Author: ARLnow.com Sponsor

Your Beermonger: Memorial Day Beers to Kick Off Summer

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

This sponsored column is written by Nick Anderson, beermonger at Arrowine (4508 Lee Highway). Sign up for Nick’s email newsletter and also receive exclusive discounts and offers.

Before we get into it: yes, the Dogfish Head/Boston Beer Company deal is, well, a big deal. I don’t really have anything of substance to add so I’ve just been recommending Bryan Roth’s great piece for Good Beer Hunting.

So, Memorial Day. Unofficial kickoff of summer. Three-day weekend for all you non-retail-working types. What should you have to drink if you’re spending time by the pool, or the grill, or just enjoying the outdoors over this long weekend? Well, you can go Big Beer — and nothing wrong with that, I probably will at some point too. But if you’re looking for alternatives, I’ve got some suggestions:

German. Pilsener. Cans.

I don’t know what’s gotten into Deutschland, but we’ve been seeing some wonderful canned Pilseners coming over this year, and at wonderful prices to boot. Veltins Pilsener has already become a go-to for me, and this week we’ll see the arrival of Wolters Pilsener in the same half-liter, 4-pack can format. Super-clean and crisp, these beers are hard to beat for a refreshment on a hot day, and when you see the pricing on the Wolters especially, you’ll flip — I did.

Session IPA Ales of all types.

Charlottesville’s Reason Beer alone could get an entire column devoted to its core lineup of 6-pack cans: the Hoppy Blonde (4% ABV), Saison (4.5% ABV), and Pale Ale (5% ABV) are all stunners that you can enjoy more than a couple of without too much worry.

Even the recently released Collaboration 29 IPA clocks in at only 5.5% ABV. I’m also personally a fan of The Trooper and Trooper Light Brigade, made by Cheshire, England’s Robinsons Brewery with the crew from Iron Maiden. At 4.7% and 4.1% respectively, I can get my all-purpose UK fix on easily.

Shameless plug but also a really good option: Three Notch’d Firefly Nights

Charlottesville gets more run in this week’s column. The “Summertime Ale” from Three Notch’d is a lighter-bodied 5.2% Ale with honeysuckle. Good for warm summer evenings; great for Mid-Atlantic nostalgia, and a lovely option for those who want something “different” but not too far outside of the box. Also, Arrowine will be hosting the Firefly Nights Release Event this Friday (hey, that’s today!) from 4:00-7:00pm. Gotta get the most for that Sponsord Content dollar, people.

There Gose the weekend.

There’s a Gose for every Sour Ale fan these days, which would’ve been crazy to imagine ten years ago. Union Old Pro is a favorite, and relatively easy to find. Commonwealth Brewing has a plethora of Goses in the market right now, inspired by everything from sangria to mezcal margaritas to limoncello. Modern Times Fruitlands being available in the area now is awesome.

If you’re looking more local-ish, Vasen Guava Otter Gose is newly available in cans and very tasty.

No matter what you decide to knock back, I hope everyone has a fun, safe Memorial Day. I’ll see you back here in a couple of weeks.

Open Houses in Arlington This Weekend

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Looking for a home? There are plenty of houses and condos open for viewing this weekend.

Check out the Arlington Realty website for a full list of homes for sale and open houses in Arlington. Here are a few highlights:

3606 N. Vernon Street
4 BR/5 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Re/Max Allegiance
Listed: $2,39500
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

2742 N. Lexington Street
5 BR/4 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Mcenearney Associates, Inc.
Listed: $1,700,000
Open: Saturday/Sunday 1-3 p.m.

 

27 N. Fenwick Street
5 BR/3 BA single-family home
Agent: Washington Fine Properties, LLC
Listed: $929,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

3800 Lee Highway #301
2 BR/2 BA condo
Agent: Keller Williams Capital Properties
Listed: $649,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

 4117 S. Four Mile Run Drive B
3 BR/2 BA condo
Agent: KW Metro Center
Listed: $515,000
Open: Saturday/Sunday 1-3 p.m.

 

2200 N. Westmoreland Street N. #426
1 BR/1 BA condo
Agent: Russell Baum
Listed: $395,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

 2904 13th Road S. #404-2
2 BR/1 BA condo
Agent: Redfin Corporation
Listed: $299,900
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

Deal of the Day: View the Armed Forces Cycling Classic at Rapha Breakaway Club for $15

The Armed Forces Cycling Classic, proudly brought to you by The Boeing Company, includes two days of Men’s and Women’s Pro/AM races.

The BEST viewing is in our Rapha Breakaway Club! This space is located across from the main stage on both days, and includes food and beverages, as well as a live closed circuit feed of the races.

Catering the event will be Founding Farmers.

Tickets, normally $25 each day on site, are available here for just $15 per day!

Purchase Today’s Deal Now

Discount Code: ARLNOW

WHEN: Saturday, June 1 and Sunday, June 2

WHERE: Crystal City and Clarendon

WHAT: The Rapha Breakaway Club is an exclusive viewing space, across from the main stage on both days. Food, catered by Founding Farmers, beer and soft drinks provide you with exceptional snacking while spectating!

Tented space with seating for your enjoyment, along with a live race feed.  Proceeds from ticket sales will help support TAPS, our official event beneficiary.

Commercial Condo Auction June 19

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Location: 2300 N. Pershing Drive, Unit A, Arlington,VA 22201
Auction: Wednesday, June 19 at 11 a.m.
Where: Circuit Court of Arlington County

On Wednesday, June 19 a foreclosure sale of a single-story retail corner condominium is taking place at the Circuit Court of Arlington County at 11 a.m.

Located at 2300 N. Pershing Drive, Unit A, the property is currently operating as a restaurant and approximately 1,723 square feet. The property is configured with about 60% open dining area with a built-in service counter and food display cases separating the dining area from the commercial kitchen. There are 2 bathrooms on premises.

The project has a common area parking lot in the rear of the building with 80 spaces which is a parking ratio of 4.55 spaces per 1,000 square feet.

For more information contact Jeff Stein at [email protected] or call 888-621-2110.

Visit Tranzon Fox for a full description of the property.

Boring Title: 3 Tips That Will Help Anyone in Any Industry Sell More

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Title insurance is boring, but Allied Title & Escrow is here to decode the jargon and make it (somewhat) more interesting. This biweekly feature will explore the mundane (but very necessary!) world of title insurance while sharing interesting stories of two friends’ entrepreneurial careers.

For this week’s episode of Boring Title, Allied Title’s CEO Latane Meade gives 3 tips that will help ANYONE in ANY INDUSTRY sell more!

Have questions related to title insurance? Email Latane and Matt at [email protected]. Want to use Allied Title & Escrow when you buy a home? Tell your agent when you buy a house to write in Allied Title & Escrow as your settlement company!

Snag Work: Filling Arlington Shifts and Taking Names

When you manage a business you deal with your fair share of unexpected callouts and short-staffed shifts. You’ve probably even filled in and covered shifts yourself (a.k.a. the last thing you ever want to do).

That’s where Snag Work comes in. It’s a service that connects local businesses with quality on-demand workers, while helping NOVA’s underemployed pick up the shifts they need to supplement their incomes.

With Snag Work, you get instant access to fully vetted workers who fill shifts and get your schedule back on track. Everything’s covered from background checks and recruiting, to workers’ comp and liability insurance. Since our workers are W2 employees, that means you save on the operational costs of hiring and onboarding new workers. Simply post your shift and get back to business — we’ll handle the rest.

It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3.

1. Shift Posted: We share your shifts with our network of trained workers.

2. Shift Filled: The average shift is filled within minutes.

3. Shift Covered: We handle everything — including worker pay.

Snag Work helps power a variety of industries throughout NOVA including restaurant, retail and hospitality businesses. It’s time for you to get back to business and join the growing network of companies who are filling their shifts with Snag Work.

Keep updated with Snag Work on Facebook and follow along on Instagram @snagwork.

Small Biz Focus: Business Appreciation Month Recap

By ARLnow.com Sponsor
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This article was written by Marian Marquez, Director for Global Markets & Retention at Arlington Economic Development.

Earlier this month we introduced Arlington Economic Development’s (AED) business engagement program and reviewed the many activities that will be taking place in May for Business Appreciation Month.

A number of these efforts have focused on shining a light on local companies with ceremonies, and we have been so pleased to see the many Arlington businesses who have been honored with prestigious awards and recognition this month.

Each year, the Virginia Chamber of Commerce holds its Fantastic 50 awards, honoring the fifty fastest-growing companies for their entrepreneurial success and contribution to Virginia’s economic vitality. At this year’s awards ceremony, 22% of the winners were Arlington companies, including the winner of the prestigious Vanguard Award for service, which went to U.Group (formerly ByteCubed).

We were not surprised to see many of these names, as we have watched these companies blaze trails in recent years to win many local, state and national awards. For example, Enterprise Knowledge, a first time Fantastic 50 winner, has won Arlington’s Fast Four award and many others since then, as have Convoke, Eagle Hill Consulting and ByteCubed.

Among the 11 Arlington awardees were some repeat Fantastic 50 winners, including Firebird AST, Eagle Hill, Neostek and Convoke. Firebird also won a prestigious SECAF award the very same evening.

Last week at AED’s Arlington Premiere, we turned our attention to our legacy businesses and honored three of Arlington’s longest-standing retail businesses with a Legacy Award, presented by Arlington County Board Chair, Christian Dorsey. Each of these businesses has been operating in Arlington for 35+ years, which is no small feat in our competitive market.

The 2019 Legacy Awards went to Papillon Cycles, a bike shop located on Columbia Pike for 35 years; Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe, located in Arlington for 44 years; and Crystal Boutique which has been serving clients in Crystal City for 49 years!

It was truly an honor to recognize these legacy business owners who have kept their businesses in Arlington through thick and thin; we truly appreciate the impact they have had on our community.

There is more to come in the final days of Business Appreciation Month; this week AED is hosting seven Arlington startups at Virginia’s booth at Collision, North America’s fastest-growing tech conference.

We also have a great line up of companies vying for the Arlington Chamber’s Best Business Awards tonight. Last, but not least, follow us on Twitter for the rest of this month to learn some fun facts about Arlington businesses, both legacy and nascent.

Just Reduced Properties in Arlington

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Each week, “Just Reduced” spotlights properties in Arlington County whose price have been cut over the previous week. The market summary is crafted by licensed broker Aaron Seekford of Arlington Realty, Inc. GET MORE out of your real estate investment with Aaron and his team by visiting www.arlingtonrealtyinc.com or calling 703-836-6116 today!

Please note: While Aaron Seekford provides this information for the community, he may not be the listing agent of these homes.

We see you flexing there, Arlington.

The American College of Sports Medicine just released its annual American Fitness Index and… Arlington is the fittest city in the nation. That’s right. Number one, numero uno, the best!

A number of factors went into the ranking, including personal aspects (such as the percentage of folks that bike to work, have exercised in the last 30 days or smoke), environmental components (such as the number of parks per 10,000 residents, bike score and air quality index), recreational facilities and policies/funding supporting a healthy lifestyle.

This ranking is icing on the cake (okay, maybe not the healthiest-sounding analogy) for what we know already: Arlington is an amazing place to call home with the amenities to back it up.

When you’re ready to settle in to a home of your own in our No. 1 ranked community, our team is always ready to help you GET MORE out of your transaction.

As of May 20, there are 170 detached homes, 17 townhouses and 96 condos for sale throughout Arlington County. In total, 22 homes experienced a price reduction in the past week:

Please note that this is solely a selection of Just Reduced properties available in Arlington County. For a complete list of properties within your target budget and specifications, contact Aaron Seekford.

Putt-Putt Is Coming to Rosslyn This Summer

WHAT: Rosslyn Putt-Putt + Candy BAR

WHERE: 1401 Wilson Blvd. (Corner of Oak St. + Wilson Blvd.)

WHEN: Fridays, 5-9 p.m. and Saturdays, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., June 21-August 31

MORE INFO: www.rosslynva.org/putt

Playing mini golf at the beach or amusement park is one of the hallmarks of childhood.

Who doesn’t remember enjoying nine holes with their parents, siblings or elementary school friends? Maybe you marveled at the design of the course — watching your ball carve a path through colorful constructions, turning windmills, bridges, loops and complicated mazes?

Or maybe you got bored and restless after five holes and just wanted the ice cream or candy your parents always bought for you at the end?

Now, you can re-create this favorite summertime experience at Rosslyn Putt-Putt. From June 21 to August 31, the Rosslyn Business Improvement District (BID) will be partnering with Monday Properties and other generous collaborators to bring you this outdoor pop-up entertainment space that will include an indoor café/bar.

Aptly named the Candy BAR, the café will be a fun spot to hang out and chat while grabbing a drink and sweet treats with friends. The pop-up addresses the desire for more evening and weekend entertainment in the neighborhood that was identified through the Rosslyn BID’s most recent neighborhood perception survey.

“Our putt-putt will transform a piece of Rosslyn into a lively summer retreat,” says Mary-Claire Burick, president of the Rosslyn BID.”We hope our residents, employees, families and nearby communities will come out to enjoy the atmosphere we’ve created, which brings activity and fun to a new location. It’s very much in keeping with our placemaking strategy, which provides memorable and meaningful neighborhood experiences.”

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Ask Eli: Arlington Housing Market Trends

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

This regularly-scheduled sponsored Q&A column is written by Eli Tucker, Arlington-based Realtor and Arlington resident. Please submit your questions to him via email for response in future columns. Enjoy!

Question: How has this year’s spring market compared to previous years?

Answer: I’ll provide an in-depth mid-year market analysis in July, but since we’re in the final weeks of the historically strong “spring market,” I thought it would be a good time to share County-wide market trends that represent what I’m seeing on the buying and listing side these days.

Hint: Great for sellers, frustrating for buyers.

Owners Holding Out For Amazon

One of the big questions I had post-Amazon HQ2 announcement was whether owners would decide to hold onto their homes longer in hopes of higher long-term returns from Amazon or whether they’d accelerate their plans to sell to take advantage of a quick bump in prices and a faster sale cycle.

The answer so far is that more owners are holding off on selling because new inventory is down significantly from last year, highlighted by a nearly 30% YoY decrease in new listings in April.

Low Supply Is Driving Prices To Record Highs

There has been a YoY increase in the average sold price since the Amazon announcement was released in November, highlighted by a 11.2% increase in April (chart #1). That increase led to an average sold price in Arlington over $742,000 which is the first time the average sold price broke $700,000 in 10+ years (chart #2).

The Average Buyer Is Paying Over Asking Price

For the first time in over 10 years, the average buyer is paying more than the asking price to secure a home in Arlington. In April, the average purchase price was .3% higher than the seller’s asking price.

Sales Are Going Through Much Faster

It is taking less and less time for a seller to find a buyer, with a YoY decrease in days on market each of the last six months, highlighted by decreases of 73% and 74.3% in March (median 10 days) and April (median 9 days), respectively.

If you’re interested in an analysis of how the current has impacted the value of your home or the value of the home you’re trying to buy, don’t hesitate to reach out to me at [email protected] to schedule a meeting.

If you’d like a question answered in my weekly column or to set-up an in-person meeting to discuss local real estate, please send an email to [email protected]. To read any of my older posts, visit the blog section of my website at www.EliResidential.com. Call me directly at (703) 539-2529.

Eli Tucker is a licensed Realtor in Virginia, Washington D.C., and Maryland with Real Living At Home, 2420 Wilson Blvd #101 Arlington, VA 22201, (202) 518-8781.

Legal Insider: Finding the Right Employment Lawyer

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

This is a sponsored column by attorneys John Berry and Kimberly Berry of Berry & Berry, PLLC, an employment and labor law firm located in Northern Virginia that specializes in federal employee, security clearance, retirement and private sector employee matters.

By John V. Berry, Esq.

Finding and hiring a lawyer regarding a stressful and difficult employment issue can be quite overwhelming and intimidating for most people.

There are many things to consider when looking for the right lawyer to handle your employment matter. The below guidelines may be helpful if you are looking to hire an employment lawyer for the first time.

Obtain legal advice early

If you wait too long to obtain legal advice or assistance with an employment issue, you may hurt your chances to amicably or effectively resolve the matter. The earlier you seek legal help, the more likely you are to avoid a more complicated and costly legal problem down the road.

Research the lawyer 

When you are looking for the right employment lawyer, make sure to visit the employment lawyer’s or law firm’s website and review the attorney profiles. You’ll likely find useful information just by browsing the website’s attorney biographies, practice areas and resource sections.

The lawyer’s website may also lead you to additional resources and will hopefully demonstrate that the employment lawyer has the requisite knowledge and experience in employment law.

Of course, the website may not be the only or best resource regarding a particular employment lawyer, but researching the website is a good start and will likely lead you to one or two potential lawyers with whom to make an initial inquiry.

Provide a clear and concise written chronology of your case before the initial consultation

You’ll get more out of your consultation with an employment lawyer if you are able to provide the lawyer with a clear and concise written chronology or timeline of your matter prior to your initial consultation. Remember to include any relevant documentation that you may have.

If you provide written details and relevant documentation regarding your matter at the outset, the employment lawyer will have a better understanding of your matter at the initial consultation meeting. The employment lawyer will be able to spend more time providing advice instead of spending time trying to get up to speed on your matter during the initial consultation.

Don’t hold back important information 

If you leave out crucial information at the initial consultation or at the start of representation, the omission could affect the employment lawyer’s initial advice or strategy, subsequent representation, or ability to effectively resolve your matter. It’s best to be candid and honest about your complete story, even if the details are embarrassing.

In this way, you’ll obtain the best advice and representation. Keep in mind that the information you provide to the lawyer at your initial consultation is privileged and confidential unless you waive the privilege.

Don’t expect the matter to resolve quickly 

Legal matters typically take a long time to resolve. Do not expect to resolve problematic employment issues, especially issues that took time to develop, soon after you hire an employment lawyer.

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