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 4, 2024

By ARLnow.com

Good Thursday 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 4, 2024.

📅 Upcoming events

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

☀️ Friday’s forecast

Expect sunshine and a high of 42 degrees, with northwest winds at 6 mph shifting to southwest by the afternoon. For Friday night, anticipate increasing cloudiness and a low of 29 degrees accompanied by a south wind at 3 to 5 mph. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better.”
– Samuel Beckett

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

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

Most and least expensive homes sold in Arlington (December 2023)

By ARLnow.com

Here in Arlington, real estate is a spectator sport. Let’s take a look at some of the most and least expensive single-family homes sold last month (December 2023).

Most expensive single-family homes sold

  1. 2503 16th St N — Lyon Village — $3,700,000 (7 beds | 7.5 baths | 7,700 sq. ft.)
  2. 3162 N Pollard St — Bellevue Forest — $2,674,200 (6 beds | 8 baths | 6,463 sq. ft.)
  3. 4012 Vacation Ln — Cherrydale — $2,660,000 (6 beds | 6.5 baths | 5,805 sq. ft.)
  4. 1507 N Hartford St — Lyon Village — $2,540,000 (5 beds | 4.5 baths | 3,973 sq. ft.)
  5. 3914 17th St N — Cherrydale — $2,332,845 (6 beds | 6.5 baths | 6,255 sq. ft.)

Least expensive single-family homes sold*

  1. 3709 3rd St S — Alcova Heights — $649,000 (2 beds | 2 baths | 864 sq. ft.)
  2. 612 S Barton St — Penrose — $730,000 (3 beds | 3 baths | 1,568 sq. ft.)
  3. 1727 N Cameron St — High View Park — $750,000 (3 beds | 1.5 baths | 1,248 sq. ft.)

*Minimum home value of $200,000 set to exclude certain land sales, retirement condos, properties with expiring ground leases, etc.

Petco to close store near Ballston, slated to become urgent care clinic

By ARLnow.com
1/3

The Unleashed by Petco store near Ballston is closing this month.

The smaller-format chain pet store — which also offered pet vaccinations, dog training and a self-serve washing station — has been in business at 3902 Wilson Blvd for just over 10 years.

It plans to close on Saturday, Jan. 20, and is offering discounts of 10-60% as part of a store closing sale.

ARLnow reported on a “for lease” sign outside of the single-story, 4,666 square foot commercial building early last year.

Unleashed opened in the space in September 2013, replacing the quirky, homegrown burger-and-hot-dog restaurant Wiinky’s.

A leasing flyer noted that the building was last renovated in 2013, when Petco moved in, and that it has 19 parking spaces.

The last remaining Unleashed store in Arlington is located at 5400 Langston Blvd. It opened in 2011. A previous Pentagon City location closed in 2021.

While store employees were not sure what would be replacing Petco, permits filed in September show that it will be an Inova-GoHealth Urgent Care clinic. Planned interior construction work to the circa-1925 building includes new rooms, walls, ceiling soffits, restrooms, lighting and relocated stairs.

An Inova spokeswoman did not respond to a request for comment by publication time. The healthcare system is in the midst of a major expansion that will see new hospitals in Springfield and Alexandria, as well as a sizable healthcare facility near Potomac Yard.

Jo DeVoe contributed to this report

Video: ACPD cruiser rear-ended and then pushed in Courthouse

By ARLnow.com
Police cruiser rear-ended in Courthouse (photo courtesy Megan J.)

A driver ran into the back of a stopped Arlington police cruiser in Courthouse yesterday afternoon.

The crash, which happened two blocks from police headquarters — next to the construction site that was formerly a Wendy’s — happened around 2:30 p.m.

It’s unclear what led to the crash. Video posted by local public safety watchdog Dave Statter shows a car approaching the cruiser, which was stopped at a light, and simply plowing into it. The cruiser is pushed into the intersection before the driver apparently stops accelerating.

Immediately after, the driver and other occupants of the vehicle get out and talk to the officer. The cruiser’s rear bumper and window were both damaged in the crash.

Arlington County police spokeswoman Ashley Savage tells ARLnow that the driver received a traffic citation for “Failure to Pay Full Time and Attention.”

This is at least the second ACPD cruiser damaged in a crash in the past week. On Friday, Dec. 29 a driver in Clarendon allegedly pulled in front of an officer speeding toward an incident, resulting in a wreck that nearly sent the civilian vehicle into a nearby storefront.

That driver was cited for “Failure to Yield the Right-of-Way,” Savage said.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Flags flying in the wind at Arlington County government headquarters in Courthouse (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Sushi Spot Coming to Courthouse — “Restaurateur Nick Cordero, part of the father-son duo behind Don Tito, Bronson Bierhall and Taco Rock, plans to open a new sushi restaurant in Arlington, steps from the Court House Metro station. Saki, an omakase-style Japanese restaurant, is slated to open in late 2024 in about 4,500 square feet at the Commodore, a 20-story multifamily building being developed at 2025 15th St. N.” [Washington Business Journal]

Dem Primary Keeps Pledge — “Those participating in the springtime Arlington County Democratic Committee School Board caucus will be required to pledge their support to the Democratic ticket in November. The statement, which is largely symbolic as there is little real mechanism to enforce it, long has been part of local Democrats’ caucus process… the local party attempted to remove signing the statement as a requirement for participating in its nominating caucuses, but the Democratic Party of Virginia insisted it remain.” [Gazette Leader]

Mixed Thoughts on New Arena — “Before leaving his elected position at the end of 2023, Arlington County Board Chair Christian Dorsey gave a big thumbs-up to plans by the billionaire owner of the Washington Capitals and Wizards to use taxpayer subsidies to build a sports and entertainment complex in Potomac Yard in Alexandria… Based on her understanding of the proposal, [state Sen. Barbara] Favola said, ‘Providing state financial support for a sports complex when K-12 public education and other core serves are woefully underfunded is not a trade-off I am willing to make.'” [Patch]

Applications Open for Police Council — “The Arlington County Police Department is accepting applications to the Chief’s Advisory Council… The CAC consists of volunteer members from a diverse cross-section of our community who meet on a regular basis to provide the Chief of Police and department leadership with community insight on a wide range of public safety topics and activities.” [ACPD]

Erratic Driver Flees to D.C. — From Dave Statter: “This was different. An @ArlingtonVaPD officer reported a white pickup following and tailgating him on Four Mile Run last night. When he tried to get the driver to pull over he kept going east on Columbia Pike at slow speed, driving erratically. As they got near Washington Blvd. it turned into a chase.” [Twitter]

New WHS Wrestler Undefeated — “Wakefield High School junior Cameron Millsapps continued her undefeated season in girls wrestling by winning the 152-pound female weight class at the recent Battle of the Bridge tournament. Millsapps, a first-year wrestler, was 3-0 in the competition at Woodbridge High School with two pins, then a 7-3 decision in the championship match.” [Gazette Leader]

It’s Thursday — Expect a mostly cloudy morning that gradually clears, with temperatures reaching a high of around 43°F. A northwest wind will start at 6-11 mph and increase to 12-17 mph in the afternoon, potentially gusting up to 25 mph. Thursday night will be clear with a low of approximately 25°F. The northwest wind will continue at 7-14 mph, with gusts of up to 21 mph. [Weather.gov]

Pedestrian injured after SUV runs into bank next to Pentagon City Metro station

By ARLnow.com
1/4

The driver of a Jeep careened into a bank in Pentagon City Wednesday night, injuring a pedestrian.

The crash happened shortly after 7 p.m. at 710 12th Street S., directly adjacent to the Pentagon City Metro station entrance.

The SUV went through the front of the Chase bank branch, potentially causing structural damage, according to initial reports. One pedestrian was struck and injured; they were treated on scene by medics and taken via ambulance to a local trauma center.

It’s unclear what led to the crash. The driver was still in the vehicle when police arrived, according to scanner traffic.

Screenshot (top) via @ogiuzi/Twitter

ARLnow Daily Debrief for Jan 3, 2024

By ARLnow.com

Good Wednesday 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 3, 2024.

📅 Upcoming events

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

  • No events today. Have one to promote? Submit it to the calendar.

🌤️ Thursday’s forecast

Expect a high of 43°F today with mostly cloudy skies clearing by mid-morning, and northwest winds initially blowing at 6-11 mph before increasing to 12-17 mph in the afternoon, with potential gusts reaching 25 mph. Tonight, skies will be clear with a low around 25°F, and northwest winds will prevail at 7-14 mph, gusting up to 21 mph. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
– Nelson Mandela

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

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

NEW: The Freshman has closed in Crystal City

By ARLnow.com
1/4

Crystal City hangout The Freshman has permanently closed its doors.

The all-day cafe/bar/restaurant just announced on social media that it has closed, just under three years after opening in the spring of 2021, in the midst of the pandemic.

Owner and namesake Nick Freshman, in announcing the closing today, noted the lengthy delay in opening caused by Covid-19.

I am sad to announce that The Freshman has served its last espresso; we are permanently closed. I want to thank my staff for their tireless dedication, my investors for their unwavering support, my landlord JBG SMITH for their steadfast partnership, and lastly our loyal customers who made it a joy to be open every day.

When I began planning The Freshman in 2018 the landscape was very different. As the world changed, our team adjusted, pivoted, iterated, and endured. Now, with significant construction in our building on the way, it is time to move on. The good news is that Mothersauce Partners is growing, and you can look for our fingerprints on a number of exciting new projects; projects that are also new homes for many of the staff at The Freshman.

We hope to see all of you soon at our newest project in Rosslyn opening in Winter 2024!

Freshman’s Mothersauce Partners is revamping The Assembly food hall near the Rosslyn Metro station, the Washington Business Journal reported last month.

American Real Estate Partners has tapped Mothersauce Partners, the hospitality company behind The Eleanor, Thompson Italian and City-State Brewing Co., to oversee the roughly 27,000-square-foot space at Rosslyn City Center. AREP owns the building, 1700 N. Moore St., and opened the food hall in 2021.

Mothersauce hopes to freshen up the design, branding and concept curation at the food hall. Details are still being worked through, and AREP and Mothersauce said it is premature to reveal more details of the partnership ahead of a more formal launch in the new year. […]

The change comes more than three years after AREP tapped another firm to establish a food hall from inside what was then known as Rosslyn Metro Center, a 40-year-old mall that’s since gotten a major makeover.

The Freshman was one of the first restaurants to announce an opening in Crystal City, following the announcement of Amazon’s HQ2, the main office complex of which opened in nearby Pentagon City this past summer. Leased Amazon offices remain open in Crystal City.

Police: New York man pepper sprays construction workers on the Pike

By ARLnow.com
Road construction on Columbia Pike near the Foxcroft Heights neighborhood

A New York State man is in jail after police say he pepper sprayed two construction workers yesterday morning.

The incident happened around 11:30 a.m. Tuesday on Columbia Pike and S. Oak Street, near the Columbia Pike realignment and Arlington National Cemetery expansion project that is currently under construction.

Police were vague about the circumstances leading to the pepper spray being used, saying only that the 37-year-old suspect “allegedly initiated a verbal dispute with the two victims.”

The suspect fled on foot but was tracked down by officers and is now facing two counts of Malicious Wounding.

More, below, from the latest Arlington County Police Department crime report.

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 2024-01020089, Columbia Pike at S. Oak Street. At approximately 11:32 a.m. on January 2, police were dispatched to the report of an assault that had just occurred. Upon arrival, it was determined the male suspect approached a construction site and allegedly initiated a verbal dispute with the two victims before deploying pepper spray. The suspect then fled the scene on foot and was located and taken into custody by responding officers. The victims were treated on scene for exposure to the pepper spray. [The suspect], 37, of Clarence, NY was arrested and charged with Malicious Wounding (x2).

Morning Poll: How much snow do you think we’ll actually get this weekend?

By ARLnow.com
Snowy Clarendon in January 2022 (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

In case you haven’t heard already, we may be getting snow this weekend.

There’s broad agreement among weather forecasters that a storm is on tap for Saturday into Sunday, though the big debate is how much of the precipitation will fall as snow in the D.C. area. As is often the case, our area is around the predicted transition from snow to rain.

More, below, from the Capital Weather Gang, which has yet to get too excited about the possibility of significant snowfall:

Rain and snow are likely to fall in the D.C. region this weekend, as a significant winter storm impacts much of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. In the D.C. area, precipitation could go back and forth from rain to snow during the storm, perhaps mixing with a little sleet. How much snow, and whether it is cold enough for it to accumulate, depends on the exact track of the storm, which is still uncertain.

The storm has the potential to produce anything from mostly rain to shovelable snow across the area, although as of now the odds lean toward more rain than snow. The best chance for accumulating snow is north and west of the District, where temperatures will be the coldest, with decreasing chances to the south and east.

Of course, with a slight change in the track of the storm, we could end up with snowman-worthy accumulation. But the probability of that happening at this point is well below 50%.

Given the forecast, and perhaps keeping in mind our area’s propensity for predicted snow storms turning out to be duds, what is your snowfall prediction at this point?

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
GW Parkway at dusk near Roosevelt Island (Flickr pool photo by Brian Gannon)

Winning Lotto Ticket Sold — ” A $1 million winning ticket in Virginia’s New Year’s Millionaire Raffle was sold in Arlington, along with four other winning $1 million tickets across the state, according to the Virginia Lottery. Winning ticket No. 485284 was bought at the Harris Teeter at the corner of South George Mason Drive and Columbia Pike in Arlington.” [Patch]

Garvey Is ‘Ultimate Survivor’ — “Marginalized and at times even ridiculed by Arlington’s political establishment for her opposition to the Columbia Pike streetcar project, County Board member Libby Garvey a decade later has emerged unscathed.” [Gazette Leader]

Crystal City Hotel Sold — “An affiliate of JBG Smith Properties has sold the Crystal City Marriott for nearly $66 million, or about $191,836 per room, as the Bethesda developer continues to prune what’s left of the properties it picked up through its 2017 acquisition of Vornado Realty Trust’s D.C.-area business.” [Washington Business Journal]

Yorktown Wins Local Tourney — “With two convincing victories, the Yorktown Patriots won the four-team Reagan Sharnae Way Holiday Invitational girls high-school basketball tournament at Annandale High School. Yorktown routed Gar-Field, 57-24, in the first game, then Annandale, 71-40, in the second. The wins snapped a six-game losing streak for Yorktown (3-9).” [Gazette Leader]

Minor Earthquake Felt — “A small earthquake occurred near Rockville, Md., early Tuesday… The 2.3-magnitude quake, according to initial estimates, occurred a few minutes before 1 a.m. at a depth of about 9.5 miles.” An ARLnow reader described hearing “a low rumble” in Arlington. [Washington Post, Twitter]

It’s Wednesday — Expect partly sunny skies with a high near 47, accompanied by a light and variable wind that will shift to northwest at around 6 mph. Later Wednesday night, there’s a slight chance of rain, starting after 1am. The skies will be cloudy, and the temperature will drop to around 34. [Weather.gov]

Flickr pool photo by Brian Gannon

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