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.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Crystal City Apartment Building Sold — “A Crystal City residential property within blocks of Amazon’s planned HQ2 campus has sold for $228 million, more than double what it last sold for a decade prior, according to Arlington County property records.” [Washington Business Journal]

It’s National Police Week — Law enforcement officers from around the country and the world are in the D.C. area for National Police Week. The annual series of events is held to honor officers who have paid the ultimate sacrifice. As in years past, Arlington County Police motorcycle officers are assisting with the numerous motorcades associated with Police Week. [Twitter]

Free Cone Day Today — Häagen-Dazs is holding its annual Free Cone Day today (Tuesday) from 4-8 p.m. Among other nearby locations, a locally-owned Häagen-Dazs franchise store is located in the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City mall. [Häagen-Dazs]

Crashes During Monday’s Rain — A number of crashes were reported Monday morning, amid persistant rain. Among them were a crash with entrapment at Military Road and Lorcom Lane, and a reported car vs. tree collision at Route 50 and S. Columbus Street. [Twitter]

School Board Member Donating Kidney — “Arlington School Board Vice Chairman Tannia Talento will be out of commission for several weeks, as she is donating a kidney to a sister. Speaking at the May 9 School Board meeting, Talento said preparing for, undergoing and recuperating from surgery will cause her to miss some end-of-school-year events, but ‘I hope it is amazing and wonderful,’ she said of the last weeks of the 2018-19 year.” [InsideNova]

Podcast: Transportation Commission Chair Chris Slatt

By ARLnow.com

If the Avengers were a local enterprise, Chris Slatt would be the Guardian of the Arlington Transportation Galaxy.

Slatt serves as the Chair of the Transportation Commission and has a steel trap memory for county transportation projects — and the politicking behind why some never happened.

He’s weighted in on toll enforcement, infrastructure planning, and he’s organized everything from a protest for bicycle safety on the Pike to the cutest free library in Penrose with tools to fix your bike.

For this episode of the 26 Square Miles podcast, we sat down with Slatt to talk about why the Columbia Pike-Crystal City streetcar never took off, what Amazon means for local public transportation, and what it would really take to build safe bike routes across the county.

Listen below or subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher or TuneIn.

Photo via Jas Sanchez Photography

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
1/4

Kaine Event at Federico’s — Updated at 8:55 a.m. — “On Monday, May 13, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine will hold a roundtable in Arlington with fair housing advocates to discuss the work ahead to ensure equal access to housing for all Americans and address discrimination that LGBTQ Americans continue to face as they search for homes.” The event is now being held at 9 a.m. at Federico’s Ristorante Italiano (519 23rd Street S.) in Crystal City, per an updated media advisory.

Amazon Hiring for Alexa Job in Arlington — Among other open job positions for Amazon’s HQ2 in Arlington, the company is now hiring a “Principal Product Manager” for its Alexa Experience team. [Amazon]

Puppy Recovering from Pike Crash — “Earlier this week Yoda ran into oncoming traffic after escaping his leash. I ran after him in attempt to save him, which resulted in both of us getting hit by a car. I am okay but Yoda was not so lucky. He has two major fractures in his back leg which lead him into surgery. He is resting but having a difficult time.” [GoFundMe]

Satisfaction with Metro Rebounds — “Metro’s reputation in the region has improved dramatically in the past two years and has almost reached the positive levels it enjoyed before a fatal smoke incident in 2015, according to a Washington Post-Schar School poll… A 68 percent majority of Washington-area residents rate Metrorail positively, up from 42 percent in 2017. In 2013, 71 percent had positive ratings of the subway system.” [Washington Post]

Post Endorses Tafti — The Washington Post has endorsed challenger Parisa Dehghani-Tafti over incumbent Theo Stamos in the Democratic Commonwealth’s Attorney primary. [Washington Post]

SoberRide Record for Cinco de Mayo — “Nearly 800 (792) persons in the Washington-metropolitan area used the free safe ride service, SoberRide, this Cinco de Mayo as opposed to possibly driving home drunk.” [WRAP]

Flickr pool photos by John Sonderman and GM and MB

TRAFFIC ALERT: Sinkhole Closes Northbound GW Parkway

By ARLnow.com

Update at 11:50 a.m. on 5/13/19 — Per the National Park Service: “Due to continued rain, the National Park Service now hopes to reopen one lane in time for the evening rush hour on Tuesday, May 14. If this schedule changes, we will share an update.”

Earlier: The northbound lanes of the GW Parkway are closed just north of Arlington due to a large sinkhole.

Sinkholes have been a recurring problem on the Parkway, with the most recent sinkhole-related closure happening in March.

The Parkway’s northbound lanes are currently closed from Route 123 in McLean to the Beltway, with traffic backing up prior to the detour onto 123. The National Park Service issued the following press release about the closure Friday night.

The U.S. Park Police and National Park Service have closed the northbound lanes of the George Washington Memorial Parkway from Virginia Route 123, Chain Bridge Road to I-495 the Capital Beltway. The closure began around 6:45 p.m. when a U.S. Park Police officer observed a sinkhole. The northbound George Washington Memorial Parkway will remain closed in that area as engineers and work crews fully assess and repair the road.  Southbound travel lanes remain open.

The National Park Service took this action to ensure public safety, and no accidents have been reported.  Staff have continued to monitor the parkway since March when a sinkhole developed in the same area next to Dead Run.

The George Washington Memorial Parkway is a critical link in the national capital region’s transportation network, and closing it is never a decision that is made lightly. Drivers should follow local news or visit www.nps.gov/GWMP for the latest information.

Map via Google Maps

JUST IN: Restaurant Worker Arrested for Alleged Clarendon Sex Assault

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County Police have arrested a 25-year-old man for an alleged sex assault in a Clarendon restaurant over the weekend.

Police say the crime happened around 11:45 p.m. Saturday at a restaurant on the 3000 block of Clarendon Blvd, a block from the Metro station.

A woman “was cornered by the known male suspect inside a walk-in freezer, preventing her from leaving the area,” ACPD said in a press release. “The suspect then allegedly inappropriately touched and sexually assaulted the victim before fleeing the scene.”

The press release implies that the victim and the suspect both worked at the restaurant, which was not named.

Arlington resident Duglas Santos is now facing charges of Abduction, Object Sexual Penetration and Sexual Battery. Police believe Santos worked at other restaurants in Arlington and are asking other potential victims to step forward.

The full ACPD press release is below.

The Arlington County Police Department’s Special Victims Unit is investigating a suspect charged with sex offenses and is seeking additional information and possible victims. Duglas Santos, 25, of Arlington, VA was arrested and charged with Abduction, Object Sexual Penetration and Sexual Battery. He is being held without bond in the Arlington County Detention Facility.

At approximately 11:46 p.m. on May 4, police were dispatched to the late report of an assault inside a restaurant in the 3000 block of Clarendon Boulevard. Upon arrival, it was determined that the female victim was cornered by the known male suspect inside a walk-in freezer, preventing her from leaving the area. The suspect then allegedly inappropriately touched and sexually assaulted the victim before fleeing the scene. Officers conducted surveillance in the area and took the suspect into custody the following day when he returned to work at the restaurant.

Based on the preliminary investigation, it is believed the suspect has held positions in restaurants throughout Arlington County and there may be additional similar incidents. Anyone with past inappropriate encounters with this suspect or who has additional information related to this investigation is asked to contact Detective H. Molina of the Arlington County Police Department’s Special Victims Unit at 703-228-4208 or [email protected]. Information may also be provided anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

Morning Poll: Do You Support Arlington’s Glass Recycling Decision?

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 10:45 a.m.) Last month Arlington County announced that it would stop recycling glass collected curbside.

The decision, which only applies to the county’s residential recycling pickup and not to offices and apartment buildings, was explained as a matter of economics — it’s more expensive for the county to recycle glass than it is to incinerate and dispose of it in a landfill.

While recycling glass does save energy, it doesn’t save much compared to the more efficient aluminum, steel, paper and cardboard recycling processes. The cost to recycle glass isn’t worth the marginal energy savings, some say.

While there’s logic in that argument, some locals don’t like the idea of sending a recyclable material to landfills.

“If a community gives up glass, it is admitting defeat in the face of readily available alternatives,” said the writer of a letter published in the Sun Gazette.

The county does have an option for those who want their glass to be recycled, though it requires extra time and energy:

Alternatively, people can dump their glass at one of two designated drop-off locations — at Quincy Park (N. Quincy Street and Washington Blvd) or the Arlington Trades Center (2700 S. Taylor Street) — which carts it to Fairfax County for an experiment in paving roads with smashed up glass.

In a Facebook live chat yesterday, Erik Grabowsky, chief of Arlington’s Solid Waste Bureau, said the public outreach process about change is still ongoing and Arlington will continue collecting glass in recycling bins through the end of July.

The county has not been recycling glass residents placed in blue carts, according to Peter Golkin, spokesman for the Department of Environmental Services. Instead, it was being pulled at the material recovery facility and trashed.

“By putting glass in the black carts, it goes to Covanta where it’s melted (not incinerated) with trash and those results are landfilled, saving the whole transportation/sorting issues with the recycling process that does also have an economic aspect,” Golkin said, in an email.

What do you think about the county no longer recycling glass?

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Police Memorial Service in Courthouse — “N. Courthouse Road will be closed between 14th Street N. and 15th Street N. from approximately 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. on May 10 to accommodate the Observance of Peace Officers Memorial Day.” [Twitter]

New CPRO Director Sets Vision for Pike — “‘My greatest fear is we are going to be completely gentrified,’ [new Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization director Kim Klingler] said. ‘The market will drive [redevelopment], but at the same time, we want to be able to control what we’re able to control.'” [InsideNova]

Another N. Arlington Power Outage — “More than 1,000 Dominion customers without power in parts of North Arlington [Wednesday] morning, per outage map. Marymount U. Is within the outage area. Power restoration expected this afternoon.” [Twitter]

Arlington Offers Larger Apartments — The median income for renters in Arlington affords an apartment nearly twice the size as the equivalent in D.C. [CNBC]

Column in Va. Paper Bashes J-D Highway Renaming — “In response to Arlington County, Virginia’s proposal to rename its Jefferson Davis Highway, local man Max Perrine has written a very questionable column for Virginia newspaper The Roanoke Times.” [The Week]

Mr. Knick Knack Facing Child Porn Charges — Children’s performer “Mr. Knick Knack,” a 58-year-old Reston resident named Steven Rossi, is facing 10 felony counts of possession of child pornography. Rossi performed a number of shows in Arlington over the past few years. [Reston Now]

Crime Report: Drunk Driver Resisted Arrest, Spit on Officer

By ARLnow.com

A 20-year-old Alexandria man is facing a litany of charges after police say he resisted arrest while driving drunk.

The wild incident happened in Ballston this past Sunday night.

More from this week’s Arlington County Police Department crime report:

ASSAULT ON LAW ENFORCEMENT, 2019-05050200, 1100 block of N. Vernon Street. At approximately 10:26 p.m. on May 5, police were dispatched to the report of a dispute inside a vehicle. Upon arrival, officers located the vehicle and made contact with the allegedly intoxicated driver. The driver was uncooperative and refused to comply with the officer’s commands to stop the vehicle. Once the vehicle was eventually turned off, the driver exited and actively resisted officers’ attempts to place him in handcuffs. A brief struggle ensued, and, with the assistance of additional arriving officer, the suspect was successfully taken into custody. During a search of the suspect’s person, he was found to be in possession of a knife and an open container of alcohol was located in the vehicle. While at an area hospital being treated for minor injuries and the execution of a search warrant, he allegedly spit on an officer. The passenger of the vehicle sustained minor injuries that did not require medical treatment and the officer sustained minor injuries, which were treated at an area hospital. William Salgado, 20, of Alexandria, Va., was arrested and charged with Assault & Battery on Law Enforcement, Obstruction of Justice, Carrying a Concealed Weapon, Attempted Person Under 21 Driving After Illegally Consuming Alcohol and Attempted Drinking While Driving/Open Container. He was held on no bond.

The rest of the crime report is below, after the jump.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

VC Firms Eyeing Arlington, D.C. — “Two venture capital firms that have invested mostly in tech companies in the middle of the country are keeping their eye on Greater Washington in the wake of Amazon.com Inc.’s decision to place its second headquarters in Arlington.” [Washington Business Journal]

Owl Rescued from Middle School — “Last week, [the Animal Welfare League of Arlington] got a call from a local middle school that an owl was trapped in their boiler room. Officers Toussaint and White responded and were able to safely remove the owl.” [Facebook, Twitter]

Five-Vehicle Crash on Route 50 — At least two people were reported injured after a five-vehicle crash on Route 50 yesterday afternoon. [Twitter]

Wild Press Conference Near Rosslyn — “Pro-Trump operatives Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman… hosted a bizarre press conference in the driveway of Burkman’s Arlington, Va. home, while being frequently interrupted by noise from nearby garbage trucks.” [The Daily Beast]

Arlington Org Office Attacked in Kabul — The Kabul, Afghanistan office of Crystal City-based non-governmental organization Counterpart International was attacked yesterday. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the deadly terror attack. [CNN, Counterpart International]

Nearby: Silver Diner Coming to Alexandria — Silver Diner is seeking permission to open a new location at 4610 King Street, in a new development in the City of Alexandria, near Arlington’s Claremont and Fairlington neighborhoods. [Patch]

Flickr pool photo by John Sonderman

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Ride Hailing ‘Strike’ Today — “Getting an Uber or a Lyft may be impossible — or take longer and cost more — Wednesday when drivers for both companies plan to strike in major U.S. cities to protest what they say are unfair wages and poor working conditions.” [Washington Post]

APS Poaching Fairfax Teachers — From a candidate for Fairfax County Board of Supervisors: “Today I met a veteran teacher who is leaving FCPS because Arlington County will pay her $12,000 more annually. Meanwhile, all I hear about is how we are fully funding our schools. We still have some catching up to do Fairfax County.” [Twitter]

County Employees Getting Reusable Straws — Updated at 10:10 a.m. —  “This week is [Public Service Recognition Week], and Arlington County employees will be celebrating with their new, reusable steel straws, distributed… as a thank you for their hard work.” [WDVM]

Another Traffic Enforcement Push in Clarendon — Yesterday Arlington County Police conducted “high-visibility traffic enforcement” at Clarendon Boulevard and N. Danville Street,” reminding drivers to “be [street smart] and yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk.” [Twitter]

No State GOP Candidates in Arlington Yet — “Thus far, there have been no nibbles on the line among potential Republican candidates for state legislative seats. The party’s filing deadlines passed on May 2 and 5 for GOP prospects for the 47th and 49th House of Delegates districts and 31st state Senate district without any candidates formally expressing interest.” [InsideNova]

Flickr pool photo by Eric

Man, Dog Struck By Car on Columbia Pike

By ARLnow.com
1/3

A driver struck a man and a dog on Columbia Pike Tuesday evening.

The crash happened around 7 p.m. in the westbound lanes of the Pike near S. Barton Street, in front of the Penrose Square development.

An adult male and a dog were struck by a vehicle, confirmed Arlington County Fire Department spokesman Capt. Ben O’Bryant. Details about the circumstances around the crash were not immediately available.

The man was brought to a local hospital in good condition, said O’Bryant. The dog was taken to an animal hospital and its condition was not currently known, he said.

Update 9 a.m. — A man who says he was the one struck by the vehicle last night posted the following update on ARLnow’s Facebook page.

Hey all, my puppy yoda is doing alright. He was taken to south paws animal hospital last night with the help of some very amazing people. He broke his back femur. He’s going into surgery today and will be getting a plate put in. He should be okay but please send good vibes our way! I’m okay as well. Just got a little beaten up. Miraculously nothing was broken on my end. (Yes I know yoda is top priority). To clear things up he pulled on his leash and it escaped from my hand on the sidewalk. He b lined for the middle of the street (which is TOTALLY not like him.) I instinctively ran out after him into on coming traffic in effort to catch his [leash] before he got hit. This resulted in both of us being side swiped by a car who could not see us due to how low we were to the ground. This was no ones fault but ours. Thank you to all the wonderful people who helped us last night. If any of you see this that assisted please message me so I can personally thank you. The Arlington community, especially Columbia pike showed me incredible love. Yoda will be creating smiles again soon enough!

Photos courtesy John Antonelli

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