Author: Ethan Rothstein

Shirlington Oktoberfest Returns This Weekend

By Ethan Rothstein

Two attendees at the Shirlington Oktoberfest (photo courtesy Capitol City Brewing Company)Lederhosen, schnitzel and steins of beer return to the streets of Shirlington this weekend.

Capitol City Brewing Company is hosting the 15th annual Mid-Atlantic Oktoberfest on Saturday from noon to 7:00 p.m. on Campbell Avenue. For $30 tickets, patrons 21 or older get a tasting glass and 10 tasting tickets. Further tickets can be bought for $1 each, with a $5 minimum. Beer taps will close down at 6:00 p.m.

Capitol City says more than 65 breweries will have booths, and more than half of those breweries come from the D.C. region. The list includes Virginia staples like Port City, Devil’s Backbone and Lost Rhino, with lesser known Northern Virginia breweries like Adroit Theory, Old Ox Brewery and Heritage Brewing Company. There will also be three cider makers and a “meadery” to offer some variety in the suds options.

There will be traditional German music being played all day and specialty German food to accompany the beer in honor of the Bavarian region’s centuries-old harvest festival.

Starting at 6:00 a.m., roads in Shirlington will be closed to allow the booths to set up, and they are expected to remain closed until about 10:00 p.m. According to the Arlington County Police Department, Campbell Avenue from S. Arlington Mill Drive to Quincy Street and S. Randolph Street between Charlie Chang’s restaurant and Arlington Mill Drive will be closed off. Drivers should also be on the lookout for “no parking” signs in the area.

File photo courtesy Capitol City Brewing Company

Ben’s Chili Bowl to Host ‘Community Day’ on Saturday

By Ethan Rothstein

Ben's Chili Bowl opening in RosslynBen’s Chili Bowl, less than a year after opening in Rosslyn (1725 Wilson Blvd), is hosting a a day of children’s activities and charity fundraisers for its new neighbors this weekend.

The community day will take place on Saturday, Oct. 4, from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., in the parking lot of the Colonial Village Shopping Center. Ben’s is hosting face painting and balloon animals for children, and the Arlington County Fire Department will bring a fire engine for kids to tour while learning about fire prevention and safety. There will also be games with “various prizes.”

Ben’s will also be hosting a canned food drive to benefit the Arlington Food Assistance Center. Anyone who brings in cans will get 10 percent off their next meal at the restaurant.

“Ben’s truly appreciates the excellent work that AFAC does,” Ben’s co-owner Vida Ali said in a press release, “so for this Community Day and beyond we choose to support their efforts as much as possible.”

There will also be two raffles Ben’s is hosting: anyone who pledges to “stand up against bullying,” in honor of October being National Bullying Prevention Month, will be entered into a raffle for a free lunch for two; anyone who brings in a 300 words or less story about how they gave back to the community will also be entered into a raffle for a free lunch for two people.

“Ben’s is first and foremost about family and community,” the release said. “Now, a new chapter has begun in Arlington and Ben’s is happy to invite everyone in the community to come out and enjoy a wonderful day of giving and celebrating life.”

File photo

‘Oktoberfest’ Market Coming to Ballston Tomorrow

By Ethan Rothstein

Welburn Square in Ballston(Updated at 3:35 p.m.) The last Ballston “mega market” of the year will be Oktoberfest-themed, with a beer and wine garden, live music and a new public art installation.

The market will run from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Welburn Square on N. Stuart Street, across from the Ballston Metro station. All visitors 21-and-over can enjoy a taste of beer and wine, with additional pours for $5. Anyone who purchases more than $10 of merchandise from some of the market’s vendors can have a second free tasting.

The beer will be provided by Northern Virginia breweries Heritage and Old Ox, as well as cider maker Angry Orchard.

While the beer and wine garden is happening, local band Jumpin’ Jupiter will perform their brand of, as they put it on their Facebook page, “Crash, boom, bangy kerplopabilly krap.”

The beer and wine will be accompanied by Ballston’s usual array of farmers selling vegetables, fruits, herbs and other goods, as well market vendors selling their goods. Tomorrow afternoon, the Ballston Business Improvement District will also unveil a new public art installation, called “Clouds.”

The Clouds are 50 light-and-sound interactive lanters placed all over the square. The lanterns take in and emit light and sound, and “will be programmed and then connected to form a cloud-like, networked structure,” according to a Ballston BID spokeswoman. The cloudlets were designed by artists Aki Ishida and Ivica Bukvic from the Virginia Tech Research Center in Ballston. Members of the public will participate in a workshop all day tomorrow to help build the clouds, which be displayed at 5:00 p.m.

While tomorrow is the last “mega market” in Ballston, the weekly farmers markets will continue to be held on Thursday evenings until the end of the month.

Disclosure: Ballston BID is an ARLnow.com advertiser

New School, Metro Lead $219 Million Bond Questions

By Ethan Rothstein

Polling place signs outside Barrett Elementary SchoolArlington County taxpayers will be asked to approve $218.7 million in general bond obligations at the ballot box on Nov. 4.

The big-ticket question in that referendum will be $105.7 million for Arlington Public Schools, $50.25 million of which will pay for either a new elementary school adjacent to Thomas Jefferson Middle School, or additions onto Randolph and Barcroft elementary schools.

The voting public can only vote to approve or reject to each of the four bond questions on the ballot — for public schools, Metro and transportation, parks and recreation funding and community infrastructure. Each question requests at least $13 million in funding, and all of the referenda roll multiple projects into the larger categories.

The items in the $105.7 million schools bond, aside from the $50 million elementary school, are:

  • $28.75 million for a 136-seat expansion at Abingdon Elementary School;
  • $10.31 million for “minor construction/maintenance” at school facilities;
  • $7.47 million toward a 241-seat addition and renovation at McKinley Elementary School;
  • $5 million for a 300-seat expansion at Washington-Lee High School;
  • $4 million in planning and design for a new, 1,300-seat secondary school at a yet-undetermined location.

The funding items in the $59.74 million transportation bond question:

  • $39 million for continuing funding of the Metro system;
  • $15.5 million for road paving;
  • $1.3 million for bridge renovations;
  • $2.39 million to be divvied up among WALKArlington, BikeArlington and “improvements to major travel corridors [outside] principal boundaries.”

The biggest items in the $40.15 million community infrastructure bond are:

  • $12 million for neighborhood conservation projects; $10 million for facilities maintenance;
  • $2.2 million for planning of the Salt Dome site on 26th Street N.;
  • $1.4 million toward a new Lubber Run Community Center;
  • $6.1 million combined for a new parking deck, wash bay and fueling station at the Arlington Trades Center.

The $13 million parks and recreation bond question includes:

  • $10 million for parks maintenance;
  • $2 million for land acquisition and open space;
  • $450,000 for Crystal City parks and open space;
  • $220,000 for Four Mile Run near-stream improvements.

The Arlington Chamber of Commerce has endorsed the transportation and education bond packages, with assurances from county officials that the additional debt  won’t affect the county’s triple-AAA bond rating. The chamber doesn’t take a position on the community infrastructure and parks and rec bonds because they “are not directly tied to economic development.”

“Maintaining and improving quality transportation and education are two of the key components of our public-policy positions, and these bonds will assist in easing the traffic crunch and provide seats for Arlington’s growing student population,” Chamber Chair Timothy Hughes said in a press release.

Clarendon Gift Shop Celebrates One-Year Anniversary

By Ethan Rothstein
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Knightsbridge Trading Company, one of just a handful of small business retail shops in Clarendon, is celebrating its one year anniversary this weekend.

From noon to 4:00 p.m., customers and passersby can walk into the shop at 2871 Clarendon Blvd and enjoy free wine, cheese, tea and hors d’oeuvres, according to shop owner Murat Etili. The celebration comes after a year he says met his expectations when he opened his shop with national retailers like Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn and Orvis all just steps from his doors.

“The first year is always where you build your business and pay your dues,” Etili said. “We’ve been extremely well-received. We’re a family business and we’re local, so people seem to appreciate that.”

The shop offers a wide array of gifts and knick knacks, with a consistently changing selection “at surprisingly attractive prices,” it says on its website.

Etili, a graduate of Washington-Lee High School, closed Knightsbridge’s other location in Rockville last year when its building was demolished, but plans to reopen in the same spot when the new development is complete. Until then, Clarendon will be Knightsbridge’s only location.

Despite some criticism for his business model when he first opened, Etili said the people who have come into the shop have been nothing but positive.

“When I was negotiating for the space, there were a few chains ahead of me and I didn’t think I was going to get it,” Etili said. “People have loved it. They were saying there was a huge need, and they were happy it was not another huge chain.”

Tom Green to Perform at Arlington Drafthouse

By Ethan Rothstein

Tom Green (photo via FacebookTom Green — the comedian best known for the 1990s MTV program “The Tom Green Show” and “putting his bum” on things — is scheduled to perform stand-up comedy at the Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike) in December.

Green will perform four shows in two nights on Friday, Dec. 5 and Saturday, Dec. 6, with performances at 7:00 and 10:00 p.m. each night. Tickets are already on sale online — each show costs $25.

Green gained notoriety in the ’90s for his talk show, which the Drafthouse promo for his performances says “paved the way for shows like ‘Jackass, ‘Punk’d’ and ‘Fear Factor.’ With its guerrilla video tactics and outrageous stunts, it was unlike anything that had been seen before.”

Green also had prominently roles in movies like “Road Trip,” “Stealing Harvard” and “Freddy Got Fingered.”

Green now hosts “Tom Green Live,” a talk show on AXS TV.

Photo via Facebook

MONA Dissenters Split Off into Free Online Group

By Ethan Rothstein

MoNA logo(Updated at 5:20 p.m.) The Mothers of North Arlington — a support and social group for mothers in six Arlington ZIP codes with more than 2,000 members — is now facing competition from a group of former members.

MONA’s members have congregated since 2009 on a Yahoo! Group that today has 2,353 members. According to a tipster, MONA is switching over to a new web platform tomorrow, and the switch has already prompted enough opposition that the former MONA president resigned in May, claiming some members were using “hate speech” and “cyber-bullying” over the impending change.

Yesterday, some of MONA’s members decided that, instead of asking MONA to keep its Yahoo! Group alive, they would start their own. NAPping — short for North Arlington Parents — launched on Monday as a free group for North Arlington parents. So far, Yahoo! reports it has just shy of 150 members. In May, MONA had 2,615 members.

While MONA charges $40 in annual membership dues and restricts membership to residents of the 22201, 22203, 22205, 22207, 22209 and 22213 ZIP codes, NAPping is a free group. It was started after parents who didn’t want MONA to shift away from the Yahoo! Group all put their names into a Google Doc to split off.

Asked about NAP’s formation, MONA leaders took the high road, saying they welcomed the competing group.

“One thing this transition has shown us is the wide variety of needs, interests and priorities in the community as people seek parenting support,” MONA co-presidents Morgan Chinoy and M.K. Yeargin said in a statement to ARLnow.com. “We think it is a positive thing for the North Arlington community to have more than one parenting support organization to allow people to find what best suits their needs, whether it’s some, all or none of them. We look forward to a positive relationship with North Arlington Parents as we all work toward our common goal of supporting parents in our community.”

Photo via MONA

Police: Drunk Teen Tries to Stab People at Ballston Sports Bar

By Ethan Rothstein

Larry Sutton (photo courtesy Arlington County Police Department)(Updated at 2:20 p.m.) A 19-year-old D.C. resident tried to stab multiple people outside First Down Sports Bar in Ballston last night before fleeing from police, avoiding a taser and ultimately being tackled and arrested, police say.

Larry Sutton was already wanted for armed robbery by the Metropolitan Police Department when, while intoxicated, he attempted “to stab several patrons with a knife” at 8:30 last night, according to the Arlington County Police Department.

First Down owner Ramesh Chopra told ARLnow.com this afternoon that the incident began when Sutton and another individual got into an argument outside the bar. Sutton began swinging a knife, after which the other individual entered First Down, where Sutton followed. Chopra said Sutton swung the knife inside the bar once before the two were kicked out and Chopra locked the door.

After that, Sutton “just started to go after passersby,” Chopra said, swinging his knife at two different people on the sidewalk before the police arrived.

Sutton ignored police demands to drop his weapon and fled toward the Ballston Metro station, the police report said.

According to ACPD spokesman Dustin Sternbeck, the officers hit Sutton with a taser, but it did not bring him down. Ultimately, officers had to “execute a takedown” to subdue and arrest him.

Sutton is being charged with three counts of attempted malicious wounding, resisting arrest, obstruction of justice, underage possession of alcohol and drunk in public. He is being held without bond. From the crime report:

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 140929062, 4200 block of N. Fairfax Drive. At 8:30 pm on September 29, an intoxicated subject attempted to stab several patrons with a knife at First Down Bar. Police confronted the subject on scene and after failing to comply with officers commands to drop his weapon, the subject fled on foot to a heavily populated area near the Ballston Metro Station. Officers attempted a taser deployment but ultimately took the subject into custody following a takedown. The weapon was recovered and Larry Sutton, 19, of Washington, DC, was arrested and charged with three counts of attempted malicious wounding, resisting arrest, obstruction of justice, underage possession of alcohol and drunk in public. Sutton was also wanted out of Washington, DC for armed robbery. He was held without bond.

Photo courtesy Arlington County Police Department

Superintendent Gets Low Marks from Teachers in Poll

By Ethan Rothstein

APS superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy gives his FY 2015 budget briefingArlington Public Schools teachers and staff are largely unhappy with the job Superintendent Patrick Murphy is doing, with two-thirds of those polled in an APS survey giving him a “C” grade or lower.

The results were tallied in APS’ biennial community survey, released this month. The survey, conducted by a District-based polling company, randomly selected respondents and polled 1,680 staff, 1,160 students, 602 parents and 600 Arlington County residents without a direct connection to the school system.

The company says its results had a “95 percent confidence score.”

While 12 percent of teachers and staff gave Murphy a failing grade and 20 percent graded him at a “D,”  teachers were generally satisfied with other aspects of their positions. Seventy-two percent gave their school administrators or department’s assistant superintendent an “A” or “B” grade, 85 percent gave high marks for their school and 91 percent gave high marks for their colleagues. Two-thirds of teachers also said they were satisfied with the compensation they receive.

Students also gave the school system generally high marks — 78 percent gave their school either an “A” or “B,” with 70 percent of teachers earning those high marks from students — but 18 percent of students agreed with the statement that they felt bullied in school. Eighteen percent of students also responded that they disagree that “School staff stops bullying in school whenever they see it.”

Parents were even more positive about their school experience, with 94 percent giving high marks to their child’s school and 90 percent giving high marks to APS as a whole. What’s more, 81 percent of parents are satisfied with their involvement in the School Board’s decision-making process — APS teachers and staff are, by contrast, 55 percent satisfied with their inclusion in the School Board’s process.

Other items of note from the survey results:

  • 8 percent of students report that they spend too little of their after school time on homework.
  • 64 percent of students said they don’t like “to wake up early for school,” the top response in the survey asking about local students dislike. Fifty percent said they dislike doing homework, and 42 percent said they are “bored at school” (students were allowed multiple answers).
  • 55 percent of parents gave Murphy an “A” or “B” grade, but 37 percent said they “don’t know” how they feel about Murphy’s job performance
  • 93 percent of parents agreed that “my child likes to go to school.” The top response in the “I like to go to school because” question for students was “I like to see my friends,” with 83 percent, followed by “it will help me in the future” at 75 percent.

File photo

Crash Causes Backup on I-395

By Ethan Rothstein

Car crash snares traffic on I-395 Sept. 30, 2014 Car crash snares traffic on I-395 Sept. 30, 2014

(Updated at 12:20 p.m.) A car crash closed all lanes of traffic on southbound I-395 this morning.

The accident occurred at just after 11:00 a.m. Virginia State Police closed off all lanes of the highway next to the Shirlington Circle to clear the scene for Arlington firefighters and paramedics.

Police diverted traffic onto the exit ramp, where cars are able to pass through and continue on I-395 past the crash.

Backups on SB I-395 stretched to the exit for Washington Blvd. The roadway has since reopened.

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