Rosslyn (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

More on the Weird Chime Sound — “Janae Bixby first heard the sound near Pentagon City, where I-395 and Glebe Road intersect, as she picked up her kid from daycare on Monday evening around 5. She described it as ‘some sort of clock or doorbell chime that you would hear — very digital.’ She assumed the noise was coming from the building and started heading home. But then, in her car ride home to the southern edge of the Del Ray neighborhood in Alexandria, she kept hearing it, again and again.” [DCist]

Parents Group Wants Smaller Class Sizes — “A group of parents in Arlington, Virginia, is urging the county’s board to allot additional funding to its school system in the next fiscal year’s budget. The group Arlington Parents for Education said in a letter to the board this week that more money should be provided so that class sizes can be smaller, teacher pay can be competitive with surrounding school districts and student mental health and learning loss can be addressed.” [WTOP]

TR Bridge Work Could Wrap Up in June — “A section of the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge that was closed abruptly for emergency repairs two months ago is likely to reopen to traffic in June, according to officials with the District Department of Transportation. Crews began work on the 58-year-old bridge after an early-February inspection found steel support beams had continued to deteriorate, prompting the closure of three middle lanes and restrictions on heavyweight vehicles.” [Washington Post]

Operator Shortage Behind Bus Delays — From MetroHero: “For most of the morning, only one #WMATA 16Y bus has been in service where at least 5 are supposed to be running right… Previously-unannounced operator shortage was the cause of poor 16Y service this morning.” [Twitter]

School Bus Crash Yesterday Afternoon — “A crash involving several vehicles including a school bus has snarled southbound traffic on S. Carlin Springs Road, near Campbell Elementary… No injuries have been reported and one lane of traffic is squeezing by the crash scene. This is the same stretch of road where a group of residents recently called for safety improvements. [Twitter]

Video: Adorable Baby Squirrel — From the Animal Welfare League of Arlington: “We’ve definitely got the cutest thing on the internet today! This baby squirrel came to us underweight and hungry, so after a snack she was transferred to a local wildlife rehabber who will care for her until she can be released back into the wild!” [Twitter]

Arlington GOP Ramps Up Outreach — “They are still on the lookout for local candidates, but the Arlington County Republican Committee also is working to connect with prospective supporters. ‘There are thousands of Republican voters who turn out on Election Day but who are otherwise unengaged with the Arlington GOP,’ party communications chair Matthew Hurtt said. ‘We can change that.'” [Sun Gazette]

FBI Warns of Moving Scam — “The FBI Washington Field Office is warning the public about increasingly prevalent moving fraud schemes and providing information about how to avoid being victimized by them. A typical moving fraud scheme begins when a customer is enticed into entering into a contract with a moving company to transport their household goods by offers of extremely low-cost estimates from a sales representative or broker.” [FBI]

It’s Friday — Partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 72 and low of 52. Sunrise at 6:23 am and sunset at 7:53 pm. [Weather.gov]

This month’s cartoon: Local developer stranded on a deserted island

By ARLnow.com
“He’s a developer from Arlington County.”

This month’s cartoon by Mike Mount features a familiar theme: trees being cut down by Arlington developers.

It’s unclear whether the propensity for local developers to cut down trees is a uniquely Arlington thing, or whether the vocal opposition to certain trees being felled is the more Arlington-specific trait. Nonetheless, the toon touches on an issue that seems to come up frequently in the county, which is home to its own “Arlington Tree Action Group.”

See Mike’s weekly cartoons in our exclusive weekend email for ARLnow Press Club members.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
People pose with a blossom statue outside the future Amazon Fresh store in Crystal City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Amazon Hiring Update — “Amazon.com Inc. is one-fifth of the way to the minimum number jobs the company committed to fill at its second headquarters in Arlington, one of the tech giant’s top hiring locations. As of Wednesday, Amazon had hired 5,000 employees who are assigned to HQ2… It is a 1,500-employee uptick since the last announcement in November.” [Washington Business Journal, Amazon]

HQ2 Phase 2 Vote This Weekend — “Amazon’s proposal for the next phase of HQ2 construction, including the spiral-shaped Helix structure, is set to go before the Arlington County Board for a final vote on Saturday, April 23. The company wants to build three more HQ2 office buildings alongside a 350-foot tall, futuristic building it calls the ‘Helix’. The development would be built on a piece of property known as ‘PenPlace’, just off Army Navy Drive.” [WJLA]

Injured Crow Dies — From the Animal Welfare League of Arlington: “UPDATE: this morning the crow passed away peacefully at @BRWildlifeCtr. We are very grateful to them for doing everything they could to care for him. We are still looking for information regarding this active investigation.” [Twitter]

Fire Station 8 Demolition Nears — “Arlington County will begin demolishing the Fire Station 8 structure during the week of May 2 and expects to complete demolition by the week of June 20. The demolition of the fire station, at 4845 Langston Blvd., will be in preparation for construction of the long-awaited new fire station at the same site. Demolition work will take place from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.” [Patch]

Arlington Company’s Ukraine Donation — “Arlington defense contractor AeroVironment Inc. is donating more than 100 unmanned aircraft systems and training services to defense officials in Ukraine… the donation of the company’s Quantix Recon systems will provide Ukraine’s military with unmanned vehicles that can fly by enemy forces undetected and unaffected by radio frequency jammers to relay reconnaissance intel.” [Washington Business Journal]

It’s Thursday — Mostly cloudy throughout the day, with a slight chance of rain in the afternoon. High of 67 and low of 45. Sunrise at 6:24 am and sunset at 7:52 pm. [Weather.gov]

Clarendon music series kicks off tonight, Clarendon Day set to return in fall

By ARLnow.com
Street scene from Clarendon Day 2017

After a two year hiatus caused by the pandemic, Clarendon Day is set to return in the fall.

Organizers not yet finalized a date for the popular fall street festival, but it’s likely to be in late September, according to Clarendon Alliance board president Kieran Daly. Clarendon Day was last held on Sept. 21, 2019.

In the meantime, the Clarendon Alliance is kicking off a new concert series tonight dubbed Music By the Metro.

The four-week series will run on Wednesdays through May 11. The music starts at 5:30 p.m. at the park just outside the Clarendon Metro station entrance.

Today’s performer is blues musician Bobby Thompson. Next week it’s jazz and Go-Go fusion group JoGo Project, followed by rock/alternative/folk collective Phil Kominski & The Breakaways (May 4) and reggae band Nkula (May 11).

The series is co-sponsored by Arlington Arts, Clarendon Animal Care and coworking provider Industrious.

Farmbird in Ballston is closed and it’s unclear whether it will reopen

By ARLnow.com
1/2

Has Farmbird flown the coop in Ballston, or will it rise from the ashes?

The chicken-centric restaurant, which first opened on the ground floor of the Ballston Exchange complex last summer, has been closed for the past few days. It was still closed this morning, when several men could be seen inside sitting and talking around a table.

Reached via email, restaurant co-founder Andrew Harris told ARLnow that Farmbird is working to reopen.

“Unfortunately, we sustained a minor fire on Saturday, 4/9/22 but are working to re-open ASAP,” he wrote this morning. The Ballston location is still listed on Farmbird’s website.

But a local restaurant equipment auction website tells a different story.

“This restaurant is closing and will make a complete liquidation of all late model equipment,” says an auction webpage that clearly shows the interior of Farmbird in Ballston.

D.C.-based Farmbird — which specializes in grilled chicken dishes served in a fast casual setting — opened the 4121 Wilson Blvd location, its first in Arlington, last June. It replaced Miami-based fast-casual health food restaurant Dirt, which closed in January 2020 after less than a year in business.

Farmbird won acclaim for its “gourmet” and health-conscious approach to fast casual dining, and was listed near the top of Yelp’s “Top 100 Places to Eat in the U.S. for 2020” list, a month prior to the start of the pandemic.

As of publication time, Harris has not replied to an email seeking clarification about the restaurant’s status.

Balloons caused large power outage in Arlington yesterday

By ARLnow.com
Dominion on scene of power pole fire in 2020 (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

An early morning power outage Tuesday left more than 2,000 Dominion customers in the dark. The culprit: balloons.

The incident prompted Dominion Energy to remind residents about the danger posed by those metallic balloons one might buy in a grocery or party supply store.

“In the overnight hours mylar balloons came in contact with our power lines causing a short circuit or power surge which put 2,085 customers in the dark,” Dominion spokeswoman Peggy Fox tells ARLnow. “The balloons damaged a circuit which had to be replaced.  Fortunately, there was no fire and our crews were able to gradually switch customers to other circuits.’

“Power was restored to all of those customers by 5 a.m. — in under three hours from when the outage began,” she added.

Letting balloons fly up into the sky may seem harmless — and in the case of balloons held by young children, it’s sometimes hard to avoid — but aside from the fact that the balloons eventually come down and end up as litter, mylar balloons in particular pose an acute danger on the way up.

“Mylar balloons have a metallic coating that conducts electricity,” Fox explains. “When they touch power lines they can cause large-scale outages, melting of electrical wires and even fires. It’s happened across the country.”

“We would ask people to not release any balloons outside and to dispose of them properly,” she said.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
American flag seen in a yard near East Falls Church (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Revamped Clarendon Restaurant Reopens — “With a new menu that offers Mexican food for all, Buena Vida Gastro Lounge is reopening its newly renovated restaurant in Clarendon this week, serving lunch and dinner and brunch on weekends. Buena Vida, at 2900 Wilson Blvd., also has a new executive chef, Jaime Garciá Pelayo Bribiesca, and a new décor created by CORE architecture+design.” [Patch, Instagram]

Group Wants More from Amazon — “While Arlingtonians for Our Sustainable Future (ASF) welcomes a new Amazon presence at PenPlace, we urge county leaders to strike a fair deal in this site plan review. As structured now, Arlington would trade world record bonus density — more buildable space — for unequal community benefits from Amazon.” [Press Release]

Art Exhibit Opening at GMU in Va. Sq. — “A new exhibition of art commissioned by the British Council to interpret an academic and policy report by a professor at George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government will be unveiled April 29 at Mason Square (formerly the Arlington Campus). The event is open to the public and features a keynote address from the ambassador from Tanzania and a panel discussion with representatives from international development, public diplomacy, and art agencies.” [George Mason University]

It’s 4/20 — Clear throughout the day. High of 60 and low of 39. Sunrise at 6:26 am and sunset at 7:51 pm. [Weather.gov]

Animal control investigating after crow shot with blow dart in Fairlington

By ARLnow.com
The crow that was shot by a blow dart Tuesday morning (photo courtesy AWLA)

Arlington’s animal control office is trying to figure out who shot a crow with a blow dart in Fairlington this morning.

Several people in the neighborhood called police and the Animal Welfare League of Arlington (AWLA) around 11 a.m. this morning to report the incident. Animal control officers found a crow that had been critically injured by the dart, which was apparently shot from a blow gun.

The crow is now en route to a wildlife center for surgery, but it’s unclear whether it will survive, AWLA said. In a statement, below, the organization said shooting a crow is illegal under the Federal Migratory Bird Act and “will not be tolerated in Arlington County.”

The incident happened about three weeks after commercial property owners in nearby Shirlington started using an artificial fog to try to get a large murder of migratory crows to flock elsewhere. The wintering crows and their prodigious droppings on local sidewalks and vehicles are a long-standing issue in Shirlington, dating back to at least 2017.

More on this morning’s blow dart shooting and its aftermath, from AWLA, is below.

Today at approximately 11am, our officers and 911 Dispatch Center received multiple calls from the public about a crow that had been shot in a Fairlington neighborhood. Our animal control officers immediately responded and found a critically injured crow who had been shot with a blow-gun. Officers brought him back to AWLA for triage where they cut off the barb from the dart and applied basic wound care. One of our officers then began the drive to a wildlife center where the crow will undergo surgery to remove the dart. The officer is currently still on route to the center and unfortunately there is a chance the crow. may not survive the drive. Thankfully, our officers have checked the area and have not found any more injured animals.

“This is why we put so much time and emphasis on teaching tolerance and harmonious coexistence with wildlife. When groups, associations, or organizations teach intolerance for living things, our native wildlife pays the price.” ~ Jennifer Toussaint, Chief of Animal Control.

Crows are protected under the Federal Migratory Bird Act. This type of activity is illegal and will not be tolerated in Arlington County. We are asking that anyone who may have seen any related activity in the area over the past 8-12 hours to please call our Animal Control team at (703) 931-9241.

Morning Poll: Mask mandate dropped on Metro, flights

By ARLnow.com
A discarded mask in Fairlington (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Masks are now optional on Metro, on Amtrak and on many airlines.

The announcements were made last night after a judge struck down the federal transportation mask mandate. Some cheered the end of the mandates, while others urged travelers to remain masked regardless.

For Metro, the end of the mask mandate extends to both riders and employees.  From a press release:

Effective immediately, Metro will make masks optional on Metrorail, Metrobus and MetroAccess for its customers. Masks also will be optional for Metro employees. This change comes as a result of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) suspending enforcement, while the Biden Administration reviews a federal judge’s ruling.

“Our mask mandate has been based on federal guidance,” said General Manager and Chief Executive Officer Paul J. Wiedefeld. “We will continue to monitor this situation as it unfolds, but masks will be optional on Metro property until further notice.”

Metro encourages its customers to make decisions that are in their best interests. Updates will be provided as new information becomes available.

So far, there’s no word from Arlington Transit about the status of masks on ART buses. In New York City, the subway system has, for now, continued to require masks.

In general, what do you think of the decision to end mask mandates on public transportation? Also, do you plan on continuing to wear masks regardless?

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