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.

Fire at Fire Works Pizza in Courthouse

By ARLnow.com
1/6

Fire Works Pizza in Courthouse is temporarily closed due to a fire Saturday afternoon.

The fire broke out around 1:30 p.m. at the restaurant, near the corner of Clarendon Blvd and N. Adams Street, but the flames were mostly confined to the kitchen and the restaurant’s duct work and exhaust system, which extends to the roof.

Roads around the restaurant, which is located on the ground floor of a Residence Inn hotel, were closed for more than an hour as firefighters worked to extinguish the fire inside the duct work. Smoke could be seen coming from the roof as firefighters arrived.

Fire Works remained closed as firefighters packed up. A county health inspector and building inspector were called to the scene to evaluate the damage, though no serious damage could be seen through the restaurant’s windows.

No injuries were reported.

More from the Arlington County Fire Department:

Photo (top) courtesy @samerfarha

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Medical Emergency at Yorktown — A student suffered a serious medical emergency at Yorktown High School this morning. Police and medics rushed to the scene, CPR was performed and the student was reportedly revived. He was taken to a local hospital.

Arlington Tourism Website Wins Award — “The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International… on Jan. 22 presented the Arlington Convention and Visitors Service (ACVS) with a 2018 Adrian Award for the StayArlington tourism website.” [Arlington County]

Best Bowls of Soup in Rosslyn — A new list exhaustively details “where to go for a good bowl of soup” in Rosslyn, “because it’s everybody’s favorite cold-weather lunch.” [Rosslyn BID]

Gymnastics Competition at W-L — “The annual Barbara Reinwald Invitational girls high-school gymnastics meet was held Jan. 19 at Washington-Lee High School. The high-school meet, which has been held for decades, included 11 teams and was won by the host Washington-Lee Blue team.” [InsideNova]

Chef Geoff Winning Happy Hour Fight — Chef Geoff Tracy is poised to withdraw his lawsuit against the Commonwealth of Virginia, which seeks to overturn restrictions on advertising happy hour specials and prices, after the state legislature overwhelmingly passed bills that would remove those and other happy hour restrictions. [Tysons Reporter]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

A Wall that Divided Arlington Still Stands — “The wall was erected in a section of Arlington County in the 1930s to separate black residents from white residents. And for decades, it did just that. It kept segregation intact by creating a physical barrier between an ‘us’ and a ‘them.'” [Washington Post]

Coming Soon: Happy Hour Advertising? — “A lawsuit filed against the state by a Northern Virginia restaurateur could be the motivation the General Assembly needs to change laws that restrict happy hour advertising.” [Virginia Mercury]

Demand for Free Pet Food Rises — The Animal Welfare League of Arlington says it has seen an increase in demand for its free pet food pantry during the government shutdown. [Twitter]

Resources for Furloughed Feds — Congressman Don Beyer’s (D-Va.) office has compiled a list of resources for those affected by the federal government shutdown. [Rep. Don Beyer]

Anti-NIMBY Legislation Proposed in Va. — “[Del. Jeff] Bourne and Sen. Jennifer McClellan, D-Richmond, are pursuing legislation in the General Assembly this year that would explicitly prohibit local governments from denying permits for housing developments because of the expected race or income levels of the residents.” [Virginia Mercury]

Flickr pool photo by Kevin Wolf

Flood Watch, Wind Advisory Issued for Arlington

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County and surrounding areas are under both a Flood Watch and a Wind Advisory Thursday, as a front brings heavy rain and strong winds to the region.

About 1-2 inches of rain is expected to fall, potentially causing flooding in low-lying areas and along streams and creeks.

More from the National Weather Service:

…FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT… * FROM LATE TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY AFTERNOON * RAIN WILL OVERSPREAD THE AREA THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. THE HEAVIEST RAIN IS EXPECTED OVERNIGHT AND THURSDAY MORNING. TOTAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS AROUND 1 INCH ARE EXPECTED, WITH ISOLATED HIGHER AMOUNTS OF 1.5 TO 2 INCHES POSSIBLE. * EXCESS RUNOFF FROM A NEARLY FROZEN GROUND AND SATURATED SOILS WILL CAUSE THE POTENTIAL FOR STREAMS AND CREEKS TO RISE OUT OF THEIR BANKS AS WELL AS POTENTIAL FLOODING IN LOW LYING URBAN AREAS. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS… A FLOOD WATCH MEANS THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR FLOODING BASED ON CURRENT FORECASTS. YOU SHOULD MONITOR LATER FORECASTS AND BE ALERT FOR POSSIBLE FLOOD WARNINGS. THOSE LIVING IN AREAS PRONE TO FLOODING SHOULD BE PREPARED TO TAKE ACTION SHOULD FLOODING DEVELOP. &&

In addition to the rain, damaging winds are possible.

…WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 6 AM TO NOON EST THURSDAY… THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BALTIMORE MD/WASHINGTON HAS ISSUED A WIND ADVISORY, WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 6 AM TO NOON EST THURSDAY. * TIMING…THURSDAY MORNING. * WINDS…SOUTHWEST 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH. * IMPACTS…GUSTY WINDS WILL BLOW AROUND UNSECURED OBJECTS. TREE LIMBS COULD BE BLOWN DOWN AND A FEW POWER OUTAGES MAY RESULT. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS… A WIND ADVISORY MEANS THAT WINDS OF 45 TO 55 MPH ARE EXPECTED. WINDS THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE VEHICLES. &&

More via social media:

Photo (top) via National Weather Service

Crime Report: Woman Arrested for Bleach Attack

By ARLnow.com

An Arlington woman is facing charges after allegedly spraying someone with bleach during an early morning argument.

Arlington County Police were called to an address in the Nauck neighborhood around 4:30 a.m. Sunday for a dispute. A verbal argument between two people who knew each other “escalated into physical violence,” police said.

A 33-year-old woman was arrested, accused of spraying bleach — a “caustic agent” — and injuring another woman, then subsequently striking her with an object.

“It remains under investigation what object caused the victim’s injuries,” county police spokeswoman Ashley Savage told ARLnow.

More from ACPD:

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 2019-01200046, 2100 block of S. Kenmore Street. At approximately 4:36 a.m. on January 20, police were dispatched to the report of a dispute. Upon arrival, it was determined that a verbal altercation between known individuals escalated into physical violence. During the altercation, the suspect allegedly sprayed the victim with bleach before striking the victim with an object. The victim was transported to an area hospital and treated for non-life threatening injuries. Darcell Harris, 33, of Arlington, VA was arrested and charged with Malicious Wounding and Malicious Injury by Caustic Agent. She was held on no bond.

Earlier last week, police investigated a series of thefts from vehicles along Columbia Pike and S. Courthouse Road. Police say thieves stole tires and rims from at least five vehicles.

GRAND LARCENY (series), 2019-01170042/01170062/01170099/01170116, 1200 block of S. Courthouse Road/2200 block of Columbia Pike/700 block of S. Courthouse Road. On January 17, police were dispatched to multiple late reports of larcenies from auto. The investigation determined that between approximately 6:00 p.m. on January 16 and 4:00 a.m. on January 17, the tires and rims of approximately 5 vehicles in the area were stolen from vehicles. There is no suspect(s) description. The investigation is ongoing.

 

Below are the rest of the highlights from this week’s crime report, including some we’ve already reported.

(more…)

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Memorial Bridge Potholes — Large potholes made for dangerous driving on the under-construction Memorial Bridge over the weekend, but crews started repairing the bridge’s pockmarked surface Tuesday. [Twitter, Twitter]

Poke Restaurant Coming to Ballston — Local restaurant Poke It Up is expanding with a second location. The restaurant, which first opened in the Pentagon City mall food court, is now planning to open this summer at 4401 N. Fairfax Drive in Ballston, next to a new soup shop, Zoup. [Eater]

Shutdown Costing Local Economy Big Bucks — “About $119.2 million per day is removed from the gross regional product each day the shutdown drags on, according to local economist Stephen Fuller, thanks to lost pay of federal workers, contractors and suppliers and the multiplied economic effects of their lost spending. That daily hit… drops to $46.4 million per day once federal workers are ultimately repaid their lost wages.” [Washington Business Journal]

Overturned Vehicle in Crystal City — A driver managed to flip his or her vehicle in a crash last night on 18th Street S., near the Crystal City Metro station. [Twitter]

Board Set to Endorse VRE Funding — “Arlington County Board members on Jan. 26 are expected to endorse a request by Virginia Railway Express (VRE) for state funding to support construction of a new Crystal City station. The transit agency will seek grant funding from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, which if approved could cover up to 70 percent of the cost of construction. VRE will fund the rest.” [InsideNova]

Changes to State Inspection Stickers — “The stickers are smaller, in response to complaints that the new sticker placement on the bottom left of the windshield, which started in 2018, resulted in reduced visibility for drivers.” [Tysons Reporter]

Nearby: Alexandria Warns About Opioids — “The City of Alexandria has responded to four suspected opioid overdoses in the last 72 hours, including two fatalities. While recreational use of opioids is always dangerous and illegal, City officials are urging residents to be aware of the medical safety of the drugs, including heroin, that could be extremely concentrated or mixed with something unusual that is resulting in life-threatening situations.” [City of Alexandria]

Flickr pool photo by Eschweik

UDATED: ACFD Battles N. Arlington House Fire

By ARLnow.com
1/2

(Updated at 9 p.m.) Arlington County firefighters are on the scene of a house fire on Little Falls Road in North Arlington.

The fire was reported around 7 p.m. in the basement of a home on the 5700 block of Little Falls Road, roughly between Nottingham Elementary and Yorktown High School.

A second contingent of fire department units was quickly dispatched to the scene to help with the firefighting effort. A partial floor collapse was reported inside the home, though no injuries have been reported.

No one was inside the home when the fire broke out, according to ACFD.

Map via Google Maps

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Apartment Fire in Nauck — Firefighters extinguished a fire in an apartment Monday evening. The fire broke out around 5:15 p.m. on the 2100 block of S. Quincy Street, in the Nauck neighborhood. No injuries were reported. [Twitter]

Board Members Reluctant to Give Themselves a Raise — “Rather than seeking higher pay, current Arlington board members might take the opposite route – start scaling back their workload. ‘There is definitely a renewed emphasis on, ‘what is our role?” [County Board Chair Christian] Dorsey said at the Jan. 17 forum, responding to a questioner who suggested board members of recent years are more mired in the nuts-and-bolts of governance than their predecessors.” [InsideNova]

Local Restaurant Delivers Free Pizza to Air Traffic Control — Over the weekend Joe’s Place Pizza and Pasta delivered free pizza to the air traffic control tower at Reagan National Airport, where controllers have been working without during the government shutdown. [Instagram]

Restaurant Week Extended — Winter Restaurant Week has been extended until Sunday, Jan. 27 due to the government shutdown and last week’s snow. [Twitter]

Flickr pool photo by Kevin Wolf

Arlington Public Schools Opening on Two Hour Delay

By ARLnow.com

Arlington’s public schools will open on a two hour delay on Tuesday.

“Due to the extreme cold, all APS Schools and offices will open two hours late,” APS said in a statement Monday evening. “The delay will provide additional time to warm buildings and address any potential cold weather mechanical issues with buses that have been idle since Friday.”

Temperatures overnight are expected to dip to 11 degrees in Arlington.

SUV Drives off Side of I-66 Near Rosslyn

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 9 p.m.) An SUV crashed and flipped on its roof near Rosslyn this morning, injuring one person.

The crash happened before 9:30 a.m. According to police, the SUV was on I-66, heading toward D.C., when it careened off the side of the highway and landed along Route 110 — near a construction zone where Route 110 splits off to westbound I-66 and Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn.

One person suffered non-life-threatening injuries, according to the Arlington County Fire Department. The northbound lanes of Route 110 were closed for an extended period of time, but reopened shortly before 10:45 a.m.

It was a busy morning for ACFD, which also responded to a call for smoke that filled a one-story commercial building — reported by one witness to be the 7-Eleven store — in Virginia Square.

https://twitter.com/donw/status/1087358516178939906

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