Demolition is underway on an old office building in Courthouse.
The demolition of the building at 2000 Clarendon Blvd will allow the construction of a new, 15-floor condominium tower. The 18,380 sq. ft. site will also feature ground-level retail and a garage fitting 112 parking spaces.
The site is currently fenced off while the building is torn down.
Photo (third) courtesy @721tv
One smiley face made of Post-it notes turned into a conversation between the occupants of two Rosslyn office buildings in this week.
Allison Krumsiek, a government contractor, said her office has considered making contact with the office across the street — the new CEB office tower at Central Place — ever since people began moving into the space a few weeks ago.
Before the new office moved in, Krumsiek said she and her coworkers had a straight-on view of construction workers putting the building together. Then on Monday, people in the new office placed a Post-it smiley face on their window, and the intra-office communication was on.
“So we thought time was perfect to respond! We put up the ‘Hi!’ And when another floor of their building responded with ‘Hey’, we added ‘Welcome!'” wrote Krumsiek in an email.
After that Krumsiek said she heard another floor in her building put up “5 o’clock yet” to which the opposite building responded “sum where.”
“As you can tell from the picture, they had to use at least 3 colors of Post-it. Those things last forever when on your desk but go in a heartbeat when sending messages on windows,” Krumsiek added.
Down here in #Rosslyn it started small enough, with just a smile, one building to another. By day 2 we’re asking is it 5 o’clock yet? @ARLnowDOTcom #b2b #communications #officelife pic.twitter.com/z4YQvCVIZM
— Somebody Writing (@aliekrum) February 13, 2018
Photos courtesy of Allison Krumsiek
A new, casual eatery is coming to Virginia Square.
In a couple months the Atrium Cafe will open in the former Jen’s Kitchen space in Virginia Square, according to cafe owner DJ Lee.
The Asian-fusion style cafe that sells coffee and sandwiches already has 8 locations in D.C., Lee said. The new establishment is currently applying to sell beer and wine, something its D.C. locations do not serve. There will also be more desserts at the Virginia Square location, Lee added.
Jen’s Kitchen closed in late December and posted a sign that it would reopen in late January under new management. Jen’s Kitchen opened in 2015 following the closure of Metro Cafe and Gourmet.
Girl Scout cookie season is upon us, and there will be plenty of booths throughout Arlington where residents can get their sweet fix.
The net revenue raised from Girl Scout cookies funds the organization’s local council and troops, which in turn is used for trips or donated to community projects or causes.
According to the Girl Scouts website, booth sales in Arlington will kick off this coming Friday, Feb. 16. Below are some of the times and places places you can grab some Girl Scout cookies this month.
Four Sisters Grill (3035 Clarendon Blvd.)
- Feb. 16 — 4-7 p.m.
Giant Food (3450 Washington Blvd.)
- Feb. 16 — 4-8 p.m.
- Feb. 17 — 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 18 — 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
- Feb. 23 — 4-8 p.m.
- Feb. 24 — 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 25 — 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Giant Food (3115 Lee Highway)
- Feb. 17 — 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 18 — 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
- Feb. 24 — 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 25 — 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Giant Food (2901 S. Glebe Road)
- Feb. 16 — 4-8 p.m.
- Feb. 17 — 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 18 — 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
- Feb. 23 — 4-8 p.m.
- Feb. 24 — 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 25 — 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Giant Food (2501 9th Road S.)
- Feb. 16 — 4-8 p.m.
- Feb. 17 — 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 18 — 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
- Feb. 23 — 4-8 p.m.
- Feb. 24 — 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 25 — 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Key Elementary School (2300 Key Blvd.)
- Feb. 16 — 3-6 p.m.
Courthouse Metro Station (2100 Wilson Blvd.)
- Feb. 16 — 3:30-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 19 — 3:30-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 20 — 3:30-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 21 — 3:30-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 22 — 3:30-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 23 — 3:30-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 24 — 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- Feb. 26 — 3:30-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 27 — 3:30-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 28 — 3:30-7:30 p.m.
Virginia Square-GMU Metro Station (3600 Fairfax Drive)
- Feb. 16 — 4-7 p.m.
- Feb. 23 — 4-7 p.m.
Pentagon Center Mall (1201 S. Hayes Street)
- Feb. 16 — 4-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 17 — 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.
- Feb. 18 — 1-6 p.m.
- Feb. 23 — 4-7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 24 — 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.
- Feb. 25 — 1-6 p.m.
Ace Hardware (2001 Clarendon Blvd.)
- Feb. 17 — 12-4 p.m.
- Feb. 18 — 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- Feb. 24 — 12-4 p.m.
- Feb. 25 — 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Central Library (1015 N. Quincy St.)
- Feb. 17 — 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 18 — 12:45-5 p.m.
- Feb. 24 — 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Feb. 25 — 12:45-5 p.m.
Meridian (1401 N. Taft St.)
- Feb. 17 — 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Nice Cream (2831 Clarendon Blvd.)
- Feb. 17 — 11:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Delancey at Shirlington Village (4220 Campbell Ave.)
- Feb. 17 — 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Io Piazza Apartments (2727 S. Quincy St.)
- Feb. 17 — 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
The Whitmore (4301 Columbia Pike)
- Feb. 16 — 4:30-7 p.m.
Goodwill Industries (10 S. Glebe Road)
- Feb. 17 — 12-6 p.m.
- Feb. 24 — 12-6 p.m.
Market Common (2801 Clarendon Blvd.)
- Feb. 24 — 2:30-6 p.m.
- Feb. 25 — 1-5 p.m.
The Citizen at Shirlington Village (3000 S. Randolph St.)
- Feb. 24 — 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Photo via Girl Scouts of the United States of America
This Valentine’s Day, the Arlington County Fire Department will conduct a free mass CPR training event at the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City.
The “Hands2Hearts” event is intended to save lives. If hands-only CPR can be performed immediately on a cardiac arrest victim, the victim is 2-3 times more likely to survive.
“You will gain confidence in providing life-saving techniques in just a couple of minutes,” said an Arlington County press release.
The training session will be held from 1-1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 14 on all four levels of the mall surrounding the center food court. The event is being conducted in partnership with the Virginia Hospital Center and supported by the American Heart Association.
“There will be opportunity to interact with Arlington County firefighters, paramedics, and Virginia Hospital Center’s healthcare team while they teach hands-only CPR,” noted the press release.
Chill Zone, a Yorktown cafe, might be serving alcohol soon.
The shop recently applied for a license to sell beer and wine at its location at 2442 N. Harrison St., said Chill Zone’s manager Daniel Bui.
Pending license approval, Chill Zone will serve red and white wine, and local beer, according to Bui. Initially the coffee shop plans to serve alcohol only on Fridays and Saturdays.
Chill Zone, which just celebrated its first anniversary, currently serves bubble tea, Vietnamese coffee and its signature “volcano mango frap,” in addition to food options like wings and sandwiches.
File photo
Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow.com, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups and their founders, plus other local technology happenings. The Ground Floor, Monday’s office space for young companies in Rosslyn, is now open. The Metro-accessible space features a 5,000-square-foot common area that includes a kitchen, lounge area, collaborative meeting spaces, and a stage for formal presentations.
Todd Moore spends three to five hours a day listening to podcasts.
“I’ve never really been happy with the existing podcast apps,” he said.
That’s where the idea for Playapod, a cross-platform syncing podcast app, came in. The app, created by Moore through the Crystal City-based TMSOFT, best known for its white noise app, is compatible with all Android and iOS devices and is available to download from the Google Play Store, Apple App Store and the Amazon App store. The app launched last week.
One podcast-playing problem that bothered Moore was the inability to sync podcasts across different devices from different platforms. Another issue was the difficulty of relocating where someone left off listening to a podcast.
“Something that frustrates me with all audio playback app, like even Amazon’s audio books, they never show you what you’ve listened to,” he said.
That made it easy to lose place in a podcast if, for example, the user accidentally touch the wrong button. On Playapod, users can see exactly where they left off if they lose their place through the precision progress bar.
Users can also bookmark the most-recently played portion of a podcast for future playback, said Moore.
Playapod is free and has no advertisements. Another feature includes the ability to download podcasts so users can listen offline.
“I think the interface of Playapod is very simple, and it’s intuitive and it’s easy to navigate,” Moore said. “So I think it’s going to be a real hit based on the initial feedback I’m seeing.”
Playapod may have some big shoes to fill against its competitors at Apple and Amazon, but Moore said he’s not concerned.
“I think if people try Playapod, they’re going to see a better feature set. I think they’re going to enjoy this type of listening experience, and I’ve spent a year on this, so I’m a little biased,” he said.
The annual Love the Run You’re With 5K is returning to Pentagon City this Sunday, prompting some road closures.
Runners can register as a couple, as singles, or can run without signaling their relationship status. Solo registration currently costs $45 and couples’ registration is $80.
The race will begin and end at the Pentagon City mall, with after-race deals at Shake Shack and nearby Commonwealth Joe. The course runs up S. Joyce Street and along Army Navy Drive to 23rd Street S. and back.
ACPD has provided a list of road closures for the race, below.
The Arlington County Police Department will conduct the following road closures to accommodate the race:
- South Joyce Street, between South 15th Street and Army Navy Drive, will be closed from 7:00 AM until 11:00 AM.
- South 15th Street, between S. Hayes Street and S. Joyce Street, will be closed from 6:00 AM until 11:00 AM (The southern entrance to the Pentagon City Mall Garage will be closed for the duration of the event).
- Army Navy Drive, between South Joyce Street and South 23rd Street, will be closed from 7:00 AM until 11:00 AM.
Street parking in the area will be restricted. Motorists should be on the lookout for temporary “No Parking” signs, and illegally parked vehicles will be subject to ticketing and towing. If your vehicle is towed from a public street during this event call the Emergency Communication Center at 703-558-2222.
Race attendees are strongly encouraged to use Metro or other forms of transportation services. Participants arriving by car can park in the Pentagon City Mall garage, which will be accessible via the Army Navy Drive entrance.
Photo via Pacers Running
A new pet store is coming to Arlington County.
Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming, at 4550 Lee Highway, is holding its grand opening this Saturday (Feb. 10) at 10 a.m., where it will be offering gourmet dog treat samples and premium dog food, said a Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming press release.
The first 20 dogs to enter the store at the grand opening will receive free pet treats for a year. There will also be prizes, giveaways, and light refreshments.
Homeward Trails Animal Rescue will bring ready-to-adopt rescue animals to the store.
Besides treats, Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming offers self-service and grooming services. Customers can choose to use the store’s facilities to bathe their pets or pay to have the staff do it.
The store has more than 90 locations across the country, including one in Alexandria, Va.
Photo via Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming
(Updated at 6 p.m.) A free movie series is returning to Columbia Pike this summer, with a showing of a music-oriented film every weekend from June 1 through Sept. 1.
The series, called “The Music of the Movies: Oscar Scores and Classic Musicals,” will screen the films outdoors on Fridays at the Arlington Mill Community Center and Saturdays at Penrose Square.
The film series is sponsored by the Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization (CPRO) and the Signature Theatre.
“Signature is thrilled to support the 2018 Columbia Pike Movie Nights, which will bring the magic of great classic musicals to the big screen for free to the Arlington community this summer,” said Eric Schaeffer, the Signature Theatre’s artistic director, through a CPRO press release.
Several movies will be classics like Grease, West Side Story, and The Sound of Music, but movies as recently-released as the Pixar-produced Coco will be screened as well.
Here’s the 2018 movie series schedule:
Photo via Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization
The emergency lights are on at the Pentagon City Metro station’s underground pedestrian tunnel, but nobody’s there.
The third entrance to the Metro station is still closed despite an Arlington County staff report scheduling a March 2017 opening. The tunnel is now supposed to open sometime this spring, wrote Catherine Matthews, communications specialist for the county’s Dept. of Environmental Services, to ARLnow.com via email.
The pedestrian tunnel connected to the Metro is located at the northeast corner of the intersection of S. Hayes Street and 12th Street S. The tunnel opening was initially scheduled for 2015.
The county made an agreement last year with WMATA to claim responsibility for maintaining and operating the $1.3 million tunnel.
“Over the past year the connection, operations and maintenance agreement with WMATA has been amended and a separate letter agreement with Brookfield Office Properties has been executed; specifically to confirm and finalize procedures for the opening and closing of the tunnel each day,” Matthews said.
WMATA and Brookfield Office Properties are responsible for finalizing the procedures for opening and closing the tunnel, according to Matthews, and once that has been done the tunnel will open, she added.
When it does open, the tunnel will be available to pedestrians weekdays from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
