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.

Large Police Presence North of Ballston Due to Drug Investigation

By ARLnow.com

A SWAT raid prompted a large police presence just north of Ballston this morning.

At least one lane of N. Glebe Road was blocked as Arlington County police executed a search warrant at a home near the corner of Glebe and 13th Street N., in the Waycroft-Woodlawn neighborhood. Numerous police vehicles and a fire department vehicle could be seen in the area.

The police activity has now largely cleared out.

ACPD spokeswoman Kirby Clark said the deployment was “part of an ongoing narcotics investigation.”

There were at least two other drug-related SWAT actions earlier this year in Arlington, although it’s unclear if either are related to today’s raid.

In February a man was arrested after a SWAT team swarmed a condo complex across from the Virginia Square Metro station. In March ACPD tactical teams took several people into custody after surrounding a vehicle in a parking lot near Columbia Pike, as part of a narcotics investigation.

Courtesy photo

UPDATED: APS Distance Learning Closed Due to Network Problems

By ARLnow.com

Update at 2:35 p.m. — Kids will be back in class (virtually) tomorrow.

“Our service provider repaired the damaged cable overnight and restored service late this morning,” Arlington Public Schools said Wednesday afternoon. “As of 1 p.m., APS network services have been restored. Distance learning will resume for all students, tomorrow, Oct. 22.”

Earlier: A fiber optic cable cut in Vienna has led to the cancellation of distance learning today.

Arlington Public Schools says the network outage caused by the “major fiber cut” has knocked out systems required for remote classes.

“Our Internet Service Provider has not been able to restore service and is continuing to work to resolve the issue,” APS said in an email to families. As of last night, the school system said “there is no estimate for restoration.”

Meal services and high school pools are unaffected by the closure. APS is, however, pushing back the deadline for some families make back-to-school selections online.

“Due to the network outage, today’s deadline for making Level 2 selections in ParentVUE for students in grades PreK-5 and select CTE courses has been extended to Fri, Oct. 23,” APS said.

“We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused and again, thank you for your patience,” the school email concluded. “We will continue to provide updates today and will notify you when service is restored.”

Arlington County’s website, meanwhile, is still down as of 9 a.m. Wednesday.

Foggy Morning Prompts Dense Fog Advisory

By ARLnow.com

A Dense Fog Advisory is in effect this morning or Arlington and the D.C. area.

The fog is starting to burn off and is expected to clear out throughout the morning. The advisory is set to expire at 10 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.

Drivers are being encouraged to take it slow this morning, particularly on highways, due to reduced visibility.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Return of First Students Delayed — “As we have shared, we were aiming for an October 29 start for Level 1, which includes approximately 225 students with disabilities who need in-person support to access distance learning. We are now moving the start date back to Wednesday, November 4, to ensure all operational metrics are met and staff are well equipped and ready to support our students at each school.” [Arlington Public Schools]

County Crushes Census Count — “You did it, Arlington County: With the Census Count completing on October 15th, 99.98% of Arlington was officially counted. Thank you to our Complete Count Committee for your tireless, infectious enthusiasm for ensuring that everyone counts!” [@kcristol/Twitter, YouTube]

Culpepper Garden Celebrates Renovations — “It wasn’t quite the kind of celebration that had been expected when, two and a half years ago, work began on a major renovation at the Culpepper Garden senior-living facility. But it was a celebration nonetheless – albeit ‘virtually’ – that was called for, and on Oct. 13, leaders of two non-profit housing providers and their partners held an online program to mark completion of the $58 million project.” [InsideNova]

Spirits of ’76 Closing Happy Hour — Set to close on Nov. 1, Spirits of ’76 is holding a half-off happy hour from 4-6 p.m. until the closing date. “Everything must go!” the Clarendon bar said on social media. [Instagram]

Punch Bowl Social Restarting Happy Hour — “Punch Bowl Social, the ‘millennial-oriented’ adult playground in Arlington, reopened its Ballston location last week, and it plans to restart happy hour, Wednesday through Friday, beginning Wednesday, October 21. The ‘eatertainment’ chain says it will offer diversions like arcade games, bocce, darts, and more in a socially distant fashion.” [Washingtonian]

Overnight Closures Along I-66 — “Overnight ramp and lane closures are scheduled to occur this week, and possibly next week, on I-66 East in Arlington for asphalt paving and overhead sign replacement as part of the I-66 Eastbound Widening Project. Detours will be posted to direct traffic.” [VDOT]

UPDATED: Arlington County’s Website Is Still Down

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 10 p.m.) Arlington County’s website has been down for most of the day and remains down as of Tuesday night.

The county is working to fix the technical difficulties, which brought down the website completely. The homepage was working this morning, while many interior pages were bringing up error messages, before the entire site went down.

Those hoping to participate in today’s County Board meeting, which starts at 3 p.m., should be able to do so on YouTube or on local cable TV. Those hoping to speak at the meeting are being asked to call 703-228-3130 to register to do so.

A county spokeswoman said that there are no signs, at least so far, that the outages are the result of hacking.

“We are actively investigating the current technical issues related to the County website,” said Shannon Whalen McDaniel. “At this time, it is too early to offer a conclusive statement about the root cause of the issues, however we do not see any overt signs of malicious activity. We will provide an update as soon as it is available and appreciate the public’s patience at this time.”

The county previously posted a page on the site explaining the technical difficulties. That page is now inaccessible. Later Tuesday, the county homepage was replaced by a static page, explaining the outage and providing links to online services that were still available, like the library website, the service request page and the county payments portal.

Shortly after 3 p.m., Arlington Public Schools also announced to families that it was having tech troubles.

“APS is experiencing an internet outage that is affecting applications and services, such as MyAccess, on the APS platform,” APS said. “We are working with our vendor to address the issue and will let families know when it has been resolved. Thank you for your patience.”

Despite the problems, the main Arlington Public Schools homepage was still operable. Later Tuesday evening, APS said that the disruption was caused by “a major fiber [optic line] cut in Vienna.”

Police: Drunk Man Tried to Force His Way into Woman’s Home

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County police arrested a man over the weekend after he allegedly tried to force his way into the home of a woman who opened her door to see if he needed help.

The incident happened around 1:45 a.m. Sunday on the 3100 block of 9th Street N., near Clarendon.

Police say the 22-year-old man was drunk when he started to damage items outside the home and then pushed the victim in an attempt to enter the home.

More from an Arlington County Police Department crime report:

UNLAWFUL ENTRY, 2020-10180035, 3100 block of 9th Street N. At approximately 1:45 a.m. on October 18, police were dispatched to the report of a suspicious person. Upon arrival, it was determined that the victim was inside her residence when she heard noise at her door and observed the male suspect outside. As the victim opened the door to see if the suspect was in need of assistance, he requested to be let inside and kicked a shoe and his phone into the residence. As the victim attempted to retrieve the items, the suspect allegedly began to damage the victim’s property outside, then pushed the victim as he attempted to enter the residence. The victim fought back and yelled for assistance, at which point neighbor came to the aid of the victim and chased the suspect out of the building. During the course of the investigation, it was determined that the suspect had also entered another residence in the building. Kyle Lewis, 22, of Chantilly, Va., was arrested and charged with Assault and Battery, Unlawful Entry, and Drunk in Public.

Also in the most recent ACPD crime report, police are investigating Saturday morning robberies in Crystal City and Rosslyn.

ROBBERY, 2020-10170061, 1400 block of Crystal Drive. At approximately 3:17 a.m. on October 17, police were dispatched to the report of a robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined that when the two victims came outside to meet the suspect,  she exited her vehicle and demanded money from them. As Victim One pulled out an undisclosed amount of cash, the suspect struck him with a closed fist and grabbed the money. The suspect then turned to Victim Two, who initially declined to provide money, and became angered. Victim Two produced an undisclosed amount of cash, which the suspect grabbed, then fled in the vehicle prior to police arrival. The suspect is described as a Black female, 6’2″ to 6’4″, and 300 lbs. The vehicle is described as a gray Mercedes hatchback. The investigation is ongoing.

ROBBERY, 2020-10170094, 1100 block of Wilson Boulevard. At approximately 9:56 a.m. on October 17, police were dispatched to the report of a robbery by force just occurred. Upon arrival, it was determined that the suspect entered a business and began selecting merchandise. The victim approached the suspect telling him to pay for the merchandise, at which point a physical altercation ensued. The suspect pushed the victim and grabbed his eyeglasses, causing them to break, then selected additional merchandise and fled the business prior to police arrival. The suspect is described as a White male, approximately 6’0″, 220 lbs., wearing a dark gray hoodie, camouflage shorts, with black and yellow sneakers. The investigation is ongoing.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Board Shelves Pike Housing Proposal — “Arlington County Board members on Oct. 17… [removed] from consideration a staff proposal to change rules governing affordable housing on Columbia Pike. Board members, who had weathered intense community skepticism of the proposal when it first was heard in June, had placed the proposal back on their October agenda, and had recommendations from both the Planning Commission and county manager to approve it. But when critics again suited up to do battle, board members threw in the towel.” [InsideNova]

Another Top Bond Rating for County — “For the 20th year in a row, all three credit ratings agencies have reaffirmed Arlington County’s debt ratings of Aaa/AAA/AAA — the highest possible rating. Arlington is one of just 48 counties in the United States, and one of nine in Virginia, to receive this designation.” [Arlington County]

Amazon Donates to Antiracism Effort — “Amazon.com Inc. has donated $100,000 to Arlington County’s antiracism initiative. The company, which is setting up a headquarters in the Northern Virginia county, made the donation Oct. 14 and the county board will vote on whether or not to accept the funds on Tuesday.” [Washington Business Journal]

New Sculpture at Arlington Nat’l Cemetery — “A new sculpture honoring military women and military working dogs was unveiled outside Arlington National Cemetery. The life-size bronze sculpture called ‘The Pledge’ is being placed at the Women In Military Service For America Memorial, located at Arlington National Cemetery’s entrance.” [WTOP, DCist]

Arlington Woman Featured as Face of COVID — “One of those laid off was Serenety Hanley, whose career in digital communications included a stint in the White House under President George W. Bush. The 45-year-old single mother was let go from a retail job in March and now makes a living by shopping for Instacart… Hanley said she still can barely make ends meet.” [Thomson Reuters Foundation]

Va. Ventilator Usage Declines — “The number of Virginians being treated on ventilators for COVID-19 fell to a new low Monday, and case levels also declined somewhat from recent trends. The Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association reported that just 81 patients were being treated statewide on ventilators, down from 95 the day before and the fewest since the association began publicly reporting COVID-19 data in early April.” [InsideNova]

The Spirits of ’76 Is Closing in Clarendon

By ARLnow.com
1/6

The Spirits of ’76, a bar in Clarendon that opened just before the 2016 election, is closing just before the 2020 election.

The bar at 3211 Washington Blvd is just off the main drag of Clarendon, on a block in which restaurants have struggled. It opened in October 2016 with Americana decor, a robust whiskey list, and a menu of American comfort food.

Spirits of ’76 was unpretentious from the outset, seeking to be little more than a good local bar, comfortable neighborhood hangout, and occasional small event venue.

The business announced today that it will be closing in less than two weeks, after deciding against renewing its lease.

“It is a sad day at 76 to announce on our anniversary that we will be closing for good at the end of business on Sunday, November 1,” the restaurant said on social media. “Our lease is up at the end of November and it has become unsustainable to continue during these times. I have made numerous attempts to contact the landlords but they will not return our calls or letters to try to keep us going.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CGh9gjcB4M8/

Photos: Biden Car Parade Over the Weekend

By ARLnow.com
1/10

The Trump campaign famously has had boat parades. Over the weekend the Biden campaign organized a car parade in Arlington.

On Saturday, the first day of expanded early voting, Biden’s Virginia campaign held a Latino Car Parade “to encourage Latinos to vote early and highlight the importance of the Latino vote in Virginia.”

Del. Alfonso Lopez (D-Arlington), Arlington School Board member Tannia Talento, and School Board candidate Cristina Diaz-Torres participated in the morning event, which culminated in early voting at the Walter Reed Community Center near Columbia Pike.

“The Biden-Harris Administration will get this pandemic under control, protect Latinos’ access to health care, and reform our broken immigration system,” the campaign said in a press release about the event.

Those participating in the car parade and subsequent rally were required by the campaign to adhere to COVID-19 safety precautions, “including wearing masks, temperature checks, and practicing social distancing.”

President Trump’s reelection campaign, which is based in Rosslyn, does not currently have any publicly-listed events planned in Arlington.

The car parade was not the only local Democratic political happening of note this weekend. Elected officials, including Sen. Mark Warner and Rep. Don Beyer, visited several early voting locations on Saturday.

Zinga! Frozen Yogurt Appears Closed

By ARLnow.com
1/2

Zinga! Frozen Yogurt has closed in Arlington’s Williamsburg Shopping Center, though it’s not immediately clear if the closure is permanent.

The froyo shop closed last week, and a “for lease” sign was placed in the window. As of Friday, the leasing sign was down, but the store remained closed and many of the furnishings appear to have been cleared out.

No information about the closure was posted on the Zinga Facebook page, which less than two weeks ago was happily posting about new fall flavors and job openings.

Zinga first opened in the shopping center, at 2914 N. Sycamore Street, in 2013. Another nearby location of the small froyo chain, in Falls Church, closed in 2018.

Hat tip to Buzz McClain

New Coronavirus Cases Hit Multi-Month Peak Over Weekend, But Ease a Bit Today

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 10:35 a.m.) A run-up in Arlington’s seven-day moving average of new coronavirus cases eased a bit today.

The average rate of new cases hit 26.4 per day on Sunday, the highest point since June 2. Today, after 12 new cases were reported overnight, that dropped to 25.0 new cases per day.

The cumulative total of cases in the county now stands at 4,384 — about 1.9% of the population — up from 3,997 at the beginning of the month.

One new COVID-related hospitalization was also reported overnight, but the seven-day total of new hospitalizations held steady at eight. No new COVID deaths have been reported in Arlington since Oct. 5, according to Virginia Dept. of Health data.

Arlington’s test positivity rate, which had risen a few tenths of a percent to 3.7% as of Sunday, was down to 3.5% today.

Statewide, the test positivity rate reached 5.0% over the weekend, for the first time in three weeks, as Virginia continues to see a slowly rising epidemic. Modeling by the University of Virginia suggests the state’s COVID-19 caseload will peak just before Thanksgiving.

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