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 Poll: High school sports coverage?

By ARLnow.com
Yorktown High School’s MJ Stewart in 2011 (staff photo)

ARLnow has long avoided covering high school and youth sports, instead deferring to the coverage of the Sun Gazette (now the GazetteLeader) and the Washington Post.

While we’ll link to sports stories of particular note in the Morning Notes, by and large the decision has been to focus on general local news coverage.

There are two main drivers of this: there is a limited audience for high school sports coverage, relative to those who are interested in county government or local business news, and the logistics of covering multiple sports at three high schools is quite challenging, even more so if you add in youth leagues.

The bottom line is that we — like every other local news publication — are resource constrained and choose to use those resources on subjects that have the broadest audience.

While that decision makes all sorts of sense given our current business model, it’s possible that there might be a model that would work for sports coverage.

The audience for high school sports is limited (it seems to mostly be parents, current high school athletes and former athletes) but it’s also passionate. And if that audience would be willing to pay a subscription fee for exclusive sports content — via the ARLnow Press Club, at the current rate of $10/mo — we might be able to make it work.

Specifically, it would take a minimum of 500 ongoing subscribers for us to support the salary of a full-time sports editor. But if we could get there, we should be able to publish at least two original stories per day plus score roundups and a weekly email newsletter.

(For the record, ARLnow’s current local news coverage will always remain free.)

The poll question this morning is: would you join the ARLnow Press Club if it included original high school and youth sports coverage you couldn’t get elsewhere?

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Lacrosse practice at Long Bridge Park (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

House Fire in Barcroft — “Crews are working a structure fire, 500 blk S ABINGDON St. Fire had been knocked down. Please stay clear of area while crews continue overhaul… no civilian injuries, one firefighter being treated for minor injury, fire marshal office conducting routine fire investigation.” [Twitter]

Power Restoration Work Continues — After Saturday’s wind storm that knocked out power to at least 3,500 Dominion customers in parts of Arlington, crews were still out on Sunday… “No power in parts of @NauckCrescent. Tree down taking out lines @ARLnowDOTcom. S Nelson Street.” [Twitter]

County Publishes Pickleball Feedback — “The county also released 89 pages of comments surrounding the project, with some in favor of the courts and others pushing back for various reasons. ‘I live a mile from the Lubber Run pickleball courts, and I work from home. Even with my windows closed, I hear the pickleball pop all day and night (until the courts are closed),” said one participant. “I love pickleball, but I do not want to hear it. The pop is loud and incessant.'” [WUSA 9]

Theo Not Running for County Board — From Adam Theo: “I cannot run as a Dem in good conscience. I have been a political independent for most of my life, and I believe it is disingenuous for aspiring politicians to suddenly portray themselves as a member of the dominant party simply to gain personal political power… after careful thought, I will not be running for CB in 2023, even as an independent. I believe there are other worthy efforts that need my attention this year.” [Twitter]

No Arlington Dive Squads in Div I — “The realignment setup is complete for this summer’s Northern Virginia Swimming League’s diving competition, which includes four Arlington teams. For the first time since the 2018 season, none of those four squads will be in Division I this summer, but Overlee and Donaldson Run are each in Division II. Overlee dropped from Division I last year and Donaldson Run moved up one spot.” [GazetteLeader]

Recycling Event Coming Up — “Arlington E-CARE (Environmental Collection and Recycling Event) returns to Wakefield High School on Saturday, April 15, 2023, for the best disposal of household hazardous materials and old electronics that take up so much space in so many homes. The list of accepted items includes mercury, batteries, printer cartridges, gas cylinders and fluorescent tubes–the kinds of things that shouldn’t just get tossed in the trash.” [Arlington County]

Baby Boomer Buyers Back on Top — “The share of Baby Boomers has surpassed Millennials to once again makes up the largest generation of home buyers, according to the latest study from the National Association of Realtors. The 2023 Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Trends report, which examines the similarities and differences of recent buyers and sellers across generations, found that the combined share of younger Boomer (58 to 67 years old) and older Boomer (68 to 76 years old) buyers rose to 39 percent in 2022, up from 29 percent the year prior.” [GazetteLeader]

It’s Monday — Broken clouds. Mild. High of 69 and low of 39. Sunrise at 6:50 am and sunset at 7:33 pm. [Weather.gov]

JUST IN: Police trying to identify suspect in Va. Square break-in and sexual assault

By ARLnow.com
File photo

A man broke into a woman’s apartment in Virginia Square early this morning and sexually assaulted her.

That’s according to a press release just issued by the Arlington County Police Department.

The break-in happened on the 3900 block of Fairfax Drive, which corresponds with the address of the Quincy Plaza apartment tower. After sexually assaulting the resident, the man fled on foot.

The suspect remains at large and police are asking for the public’s help in identifying him. The press release, however, only included a vague description of the man and no surveillance image.

From ACPD:

The Arlington County Police Department’s Special Victims Unit is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying a suspect involved in a residential burglary with sexual assault which occurred in the Ballston-Virginia Square neighborhood.

At approximately 4:15 a.m. on April 2, police were dispatched to the report of an attempted rape in the 3900 block of Fairfax Drive. Upon arrival, it was determined the unknown male suspect gained entry into the female victim’s residence, entered her bedroom and sexually assaulted her before fleeing the scene on foot. The suspect is described as a Black male, approximately in his mid-20’s, wearing dark clothing.

This remains an active investigation. Anyone with information regarding the identity of this individual, details surrounding the incident, and/or home surveillance that may assist the investigation is asked to contact Detective J. McGrath (703-228-4244 or [email protected]) or Detective C. Oesterling (703-228-4241 or [email protected]) of the Special Victims Unit. Information may also be provided anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

JUST IN: More than 3,500 without power in Arlington as winds continue to whip

By ARLnow.com
1/4

Strong wind gusts have brought down trees and knocked out power in parts of Arlington tonight.

More than 3,500 Dominion customers were without power in Arlington as of 10:45 p.m. The power company’s outage map shows sizable outages in the following local areas:

  • Long Branch Creek, including the intersection of S. Glebe Road and S. Arlington Ridge Road
  • Glebewood and Waverly Hills, along N. Glebe Road just south of Langston Blvd, where ARLnow observed power crews and a tree down
  • Old Glebe, Chain Bridge Forest and Rivercrest in far northern Arlington, along the N. Glebe Road corridor

There were also smaller outages in the Dominion Hills and Bluemont neighborhoods. Estimates of when the power would be back on were not available on Dominion’s website.

The outages come amid wind gusts of up to 60 mph in the D.C. metro area, which is under a High Wind Warning. National Airport recorded a 60 mph gust around 10 p.m., according to the National Weather Service.

Damaging winds are expected to continue through about midnight, forecasters said.

Throughout Northern Virginia, Dominion reported more than 43,000 customers without power.

NEW: Suspect arrested in Buckingham murder

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 2 p.m.) A 40-year-old Arlington man has been arrested and charged with murder.

James Ray Williams is accused of fatally shooting a man at an apartment on the 100 block of N. Thomas Street in the Buckingham neighborhood earlier this week.

Police say Williams was arrested Friday evening on the 4200 block of Henderson Road, also in the Buckingham neighborhood and just a few blocks from the crime scene. In addition to murder, he is facing several gun and drug charges.

More from an Arlington County police press release, sent this afternoon.

The Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit is announcing the arrest of a suspect for his involvement in a fatal shooting in the Buckingham neighborhood.

During the course of the investigation, detectives developed a possible suspect description based on evidence located at the scene and witness interviews. Arrest warrants were obtained, and the suspect was taken into custody in the 4200 block of Henderson Road on the evening of March 31. James Ray Williams, 40, of Arlington, Va. has been charged with Murder, Use of a Firearm in the Commission of a Felony, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, Possession of Controlled Substances with Intent to Distribute and Possession of Schedule I/II Narcotics. The suspect is being held without bond in the Arlington County Detention Facility.

Detectives continue to investigate the events that preceded the homicide. This incident remains an active criminal investigation and anyone with information is asked to contact police at 703-228-4180 or [email protected]. Information may also be provided anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

On Friday, ACPD identified the victim as a 28-year-old man.

The deceased has been identified as Sean Bowman, 28, of No Fixed Address. This remains an active criminal investigation and anyone with information related to this case is asked to contact the Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit at 703-228-4180 or [email protected]. Information may also be reported anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

Court records show that Williams has at least twice been sentenced to prison for crimes in Arlington. That includes a net two-year sentence in 2010 for drug, gun and wounding charges, and a net eight-year sentence in 2013, with five years of probation after, for drug distribution and a probation violation.

Additional court records suggest that a man named James Williams, with the same birthday as James Ray Williams, was arrested for petty larceny in Arlington recently, on Feb. 5, but was released on a summons. He failed to appear at an arraignment on March 1 in the larceny case and was declared a fugitive, according to the records.

One law enforcement source tells ARLnow that the petty larceny suspect is not the same James Williams as the murder suspect. Contacted by ARLnow, an ACPD spokesperson declined to provide any clarification.

“An individual’s criminal history is protected under Virginia Code §19.2-389 and we cannot speak to any other possible criminal incidents involving the suspect,” said ACPD’s Alli Shorb.

ARLnow Daily Debrief for Mar 31, 2023

By ARLnow.com

Good Friday evening, Arlington. Today we published articles that were read a total of 8607 times… so far.

📈 Top stories

The following are the most-read articles for today — Mar 31, 2023.

  1. Arlington teachers blast decision to remove outdoor locks from staff bathrooms
  2. Morning Poll: Have you ever been treated as if you didn’t belong in your neighborhood?
  3. County tax rate hearing had two speakers and neither talked about the tax rate
  4. Morning Notes

Since it’s Friday, we’ve also compiled a list of the most-read articles of the week, below.

  1. NEW: Pervasive smell of smoke prompts numerous calls to ACFD (10870 views)
  2. Some 136 properties in Arlington are ineligible for Missing Middle changes. The county has bigger goals for them. (8271 views)
  3. Police investigating after man found dead in car (6723 views)
  4. BREAKING: Arlington police investigating homicide in Buckingham (5788 views)
  5. County Board candidate: Arlington should buy Key Bridge Marriott site (5667 views)
  6. New District Brewing is auctioning off equipment, but still hopeful about remaining in Arlington (4125 views)
  7. NEW: Taco Bamba to open this spring in Shirlington (4073 views)
  8. Arlington teachers blast decision to remove outdoor locks from staff bathrooms (4052 views)
  9. Our Mom Eugenia finally aiming to open in Shirlington on Thursday (3907 views)
  10. Pike pedestrian punched, robbed by gun-toting suspects (2920 views)
  11. Arlington ended 2022 with more assaults and thefts, according to new data (2796 views)
  12. Morning Poll: Do you agree with the ‘Missing Middle’ vote? (2575 views)
  13. Arlington Kabob is serving the community in more ways than one (2531 views)

📅 Upcoming events

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

Here are the events planned for Sunday:

☔ Saturday’s forecast

Passing showers. Breaks of sun late. Mild. High of 75 and low of 0. Sunrise at 6:53 am and sunset at 7:31 pm. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Thought of the Day

Gratitude, though simple in expression, wields the power to change one’s perspective of life, transforming the ordinary into a magical experience.

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

We hope you have a great weekend, Arlington! Feel free to discuss the most-read stories of the week, the upcoming weekend events or anything else of local interest in the comments. 👋

Listing of the Day: 5303 18th Street N.

By ARLnow.com
1/6

Address: 5303 18th Street N.
Neighborhood: Tara
Type: 5 BR, 7 (+1 half) BA single-family detached — 5,000 sq. ft.
Listed: $2,395,000

Open House: Saturday, April 1 and Sunday, April 2 from 1-4 p.m.

Noteworthy: New Spring Street home near Westover Village, 2 home offices, screened porch

Spring Street Development responds to market demand with two offices and four levels of flexible space in this light filled new home.

Located in the leafy Tara neighborhood, the home is an appealing blend of contemporary finishes and traditional quality. Andersen windows, HardiPlank siding; stone water table and flagstone porch floors; 30 year architectural shingle roof; extensive insulation; two zone heating and cooling; Wolf appliances; Quartz countertops; finished and stained in place wood floors; LVP flooring in the lower level; wired for WiFi repeaters and electric car charger.

Desirable details include: a family room that spans the back of the home and opens to a screened porch with steps to yard; top floor loft brightened with skylights along with private bedroom and bath; four bedrooms with private baths upstairs; lower level bedroom and bath tucked in a quiet spot; full bathroom adjoins main level office; mudroom off garage.

Walk to Westover Village, Lee Harrison, parks, bike path, and restaurants. Easy commute, whether going to D.C., business and military centers in Virginia or from your bedroom to your home office.

An appealing home in an enviable location.

Listed by:
Betsy Twigg
[email protected]
(703) 967-4391

UPDATED: Arlington under High Wind Warning on Saturday

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

(Updated at 9:15 a.m.) Batten down the hatches, it’s going to get pretty windy Saturday.

The National Weather Service has upgraded the earlier High Wind Watch for Arlington to a High Wind Warning, in effect Saturday from noon to midnight.

Forecasters say gusts of up to 60 mph could fell trees, knock out power to parts of the area, and make travel treacherous.

More from NWS:

…HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM NOON SATURDAY TO MIDNIGHT EDT SATURDAY NIGHT…

* WHAT…Southwest winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph Saturday afternoon, becoming northwest 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 60 mph Saturday evening.

* WHERE…Portions of central and northern Maryland, The District of Columbia, and northern Virginia.

* WHEN…From noon Saturday to midnight EDT Saturday night. The strongest winds are expected Saturday evening.

* IMPACTS…Damaging winds will blow down trees and power lines. Widespread power outages are expected. Travel will be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles.

The expected weather is already postponing outdoor events, like National Landing’s Pink in the Park event.

More via social media:

Morning Poll: Have you ever been treated as if you didn’t belong in your neighborhood?

By ARLnow.com
Duplexes in Westover (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

An article this week about an arguably historic, 70-year-old mansion in Arlington possibly being set for demolition had a subplot that could have been a story all on its own.

From Charlie Clark, reporting in the Falls-Church News Press (emphasis ours):

The purchasers, Mustaq Hamza and Amanda Maldonado, said in interviews, however, that so far their experience in the neighborhood has been unpleasant, in part because of the county’s current divisions over the just-enacted Missing Middle zoning reform. That has led them to question what they say was their original goal of replacing the old home with their own “forever house.”

Hamza, 38, an entrepreneur who was raised in Fairfax County and is a Muslim of Sri Lankan descent, and wife Malodonado, a Puerto Rican-American currently raising their two children, both say they have encountered “vitriol” and “hostility” from neighbors who cut through the property and ask questions that imply “You owe us an explanation of what you’re going to do with the house.” Hamza interprets at least some of this as a reaction to his skin color, leading him to rethink. “I’m not sure I want to be in a place that doesn’t want me or people who sound like me.” It seems some neighbors, adds Maldonado, assume that he must be an agent or a worker “who couldn’t possibly be the owner.” Some promised to fight his plans.

The article then take another turn, going on to say that Maldonado found anti-Missing Middle housing signage in the neighborhood offensive.

“Maldonado, the daughter of a teacher, said she is ‘offended that some people would be appalled at living next to townhouses for teachers.'” Clark reported.

Putting the rezoning issue aside, ARLnow has previously been made aware of possible profiling incidents in predominantly white Arlington neighborhoods.

There was a Black woman — a new mother — who recently moved to a North Arlington neighborhood. She was pushing a stroller on a walk when someone asked if she was a nanny.

There was a Hispanic man who was out on a walk in his neighborhood while wearing pajamas. Someone emailed the neighborhood listserv in a concerned tone, saying she did not recognize him and implying that his presence was suspicious. She was eventually informed that the man did, in fact, live in the neighborhood.

There have been other scattered reports over the years of people living in Arlington neighborhoods being made to feel unwelcome by off-handed comments from neighbors, postings on Nextdoor, etc. Some of those have been racial in nature, others about having different political or religious beliefs. There might not be ill intent, but the effect is nonetheless felt.

For today’s morning poll, we’re wondering if you have ever been made to feel unwelcome in an Arlington neighborhood for one reason or another.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Blossoms in Shirlington (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Memorial Bridge Closure for Race — “On, Sunday, April 2, the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Race will take place in the District of Columbia. In conjunction with this event, there will be street closures that motorists should take into consideration:The following streets will be closed to traffic on Sunday, April 2, from approximately 6 a.m. to 12 p.m.: Memorial Bridge, Memorial Circle…” [National Park Service, Twitter]

Arlington Dems on Trump Indictment — “As Trump begins to be held accountable for his crimes, many Republicans will continue to defend him and make excuses. But no one is above the law.” [Twitter]

Gov. Youngkin on Trump Indictment — “It is beyond belief that District Attorney Alvin Bragg has indicted a former President and current presidential candidate for pure political gain. Arresting a presidential candidate on a manufactured basis should not happen in America. The left’s continued attempts to weaponize our judicial system erode people’s faith in the American justice system and it needs to stop.” [Twitter]

Emergency Personnel Harassment Bill Signed — “Gov. Youngkin has signed legislation patroned by a local delegate, updating Virginia’s law against using a telecommunications device to harass or hinder emergency-services personnel. The measure from Del. Rip Sullivan (D-McLean-Arlington) expands the types of communication devices covered under the existing statute to incorporate modern technology. The current [statute] specifies only telephones and pagers.” [GazetteLeader]

‘Call Your Mother’ Coming to Chesterbrook — “The popular D.C. deli Call Your Mother is expanding into Virginia for the first time. Known for its bagels, the self-described ‘Jew-ish’ deli is bringing a mobile version of its shop called Lil Deli to the Chesterbrook Shopping Center (6216 Old Dominion Drive) in McLean,” near the Arlington border. [FFXnow]

It’s Friday — Cloudy, with light rain in the evening and overnight. High of 64 and low of 42. Sunrise at 6:56 am and sunset at 7:32 pm. [Weather.gov]

ARLnow Daily Debrief for Mar 30, 2023

By ARLnow.com

Good Thursday evening, Arlington. Today we published articles that were read a total of 6850 times… so far.

📈 Top stories

The following are the most-read articles for today — Mar 30, 2023.

  1. Morning Notes
  2. Two Chefs Pizza nearing 40 years in the community
  3. County encourages residents to reimagine Arlington Neighborhoods Program
  4. These are some of the older Arlington roads getting new pavement this year

📅 Upcoming events

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

☔ Friday’s forecast

Rain in the evening and overnight. High of 63 and low of 58. Sunrise at 6:56 am and sunset at 7:32 pm. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Thought of the Day

Dreams are life’s own whispers, inviting us to chase and fulfill unrealized potentials; let your aspirations chart your map to an extraordinary journey.

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

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

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