Author: Jo DeVoe

Arlington Public Schools to Remain in Hybrid Model Through June

By Jo DeVoe
1/6

Arlington Public Schools announced Tuesday that it will finish out the 2020-21 school year offering hybrid and virtual learning options.

As of this week, about 64% of students of all grades are in-person — mostly for two days a week — while 36% are at home full-time in distance learning. The last cohort to return were students in grades 7-8 and 10-12, concluding three weeks of phased returns.

Despite the big adjustment to teaching in-person and virtual students simultaneously, one high school teacher told ARLnow “we’re getting the hang of it.”

“I think within classrooms, mitigation aligned with CDC guidelines is going very well,” she said. “I wouldn’t choose this, but we can make it work well for this school year.”

Parents are divided over whether to push for a full return before school ends in June or to continue in hybrid learning, a tension exacerbated by the fact that a number of families are stuck on waitlists for in-person learning. Superintendent Francisco Durán wrote in a School Talk email on Tuesday that APS will stick to hybrid and virtual education and will aim for a full return this fall. This approach mirrors that of Fairfax County Public Schools.

“In response to requests for APS to bring additional students back for more in-person days, I want to clarify that APS will continue with the current hybrid model for the remainder of this school year, in accordance with current health and safety guidance,” Durán said in an update sent to families. “We all want to have as many students as possible back in the classroom, as soon as it is safe to do so; however, we need to continue to adhere to current health guidelines.”

Hybrid schedules and reduced classroom capacities are needed to follow physical distancing guidance from the state and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, he said — though those CDC guidelines were just relaxed this morning, allowing students to be spaced 3 feet apart rather than the previous 6 feet.

Arlington Parents for Education, a group that called for school reopenings and is calling for a full return, has a different take on the state guidance.

“The guidance says to maximize six feet of distance ‘to the greatest extent possible,'” APE said in a statement. “What this means, contrary to what APS is doing, is that in-person instruction should be the default, with six feet of distance if six feet is possible. If it’s not possible, then it should be the distance part that gives and not the in-person part.”

Distancing appears to be a concern for those who are in school. The high school teacher, who said she is fully vaccinated but not all her colleagues are, said students bunching together at lunchtime is one of her top concerns.

“At this point, it feels not like if we will have an outbreak, but when, because of lunch,” she said.

Last week, three staff members and 18 students reported testing positive, according to APS data.

Christina Headrick, a parent member of Smart Restart APS — a group that advocated for multiple risk mitigation layers before returning — tells ARLnow that APS has done well mitigating spread but lunch could be improved.

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UPDATED: Wakefield HS Football Players Called Racial Slurs During Recent Game, APS Says

By Jo DeVoe

(Updated at 2:40 p.m.) Players on the Wakefield High School varsity football team were called racial slurs during a recent game against Marshall High School, an Arlington Public Schools spokesman confirms.

Students Lukai Hatcher and Izaiah Lang took to social media last night (Wednesday) to post about the events they say transpired during the away game on Friday, March 5.

“Me and my teammates were called racial slurs, taunted, and even spit on by Marshall players,” they said in a widely-shared joint statement posted on Facebook, Instagram and elsewhere. “We also experienced unfair treatment by each of the refs and were harassed from the sidelines by coaches and Marshall parents.”

Arlington Public Schools spokesman Frank Bellavia confirmed a portion of the allegations.

“An incident did occur between Marshall and Wakefield high schools where Marshall players used racial slurs at the Wakefield football team,” Bellavia tells ARLnow.

“The Wakefield administration as well as other APS officials have been in contact with Marshall High School, VHSL officials and the referee association about this incident,” Bellavia said. “APS administrators have been meeting regularly with the Wakefield team and parents to provide support since the incident occurred.”

Game footage shows a fight breaking out between the teams. APS confirmed that three Wakefield students were given three-game suspensions as a result of the fights, but the sanctions have since been knocked down to one-game suspensions per Virginia High School League guidelines.

Wakefield ended up losing the game to Marshall, 19-18.

https://twitter.com/JavellEdge/status/1372363087626506247

Hatcher and Lang alleged in their statement that what happened on March 5 has happened before.

“Marshall High School’s athletic teams have been known to demonstrate a culture of racism and unsportsmanlike behavior,” including foul play on the basketball court, they said. “We are shining the light on the continuing culture of tolerance for unjust and discriminatory practices in sports for minority athletes and seeking accountability in support of change.”

“We as a team complained to the refs all game about the way that we were being treated yet the flags were consistently thrown on us and even our coaches,” Hatcher and Lang added. “We should not be punished for defending ourselves and each other especially because during the entire game the refs, [whose] job it is to ensure each game is fair and who were supposed to protect and defend us, did not.”

Principal Chris Willmore said in a letter to families Thursday afternoon that “the adults who were responsible failed” the Wakefield players.

“The administrative team and I are outraged by the blatant acts of racism our players were subjected to during the game and that the officials did nothing to intervene despite our urging and even after our coaches signaled them to the behavior multiple times during the contest, allowing the situation to escalate,” he wrote. “This is unacceptable.”

“All coaches have been instructed to leave the field/court immediately if our student-athletes are subject to racist, bigoted behaviors. Our student-athletes will not be put into a position like this again,” Willmore continued, adding that there have been “other incidents that we’ve have experienced in the past.”

APS Superintendent Francisco Durán also issued a statement Thursday afternoon.

“Our leadership and School Board are calling on VHSL and all parties involved in extracurricular activities to reform and change their practices to ensure our schools and athletic events are free of racism, bigotry, hate speech and unsportsmanlike conduct,” he said, in part. “APS encourages all students and staff to continue to stand up and call out acts of racism, hate speech and other forms of discrimination when they see them.”

In a statement, Fairfax County Public Schools said it “does not accept acts of intolerance” and has “expectations of behavior in our students and staff.”

“At FCPS, our primary responsibility is the safety and well-being of our students and staff. Every student must understand the value of appreciating each other’s differences, extending common courtesy, and treating each other with respect,” the statement said. “We must all be committed to do better.”

The administration conducted a thorough investigation involving VHSL, officials, staff, players and families from both teams, according to the statement. The school system said it is working with the school, FCPS leadership and coaches from both teams to develop a plan for restorative justice.

In speaking out publicly, Hatcher and Lang said they were pressing for change.

“This isn’t new and enough is enough!” they wrote.

The full statement from Wakefield High School’s principal is below.

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Donaldson Run Restoration Project Set for County Board Review

By Jo DeVoe
1/7

The Arlington County Board is slated to review a restoration project for Donaldson Run Tributary B next week.

The Board is scheduled to vote at its Tuesday meeting on whether to award a $1.5 million contract to restore a segment of the stream beginning at N. Upton Street and extending about 1,400 feet downstream to where it meets with Donaldson Run Tributary A in Zachary Taylor Park, according to a county report.

The project will address “critical infrastructure, public safety and environmental threats,” the county said. It “will stabilize the stream’s eroding banks to protect existing stream valley infrastructure, including the threatened water main and sanitary sewer, which crosses the stream and runs parallel to it.”

This restoration project has been in the works since 2004 when the Donaldson Run Civic Association designated it a priority Neighborhood Conservation project, according to a county website. The project received funding in 2007 and the county completed its plans for restoration in February 2020 after a lengthy design and public engagement process.

In the intervening years, erosion and storm damage, including the July 2019 flash flood, have gouged out the banks, uncovering a 30″ water main and sanitary sewer line, which triggered emergency repairs. The two forces have also felled about 20 trees along the tributary since 2017.

This erosion “threatens the Zachary Taylor hike-bike trail and public safety and is undermining streambank trees,” the staff report said. “Sediment eroded from the stream has accumulated downstream, compromising the integrity of a prior stream project, the Donaldson Run Tributary A project completed in 2006.”

According to the county website, the project also aims to help the reduce pollution, protect the multi-use trail and restore native vegetation to the area, described as “overrun” with invasive plants such as kudzu and English ivy.

About 83 trees will be removed during the project. In their place, 332 native trees, 180 shrubs, 200 live stakes — cuttings that will grow into trees — and more than 4,000 herbaceous plants will be planted, a county spokeswoman said.

The county says it will use a technique called “natural stream channel design” to create a new stream channel that can better manage the runoff it receives from the surrounding land.

Some critics, however, oppose the chosen restoration method as well as the resultant tree removal. The Arlington Tree Action Group said the project has not been updated to account for climate change and new sustainability goals. Over the last few years, the group has voiced its opposition to the number of trees that could be axed.

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APS Mulls Post-Pandemic Virtual Learning Option for Secondary Students

By Jo DeVoe

For the past year, Arlington Public Schools students have been learning from home to varying degrees of success.

As of this morning (Tuesday), all grade levels have access to two days a week of in-person instruction. Some have struggled during remote learning — as is evidenced by dropping GPAs and rising rates of students failing classes. But others, according to APS officials, are excelling.

“We know right now that some students are really thriving in this virtual environment so we want to be able to keep that option open to those students,” said Sarah Putnam, the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for APS, during a virtual open house last month.

For these middle- and high-school students, virtual learning — either hybrid or full-time — could be an option as early as the 2022-23 school year. The program could be located in the revamped Education Center at 1426 N. Quincy Street, the former APS administrative building next to Washington-Liberty High School.

Extending virtual and hybrid learning options for secondary-level students beyond the pandemic could help relieve some school capacity pressures, instructional leaders and School Board members say. It would also leverage existing technology investments while letting students pursue extracurricular opportunities and, potentially, take more classes to accelerate their learning or recover credits.

“We’re really excited about this idea,” said Jonathan Turrisi, the Director of Strategic Planning for APS, during the same open house.

School staff are still working through the logistics. If the School Board approves this option, it would not start until next fall at the earliest.

More information will be presented to the School Board on April 8. Members have indicated an interest in long-term virtual learning.

“The School Board believes virtual school is an important consideration to factor into long-term planning, given that many students have been successful in distance learning,” members told ARLnow in a joint statement. They said APS will still need to examine numerous factors to see what such a program would look like and if the school system can afford it.

One of those factors would be if it is appropriate for middle-schoolers, Board Member David Priddy said during a February meeting.

“From being around middle schoolers, I’m not sure if the virtual piece would align with that many middle schoolers just simply because their social-emotional needs are different,” he said. “I guess we can throw that out to the public to decide.”

The program would likely be located on one floor the Education Center, which could accommodate 100-300 students, Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Bridget Loft said at the February meeting.

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Courthouse ‘Landmark’ Block Redevelopment Set for County Board Vote

By Jo DeVoe
1/6

(Updated at 11:50 a.m.) Will the proposed development for Landmark Block in Courthouse be the site of a “revolution” in urban living?

Arlington County says so. And developer Greystar Real Estate Partners appears ready to ignite this uprising, with plans to replace the aging, low-slung buildings on the 2000 block of Wilson Blvd — including the former Summers Restaurant — into an apartment tower surrounded by a pedestrian promenade and a curbless street.

But for some Planning Commission members, aspects of the proposal are not revolutionary enough, and one could be unsafe for pedestrians.

In 2015, the county published its vision for the square as an “attractive, accessible, and inclusive public space,” a sustainable 18-hour-a-day hub that celebrates Courthouse Square’s “rich history.”

The “civic and cultural heart of Arlington” will be flexible, innovative, sustainable and timeless, according to the 2015 Courthouse Square Sector Plan addendum. In short, the planning document said, Courthouse Square will be “where the revolution begins.”

To lead the charge, Greystar needs approval from the County Board, which is slated to review the proposal on Saturday.

Greystar is proposing a 423-unit apartment building with ground-floor retail and underground parking. But this bread-and-butter project includes community benefits that will be “a truly landmark project,” said Nicholas Cummings, Greystar’s legal representation, during a Planning Commission meeting on Wednesday.

These is a proposed pedestrian promenade on N. Uhle Street that will lead to a revamped Courthouse Metro station entrance, as well as the shared, curbless concrete street on 15th Street N.

“The existing N. Uhle Street is harsh, with asphalt, no benches and minimal trees,” said Steve Smith, a principal architect for Cooper Carry, the architect for the project. “We’re excited about this opportunity to transform it into a fully [compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act], pedestrian-only promenade, which provides increased tree-lined dining and public seating areas that activate the path to the Metro entrance.”

Meanwhile, 15th Street N. will be resurfaced and raised to create “a curbless table that blends into the sidewalk on both sides of the street,” he said.

Other community benefits include on-site committed affordable housing units, LEED Gold certification, a $800,000 contribution toward improving a future “Civic Square,” and $250,000 “for a public art installation in the square.”

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Here’s How Your Tax Dollars Are Spent in Arlington County

By Jo DeVoe

With budget planning in full swing and tax season looming near, you may be wondering what Arlington County is paying for with your tax dollars.

County officials are currently hammering out the details for the next fiscal year’s budget, which the County Board is slated to adopt on Saturday, April 17 and which will go into effect on July 1. The proposed $1.36 billion budget, which County Manager Mark Schwartz calls a “transition” budget, includes a COVID-19 contingency fund and $16.4 million in cuts.

And while the pandemic forced some revisions to the current 2020-21 budget, the pandemic has not changed the different buckets of spending by the county — from Arlington Public Schools to the Department of Parks and Recreation — and what proportion of the general fund these sectors receive.

Local taxes represent 83% of Arlington County’s overall general fund revenue. That includes the taxes you pay on real estate, vehicles, restaurant bills, retail sales, hotel stays, and if you run a business, taxes on business or occupational licenses. For next year, local tax revenue is projected to exceed $1.1 billion, increasing only $1.1 million from last year’s adopted budget, according to Arlington County’s 2022 master budget document.

In this year’s budget, about $795 million comes from real estate taxes. Levied on homes as well as apartments and commercial properties, these taxes make up the lion’s share (59%) of general fund revenue.

This year, homeowners should expect to see their bills increasing due to rising property values, although Schwartz is proposing keeping the $1.013 per $100 property tax rate flat, as he did last year. Real estate assessments showed an overall growth of 2.2% with an increase among residential properties of 5.6% and a 1.4% decline in commercial assessments.

Other revenue sources are utility rates for water and sewage; fees, like those set by the parks department; permits and fines; state and federal contributions; and some leftover money after previous budget cycles.

Where does the money go?

The county’s general fund expenditures are divided into three large buckets: county services, schools and the capital fund. In the current budget, the county services bucket — which includes a $48 million contribution to Metro — accounts for $817 million. APS received $524.6 million from the general fund and the capital fund received $3.8 million (the rest comes from carryover balances and bonds).

In the current fiscal year, the school transfer covers about 78% of APS’s total expenses, the largest share of which, accounting for nearly 78%, goes to salary and benefits costs.

Excluding schools, of the nine overall departments or sectors receiving county funding, some are almost completely funded by local taxes, while others receive more support from federal and state support or other sources of revenue.

For example, taxes fund about 90% of the budget going toward public safety, which accounts for 11% of the county’s expenses. Within that, local tax support chips in $71 million of Arlington County Police Department’s $72 million budget.

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Factor3 Digital Teaches Clients How to Read, Visualize Data Better

By Jo DeVoe

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1812 N. Moore Street in Rosslyn.

(Updated 1:20 p.m.) Arlington resident and avid cyclist Carla Uriona spends most of her time demystifying data for people.

The English major-turned-coder-turned-designer is the co-founder of Factor3 Digital, a small, Arlington-based design company that creates data visualizations for nonprofits and corporations. In addition to design projects, she and co-founder Evan Potler spend a good deal of time helping prospective and current clients understand the fundamentals of responsible data visualization so they can do the work in-house if they wanted.

“Not enough agencies take that mentoring perspective,” she said.

Uriona founded Factor3 Digital partly out of frustration. The nonprofit firms she worked for, which farmed out some of their digital operations to contractors, often called on her to “translate” what the firms were doing.

“I think that those of us who are in these specialized fields, we live in our heads all the time,” she said. “Some don’t want people to see the ‘magic formula,’ and I fundamentally disagree with that so much.”

So in 2017, she and Potler, who had worked together at three nonprofits before, took the plunge to “be the firm we wish we could have hired” — the one that takes the time to cultivate relationships with clients and mentor them.

She said the pandemic led her and Potler to do some soul-searching about how much they want the company to grow or take on new clients.

“We had no idea before the pandemic how much we needed our clients and how much relationships mattered,” she said. “We’ve decided that we want to stay small enough so that we can personally focus on the majority of projects.”

Although it means sacrificing large-scale growth, Uriona — who has always worked for nonprofits — said she feels fulfilled in her work. About 80% of Factor3 Digital’s work is with nonprofits, and work with corporations makes up the remaining 20% and subsidizes the lower rates Factor3 Digital offers to nonprofits.

“The folks who are corporate know that — I wonder if it makes them feel good about the work they do,” she said.

The pandemic has led to more soul-searching among designers who work with data. Graphics of case numbers and transmission rates are everywhere but prone to misinterpretation, which can be deadly, she said.

“That points to a need for data literacy in schools,” she said. “I assure you, I’m going to make sure my son, who’s in sixth grade, knows how to read data.”

But the responsibility also falls to designers, who have to do a better job designing charts and graphics that regular people can understand.

“I don’t think we have gotten there yet,” she said.

This reckoning started before the pandemic as data became democratized and products to make graphics became more readily accessible.

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Former Key School Building Renamed ‘Innovation Elementary’

By Jo DeVoe
1/2

The school at the Key site, which opens to students this August, has a new name: Innovation Elementary School.

The name received unanimous support from Arlington School Board members during a meeting last night (Thursday), passing 4-0 with member Reid Goldstein not present.

“We’re very excited for students and staff to enjoy and attend the Innovation Elementary School in Arlington,” said Board Chair Monique O’Grady.

The School Board voted last February to convert the Key site, which currently houses a Spanish immersion choice program, into a neighborhood school. It will serve children in the fast-growing Rosslyn area, including some who were previously zoned for Arlington Science Focus School.

A naming committee proposed Innovation as its first choice for the school building at 2300 Key Blvd.

“We really feel like ‘Innovation’ represents a skill and an ideal that we want our children to get from their elementary school experience,” said the new school’s principal, Claire Peters, during an informational meeting last month.

As an alternate, it proposed Gateway Elementary School, which committee members said references the school’s location as a gateway to Arlington from Washington, D.C. and symbolizes the purpose of education as a gateway to a child’s future.

Board Vice Chair Barbara Kanninen, who moved last night to name the school Innovation, said in February she initially preferred Gateway.

“As you sit with names, they hit you differently,” she said at the time. “I came to appreciate Innovation.”

Next month, the School Board will vote on a new name for the school at the Reed site, which is also involved in the school shuffle. A committee is currently weighing the top contenders: Cardinal, Compass, Exploration, Kaleidoscope and Passport.

Buckingham Church Could Get Buyer After Two Years on the Market

By Jo DeVoe
1/4

A new tenant could be taking over a vacant church on Arlington Boulevard in Buckingham.

The church sits on a .37 acre-parcel at 4347 Arlington Boulevard that housed Bethel United Christian Church until the congregation moved in September 2018 to the Boulevard Manor neighborhood.

“Due to uncontrollable circumstances related to parking availability, we made the decision to sell our building and move into a shared property relationship with Arlington Church of the Brethren,” according to the church’s website. The church has only tiny lots for drop-off, and there are few available street parking spots within easy walking distance.

The church building has been on the market since then, according to Saul Corral, of Fairfax Realty of Tysons, who represents the church.

“It’s such a beautiful building, inside and out,” he said, adding that there are impressive old beams that are hard to come by in modern architecture.

Contracts have been drafted with potential buyers three times already, “but unfortunately, they’ve fallen through,” Corral said.

The fourth time could be the charm for the church. A potential buyer is studying whether or not the investment is feasible, and this study period expires at the end of April, he said.

Previous buyers have had their contracts cancelled based on what they intend to do with the building, he said.

“That’s where the contracts fall through,” Corral said. “Buyers that have other intentions put a contract on it and they’re not approved” by the Arlington County Zoning Department.

The church lot is zoned for single- and multi-family dwellings, according to a county zoning map.

Although the church is vacant, the founding location of a full-time preschool, Children’s International School, continues to operate on the site.

The preschool school has been housed in the church since it was founded in 1985, and has since expanded to three more locations in Arlington and Alexandria. It expects to be able to continue operating from the building, managers have told parents.

Return to School, Inequity Top of Mind for Arlington School Board Hopefuls

By Jo DeVoe
1/3

Two Democratic hopefuls for the Arlington School Board want to see full-time in-person learning and more consistency across Arlington Public Schools.

Miranda Turner, who made a name for herself calling for a quicker return to in-person learning, and Mary Kadera, the vice president of the Arlington County Council of PTAs, are looking to fill the void that will be left when Board Chair Monique O’Grady steps down. They are the only two to have met the March 1 deadline to be considered for an endorsement from Arlington Democrats.

O’Grady follows two other members who opted not to seek re-election in 2020: Nancy Van Doren and Tannia Talento, who were replaced by Cristina Diaz-Torres and David Priddy.

These races are non-partisan, but Arlington Democrats will select a candidate to endorse over the course of two days of caucus voting in May. The winner will run in the Nov. 2 general election.

Turner, a mother of three young children, tells ARLnow that she started following goings-on within Arlington Public Schools when she enrolled her kids in 2015. Despite Superintendent Francisco Durán’s regular updates and the plethora of information APS publishes, Turner said she is frustrated with the return-to-school conversation among elected officials, who should be more laser-focused on five-day, in-person learning.

“Every kid deserves an option to go to school full-time at this point,” she said.

APS has been returning students to their classrooms in phases since November, but most students started to return for a two-day-per-week hybrid schedule last Tuesday after concrete dates were announced in February. The recent phased return followscalls from Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam to make a hybrid in-school option available to all students by March 15.

Secondary-level special education students and sixth- and ninth-graders returned yesterday and the final cohort of middle- and high-school students will start hybrid instruction next Tuesday.

Although the logistics conversation will have played out by Election Day, Turner predicts learning loss and mental health deterioration among students will persist. She said her kindergartener at Montessori Public School of Arlington has struggled with virtual learning over the past year. Her family made the decision to transfer her oldest, a third-grader, from Drew Elementary School to a private school because online school was not working for her.

“I am running for school board because I want our schools to open five days a week, safely, so my daughter can have an appropriate full-time education available at the school she wants to go to,” she said.

Beyond the pandemic, Turner said she wants to see APS more actively handle curriculum decisions across the school system, particularly around literacy.

“Some differences are entirely appropriate, but there should not be so much variation depending on where your child goes to school,” she said.

Kadera, a mother of two middle school-aged children, ​is also channeling the impact of the pandemic on parents, teachers and students as part of her campaign.

“We’re tired, uncertain, and worried,” she writes on her website.

In response to the dip in student performance, she said some of her areas of focus include attracting and retaining teachers, creating more authentic community engagement between the school system and individual school communities, and incorporating equity into all decision-making.

“APS educators have moved mountains this year to teach and take care of our kids — and we need to take care of them, too,” she said.

Kadera led the McKinley Elementary School PTA for two years, mobilizing and stewarding her community through the controversial school swap last year. During the pandemic, she organized volunteers to get groceries, books and school supplies to McKinley families in need, as well as families in other school communities where PTAs have fewer resources.

Inequities among PTAs are now an area of advocacy for her.

“I’m working to improve inclusion and representation in school PTAs and advocating for more equitable fundraising and spending by PTAs across the County,” she said.

New CVS in Crystal City Now Open, Solidcore to Open This Summer

By Jo DeVoe

(Updated at 9:35 p.m.) A new CVS Pharmacy is open at the revamped Central District Retail shopping plaza, also known as “Crystal Square,” in Crystal City.

The store opened on Sunday, Feb. 28, a JBG Smith spokesperson confirmed. It is part of a major redevelopment that the property owner has planned for a block of Crystal Drive between 15th and 18th streets.

In 2018, the County Board approved the project, which JBG says will blend retail, public spaces and transit services.

Signage appears to now be up for two more occupants: Mah-Ze-Dahr, a bakery said to have some of New York City’s best doughnuts, as well as a yet-unnamed specialty grocery store. The first D.C. outpost of the NYC bakery opened in Navy Yard in the fall.

JBG once more declined to comment on which grocer will be filling the space. Permits indicate that the store will offer prepared foods like packaged salads, sandwiches, entrees and soups, as well as various beverages. The permits further specify that the store will have “self app check-out.”

A spokesperson previously confirmed that the specialty grocer will sell produce, meats and poultry, frozen foods and baked goods. Taken as a whole, the concept sounds similar to that of Amazon Fresh stores, a new bricks-and-mortar retail offering of the tech giant, which is currently constructing its HQ2 up the street.

The store will be built in the existing office building at 1550 Crystal Drive, according to the county. The new one-story retail area will replace a 1990s-era strip and will link the grocery store to a planned Alamo Drafthouse movie theater at 1750 Crystal Drive.

The theater chain recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, but a company spokesman tells ARLnow the planned Crystal City location is owned by a franchisee “which has not filed for bankruptcy.”

“There are no changes to its development plans at 1750 Crystal Drive,” the spokesman said.

Meanwhile, outposts of New York City taco chain Tacombi and the boutique fitness gym Solidcore — which has existing locations in Courthouse and Ballston — are still on track to open in the area.

A spokeswoman for Solidcore confirmed that the gym is slated to open this summer.

“Central District Retail will enhance the street-level experience with new dining, shopping and entertainment options on Crystal Drive,” Amy Rice, senior vice president of Retail Leasing at JBG Smith, previously told ARLnow in a statement. “It will serve as the retail heart of National Landing and a vibrant destination for people throughout the region.”

Photo (2) courtesy Car-Free#HQ2/Twitter

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