Author: ARLnow.com

Ballston Towing Standoff — “There was a mini standoff at the Advanced Towing lot in Ballston today, with the company blocking a vehicle whose owner tried to drive off without paying. Per ACPD, ‘the incident was determined to be civil in nature and the parties resolved their dispute. No arrests were made.'” [Twitter]

Cost of County’s Lawsuit Defense — “Arlington taxpayers will be on the hook for fees ranging from $300 to $750 per hour under an agreement signed by the county government with a law firm that will support local leaders’ defense of Missing Middle housing and zoning policies. Following a request under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act by Arlingtonianis for Our Sustainable Future, the Arlington government released correspondence conducted between Dec. 29 and Jan. 2 with the law firm Gentry Locke.” [Gazette Leader, Fox 5]

Protest at Sec. of State’s Home — “There was another protest outside of [Secretary of State Tony] Blinken’s house on the Arlington/McLean border yesterday. He was out of town at the time but ACPD responded to help Diplomatic Security disperse the 15-20 demonstrators.” [Twitter]

Local Teacher’s Role in AP Class — “Today, many are learning—about the first African American aviators in the U.S. Armed Forces and more—thanks to Waters, who was one of two public school teachers on the original development committee for Advanced Placement African American Studies (AP AfAm). Last year, 60 U.S. high schools piloted the course, including Waters’ Wakefield High School, in Arlington, Va.” [neaToday]

Resident Faces Fraud Charge — “An Arlington resident was charged on Friday with falsely posing as an immigration lawyer and defrauding her clients of about $700,000, according to an indictment returned by a federal grand jury.” [Patch]

Pair of Water Main Breaks — From Arlington’s Dept. of Environmental Services yesterday: “Crews are working on an 8-inch water main break at 4817 31st St S. Some 250 customers in a low-rise building could be affected… Crews are working on a 6-inch water main break at 5047 25th St S. Some 100 customers could be affected.” [Twitter, Twitter]

Region Suffering Office Glut — “Office vacancy rates in Greater Washington hit new highs at the end of 2023 as vast swaths of space were added to the vacancy rolls, according to new market reports from commercial real estate brokerages. Nearly 80 million of the region’s 364.8 million square feet of privately owned office space is now sitting empty, per CBRE, a commercial real estate service giant. That’s more than 12 times the size of the 6.5 million-square-foot Pentagon.” [Washington Business Journal]

More Snow Accumulation Likely — “After going two years without one inch of snow in a calendar day, we could do it twice in one week, but that’s not a lock. Wednesday’s brutal wind chills will ease a bit Thursday ahead of our next chance of snow Thursday night and Friday. We anticipate less snow than the last storm, but it could be enough to cause some delays and cancellations Friday.” [Capital Weather Gang]

It’s Thursday — Expect a mostly cloudy day with a high around 37 degrees and a gentle south wind between 3 to 6 mph. Snow is likely Thursday night, especially after 1am, as the temperature drops to about 28 degrees. There’s a 60% chance of precipitation. [Weather.gov]

Flickr pool photo by Tom Mockler

Trash Collection Delayed — “Curbside trash, recycling, and yard waste collection is canceled today, Jan. 16, due to inclement weather. Curbside collection (including metal, e-waste and cart requests) for the remainder of the week will be as follows: Monday routes: Serviced Wednesday, Jan. 17.” [Arlington County]

Flyover This Afternoon — From AlertDC: “The US Military will be conducting a flyover at Arlington National Cemetery on Wednesday January 17, 2024, at 1:12PM.”

Measles Case at Airports — “Travelers who passed through Dulles International Airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in early January may have been exposed to measles, Virginia health officials said. A confirmed case of measles in a person who traveled through Northern Virginia when returning from international travel was reported to the Virginia Department of Health. As a cautionary measure on Saturday, VDH issued the alert.” [Patch]

Local GOP Blasts Fundraising Site — “Two emails today from vulnerable retirees asking @WINRED to stop taking money from them. We get these emails because WinRed claims the charges are coming from ‘ARLINGTON,’ so people reach out to us. The Arlington GOP doesn’t use WINRED, and we won’t.” [Twitter]

Board Candidate Wants Arena Say — “Plans to develop an entertainment complex in Alexandria – with an indoor arena for the Washington Capitals and Wizards its centerpiece – could emerge as a sleeper issue in the upcoming Democratic primary for Arlington County Board… at least one of the announced contenders is voicing the view that Arlington shouldn’t be left out of the conversation. ‘Our county is not a bystander; we will be directly impacted. Arlington needs a seat at the table,’ Natalie Roy said.” [Gazette Leader]

Ballston Investment Office Downsizing — “Cambridge Associates LLC, a Boston-based investment firm, is cutting the size of its Arlington office in half, the latest in a steady stream of office users reducing their space. The firm will move early next year from 91,000 square feet at 4100 N. Fairfax Drive to 48,000 square feet at The Regent office building at 950 N. Glebe Road — roughly a 47% reduction.” [Washington Business Journal]

We’re No. 2 for Area Housing Costs — “D.C. retained its top-of-the-heap ranking in spite of a year-over-year drop of 3.7 percent in average per-square-foot housing costs (from $545 per square foot to $525), according to figures reported by Bright MLS as analyzed by the GazetteLeader. Arlington also saw a decline, with its average per-square-foot cost dropping 1.1 percent from $478 to $473, but that was enough to retain the No. 2 position it had held most of the year.” [Gazette Leader]

It’s Wednesday — Expect sunny skies with a high near 29 and a west wind ranging from 7 to 13 mph. At night, there will be increasing cloud coverage and a low temperature around 19. Winds will shift to the southwest, blowing at 3 to 6 mph. [Weather.gov]

Flickr pool photo by Jeff Vincent