Author: ARLnow.com

Amazon Pushes Return to Office — “Amazon.com Inc. is warning employees who haven’t been complying with the company’s mandate to work at least three days per week in an assigned office, according to emails seen by Washington Business Journal sister paper Puget Sound Business Journal. Workers who haven’t been following the policy were sent an email Wednesday telling them they weren’t ‘meeting our expectation of joining your colleagues in the office at least three days a week, even though your assigned building is ready.'” [Washington Business Journal, New York Post]

School Board OKs More Office Space — “In a world where tenants are departing and downsizing commercial office space in droves, why does the staff leadership of the Arlington school system want to rent more of it? That was a question several School Board members had as a proposal moved forward for the school system to spend $186,000 next year – and more every succeeding year – to rent additional office space in its leased headquarters facility. The proposal, which also involved spending to set up and furnish the additional space, passed on a 3-1 vote.” [Gazette Leader]

Police Motorcycle Crash — From Dave Statter: “A #motorcycle officer escorting buses in I-395S express lanes near the Pentagon lost control of their bike & appeared to hit the jersey wall. Injuries not believed serious. All express lanes were shut for 20 minutes but right lane now gets by.” [Twitter]

Encore Learning Schedule — “Registration for the fall semester of Encore Learning will open on Sept. 11 at 10 a.m., with classes beginning in early October. Now in its 21st year in Arlington, the initiative provides college-level, non-credit educational opportunities for those age 50 and above, with both in-person and online options. Members also can access special events, such as presentations and tours, and take advantage of breakfast, cinema travel and other active clubs.” [Gazette Leader]

Electronic Sign at Penrose Square — The driver drama at Penrose Square has prompted the Arlington County Police Department to deploy an electronic signboard that reads “stop sign violators ticketed.” [Threads]

Optimists Optimistic About Tree Supply — “It may be the doggiest of summer’s dog days, but the Optimist Club of Arlington’s hunt for additional Christmas trees has paid off. The organization, which has been selling trees for more than three-quarters of a century to raise funds for youth programs, has found an additional 550 Fraser firs from a supplier in Jefferson County, N.C.” [Gazette Leader]

It’s Friday — Expect mostly sunny weather with a high near 87 degrees and a west wind of about 8 mph. In the evening, expect partly cloudy skies with a low around 69 degrees and a southeast wind at roughly 6 mph. [Weather.gov]

Truck Crash Caught on Camera — From Dave Statter: “One of the scarier I-395S 8C crashes with a truck & 3 cars at 9:05 am. The car trying to make the exit just kept going south on Rt 1. Don’t know if they ever stopped.” [Twitter]

Accidental Gunfire in Arlington Mill — “5100 block of 7th Road S. At approximately 11:37 p.m. on August 8, police were dispatched to the report of a shooting. Upon arrival, it was determined the suspect was inside his residence when he allegedly unintentionally discharged a firearm, causing damage to the interior of his home. No injuries were reported.” [ACPD]

Arlington Rent Still Rising — “Arlington’s apartment-rental market bucked a national trend in July, as its year-over-year average prices remained higher even as, for the first time since the pandemic, the national rate declined. Arlington’s year-over-year growth rate of 1.9 percent stood 17th best among the 100 urban areas tracked by Apartment List. Updated data sets were released July 26.” [Gazette Leader]

Office Vacancy Worries in Nat’l Landing — “JBG Smith, the largest commercial landlord in the Northern Virginia area that is now called National Landing, expects a wave of tenants not renewing their leases by the end of next year. National Landing includes the Arlington neighborhoods of Crystal City and Pentagon City. JBG Smith reports 1.8 million square feet of office leases coming up for renewal across 72 leases by the end of 2024.” [WTOP]

New Coworking Space in Crystal City –“Orchard Workspace by JLL, a 39,000-square-foot flexible office and coworking space, opened this week in Arlington, Va. The office is located at 2451 Crystal Drive and is owned by JBG Smith (JBGS), which developed the property as part of its National Landing portfolio.” [Commercial Observer]

Awards for County Department — “The Department of Human Services (DHS) has been awarded two Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) 2023 Achievement Awards, which recognize excellence in local government programs.” [Arlington County]

Warner Wants Robocall Action — “U.S. Sen. Mark Warner joined Sens. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Edward Markey (D-MA), and others to urge the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to enforce its existing regulations regarding consent for receiving telemarketing calls, also known as robocalls.” [Press Release]

Cristol Profiled in New Role — “[Former Arlington County Board member] Katie Cristol wants to help Tysons become what the community imagines it could be. Since taking over as the Tysons Community Alliance’s first permanent CEO on July 5, Cristol has been busy overseeing the creation of a Tysons strategic plan to identify priorities and needs for the 2,100-acre area envisioned by Fairfax County as an urban downtown where ‘people live, work and play.'” [FFXnow]

It’s Thursday — Showers and potential thunderstorms throughout the day, with highs near 78 degrees and south winds between 5 to 15 mph, gusting up to 22 mph. Precipitation chances peak at 80%, with new rainfall amounts of a quarter to half an inch possible. On Thursday night, precipitation chances drop to 30%, with showers and thunderstorms likely until 11pm. The sky will gradually clear, reaching a low of around 66 degrees, with west winds of 6 to 10 mph. [Weather.gov]

APS Evaluating Free Office Space — “School Board member Reid Goldstein… drilled Superintendent Francisco Durán on why the school system wasn’t looking at instead taking back space it for years had provided for free to Encore Learning and Edu-Futuro, two non-profit groups. ‘There are a lot of non-profits serving our schools, and somehow we’ve decided these two are worthy of free rent, free services,’ the senior School Board member said. ‘That needs to be re-thought.'” [Gazette Leader]

Civ Fed Forum Date Set — “It’s either the unofficially official, or the officially unofficial, start to Arlington’s fall election season, but either way, the Arlington County Civic Federation will hold its annual candidates’ forum on Tuesday, Sept. 5. The event will be held in person beginning at 7 p.m. at Hazel Auditorium on the North George Mason Drive campus of VHC Health (Virginia Hospital Center). An online option also will be available.” [Gazette Leader]

Bloodmobile Returns to Courthouse — “Fire Works American Pizzeria and Bar is partnering with Inova Blood Donor Services to host an Arlington Community Blood Drive on Monday, Aug. 14. An Inova Bloodmobile will be parked in front of Fire Works, near the intersection of Clarendon Boulevard and North Adams Street, from 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.” [Patch]

It’s Wednesday — Expect mostly sunny skies during the day with a high temperature near 87°F and a west wind blowing at 6 to 9 mph. In the evening, the weather will transition to mostly cloudy with a low temperature around 69°F. [Weather.gov]

Police K9 Graduations — “On Friday, August 4, the Arlington County Police Department (ACPD) and Loudon County Sheriff’s Office celebrated the graduation of four K9 teams from Basic Patrol K9 School. The 16-week Basic Patrol K9 School, which was hosted by ACPD, focused on training in obedience, agility, article search, tracking and criminal apprehension.” [ACPD]

FCPS Trying to Poach Bus Drivers? — “On Aug. 4, signage on South Four Mile Run Drive in Arlington – directly across from the Arlington Trades Center where county school buses are garaged – was a sign recruiting school-bus drivers. Seems reasonable, except it was a sign recruiting school-bus drivers for Fairfax County Public Schools, which like all jurisdictions across the region seems perpetually in search of drivers to keep the school buses running.” [Gazette Leader]

Teens Tackle Textile Trash — “A significant problem in our community (Arlington, Virginia, United States) is excessive waste in landfills. In fact, in the United States alone, 17 million tons of textile waste occur each year and 66% of all unwanted clothes are waste as opposed to recycling. Hence, our group of local students decided to tackle the problem of clothing waste and bring sustainability to our community.” [Rustic Pathways]

Memorializing the Enslaved — “The Arlington Historical Society’s plan to put ‘stumbling stones’ – memorial markers – across the community, honoring those who were enslaved in what today is Arlington, received a positive response from a county-government advisory panel. But the proposal also drew questions about the size and materials to be used.” [Gazette Leader]

Electrocution in Old Glebe — “Scanner: ACFD on scene of an electrical worker shocked during some work along the 4000 block of N. Glebe Road. He’s said to be alert and conscious. Medics are currently evaluating.” [Twitter]

It’s Tuesday — Mostly sunny with pleasant temperatures reaching around 83°F. Breezy conditions can be expected with west winds varying from 14 to 20 mph, and gusts as high as 28 mph. Tuesday night will remain mostly clear, with temperatures dropping to around 66°F. The west wind will slow to 6 to 11 mph, yet gusts may still reach up to 20 mph. [Weather.gov]