Author: Airey

County Considering Adding Swings, Benches, and New Trees to Henry Clay Park

By Airey
1/3

The county is planning to give Henry Clay Park in the Lyon Park neighborhood a makeover.

The Arlington County Board will consider awarding a $1,4 million contract to Falls Church-based Pivot Construction LLC for the renovations. A staff report to the Board says there will be “minimal changes” to the park layout and that the work will focus on “current facility standards, storm water requirements and Americans with Disability Act (ADA) compliance.”

The report notes that Henry Clay Park (3011 7th Street N.) is a “heavily used facility” and that “the outdoor amenities for Henry Clay Park are now past their useful life and are in need of replacement.”

Work includes “reconstruction of the basketball court, playground, athletic field, picnic shelter, site circulation, site furnishings, fencing, drainage, and landscaping.” Other planned renovations include:

  • removing the park’s gazebo and adding a shade canopy and a tall slide
  • expanding the east children’s playground by adding a swingset, a tall slide, benches, and new trees
  • adding a ramp and benches around the west children’s playground
  • adding a water fountain on the southside of the park’s green space and improving the field turf
  • adding new trees and a drainage system between the green space and the basketball court

Google Maps describes the one acre lot as a “tiny park.”

Board members will vote on the contract during their next meeting this Saturday, July 13. Approving the contract for the renovations is listed on the County Board’s consent agenda for the upcoming meeting — a space usually reserved for items expected to pass without debate.

The park was created three decades ago and named after the Henry Clay School, which once stood where the park is now.

The school’s namesake is Kentucky political Henry Clay who is known for his efforts to stave off the Civil War, and for dueling Virginia political John Randolph on what is now the intersection of N. Randolph Street and N. Glebe Road.

Image 1 via Yelp, Images 2-3 via Arlington County

Arlington County Considering Jail Diversion Program for Mentally Ill

By Airey

Arlington County is considering a new program to divert people with mental illnesses into treatment instead of jail.

The proposed program would waive incarceration for people with mental illnesses who are convicted of non-violent misdemeanors if they agree to an intensive treatment program supervised by a judge. All the officials who spoke to ARLnow about the program supported it, but some weren’t aware the county was working on the program and said they had little opportunity to add input.

The Arlington County’s Department of Human Services is spearheading the program. A spokesman told ARLnow on June 27 that in response to “recent requests” it would host a public meeting on the so-called Behavioral Health Docket on Wednesday, July 17 at 3 p.m. The location of the meeting has yet to be determined.

“The aim is to divert eligible defendants with diagnosed mental health disorders into judicially supervised, community-based treatment, designed and implemented by a team of court staff and mental health professionals,” said DHS Assistant Director Kurt Larrick.

This new docket aims to accept defendants 18 or older who reside in Arlington and who are diagnosed with a serious mental illness, Larrick said. Additionally, only defendants who have been charged with misdemeanors, not felonies, would be eligible for the diversion program. Defendants would need to agree to work with a team of mental health professionals and program staff to enroll in the docket and agree to follow a treatment plan with some supervision.

“These programs are distinguished by several unique elements: a problem-solving focus; a team approach to decision-making; integration of social services; judicial supervision of the treatment process; direct interaction between defendants and the judge; community outreach; and a proactive role for the judge,” Larrick said.

Where Mental Illness and the Law Collide

Officials and advocates say they hope that the docket will help break the cycle of recidivism that some people with mental illnesses fall into.

“Arlington has a significant number of people with mental illnesses that intersect with the criminal justice system,” Deputy Public Defender Amy K. Stitzel told ARLnow. “Evidence-based mental health dockets not only treat instead of criminalizing behavior that is a result of mental illness, they increase treatment engagement, improve quality of life, reduce recidivism and save money.”

“We’re talking about people who are arrested for vagrancy and loitering and trespassing,” said Naomi Verdugo, who has been an activist for people in Arlington with mental illness for several years. “These are largely misdemeanors and stupid things, and it’s because they aren’t well. We would be better off putting services around them than paying to incarcerate people who are just going to reoffend.”

“It is clear that the local and regional jails in Virginia have a substantial number of persons with mental illness in their care, and that this care is costly to the localities and to the Commonwealth,” says a 2017 study of similar programs statewide.

The most recent data from Virginia jail surveys indicate that statewide 1 in 10 of the inmates counted was diagnosed with a serious mental illness, such as PTSD or schizophrenia, and about 20% of all inmates had some kind of mental illness.

In Arlington, data from 2016, 2017, and 2018 indicates the most common diagnoses for inmates are bipolar disorder/major depressive and schizophrenia.

Chief Public Defender Brad Haywood said his office has been part of a team discussing mental health improvements for 15 years with the county’s Mental Health Criminal Justice Review Committee, and for the past five years with a subcommittee dedicated to creating a docket, called the Behavioral Health Docket Committee. Haywood strongly supports the idea of a Behavioral Health Docket but noted his office wasn’t notified the county had advanced plans for the docket until recently.

“This is not a transparent approach”

While he applauded DHS for moving the program forward, Haywood said he would have liked more input on the design when organizers decided to require defendants plead guilty before participating in the program.

“From our perspective, until early spring of 2019, the process for drafting and submitting an application for the Mental Health Docket seemed to be moving very slowly,” he said. “I don’t know what changed that took the process to where it is now, to having tight deadlines and short comment periods.”

Commonwealth’s Attorney candidate Parisa Dehghani-Tafti, who recently won the Democratic primary against incumbent prosecutor Theo Stamos, said she heard about the docket for the first time two weeks ago. During her campaign, Tafti advocated for a mental health court as part of larger criminal justice reforms, but said she wasn’t given a chance to comment on the Behavioral Health Docket.

She told ARLnow that she has concerns the new program “criminalizes mental illness” by requiring a plea to participate.

(more…)

Video: County Planning ‘Natural Disaster Trials’ for Cyclists

By Airey

Arlington County is planning to test residents on how they might survive and take care of their families after a natural disaster — using bicycles.

Arlington’s second “Disaster Relief Trials” will simulate traversing the county by bike after a disaster wipes out crucial infrastructure. Participants on bicycles will compete for points by ferrying messages and medicine between checkpoints, filtering water, applying a tourniquet, and evacuating (fake) pets.

This year’s competition will run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept. 14 and will start and end at Gateway Park (1300 Lee Highway) in Rosslyn.

“2018 was the costliest year on record for the US in terms of disasters,” the event page notes. “When roads became gridlocked or damaged during disasters, people turned to their bicycles to flee from danger, assist in the response, or to return to normal.”

Along the way, cyclists will have to cross high barriers that simulate downed trees over paths, dismount for rough terrain, and brave areas flooded up to 6 inches.

Despite the event helping the county’s emergency preparedness, participation requires paying a fee. Participants can register online for $90 for families until Aug. 11, after which the group price will jump to $125. Individuals can register for $40 until Aug. 11, and $55 after. Discounts are available for those receiving certain types of government assistance.

Participants are required to bring their own bikes, helmets, water bottles, and any racks, panniers, or backpacks they’d like to use. Cargo bikes with electric assists are allowed in the competition.

Disaster Relief Trials have been held for years in Portland and San Francisco.

Arlington Pet of the Week: Bobby

By Airey
1/2

Arlington’s newest Pet of the Week is a rescue bunny named Bobby.

Bobby’s owner Inger rescued the English spot rabbit with the help of the Arlington Animal Welfare League last January. Here’s what Inger says Bobby thinks of his new life in Arlington:

Here’s what I love: I like to flop on the floor and stretch out. The wood floor is nice and cool on these hot days. In the morning and evenings, I do my zoomies where I run around the living room in circles super fast. Then I do my binkies where I jump and twist at the same time. The hoomins really like it when I binky. I love my litter box. Mommy laughs at me when I nap in it after dinner. Every night when I get tucked in, I get lots of pets and kisses. My mommy and grandma tell me I’m the best bunny ever. And I’ve trained grandpa to feed me carrots. I’m very good at looking like I have not been fed in a long time!

Here’s what I don’t like: I’m really scared of being picked up. If my hoomins want me to go somewhere, I’m easily persuaded with banana chips or a piece of banana. I am crazy for banana! I don’t like taking any medicines and I don’t like having my nails trimmed. The bunny doctor says I’m sassy!

But the best part is the love, good food, fun toys and cozy home that I have. In return I give lots of kisses to my mommy! She loves my kisses! And grandma is really good at petting me. She calls me her little puppy.

Want your pet to be considered for the Arlington Pet of the Week? Email [email protected] with a 2-3 paragraph bio and at least 3-4 horizontally-oriented photos of your pet. Please don’t send vertical photos, they don’t fit in our photo galleries!

Each week’s winner receives a sample of dog or cat treats from our sponsor, Becky’s Pet Care, along with $100 in Becky’s Bucks. Becky’s Pet Care is the winner of six consecutive Angie’s List Super Service Awards, the National Association of Professional Pet Sitters’ 2013 Business of the Year and a proud supporter of the Arlington County Pawsitively Prepared Campaign.

Becky’s Pet Care provides professional dog walking and pet sitting in Arlington and all of Northern Virginia, as well as PetPrep training courses for Pet Care, CPR and emergency preparedness.

County to Repave Quincy Street And Add Bike Lane, Removing Parking

By Airey
1/5

A portion of N. Quincy Street is slated for a makeover this summer with new pavement and a bike lane.

Officials aim to repave the stretch of N. Quincy Street between the I-66 overpass and Fairfax Drive, near Washington-Liberty High School, and potentially approve one of three designs for a new bike lane that could eliminate parking spaces.

Arlington’s Department of Environmental Services polled residents about the three bike lane designs in a recent survey. The department will host an open house about the project on Tuesday, July 9, from 6-7:30 p.m., at Washington-Liberty (1301 N. Stafford Street).

The three bike lane configurations the department is considering are:

  • Concept A: A buffered bike lane along both sides of N. Quincy Street in the northern section close to I-66. Adding the lane would eliminate 22 parking spaces along Quincy near the Buck site entrance where several single family homes sit.
  • Concept B: A buffered bike lane that runs in the middle of N. Quincy Street, which removes only 10 parking spaces in the northern section close to I-66.
  • Concept C: A buffered bike lane along the entire street, which would remove 42 parking spaces on the northern section of the street and 31 spaces on the south section.

“It’s almost like a mix and match,” DES Project Planner Christine Sherman told ARLnow. “Concept A shows parking on a block [of N. Quincy Street], concept B shows parking on a different block. Concept C shows the highest level of bike protection.”

All three concepts also add a crosswalk at the intersection of Quincy and 11th Street N. and at the entrance of the Buck property.

Sherman said DES will weigh the survey responses against engineering recommendations about safety and hopes to start the paving work later this summer.

DES tweeted about the (now closed) project survey last week, along with a reference to presidential candidate and meme-machine Marianne Williamson.

The  recently-updated bike element portion of the county’s master transportation plan proposes N. Quincy Street become part of a north-south bike corridor.

The bike element proposes several miles of bike lanes “wherever feasible” on N. Quincy Street to provide safer passage through Ballston and Virginia Square, and to connect the Arlington Forest and Chain Bridge areas.

“We have buffered and expanded bike lanes to the north of this segment and have protected bike lanes to the south,” said Sherman. “It’s an opportunity we see to create the north-south connection in the county.”

The work is also part of a larger streetscape project along Quincy Street, with repaving already completed in the sections between the I-66 overpass and Lee Highway, and between George Mason Drive and Fairfax Drive.

In August, the county finished a new bike lane on N. Quincy Street connecting the Quincy corridor to the Custis Trail. Two months before that, the county also converted parking on 5th Road N. between Quincy and N. Pollard Street to back-in, angle style parking.

Image 1, 3-5 via Arlington County, image 2 via Google Maps

Future of Jefferson Davis Highway Marker Uncertain

By Airey
1/2

The future of a highway marker on Jefferson Davis Highway is uncertain after state and local officials voted to rename the roadway.

The monument was erected in 1946 on the shoulder of the highway, which soon will be named Richmond Highway in place of the name of Confederate President Jefferson Davis.

The stone marker is located along Route 1 near the Pentagon. An Arlington County spokeswoman told ARLnow that it is on VDOT land and that “unless VDOT has information otherwise, the County Manager’s Office has no information at this time on how the marker will be handled.”

When reached for comment, a spokeswoman for VDOT said the department didn’t have specific details about the marker’s future, “but we are working with the County to determine the next steps for this particular piece.”

The renaming is part of a broader movement to strip Confederate references from neighborhoods, public schools, and a special education program in Arlington.

The county agreed to pay $17,000 to cover the cost of new street signs for Route 1 — the updated signs are expected to be placed in October — after the Arlington County Board approved the renaming in April. It’s unclear if any of those funds will be used for the marker.

An inscription on the Route 1 marker indicates the United Daughters of the Confederacy was the organization that placed it along the highway.

Arlington County also removed a Confederate memorial after requests from residents in the wake of the deadly Charlottesville white nationalist rally. The plaque commemorated a Civil War lookout post and was also placed by the United Daughters of the Confederacy.

Photos courtesy of Twitter user 202FSUNole

Smoke Fills Ballston Metro Station Tunnel, Causing Delays

By Airey
1/5

(Updated at 9:27 a.m.) Commuters on Metro’s Orange and Silver lines faced minor delays this morning after smoke filled the tunnels of the Ballston station.

A Metro spokeswoman told ARLnow that a train suffered a brake malfunction and offloaded passengers at the station.

“The fans will be turned on and the smoke will dissipate,” said the spokesman. He added he not aware of any health concerns for those who breathed in the smoke.

As of 9 a.m. the gray smoke was still visible and smelled of burning rubber, but crowds has dissipated and first responders had left the scene.

First responders were dispatched to the scene around 8:45 a.m. this morning to reports of smoke filling the tunnel.

Metro-tracking bot Metro Hero Alerts reported that a train went out of service at the Ballston station at 8:43 a.m. this morning and that riders disembarked the train at the station.

https://twitter.com/metroheroalerts/status/1146036674255867905?s=20

Outside, one commuter ditched Metro and was waiting on an Uber to get to work.

“I could smell it going down,” Ashley McMahon said of the smoke as she walked down the escalator to the tunnel earlier that morning. “There was a lot of people.”

Photo courtesy of Ashley McMahon

Fourth of July Celebrations to Prompt Road Closures

By Airey
1/2

Law enforcement agencies are planning several road closures for Fourth of July.

Several main roads will be closed on July 4, including Memorial Bridge and Memorial Circle, from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. The Arlington County Police Department is encouraging people to use to use public transit as large crowds are expected during the celebrations.

ACPD announced it will be working with the Virginia State Police, U.S. Park Police, and the Virginia Dept. of Transportation to close several roads, including:

1:00 PM to 11:00 PM

  • Marshall Drive from Route 110 to N. Meade Street
  • N. Meade St. from N. 14th St. to Marshall Dr.

2:00 PM to 11:00 PM

  • Meade Street from Marshall Drive to Route 50 (access to the Ft. Myer Heights neighborhood will be from the Rhodes Street bridge)
  • Exit ramp from westbound Route 50 to N. Lynn Street (Rosslyn exit)
  • Exit ramp from eastbound Route 50 to N. Meade Street (Rosslyn exit)
  • Long Bridge Dr. from Boundary Channel Dr. to S. 10th

8:00 PM to 11:00 PM

  • Eastbound Route 50 at Washington Blvd. All traffic diverted from Rt. 50 on ramps to East and West Washington Blvd.
  • Eastbound N. 10th ramp to eastbound Rt. 50 will be closed, all traffic diverted to westbound Rt. 50
  • Courthouse Rd. ramp to eastbound Rt. 50 will be closed, all traffic diverted to westbound Rt. 50 or N. 10th St.
  • Pershing Dr. at Rt. 50 will only be allowed westbound
  • Eastbound N. Fairfax Drive from N. Pierce Street to N. Fort Myer Drive
  • Columbia Pike between S. Orme Street and S. Joyce St.
  • Joyce Street between Army Navy Drive and Columbia Pike
  • The exit from westbound Washington Blvd. to eastbound Columbia Pike/S. Orme St.

“These closures are designed to facilitate the safe passage of large crowds for the Independence Day events and fireworks,” Arlington police wrote in the press release.

ACPD is encouraging people to use public transportation or ride hailing services due to the large crowds, and noted that the Rosslyn and Pentagon City Metro stations are close to most of the prime firework viewing spots.

The department noted that police will cite drivers who stop or stand in traffic to view fireworks, and that those who park on Route 110 will be towed.

Additionally, ACPD is reminding people that county and federally-owned parks ban people from bringing their own alcohol, grills, and fireworks to the party, and that drones are banned by the Federal Aviation Administration in Arlington and other areas around D.C.

If the road closures, crowds and traffic were not enough, police are also warning people to prepare for the heat and humidity forecasted for the holiday.

Image 1 via Arlington County Dept. of Parks and Recreation, image 2 via ACPD

Arlington Public Library to Start Automatically Renewing Books

By Airey

Arlington Public Library is piloting an automatic book renewal system.

Starting Monday, libraries in Arlington will begin renewing checked-out books without patrons needing to renew them online or in person.

“We want patrons to enjoy their reading and leisure time and not worry about overdue items,” library spokesman Henrik Sundqvist told ARLnow.

The program will only be for print books — not e-books. Automatic renewals won’t kick in if another patron places a hold on the book.

“At Arlington Public Library, we constantly seek to improve customer experiences by providing easy-to-use services and resources, said the system’s head of Materials and Technology Management, Peter Petruski.

APL is also increasing the overall renewal limit on items to three renewals.

Libraries across the country are testing automatic renewals as a way to reduce the fines patrons incur. Sundqvist said now that the library’s technology makes it possible, APL wanted to test the idea as well in Arlington.

Sundqvist said the library system will be keeping a close eye on the program over the summer and welcomes patrons’ feedback.

“We understand that our community is busy and we want to make using the library easy,” he said.

Here’s Why Some Traffic Lights Aren’t Turning Green for Bicycles

By Airey
1/3

A set of traffic lights near Columbia Pike isn’t working for bicycles, officials say.

The Department of Environmental Services (DES) confirmed that traffic signal at the intersection of S. Walter Reed Drive and 11th Street S. is not detecting bicycles.

DES crews discovered this week that an underground conduit collapsed, effectively disabling the sensors that detect bicycles waiting to cross Walter Reed Drive and trigger a green light.

“There’s currently no bike lane detection because we weren’t able to get the cable from the controller to this side of the intersection due to the collapsed conduit,” DES spokesman Eric Balliet tells ARLnow.

“Staff are working on how to address the issue, but we don’t have an estimate at this time for when a fix can be implemented,” he said.

In the meantime, the department reconfigured the intersection to give a green light to the contraflow bike lane on 11th Street during each light cycle. In a contraflow bike lane, bicyclists ride against the flow of traffic.

The department found the problem after cyclists — including Arlington County official Henry Dunbar — noted on social media earlier this month that some intersections hadn’t turned green for them.

Balliet said crews inspected N. Veitch Street and Lee Highway on Wednesday after the online complaints and found no issues.

No other intersections have known issues either, but Bailliet said in an emailed statement that some intersections use a new vehicle detection technology and it can be finicky:

The newer detection cameras the County uses for vehicular detection can also detect bicycles, but the system requires the bicycle to approach the intersection in a vehicular or bicycle lane in order to be detected. If the bicycle doesn’t adhere to the stop bar area or rides in an atypical pattern, the cameras will likely not detect the bicycle as the zones are set up with the stop bar as a reference and can only be triggered from travel in a single general direction.

He added that cameras will also fail to detect bicycles on sidewalks and riders need to continue pushing walk buttons to cross safety.

DES asks travelers to report intersection problems to the county’s online system so crews can investigate.

Images via Google Maps

Where to Celebrate 4th of July Around Arlington

By Airey

(Updated at 1 p.m.) There are a number of ways to celebrate America’s independence in Arlington this year.

This year’s federal firework show on the National Mall was moved because of President Trump’s “Salute to America” rally at the Lincoln Memorial from 6:30-7:30 p.m., which will likely include a speech, military flyovers, and protestors.

The national fireworks display will blast off from West Potomac Park instead. It is scheduled to run from 9:07-9:27 p.m. and will be visible from most places across the Potomac that Arlington residents are used to.

If the president’s planned Fourth of July rally in the District isn’t for you, here are some places in Arlington to watch the show:

  • Long Bridge Park, which is open for viewers but no longer hosting a large, county-sponsored extravaganza due to cost-cutting measures. The county is cautioning people to make time to go through security checkpoints on Thursday, July 4, and to be prepared for crowding due to ongoing construction closing the north end of the park’s esplanade. Attendees to the Long Bridge Park festivities are not allowed to bring food, spiked chairs, or fireworks of their own on the field, per the county’s website.
  • The View of DC observation deck at CEB Tower (1201 Wilson Blvd) in Rosslyn is hosting a fireworks viewing event 31 floors up. Those who want to attend can enter their name in a lottery for tickets.
  • Gateway Park in Rosslyn is hosting its usual, popular viewing.
  • Gravelly Point is another popular viewing spot, though parking may be limited.
  • U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial near Rosslyn has a sweeping vantage of the monuments, the river and the fireworks..
  • Key Bridge also offers picturesque views for those who don’t mind standing during the show.
  • The Air Force Memorial which will host a free concert by the The United States Air Force Concert Band and Singing Sergeants at 8 p.m. before the fireworks.
  • The Washington Golf & Country Club also confirmed to ARLnow that it is again hosting its own fireworks this year, but won’t have any seating on the golf course due to the ongoing renovations.

Several neighborhoods are also hosting parades for those who prefer to eschew the crowds at fireworks, including:

The Arlington County Fire Department is asking residents who plan to light their own fireworks or have their cookouts to follow these safety tips for fire and injury prevention.

SoberRide will continue its holiday tradition of offering free Lyft rides to prevent drunk driving. The organization said 746 people in the Greater Washington area used the service during Fourth of July last year.

Users can check the SoberRide website on Thursday, July 4 at 6 p.m. for the promotion code that will give free rides between 7 p.m Thursday and 2 a.m. Friday.

Photo via John Sonderman/Flickr pool

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