Author: Airey

Legal Aid Organization to Hold ‘Know Your Rights’ Event as Arlington Fears ICE Raids

By Airey

Two Virginia organizations are looking to help as Arlington braces for immigration raids in the wake of President Trump’s deportation threats.

The Falls Church-based Legal Aid Justice Center is collaborating with the Virginia Coalition of Latino Organizations to train people on what rights the county’s immigrant community has and how they can help. The legal aid organization will be hosting the free event at the Syphax Education Center (2110 Washington Blvd) from 3-5 p.m. tomorrow (Thursday).

Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, the legal director of the Justice Center’s Immigrant Advocacy Program, said the event is aimed at teachers, service providers and “basically anyone who serves the immigrant community who is wondering what to tell people right now.”

Attendance is free but people are asked to RSVP to on Facebook.

The Justice Center will review what to do if U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) stops someone or knocks on their door, as shared here by the American Civil Liberties Union.

Arlington County Board Chair Christian Dorsey during a recent Board meeting criticized Trump for issuing “a vague threat” on Twitter.

“If this latest escalation proves to be real, rest assured that Arlington does not participate in federal immigration enforcement and will not be assisting in any mass round-up or deportation of families or the separation of yet more children,” Dorsey said. He urged anyone who feared they would be targeted for deportation to visit the county’s website with resources for immigrants and to contact the Legal Aid Justice Center if they had legal questions.

Last week, Trump announced that ICE would deport “millions” starting Saturday. Despite the president calling off the threatened raids, ICE agents raided several homes and businesses in D.C. over the weekend and detained at least two parents, according to the Washington City Paper.

After the initial announcement “the level of fear in the immigrant community spiked to early 2017 levels, which is to say, extraordinarily high,” Sandoval-Moshenberg said.

After Trump took office in 2017, immigrant families in Arlington began withdrawing children from food stamps, stopped filing domestic violence protection orders in court and kept kids home from school out of a fear of deportation, according to Sandoval-Moshenberg. When the Legal Aid Justice Center organized the “Know Your Rights” events two years ago, attendance was up — between 100 and 200 people.

Sandoval-Moshenberg noted it’s too early to tell if families are reacting similarly now but, “our phone is ringing off the hook, that’s for sure.”

(more…)

Arlington Pet of the Week: Stormy

By Airey
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Our new pet of the week is 6-year old cat Stormy who loves posing for pictures so much her owner thinks she should run for office.

Here’s what Stormy’s owner Paola said the feline thinks of her life in Arlington:

Hello, my name is Stormy! I’m a 6-year-old cat and the sassiest and friendliest lady feline you’ll ever meet. I’m originally from D.C., where my cat mom adopted my sister and I from a shelter at just eight weeks. We recently moved to Rosslyn from D.C. and I just love it here! There are so many trees around us and birds (my favorite are Cardinals!)! I especially like to chase them around the apartment from window-to-window! Although my cat parents travel overseas a lot, they make sure I’m surrounded by hoomans… for you see, I’m one social cat! I don’t like being alone too long and when we have company, I immediately make friends with everyone invited. My favorite place to take naps is on my cat dad’s chest, or at night, on my cat mom’s head. I like sitting on my kitty bed and also like to take long naps outside on the balcony. My cat mom enjoys taking pictures of me, and I enjoy it too, so much so that I have my own hashtag! #Stormyforcatpresident

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 Seeking Public Input for Bluemont Park Renovations

By Airey

Arlington County is seeking public input on how to renovate Bluemont Park.

The 70-acre park at 601 N. Manchester Street is home to tennis and volleyball courts and a baseball field that was renovated over the protest of some residents. The Washington and Old Dominion Trail and the Four Mile Run Trail pass through the park as well, making it a popular thoroughfare for cyclists and joggers. Over the years, the park has also been a center for community events, races, and fundraisers.

Now the county is planning to renovate some of the park’s amenities, according to a social media post on Twitter.

“The design development scope includes tennis courts, lighting, restroom/storage, shelter, parking lot, site circulation, site furnishing, drainage and landscaping,” notes the county’s website on project. “Funding to construct the project will come from an upcoming CIP budget.”

Residents are asked to fill out an online survey asking questions about how often they visit the park and which amenities they use.

The survey also includes a page of questions about the tennis courts. It asks respondents if they’d described themselves as a “competitive” or “recreational” player, and to rank aspects of the courts (shade, practice wall, playing surface) that are most important to them.

Renovations are slated to begin in the third quarter of this year, and wrap up by the end of the year.

The survey also asks how people travel to the park and where drivers park their vehicles.

Bluemont Park has been the site of several crashes near the park and into Four Mile Run creek.

Residents have until Tuesday, July 9 to fill out the online survey. Staff will also be canvassing neighborhoods in person for feedback, per the project’s website.

Where the Sidewalk Ends: County Slow on Sidewalk Building Process

By Airey

Arlington County has promised to build a sidewalk for every street, but when it comes to some residential neighborhoods progress is slow.

The main way sidewalks are built in residential areas is via the Neighborhood Conservation (NC) Program, which was created in 1964 and allows neighbors to weigh in on proposed sidewalk designs, among other small local projects that are proposed for county funding.

Officials told ARLnow the program is meant to give weight to resident feedback, which means concerns over parking and frontage sometimes trump pedestrian considerations.

Now the Arlington County Board is reviewing the NC program, and asking questions like, “Do NC Projects contribute to an appropriate balance between neighborhood and Countywide infrastructure goals and objectives?” according to a draft presentation with a working group meeting last week.

NC Program Manager Tim McIntosh told ARLnow during an interview last month that it’s a “lofty goal” to build a sidewalk on at least one side of every street, and it’s also hard to evaluate how much progress has been made.

“I don’t know that there are any statistics on how many sidewalks have been built since that plan has been put in place,” he said.

“There are several challenges to building sidewalks on every street,” Arlington Dept. of Environmental Services spokesman Eric Balliet said. “In addition to the availability of eligible funding sources for improvements in neighborhoods, there are competing interests for the right of way on every street.”

“In some cases, adding a full sidewalk with curb and gutter would come at the expense of on-street parking, or it could impact private properties in the form of tree removal, yard regrading and retaining walls,” he added. “There also may be differences among residents on a street about providing needed easements. Our job is to balance these interests, as well as costs, as we implement projects.”

McIntosh said the public is generally supportive and wants to see sidewalks installed, “But once you start to get into the weeds and talk about where it’s going to be, people get a little more reserved about, ‘Well, geez, how is this going to affect my frontage? Or the parking on my street?'”

Bob Cannon, a Lee Heights resident, has long wanted a sidewalk on a particular stretch of the 2300-2400 blocks of N. Vernon Street, in the Donaldson Run neighborhood.

The street is unmarked and cars regularly speed around curves, he said. In May, one car drove over the curb near Cannon’s house, blew out a tire, and hit his neighbor’s car. He says crashes like this are common and pose a danger to pedestrians who have nowhere to walk but on the road. He’s frequently asked the county to build a sidewalk, or add speed bumps, bollards, or lane paint to improve safety, according to emails reviewed by ARLnow.

“I do not understand what the problem is,” said Cannon. “The solution is simple.”

Thus far, the county has not revealed plans to add a sidewalk to portion of the road in question.

“Can it improve? Absolutely,” said WalkArlington Program Director Henry T. Dunbar of the sidewalk building process. “That’s why we really push people to get involved.”

Dunbar said WalkArlington is training residents about pedestrian safety and how they can work with organizations like the Pedestrian Advisory Committee to push for safety improvements like sidewalks on their streets. One way he said WalkArlington helps is by conducting “walk audits” of neighborhoods with residents and identify danger spots.

The pedestrian element for the county’s Master Transportation Plan was last updated in 2008. At the time, the document noted that:

Arlington currently lacks a complete sidewalk on almost 20 percent of its local streets. While work is under way to construct missing sidewalks, at the current pace of funding and construction, the sidewalk network is not likely to be complete for another 25 to 30 years.

Dept. of Environmental Services spokesman Eric Balliet said the department is currently reviewing the pedestrian element and deciding when DES can begin updates, as it recently did with the plan’s bicycle element.

Photo courtesy Bob Cannon

County Board to Consider Loosening Daycare Parking Requirements

By Airey

The Arlington County Board is considering lowering daycare parking space minimums for the second time this year.

During a Board meeting earlier this month, members scheduled public hearings in July on lowering the number of parking spaces child care centers must have. This comes after members modified parking minimums three months ago — from one space per employee down to one space per eight children.

The new request would lower the number of parking spaces down to one space per 10 children. If approved, the change would only apply to daycares within a third of a mile of a bus or Metro stop.

Public hearings will be held on Tuesday, July 9, at a Planning Commission meeting, and Saturday, July 13 during the regular County Board meeting in Courthouse.

Zoning changes are the latest steps in a years long discussion over how to help parents afford the rising cost of childcare as demand far exceeds available space and costs have risen to the highest in the region.

The Planning Commission has recommended county code be changed to allow only one space per childcare facility. But county staff brushed off the suggestion in a recent report to the Board, saying it would “pose significant impacts to the County’s review process and potentially increase pick-up/drop-off impacts from child care centers on their surrounding neighborhoods.”

The Board’s vote in March also allowed daycares and summer camps to care for up to nine by right after staff called the county’s lengthy use permit process a “significant barrier” to encouraging more daycare business.

Key Bridge Marriott Development To Build New Bike Path

By Airey
1/7

Newly-revised plans for the redevelopment of the Key Bridge Marriott site in Rosslyn include a new bike path.

Los Angeles-based developers Woodridge Capital Partners and Oaktree Capital Management purchased the hotel at 1401 Lee Highway for $190 million last year. Since then, the developers proposed renovating the 582-room hotel and adding three residential buildings to the site — two with condominiums and one with apartments.

On June 11, Woodridge and Oaktree Capital Management LP submitted plans to build a pedestrian and cyclist “esplanade” on the north side of the site, with a connection to Lee Highway. The county noted earlier this month that the developers need to ensure pedestrians and cyclists weren’t hampered by their plan to demolish the footbridge over Lee Highway, which connects the Custis Trail and Gateway Park.

“This area, which will be fully open to the public, will offer spectacular views of the Potomac River and connect to the bike path leading to the Key Bridge,” the developers wrote in the new plans.

“The esplanade, which will not be open to general vehicle traffic, will be fully open to pedestrians and cyclists and offer a new option for cyclists to access and navigate through the site,” the developers added. “It will also offer greater connectivity to the Custis Trail from the Key Bridge through a new bicycle path connection on the northeastern end of the property.”

A February traffic impact analysis indicates that developers plan to close the hotel’s current connection to N. Fort Myer Drive and keep the two entrances off of Lee Highway. The plans also call for several roadways on the site itself, including:

  • an east-west roadway connecting the buildings to be used for pick-ups and drop-offs
  • two north-south roadways on either side of the hotel
  • an emergency vehicle access road along the backside (northside) of the property

“The new streets, combined with esplanade, will provide much improved bicycle and pedestrian circulation through the site,” the developer’s site plan application says.

Woodridge and Oaktree are requesting the County Board’s permission to build 446 rooms in the renovated hotel along with 151 condominium units, 300 apartments units, and 635 parking spaces. The apartment building will sit on the parking garage on the west side of the lot, bringing its total height to 16 stories.

In exchange for increased density, Woodridge and Oaktree are promising to build LEED-certified energy efficient buildings and a yet-to-be-determined public art project.

(more…)

APS Teacher Honored After Saving Choking Student

By Airey

An Arlington teacher received a Citizens Award after saving third-grade student Grant, who was choking during lunch.

The Arlington County Fire Department and Arlington Public Schools recognized Jamestown Elementary teacher Jaimie Sapp last week after Grant’s father Roger had contacted the department to say how impressed he was by her quick actions.

“She was at lunch on Monday with his class and they’re all talking and eating and he choked on a piece of food,” said Roger, who asked not to use his last name to protect their family’s privacy. “And it completely blocked his airway and he couldn’t breathe.”

Roger told ARLnow today (Monday) that a week beforehand his family had talked with Grant about what to do if he was choking and taught him the universal choking sign.

As a result, Grant knew to hold his hands around his neck when he choked during lunch, and his fellow students started screaming to the teacher for help. Sapp rushed over and performed the chest thrusts of the Heimlich Maneuver — but it didn’t work.

Then Sapp tried the maneuver’s back slaps and was able to dislodge the food choking Grant.

“Thank goodness she knew what to do,” said Roger. “It’s hard to describe the feeling of hearing your child was in peril and you weren’t around to do anything about it.”

“We thank Jaimie for recognizing that the student was choking and taking quick action to save the student,” said APS spokesman Frank Bellavia. “We are extremely grateful to her.”

“We had the honor of recognizing Ms. Sapp and students from Jamestown [Elementary] today for their heroic actions that saved a student’s life,” said Arlington County Fire Department in a tweet. “For identifying there was an emergency and springing into action she was given a citizens award.”

Roger said the experience was a reminder of how rusty his family was on other first-aid procedures like CPR, and he’s now planning to organize a group CPR certification course with the Jamestown Elementary PTA.

Bellavia said all APS teachers are required to learn basic first-aid and CPR, including the Heimlich Maneuver.

During today’s phone call with ARLnow, Roger said the incident was no big deal for Grant, who was spending his Monday morning — on the first week of summer break — biking.

“We’re hugging him a lot more than we would normally,” Roger said of Sapp. “We’re just very, very happy and proud of her.”

Image via APS/Twitter

ARLnow Weekend Discussion

By Airey

It’s June 21, which means it’s officially the first day of summer and the longest day of the year!

It’s been a big week for long-term projects in Arlington, with updates to the Rosslyn boathouse project and salary bumps for the Arlington County Board.

For the civically engaged among you, the county announced it will soon hold public meetings on Amazon’s first permanent buildings and code changes to allow the installation of 5G wireless technology. The county is also asking for residents to help test a new online permitting system.

Heading into the weekend, everyone might want to know ACPD is planning to close an intersection to investigate a crash, and Clarendon is planning a power outage.

Some other articles you may have missed this week include:

What’s your favorite article from the week? And what are your plans to make the most of the daylight this weekend? Let us know in the comments below.

County Board to Hold Meeting on 5G Technology Installation Regulations

By Airey
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(Updated at 2:45 p.m.) Whether or not Arlington County chooses to make a small code change could have a big impact on how quickly the county rolls out 5G wireless technology.

The new technology promises faster mobile data speeds and a network more capable of real-time connections to “smart city” infrastructure like driverless cars, among other benefits. But 5G requires many small devices with antennas be installed throughout an area to work — and that’s where plans hit a snag in Arlington.

The Arlington County Board is set to hold a public hearing during its regular Saturday, July 13 meeting in Courthouse to discuss whether these devices can be placed on publicly-owned structures like light poles and utility poles.

The county has yet to share the agenda for the upcoming July meeting.

Since 2017, small cell telecommunications facilities could be installed on privately-owned structures (like buildings), but not on publicly-owned structures. If the Board approves the code change, the equipment could start being installed on county-owned structures as early as August, per a staff report to the Board.

The staff report also notes that companies would have to pay a $250 application fee plus another, “nominal” annual fee to Arlington for installing the tech on public property.

The County Board unanimously agreed to schedule the hearing during their Board meeting last Saturday, June 15. Beforehand, Board Chair Christian Dorsey noted that an Arlington resident submitted “an extensive letter” listing concerns about the initiative.

Residents in neighboring jurisdictions have opposed the installation of the devices out of concerns about construction and whether the low levels of radio wave emission could be harmful.

“One of the reasons why we wanted to have a hearing is that we haven’t really discussed this in broad circles,” said Dorsey last week. “This is in many ways going to touch on our way of life.”

Board member Katie Cristol said she supported the motion and looked forward to a more “fulsome discussion” next month.

“If we do not have small wireless facilities, we actually can’t deploy the 5G networks, and the differences between 4G and 5G is significant,” said Nate Wentland, the county’s chief business technology officer, during the meeting.

“We’ve been such leaders in a lot of ways nationally,” said Board member Matt de Ferranti, adding 5G was essential for the county to stay competitive.

Amazon may have eyed Arlington for its second headquarters partially because of its access to advanced network technology like 5G, but some say D.C. area jurisdictions needed the next-generation technology anyway to keep up with the region’s growing digital demands.

The antenna devices themselves are about the size of a backpack, Wentland said, and are sometimes installed together with an equipment box the size of a refrigerator.

Upgrading America’s digital highways with 5G faces other roadblocks as well: the tech is currently caught up with President Trump’s trade war with China, as well as the legal battle over T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger.

The next-generation tech is already up and running in several cities depending on your mobile carrier.

Image 1 via Christoph Scholz/Flickr, images 2, 3 via Arlington County.

Video: Arlington Veterans Bridge Project Complete

By Airey
Arlington Veterans Bridge (Screenshot via Arlington County)

Construction on the Washington Blvd (Route 27) bridge near the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery is now complete.

The newly reconstructed bridge was renamed Arlington Veterans Bridge in honor of the county’s veterans; it maintains the original design spanning over Route 110, recently renamed as Richmond Highway.

Arlington County shared a video this week spotlighting the completion of the bridge this past May. The span was originally built in the 1940s.

“The substructure includes granite, which is not a very common material that we use in our bridges these days,” said VDOT Project Development Engineer Nicholas Roper, who is also a retired Army colonel.

Roper explained that crews were able to widen the bridge and add granite cladding to the structure, adding that, “three of the original piers from the 1940s still remain.”

As part of the reconstruction, VDOT added a sidewalk on one side of the bridge and a 14-foot wide path, which opened in 2017, on the other side for pedestrians and cyclists.

“It’s a place where daily residents of Arlington County and thousands of individuals… traverse the bridge,” said retired Army Col. Joseph A. Simonelli Jr., who chairs the county’s Military and Veterans and Committee, which recommended the name.

“It honors the 13,000 current Arlington veterans,” said Simonelli. “And the millions of veterans in our nation. And as a veteran, it makes me proud.”

Arlington to Hold Public Meeting on Amazon’s First New Buildings

By Airey

Next month, the county will hold a public meeting about Amazon’s first phase of new development for HQ2.

The meeting will “kick off the review process” for Amazon’s first construction project on S. Eads Street, according to a public event notice. The following week, the county’s planning commission will hold a formal review of the development plans.

Amazon’s S. Eads Street development aims to build two, 22-story towers along with retail space, public park space, and parking facilities for bikes and cars. Plans for the 6.2 acre site indicate the buildings will provide 2.1 million square feet of space for the tech and retail giant.

The meeting will be held Wednesday, July 10 from 7-8:30 p.m. As of 4:30 p.m. So far, the meeting location has not been announced.

The county is asking people interested in attending to RSVP but notes seating will not be limited.

Amazon would need the Arlington County Board to approve amendments to plans the Board approved in 2016 for what’s now the tech giant’s lot. The original plans called for 22-story residential towers.

“Learn about the proposed development, planning background and how the review process will work,” the notice for next week’s event reads. “County staff and the applicant will be available to answer questions.”

Amazon tapped Portland-based architecture firm ZGF to design the buildings, reported Curbed.

“These buildings are the first step to creating an urban campus where our future 25,000 employees and the local community can live, work and play,” Amazon wrote in a blog post announcing the development.

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