Author: Chris Teale

Commission Chairs Criticize Four Mile Run Valley Group’s Arts District Plan

By Chris Teale
1/2

(Updated at 11 a.m.) The chairs of the Park and Rec and Sports Commissions have criticized the Four Mile Run Valley Working Group for focusing on a planned arts district, comparing it to the push that led to the creation of the since-closed Artisphere.

In a letter to working group chair Charles Monfort, Caroline Haynes and Shirley Brothwell said they are “disappointed” to realize the working group’s outcomes “may not be as transformative as they could have been.”

The pair specifically critiqued the group’s key focus on a two-block area west of S. Nelson Street near Jennie Dean Park, which has been suggested as the location for a new arts district. Some group members wish to repurpose the properties as an arts district, which could include traditional arts activities like painting and sculpting, among others, as well as businesses to build up nightlife nearby.

That plan has already come under scrutiny from working group members and others in the community, and they said that more planning may be needed if this continues.

“Because of these issues, we believe the 4MRVWG runs a very real risk of missing the target altogether and doing a disservice to the County Board and residents,” Haynes and Brothwell wrote. “The Board may get a clear vision of what some members of the working group prefer for a tiny portion of the study area, but constituencies in the surrounding neighborhoods and in the parks, recreation, and sports communities already have challenged and rejected that vision.”

Instead, the pair urged any land acquired in that area be used to expand Jennie Dean Park — especially if purchased with bond funds intended for parkland acquisition — and that the group develop more specific information about how arts are supported in the county.

“When bond funds voted on by Arlington taxpayers and designated for park land acquisition have been redirected toward arts purposes in the past, the results have not been positive; specifically, $4 million of such funds were redirected to build out the Artisphere,” the letter said. “We note that the arts were pulled out from [the parks department] after it became apparent that the Artisphere was financially unsustainable.”

“It remains unclear how the proposed arts hub would be financed or managed over time to become self-sustaining,” said the letter writers. “We do not want to repeat a costly mistake.”

Photo No. 2 via Google Maps.

Metro, Renaming Jefferson Davis Hwy Among Priorities in 2018 General Assembly Session

By Chris Teale
1/7

(Updated at 9:55 a.m.) Arlington’s representatives will push hard in the Virginia General Assembly on Metro funding, the authority to rename Jefferson Davis Highway and absentee voting, among other issues.

At a work session Thursday, Arlington County Board members discussed their legislative agenda — bills they would like to see passed and issues they would like to see emphasized — for the 2018 session with local Delegates and state Senators.

The General Assembly will convene in Richmond on January 10 and sit through March 10, with Gov.-Elect Ralph Northam (D) to be inaugurated on January 13.

High on Board members’ list of priorities is securing a dedicated funding source for Metro, and ensuring that state funding allows it to keep up with its rebuilding needs.

Outgoing Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) has committed to adding a dedicated funding source in his budget proposal later this month, and local representatives said they must do more to show their colleagues from outside Northern Virginia how valuable Metro is to the whole Commonwealth’s economy.

“A lot of work has been done to show this is not just a Northern Virginia giveaway, that this gives a lot of money and benefits to the rest of the commonwealth,” said County Board member Christian Dorsey.

Later, Dorsey noted that a study by the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission made a “conservative estimate” that Metro brings in $600 million to state coffers every year through income and sales taxes.

All agreed on a plan to bring legislators into Northern Virginia and have them take a tour of the region’s various transit options, as well as experience rush-hour traffic congestion, something that state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-30) said has been effective in the past.

State Sen. Barbara Favola (D-31) urged cooperation between business and governmental groups in lobbying Richmond.

“We really need a united voice on this,” Favola said. “We can’t afford to have the Northern Virginia Chamber in opposition to a strategy you may like.”

Favola said she will file a bill to give localities the power to rename their primary highways, of which Jefferson Davis Highway is one in Arlington.

The question of whether to change the name of Jefferson Davis Highway has swirled for several years, and Board chair Jay Fisette said the county is “exploring all options” on renaming.

Del. Mark Levine (D-45) disagreed with Favola, and said that in his opinion localities already have the right to rename primary highways. Fisette emphasized that no stone shall be left unturned.

“At this point, we believe we have multiple options, we’re just going to work them sequentially to do that,” he said.

The question of renaming Jefferson Davis Highway remains controversial. At the Board’s public hearing on its legislative agenda on Tuesday, local resident Bernard Berne derided a name-change as a “bad idea” that will stoke racial tensions and create division.

“It divides the community, and these historical things are part of our heritage. You don’t mess with it,” he said.

(more…)

Pentagon Row’s Frost Fest Set for Saturday

By Chris Teale

Pentagon Row will host its fourth annual holiday celebration this Saturday (December 2).

Frost Fest begins at 5 p.m. at the ice rink at Army Navy Drive and S. Joyce Street. The event will include an on-ice firework display with Santa Claus, music from a DJ, live entertainment from local artists and ice sculptures.

Attendees can also sample foods from some nearby restaurants, pick up holiday shopping specials and win a $1,000 Pentagon Row shopping spree giveaway.

Pentagon Row’s 6,840-square-foot outdoor ice rink is now open, and will be open on all holidays. Admission costs $8 for those aged 12 and under); and $9 for those aged 13 and older. Skate rental costs $4.

The rink’s hours will be as follows:

  • Mondays to Thursdays: Noon to 10 p.m.
  • Fridays: Noon to 11 p.m.
  • Saturdays: 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.
  • Sundays: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

TRAFFIC ALERT: Vehicle Fire on I-66 Closes Rosslyn Tunnel

By Chris Teale

Update at 3:25 p.m. – Police have reopened the left-hand lane of westbound I-66. Traffic is proceeding slowly. Drivers can still expect delays as firefighters leave the scene.

Earlier: A vehicle fire closed the Rosslyn Tunnel on I-66 just after 3 p.m. this afternoon.

According to scanner traffic, a vehicle caught fire in the westbound lanes at mile marker 74.5. Traffic cameras showed the car had pulled over into the right shoulder.

Virginia State Police shut the tunnel to traffic heading west, with firefighters from the Arlington County Fire Department on scene to help put out the flames.

From the traffic cameras, there appeared to be some flames from the car’s underside, but firefighters quickly put out any fire just before 3:20 p.m.

Drivers in the area can expect delays.

Report Shows Disparities in Income, Health Care Across Arlington

By Chris Teale

A report has shown that areas of wealth and disadvantage exist very close together in Arlington, sometimes just blocks away from each other.

The report by the Northern Virginia Health Foundation, entitled “Getting Ahead: The Uneven Opportunity Landscape in Northern Virginia,” identifies what it calls 15 “islands of disadvantage,” where people face multiple serious challenges.

Those challenges include the levels of pre-school enrollment, teens out of high school, whether people have a Bachelor’s degree or higher, the level of English spoken in a household, unemployment rate, child poverty rate, health insurance rate and more.

Of those “islands,” three are either wholly or partly in Arlington: one near the county’s border with Bailey’s Crossroads and Seven Corners; another along Columbia Pike in the Douglas Park neighborhood; and another in the area of Buckingham and Fort Myer.

The report also found that neighborhoods separated by one thoroughfare can have very different demographics, housing and poverty levels.

“A striking example was near Ballston Common [Mall, rebranded as Ballston Quarter], where residents in two census tracts on either side of North Glebe Road — tracts 1019 and 1020.01 — faced very different living conditions,” the report reads. “In census tract 1019, east of N. Glebe Road, 85 percent of adults had a Bachelor’s degree or higher education and the median household income exceeded $160,000 per year.

“Just west of N. Glebe Road, in tract 1020.01, 30 percent of teens ages 15-17 years were not enrolled in school, only 38 percent of adults had a Bachelor’s degree and 48 percent of the population was uninsured.”

It also found that life expectancy can vary by as much as 10 years across the county, “from 78 years in the Buckingham area to 88 years in parts of Rosslyn and Aurora Highlands.”

To help improve conditions, the report recommended better access to health care, education and affordable housing.

“In today’s knowledge economy, advancement requires better access to education — from preschool through college — and economic development to bring jobs with livable wages to disadvantaged areas,” it reads. “And it requires an investment in the infrastructure of neglected neighborhoods, to make the living environment healthier and safer, to provide transportation, and to improve public safety. What is good for our health is also good for the economy and will make Arlington County a stronger community for all of its residents.”

Courtesy image

Second Lady Karen Pence to Appear on WERA Next Week

By Chris Teale

Second Lady Karen Pence is scheduled to appear on Arlington community radio station WERA next week.

Pence will join a show hosted by citizens group Embracing Arlington Arts to discuss art therapy, the group’s chairwoman said. The show will air Tuesday, December 5 at 3 p.m. and will raise awareness of the role art therapy plays as a mental health treatment, we’re told.

Pence has started a blog about her efforts to spread the word about art therapy, and posts regularly on Twitter about its positive impact on veterans, those fighting cancer and children suffering from mental illness, among others.

“I am so thrilled to not only be able to chat with Mrs. Pence, but also to discuss such an important topic as art therapy — her policy priority as Second Lady,” Janet Kopenhaver, chair of Embracing Arlington Arts, said in a statement.

According to the American Art Therapy Association, art therapy is an “integrative mental health and human services profession that enriches the lives of individual, families and communities through active art-making, creative process, applied psychological theory and human experience within a psychotherapeutic relationship.”

The association said it can help improve cognitive functions, foster self-esteem and self-awareness, cultivate resilience, enhance social skills and reduce/resolve conflicts and distress.

Official White House photo by Allaina Parton

Board Approves Another Loan to Redevelop Affordable Housing Complex

By Chris Teale
1/5

The Arlington County Board approved an additional loan Tuesday night to help redevelop an affordable housing complex near Four Mile Run.

The Board loaned $13.5 million from the county’s Affordable Housing Investment Fund to the Berkeley II project at 2900 S. Glebe Road to help with the cost of construction.

Approved in 2016, the project will redevelop the Berkeley Apartments into two new buildings, known as Berkeley I and Berkeley II.

The Board approved a $7.4 million loan for the Berkeley I building to nonprofit developer AHC, which owns the property, earlier this year from AHIF’s FY 2018 budget. This latest loan is from the FY 2019 budget.

When built, the buildings will have more than 250 committed affordable apartments. Currently, the Berkeley has 138 units, and Board member John Vihstadt said the redevelopment will be a “huge boost and a lift up to that community.”

Current tenants will be relocated during construction, with AHC required to adhere to a relocation plan approved last year. Tenants on the Berkeley I site received 120-day notices to vacate in July and August, and those on the Berkeley II site should receive their notices this fall.

“AHC’s goal is to find housing for all eligible Berkeley residents at either AHC sister communities in close proximity to The Berkeley or at other nearby rental properties,” county staff wrote in a report on the loan. “Any existing Berkeley resident who is in good standing and who meets the income qualifications will be given first priority to apply for an apartment in the new buildings.”

At the County Board meeting, AHC officials said they expect ground-breaking to begin in April on the new buildings.

District Camera & Imaging Store Coming to Virginia Square

By Chris Teale
1/2

A camera store already in Burke and D.C. plans to open a new flagship location in Virginia Square.

District Camera & Imaging will move into the first floor of the ARC condo building at 3409 Wilson Blvd. An employee who answered the phone at the Burke store confirmed it will be its third location, and not replace the existing ones.

The employee said District Camera is targeting a February or March opening in Arlington, and that with a big space, they have big plans.

“We’re going to make it our flagship store,” he said. “It’s a broader and bigger space, so we’re going to try and use it to display more inventory.”

District Camera currently sells all manner of photography equipment, including cameras, accessories, tripods and batteries. It also offers equipment rentals, printing facilities and classes on photography skills.

County Board Approves Long Bridge Park Aquatics Center Contract

By Chris Teale
1/5

The Arlington County Board voted 4-1 at its Tuesday meeting to build the Long Bridge Aquatics & Fitness Center, the first of its kind in the county.

The Board approved a construction contract worth $60 million with Coakley & Williams Construction, Inc., which was one of four finalists to propose a design for the center.

The new facility will have a 50-meter pool, diving towers and a family pool, as well as spaces for health and fitness and public events among others. The contractor can then add extra features from a “menu” of potential options, so long as it stays within budget.

“This is the culmination of 10-plus years of planning,” County Board Chair Jay Fisette said in a statement. “As our transformation of a brownfield into a vibrant park is fulfilled, we should all be very proud that a long and sometimes challenging community process has yielded such a great outcome. The centerpiece of this project will be an attractive, energy-efficient aquatics and fitness facility that will serve our community for generations.”

Board member John Vihstadt voted against the project on the grounds that the county cannot afford the $60 million price tag and projected operating costs of more than $1.1 million a year.

He added that when voters approved funding in two bond referenda — 2004 and 2012 — the funding landscape was different, and the phrase “aquatics and fitness center” was not mentioned in one referendum.

“With an uncertain economic outlook and in the face of so many competing priorities, from schools to Metro, and more, I cannot in good conscience support moving forward with this $60 million project as proposed,” Vihstadt said. “[It] is simply not fiscally prudent to ask Arlington’s taxpayers to take on this new and costly capital project (at $60 million, over $10 million more than the budget for the new Reed Elementary School, by comparison).  In short, the County has more important needs and priorities.”

Construction on the new aquatics center could begin as early as July 2018 and is expected to wrap up by early 2021.

The project, as approved, will also include “development of 10.5 acres of the park, including environmental remediation, continuation of the Esplanade, public gathering areas and casual use space, one or more rain gardens, parking and other associated infrastructure.”

Vihstadt’s full statement about his “no” vote, after the jump.

(more…)

Shirlington Christmas Tree Lighting Set for Thursday

By Chris Teale

The annual Christmas tree lighting at The Village at Shirlington (2700 S. Quincy Street) will take place on Thursday evening.

It begins at 6 p.m. with a Signature Theatre holiday production featuring the cast of The Holiday Follies, with the tree to be lit at 6:30 p.m.

That will be followed by pictures with Santa in Hardwood Artisans (2800 S. Randolph Street) and a performance by the Bishop O’Connell High School Choir at 7 p.m.

The evening will also feature horse and carriage rides, strolling entertainment and live music, as well as specials at local shops and restaurants including Cheesetique, Busboys & Poets and Le Village Marche.

Per the Arlington County Police Department, the following roads will be closed to accommodate the event:

  • Campbell Avenue, from the Harris Teeter driveway to S. Randolph Street (12:00-4:00 PM)
  • Campbell Avenue, from Arlington Mill Drive to S. Quincy Street (4:00-10:00 PM)
  • S. Randolph Street, from Arlington Mill Drive to the alley behind Charlie Chiang’s Restaurant, roughly the 3000 block (4:00-10:00 PM)

Vehicles will be allowed to exit the covered Harris Teeter parking structure onto Campbell Ave. until 4:00 PM, then must use the alternative entrance accessed from Arlington Mill Drive. Drivers are warned that traffic in the area may be congested throughout the event and alternative modes of transportation are recommended.

Street parking in the area will be restricted and drivers should be on the lookout for temporary “No Parking” signs. Illegally parked vehicles may be ticketed or towed. If your vehicle is towed from a public street, call the Emergency Communication Center at 703-558-2222.

All areas within the lines on the included map will be closed to vehicular traffic during the actual event (4:00-9:00 PM).

Board Allocates Closeout Funds to Affordable Housing, Other Items

By Chris Teale
1/3

The Arlington County Board voted to allocate the just-over $11 million in surplus funds to five “near-term” needs, but clashed over its use for affordable housing.

Board members voted 4-1 to follow County Manager Mark Schwartz’s recommendations and allocate the funds in the following ways:

  • Affordable Housing Investment Fund: $5.2 million in one-time funding to be set aside for the FY 2019 budget.
  • Critical Life Safety Needs: $2 million for unanticipated security system upgrades to the county’s Justice Center in Courthouse.
  • Employee Compensation: $1.75 million to reflect changes in federal law on several position classes in public safety.
  • County Manager Operating Contingent: $1.25 million to address “unforeseen needs that arise during the fiscal year without reprioritizing or cutting other programs.”
  • Facility Studies: $900,000 to primarily fund additional site analysis at the Buck and Carlin Springs sites, as directed by the Board.

Board member John Vihstadt voted against the proposal, and instead tried to free up the funds for three items — the Affordable Housing Investment Fund (AHIF), the manager’s operating contingent and facility studies — for next year’s budget cycle. Vihstadt said those three recommendations were not emergency needs.

“These may well be necessary and appropriate, but this is not reason enough for me to short-circuit the extensive and robust budget process the manager has already begun just because the money is here now,” Vihstadt said. “It doesn’t mean that every penny should be spent. Let’s hold this up to the air and the light and the sun and consider everything holistically as part of the budget cycle that comes in the next few months.”

But Vihstadt’s plan failed on a 4-1 vote, while a similar plan by Board member Libby Garvey to not allocate the $5.2 million in AHIF funding and instead give Schwartz room to make a decision on where it could go went down 3-2.

Fellow Board members were critical of the proposals. Vice Chair Katie Cristol said it is imperative for the facility studies to advance, while Board chair Jay Fisette said denying money for affordable housing was “undermining a key priority to the community.”

“In my view, Mr. Vihstadt’s alternative proposal undermines the current Board priority on affordable housing,” Fisette said.

At the same meeting, the Board provided its budget guidance to Schwartz for FY 2019, and asked him to propose a “balanced budget within the existing tax rate.” The guidance also calls on Schwartz to “include expenditure or service enhancements that are fully offset by reallocations or fee revenue increases.”

The Board approved a 1.5-cent property tax hike for FY 2018 earlier this year, and expects to see moderate revenue growth for FY 2019.

“However, there is uncertainty regarding the impact of the state and federal budgets, as well as potential legislative changes to federal income tax policy, on the County, and real estate assessments are not yet known,” the Board wrote. “Further, the projected moderate increase in revenues is not keeping pace with budget pressures in expenditures, creating an expected budget gap of $10-13 million for FY 2019.”

Board members called on Schwartz to maintain affordable housing funding, and allocate 46.6 percent of county revenue to Arlington Public Schools, consistent with previous years.

They also said Schwartz should include funding for Metro that does not exceed the proposed 3 percent cap on annual increases in funding, and assumes that a new state or regional funding source will cover higher capital costs.

The budget process, which is already underway for FY 2019, will kick into high gear in the new year.

View More Stories