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.

ARLnow Daily Debrief for Jan 22, 2024

By ARLnow.com

Good Monday evening, Arlington. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.

🕗 News recap

The following articles were published earlier today — Jan 22, 2024.

📅 Upcoming events

Here is what’s going on Tuesday in Arlington, from our event calendar.

🌥️ Tuesday’s forecast

Expect a mostly cloudy day with a high temperature close to 41 degrees and gentle, variable winds. Tuesday night brings a 30% chance of rain, mostly after 2 am, under continued mostly cloudy skies and a low temperature around 32 degrees. A light east wind will persist through the night. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.”
– Oscar Wilde

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.

Liquor store robbery leads to chase and arrests on I-395

By ARLnow.com
End of police chase in I-395 linked to Virginia ABC store robbery (photo courtesy Alan Henney)

A pair of women from D.C. are facing charges after an alleged liquor store robbery and car chase.

The robbery was reported around 2 p.m. on N. Fillmore Street in Clarendon. The chase ended around 2:30 p.m. on northbound I-395, temporarily blocking the highway.

The suspects may also be linked to other robberies of Virginia ABC stores in Northern Virginia, according to public safety watchers on social media.

More on the incident, below, from today’s Arlington County Police Department crime report.

ROBBERY, 2024-01200094, 1000 block of N. Fillmore Street. At approximately 2:00 p.m. on January 20, police were dispatched to the report of a robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined two female suspects entered the business and collected merchandise. Suspect One allegedly made threatening statements towards an employee and exited the store followed by Suspect Two. The suspects fled the scene in a black sedan and a lookout was broadcast. At approximately 2:25 p.m., officers observed the suspect vehicle travelling in the 2900 block of S. Glebe Road and attempted a traffic stop during which the driver failed to stop and fled the scene. Officers initiated a vehicle pursuit and took the suspects into custody after their vehicle experienced a flat tire and came to a stop on northbound I-395 in the area of Washington Boulevard. One suspect was evaluated on scene for minor injuries and did not require transport. One hit and run by the suspect vehicle was reported resulting in minor property damage and no injuries. Two police cruisers sustained minor damage and no officers reported injuries. The stolen merchandise was recovered from the suspect vehicle. [The suspect], 23, of Washington, DC, was arrested and charged with Robbery and Eluding. [The suspect], 22, of Washington, DC, was arrested and charged with Petit Larceny. The investigation is ongoing.

Also in today’s crime report, police are investigating an armed robbery Saturday morning in the Courthouse area.

ROBBERY, 2024-01200075, 2300 block of Wilson Boulevard. At approximately 11:31 a.m. on January 20, police were dispatched to the report of an armed robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined the male suspect was inside a business when he approached the counter and brandished a firearm. He then went behind the counter and stole merchandise before demanding cash from the register. He subsequently exited the store with an undisclosed amount of cash and fled the scene on foot. No injuries were reported. Responding officers canvassed the area for the suspect yielding negative results. The suspect is described as a Black male, approximately 35-50 years old, 5’7”-5’11”, wearing a blue sweatshirt, black jacket, dark blue pants, blue hat, black shoes and a white mask. The investigation is ongoing.

Separately, police are also investigating another report of gunshots fired in the Green Valley neighborhood. The latest incident happened late Friday night.

SHOTS FIRED (late), 2024-01190177, 3600 block of 25th Street S. At approximately 11:57 p.m. on January 19, police were dispatched to the late report of shots heard. Officers spoke with the reporting party by phone who stated approximately 25 minutes prior, she heard what appeared to be multiple shots fired in the area. Officers recovered evidence confirming several shots had been fired and witnesses described observing a vehicle leave the area at a high rate of speed. No victims or property damage were reported. There is no suspect description(s). The investigation is ongoing.

Listing of the Day: 1007 N. Kensington Street

By ARLnow.com
1/6

Address: 1007 N. Kensington Street
Neighborhood: Westover Towns
Type: 4 BR, 4 (+1 half) BA townhouse — 2,000 sq. ft.
Listed: $1,073,000

Noteworthy: All brick 4 level townhouse in Cardinal, Swanson, Yorktown pyramid

Located about a block from the bike and walking trails, this light filled townhouse offers four finished levels of flexible space and a two car attached garage.

Enter into the main level of the home featuring wood floors, high ceilings, and tall windows. The living room flows into the dining room, kitchen and family area. A powder room completes this level. Upstairs, the primary bedroom has a walk in closet and private bath with oversized shower and double sink vanity. The second bedroom has a double door closet and an en suite bathroom. Conveniently located on the upstairs level, is the laundry room as well as a linen closet in the hall.

On the top floor, there is a private third bedroom and bathroom with charming dormered ceilings. Entry to the roof terrace is on this level with space for dining, grilling, and gatherings. The lower level has the fourth bedroom and bathroom which is ideal for an office, au pair, or private space for a teen. A large coat closet with shoe storage is on this level along with an under-the-stairs storage area.

The two car garage houses the utility room and has space for bikes and outdoor equipment. The areaway behind the home is a popular play spot for children living in the community. Near Westover Village’s shops, library, restaurants, service, and Sunday Farmer’s Market. Easy access to Washington, Rosslyn-Ballston business corridor, military, government, and business center, and National Airport. Good reverse commute to Tysons and Dulles tech corridor and airport.

Listed by:
Betsy Twigg — McEnearney Associates
[email protected]
(703) 967-4391

Video: Driver slams into building on Columbia Pike

By ARLnow.com
1/2

The driver of an SUV slammed into a building along Columbia Pike early Saturday morning.

It happened around 1:40 a.m. on the western end of the Pike in Arlington, near the massive “Pike” sculpture.

Video of the incident, posted by local public safety watcher Dave Statter, shows the SUV driving at a high speed down S. Jefferson Street before crashing into a commercial building at 5555 Columbia Pike.

No serious injuries were reported. So far, there’s no word on any charges against the driver.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Sledding late Sunday afternoon at Nottingham Elementary (staff photo)

Police Announce Stabbing Arrest — “The Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit is announcing an arrest in the stabbing that occurred on December 15, 2023, in the 5100 block of Columbia Pike. Kamron Tartt, 18, of Arlington, VA was taken into custody on January 18 and charged with Malicious Wounding by Mob, Conspiracy to Commit a Felony and Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor (x2). He is being held without bond.” [ACPD]

Photos from Wreaths Out — “Volunteers participate in the Wreaths Across America annual removal of wreaths, commonly known as Wreaths Out, in Section 33 at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Va., Jan. 20, 2024. This year, nearly 3,000 volunteers removed approximately 260,000 wreaths originally placed at ANC on Dec. 16, 2023.” [Flickr]

Winning Performances at Track Meet — “Members of Wakefield and Washington-Liberty high-school track and field teams had strong finishes at a recent meet at Christopher Newport University. Winning the girls 3,200-meter race was Washington-Liberty’s Alba Edsall in 11:50.2, with her teammate Mina Dowler seventh in 12:51 and Wakefield’s Kenedy Shields won the high jump at 5-feet.” [Gazette Leader]

Volunteers Clear Trail — From the Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail: “17 volunteers showed up to clear snow from the Mount Vernon Trail today!” [Twitter]

It’s Monday — Expect sunny skies and a high around 37 degrees as a calm wind shifts to the south at 5 to 8 mph during the morning. For Monday night, conditions become partly cloudy with a low of around 25 degrees and a southwest wind blowing at 3 to 6 mph. [Weather.gov]

Today’s Morning Notes post is brought to you by coworking provider Industrious. ARLnow has been based in an Industrious office for several years and we love the convenience — you get to focus on your work rather than worrying about brewing the coffee or keeping the copy machine stocked with paper. Industrious has a number of Arlington locations from which to choose.

ARLnow Daily Debrief for Jan 19, 2024

By ARLnow.com

Good Friday evening, Arlington. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.

🕗 News recap

The following articles were published earlier today — Jan 19, 2024.

Since it’s Friday, we’ve also compiled a list of the most-read articles of the week, below.

  1. Heads up: Arlington is about to get some snow (27711 views)
  2. UPDATED: Suspect arrested after dog fatally stabbed in Falls Church (10086 views)
  3. Pie meets pinball at new membership-based arcade inside ACME Pie on Columbia Pike (8801 views)
  4. ACPD investigating robbery at local high school (7169 views)
  5. Two dozen Arlington eateries join D.C. area’s winter Restaurant Week (7146 views)
  6. NEW: Winter Weather Advisory issued for Arlington (6563 views)
  7. JUST IN: Winter Storm Warning issued for Arlington (6258 views)
  8. New ice cream shop could move into Lyon Village Shopping Center this spring (6096 views)
  9. NEW: Tuesday is a snow day for Arlington Public Schools (6043 views)
  10. JUST iN: School cancelled Friday due to snow, APS announces (5494 views)
  11. Arlington businesses for sale: bubble tea spot, high-grossing bar, and a school (4867 views)
  12. Arlington County loses pretrial appeal in Missing Middle suit (4606 views)

📅 Upcoming events

Here is what’s going on Saturday in Arlington, from our event calendar.

Here are the events planned for Sunday:

☀️ Saturday’s forecast

Expect a mostly sunny day with a high temperature near 24 degrees and northwest winds ranging from 11 to 18 mph, gusting up to 32 mph. The night will be mostly clear with a low around 17 degrees, and northwest winds persisting at 14 to 16 mph, gusting up to 26 mph. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming”
– David Bowie

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

We hope you have a great weekend, Arlington! Feel free to discuss the most-read stories of the week, the upcoming weekend events or anything else of local interest in the comments. 👋

Adoptable Pet of the Week: Bratwurst

By ARLnow.com
1/3

Searching for a small animal companion? Do you love guinea pigs?

Meet Bratwurst, the newest Adoptable Pet of the Week!

This brown, white and orange guinea pig is adorable and would make the best companion. She is currently in foster with the Animal Welfare League of Arlington.

Her foster had a few words to say:

Bratwurst is a very sweet female piggy.

She may be shy at first but she’ll warm up to you quickly if you hand feed her veggies!

Soon enough you’ll notice what a sweet and gentle piggy she is.

Bratwurst’s favorite thing is: Vegetables
But she’s not so into: Being picked up
Her special talents are: Being cute and eating
Her perfect day would be: A day full of veggies and relaxation
If Bratwurst was an ice cream flavor, she would be: Strawberry

Important facts about Bratwurst: She may be shy at first but after some love and hand feeding you’ll see her come out of her shell!

Has Bratwurst captured your heart? Learn more about Bratwurst by reading her entire profile!

Want your pet to be considered for the Arlington Pet of the Week? Email [email protected] with 2-3 paragraphs about your pet and at least 3-4 horizontally-oriented photos.

Listing of the Day: 2927 S Columbus Street

By ARLnow.com
1/5

Address: 2927 S Columbus Street
Neighborhood: Fairlington Villages
Type: 2 BR, 2 BA townhouse — 1,383 sq. ft.
Listed: $579,900

Noteworthy: End-unit townhouse in Fairlington Villages with large patio and great parking

Updated end-unit townhouse with nearly 1,400 SqFt across three levels (Clarendon II model) featuring a spacious back patio and plenty of parking and sited on a beautifully landscaped common front courtyard. The entire home has been freshly painted and is completely move-in ready with updated bathrooms and kitchen, and recently refinished hardwood floors. Unassigned permit parking is available in the off-street parking lot for homeowners and guests and street parking is readily available without a permit.

What Makes This Neighborhood Stand Out?

Fairlington Villages offers a community unlike any other in Arlington with its expansive green space, wide streets lined by sidewalks and mature trees, six pools, playgrounds, and tennis courts just a short stroll from restaurants, groceries, and retail shops in The Village at Shirlington.

What Makes This Location Stand Out?

Walking distance to The Villages at Shirlington and a short drive to two airports (Reagan National and Dulles International), Washington, D.C., Tysons, Old Town Alexandria, the Pentagon, Amazon HQ2, and all major Northern Virginia highways. There are multiple bus stops in the neighborhood for easy commuting and access to Metro.

Take a virtual tour today!

Listed by:
Eli Tucker — Eli Residential Group of RLAH @properties
[email protected]
(703) 539-2529

NEW: Ballston Macy’s to close this year, with redevelopment planned

By ARLnow.com
1/4

The Macy’s store at Ballston Quarter will close later this year, the company announced Thursday.

The Ballston location is one of five Macy’s stores set to close in 2024, as the department store chain aims to cut 2,350 jobs, or 3.5% of its workforce, including 13% of corporate staff.

The closure of the Ballston Macy’s is not exactly a surprise. The Arlington County Board approved a redevelopment plan for the site in December 2022. From our previous reporting:

Insight Property Group proposes to demolish the longtime department store and vacant office building at 685 N. Glebe Road and replace it with a 16-story, 555-unit apartment complex atop a grocery store. In response to online engagement, it is adding a second, 1,400-square-foot retail space on the ground floor.

The units would be spread across two 14-story towers joined at the penthouse level. Residents would have 250 underground parking spaces while grocery store patrons would have 148 spots on the building’s second story.

There’s no immediate word of an updated timeline for the development, which was the subject of scrutiny from local residents and transportation planners.

Photo (top) via Google Maps

GW Parkway closed, bus schedules curtailed as snow continues to fall

By ARLnow.com
Snow falling on Wilson Blvd in Bluemont

Today’s snowfall — the second significant snowstorm of the week after none for two years — is overperforming.

More than two inches have fallen so far and another 1-2 inches is expected through this afternoon, according to the Capital Weather Gang. A Winter Weather Advisory remains in effect.

VDOT and Arlington County crews are out treating local roads. Owing in some combination to the snow crews and the salt already on the roads, major and arterial roadways in Arlington appear to be in relatively good shape on traffic cameras.

“Crews started mobilizing early this morning as areas of snow returned across Northern Virginia,” VDOT said. “Please give them plenty of space on the roads as they work to keep them clear. As always, residents are asked to monitor forecasts, limit nonessential travel, and be aware of the potential for icy spots as freezing temperatures are forecast today into the weekend.”

The under-construction portion of the GW Parkway, meanwhile, was temporarily closed earlier today — as it was earlier this week — in anticipation of the snow.

“The George Washington Memorial Parkway, from I-495 to Spout Run, is closed due to the forecasted severe winter weather in the area,” the National Park Service said. “This closure is necessary to ensure the proper treatment of the roadway and to restore the parkway to safe travel conditions. Crews will work diligently to treat the roadway for safe passage of motorists.”

“Motorists should anticipate delays in reopening the north parkway as crews are required to use smaller equipment than usual to accommodate the lane widths and configurations,” NPS added. “Please plan to use alternate routes. A follow-up alert will be distributed once the parkway has reopened.”

As previously reported, Arlington Public Schools is closed today, while the federal government is opening on a two-hour delay. Arlington County government, however, opened on time.

Metro and ART bus schedules have been curtailed as a result of the snow.

“Arlington Transit will be shifting to severe service level, only routes 41, 45, 51, 55, 77, 87, 87A and 87P run during this service level,” ART noted just before 9 a.m.

Metro is on a “moderate” snow plan.

“Under the Moderate plan, service will be suspended on some routes and buses detour around roads prone to hazardous conditions, including many neighborhood streets,” WMATA said in a press release. “Customers are advised to travel only if necessary, as snow and ice may create dangerous conditions, causing delays and increased wait times. If snow is blocking the curb, customers are advised to wait on the sidewalk instead of the street until the bus arrives.”

Deicing and snow removal operations are underway at National Airport, but runways are open and flights continuing to arrive and depart.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Snow day in Arlington at the US Marine Corps War Memorial (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

Snow Crews Worked Overnight — From Arlington’s Dept. of Environmental Services: “Full road crew shifts starting at midnight; plenty of residual salt already down. Avoid driving during a winter weather event.” [Twitter]

Two Hour Delay for Feds — From the Office of Personnel Management: “Federal agencies in the DC area will OPEN with a 2-hour delay and have the option of allowing unscheduled leave/telework. Employees should plan to arrive for work no more than 2 hour(s) later than they would be expected to arrive.” [Twitter]

Metro Prepared for Snow — “Metro is monitoring conditions throughout the region, as another round of winter weather moves into the service area overnight and Friday. Preparations are underway to respond to snow, gusty winds, and extreme temperatures, conditions that may vary widely. Customers are advised to prepare for potential service impacts, to Metrobus service tomorrow, Friday, Jan. 19, if conditions become hazardous. ” [WMATA]

County Leaders Request Bill Delay — “Arlington County Board members have requested a one-year delay in consideration of a bill introduced in the General Assembly that would enable changes to the county’s 90-year-old form of governance. County Board Chairman Libby Garvey (D) and Vice Chairman Takis Karantonis (D) recently traveled to Richmond to discuss the bill with its patron, Del. Patrick Hope (D-Arlington), and request that it be held over until 2025.” [Gazette Leader]

Solar Panels Coming to Pentagon — “The Defense Department will install solar panels on the Pentagon, part of the Biden administration’s plan to promote clean energy and ‘reestablish the federal government as a sustainability leader.’ The Pentagon is one of 31 government sites that are receiving $104 million in Energy Department grants.” [Associated Press]

Wakefield Wins Hoops Tourney — “With the game’s Most Valuable Player Miles Hancock leading the way, the Wakefield Warriors defeated the Edison Eagles, 62-47, in the fourth boys basketball contest of the Jan. 13 MLK Classic at Osbourn High School in Manassas. The victory, coupled with a 52-50 home Liberty District win over the Marshall Statesmen on Jan. 17 gave Wakefield (13-2, 5-0) five straight triumphs.” [Gazette Leader]

Soccer Star at Westover Bakery — From the Washington Spirit: “This offseason, @aubs_kingsbury had the opportunity to pursue her passion off the pitch & learn about the business of baking at Village Sweet in Arlington. She wraps up her apprenticeship on Saturday, Jan. 20 from 8:00 – 9:00 am – come say hi.” [Twitter]

Tomb Honor Runs in Family — “When Bryan Campagna pinned the Guard, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Identification badge onto the chest of his son, Staff Sgt. Isaiah Jasso-Campagna, it symbolized more than a father honoring his son. Campagna had earned his own Tomb badge as a Tomb Guard decades earlier.” [U.S. Army]

It’s Friday — Snow is expected mainly before 1pm, with a high near 34. Northeast winds of 6-9 mph will shift to northwest in the afternoon. Friday night, there is a slight chance of snow showers before 1am, with partly cloudy conditions and a low around 19. Northwest winds will be 9-13 mph with gusts up to 18 mph, and a 20% chance of precipitation. [Weather.gov]

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