Author: ARLnow.com

It’s Election Day — Polls are open from 6 a.m.-7 p.m. today, with a number of local races on the ballot. Check out the candidate essays we published last week from those in competitive races. [Arlington County]

Fewer People Voting = Better? — From a newspaper editorial that has been getting some attention on social media: “With ‘Election Day’ having now morphed into ‘Election Season,’ we’re a little late to make this plea – and run the risk of being accused of ‘voter suppression’ as we do – but we’re still going to say it. We think those who are not willing to do the homework on Arlington’s local campaigns (the County Board races being the only ones seriously contested in 2023) and bring an informed perspective to the ballot box should do the broader community a favor and sit them out.” [Gazette Leader]

Drowsy Driving Prevention Week — From ACPD: “National Drowsy Driving Prevention Week, Nov 5-11, is a dedicated time to encourage motorists to prioritize sleep and only drive when they are alert and refreshed. In 2022, 24 people were killed nationwide in crashes involving drowsy drivers. Remember: Sleep First. Drive Alert.” [Twitter]

Yorktown Also Going to Region Playoffs — “The Yorktown Patriots (6-4, 3-3) rallied from a 3-0 deficit to defeat the visiting Herndon Hornets, 14-3, in a Liberty District high-school football contest Nov. 3 and clinch a region-playoff berth as the No. 7 seed. The region berth is Yorktown’s third straight and sixth in the last seven seasons. Yorktown will play a first-round road game against the undefeated and No. 2 seed South Lakes Seahawks (10-0).” [Gazette Leader]

Rosslyn: The ‘Brooklyn of Washington’ — Discover the ambitious tale of Rosslyn City, once heralded as the “Brooklyn of Washington” in an 1889 advertisement, and explore how this slogan represented the spirit of urban growth and the resilience of city evolution. [Ghosts of DC]

Drought Conditions Return — “The D.C. area has flirted with drought since the spring and, after an unusually dry October and early November, is on the brink of it again. The latest federal drought monitor shows abnormally dry conditions — the stage before drought — surging back into the southern half of the D.C. area, including parts of the District itself.” [Capital Weather Gang]

It’s Tuesday — Expect a mostly cloudy day with a high temperature close to 76 and a southwest wind at about 10 mph. At night, the sky will clear up with the low temperature around 48, accompanied by a north wind at approximately 7 mph. [Weather.gov]

Flickr pool photo by Emma K. Alexandra

W-L Captures District Championship — “The regular season ended for Arlington’s four high-school football teams the night of Nov. 3 with different overall results for each. The most successful story was the Washington-Liberty Generals clinching the outright Liberty District championship thanks to a 41-21 come-from-behind victory over the visiting Wakefield Warriors in an all-Arlington clash. The Generals finished 9-1 overall (their most wins in a season since 1975) and 5-1 in the league.” [Gazette Leader]

YHS Second in Region Tourney — “Although it wasn’t the accomplishment they wanted, by finishing second in the region tournament the Yorktown Patriots added to an impressive list of achievements the girls field hockey team has earned since the 2019 high-school season. The two-time defending champions lost, 2-1, to the host and undefeated Oakton Cougars in this year’s 6D North Region tournament-championship match the night of Nov. 1.” [Gazette Leader]

Arlington Astronaut Dies — ” Ken Mattingly, the former astronaut best known for helping save the crew of Apollo 13 in the 1970s — a near-catastrophic mission later recounted in the Hollywood film ‘Apollo 13,’ in which Mattingly was played by Gary Sinise — has died, officials at NASA announced Thursday. He was 87… Mattingly was born in Chicago, grew up in the Miami area and died at his home in Arlington, Virginia, according to The New York Times.” [Patch]

Residents Want Old Building to Stay — “Leaders of the surrounding civic association are seeking a stay of execution for the nearly century-old building that formerly held the Lee Community Center and remains home for now to the Lee Arts Center, which Arlington government leaders plan to raze and replace with a public-private development. Jane Henceroth, president of the Leeway Overlee Civic Association, attended the Oct. 24 meeting of the Park and Recreation Commission, calling the building a treasured landmark and pressing county leaders to use creativity in keeping it in place.” [Gazette Leader]

Police Seize Illegal Gun — From ACPD: “Yesterday, an officer conducted a traffic stop along Crystal Dr resulting in the recovery of a concealed, loaded firearm. This is a great example of the dedicated & proactive work officers perform each day to keep our community safe while reducing opportunities for violent crime.” [Twitter]

Unemployment Rate Update — “Arlington’s jobless rate held steady from August to September, according to new data, and was low enough to rank second best in the commonwealth. With 160,418 employed in the civilian workforce and 3,576 looking for jobs, the county’s unemployment rate of 2.2 percent in September was equal to that of August, if slightly above the rate of 2 percent recorded in September 2022.” [Gazette Leader]

NYC Coffee Chain Eyes Area — “A New York City-based coffee roastery has set its sights on the Greater Washington region, where it aims to open more than a half-dozen stores spread across D.C., suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia.” [Washington Business Journal]

ARLnow is Hiring — “Local News Now is seeking an experienced, detail-oriented reporter and editor to join our growing team in Northern Virginia. The reporter/editor will report local news across a range of topics — including local government, local business, real estate development and breaking news.” [Journalism Jobs]

It’s Monday — A mostly sunny day with a high around 63 degrees and light winds that will increase from the south at 5-8 mph in the afternoon. As for Monday night, the skies will turn mostly cloudy and the temperature will dip to about 53 degrees, accompanied by a south wind at 6-10 mph. [Weather.gov]