W. Glebe Road Bridge, with a weight limit (Image via Google Maps)
The West Glebe Road Bridge connecting Arlington and Alexandria is dropping down to one lane in each direction after an inspection found deterioration under the bridge’s sidewalk.
According to a press release from Arlington County, one northbound lane and one southbound lane will be open, with one northbound lane being converted into a pedestrian and bicycle path after the closure of the west sidewalk.
“A recent inspection revealed additional deterioration under the west sidewalk and the temporary walking path, which necessitated the sidewalk being closed in this area,” the County said.
Lane closures planned for West Glebe Road Bridge (photo via Arlington County)
In April, the County Board approved a $9.89 million contract — funded jointly by Alexandria and Arlington — for a bridge replacement. The bridge is still in the design process, with construction expected to start next summer. The County said the closures will remain in place until the bridge replacement is completed.
The County noted that this isn’t the first time travel capacity on the bridge has been reduced.
“The routine inspection of the bridge in fall 2018 uncovered deterioration that prompted a vehicle weight restriction of 5 tons and closure of the sidewalks in both directions,” the County said. “The southbound lane across the bridge was converted for the exclusive use of people walking and biking.”
Photo (1) via Google Maps, photo (2) via Arlington County
Black cauldron cake at Rogi (photo via Rogi/Facebook)
Double, double toil and trouble; fillings stuffed in a crusty dough bubble. Rogi’s in Ballston has Halloween treats baked, like Hogwarts pierogies and black cauldron cake.
Pierogi restaurant Rogi has launched a new lineup of seasonal offerings, with a witchcraft and wizardry theme, at its Ballston Quarter location (4238 Wilson Blvd).
Until Halloween (Saturday, Oct. 31), the dumpling-centric eatery is hosting a special line-up of colored lemon-cake-based treats around the four Hogwarts houses from Harry Potter, which sort of misses the Harry Potter zeitgeist by a couple years but is still endearing.
Rogi is also offering a “Boy Who Lived” pierogi stuffed with cheese, garlic, herbs and parsley. That and a “Sorting Hat” pierogi are each $9.99.
Rogi also has small devil’s food cakes styled as black cauldrons, complete with marshmallow filling, for $7.
More on the Halloween-themed offerings, from a press release:
Muggles can order the following online for delivery or in-person. Wizards may use the standard owl or fireplace delivery system. While supplies last.
Black Cauldron Cakes: Devil’s Food Cake with Dark “Magic” Chocolate and Impossible Marshmallow Filling $7
Sorting Hat Pierogi: Lemon Cake batter in Traditional Hogwarts House Colors. True to the actual “Sorting Hat,” we have no idea what House you will get! Served with Lemon Golden Snitch Curd. $9.99
The Boy Who Lived Pierogi: Stretchy cheese with garlic, herbs and parsley will cast a powerful spell over whoever eats this pierogi. Eat a pierogi, destroy a Horcrux! $9.99
DIY Magic Cocktail Kits: For both older wizards and younger wizards. Powders, potions and magic dust help create 3 different drinks that delight simple Muggles by changing color, sparkling and creating the perfect traditional Hogsmeade Butterbeer. Written in Fairie blood on an edible spell scroll, remember the recipes by eating the scroll! (Alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages to mix not included. Each “Spell” will create 3-4 drinks, for 9-12 drinks total) $25
Triple Chocolate Monster Cookies: A slight miscalculation by Chef/Wizard Ed brought these triple Chocolate cookies to life. Help us eat them before they eat us! 3 for $7
Rogi is open at the mall from 11 a.m.-9 p.m. daily.
WMATA’s project website said the bridge is now showing “excessive wear and corrosion,” while “decades of water infiltration and underground moisture have eroded the steel-lined tunnels.” Both the bridge and the tunnels “date to original construction [of the Metro system] more than 40 years ago.”
The transit agency warned that long-term repairs are necessary to avoid structural failure.
The project will also upgrade the fire suppression system on the bridge, which is currently past its useful life according to WMATA. Further remediation work in the tunnel will repair cracks.
Schedule of Metro station work, including Yellow Line shutdowns, photo via WMATA
The exact timeline for the project is still unclear. Andrew Off, Vice President of Project Implementation and Construction, said a shutdown of the bridge is expected sometime in fall 2022.
“We expect to start sometime at the end of the next calendar year,” Off said. “We’re still working through with our general contractor on the specific construction duration for the Yellow Line Bridge closure.”
Meanwhile, further south on the Yellow Line, Off said a two-week closure is likely as WMATA connects the new Potomac Yard Metro station.
“We’ll have a scheduled two-week or 16-day shutdown in late summer or early fall in support of connecting the new Potomac Yard infill station to our existing system,” Off said.
The station had been scheduled to open next spring but was pushed back to September 2022 after an error was found in the project’s design. Alexandria leaders are still hopeful the project could be moved up to earlier in the year.
Outdoor office in Rosslyn (photo via Dan Swartz/Rosslyn BID)
Outdoor office in Rosslyn (photo via Dan Swartz/Rosslyn BID)
Outdoor office in Rosslyn (photo via Dan Swartz/Rosslyn BID)
An outdoor coworking space launched in Rosslyn as a temporary pandemic-era amenity for local workers will be sticking around as a permanent feature of the neighborhood.
O2: Outdoor Office is an outdoor workspace that debuted last October at Gateway Park (1300 Langston Blvd). Organized by the Rosslyn Business Improvement District, the outdoor office features work stations available by reservation and free Wi-Fi.
With the program becoming permanent feature of the park, and renamed in very Rosslyn fashion “O2 2.0”, the BID said new features are on the way.
“This new iteration of O2 brings more permanent outdoor seating, shade structures and free Wi-Fi to Gateway Park,” the Rosslyn BID said in a press release, “prioritizing the health, creativity and wellness of our modern workforce.”
O2 2.0 is scheduled to launch on Wednesday, Oct. 13, and will be open as an office from Wednesday-Friday that week. For the rest of October, it will be open from Tuesday-Thursday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. The Rosslyn BID noted that Gateway Park is still accessible to the public even for those who aren’t there to work.
Starting on Oct. 13, the Rosslyn BID said there will be new programming at O2 2.0.
Free yoga classes with Mindful Modern Living: Oct. 13 from noon to 12:40 p.m., Oct. 19 from 5-6 p.m., and Oct 26 from 5-6 p.m.
Happy hour: Oct. 14, 15 and 28, from 4-7 p.m.
Free workout with Gold’s Gym: Oct. 15 from noon to 12:30 p.m.
“We’re so excited to see the vision behind O2: Outdoor Office continue to welcome a new era of holistic wellness in the workplace in Rosslyn and beyond,” the BID said. “We can’t wait to see you there!”
Columbia Pike pet fair “Paws on the Pike” is returning this weekend after being held virtually last year.
The event by the Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization (CPRO), now in its fourth year, will be from 1-5 p.m. on Sunday at Centro Arlington apartments (950 S. George Mason Drive).
It will feature a mix of pet-friendly activities and a meet-and-greet to help locals connect to nearby animal service providers and vendors.
For those starting to get concerned about what to do with their pets over the holidays, the fair will offer locals a chance to meet with pet-sitters and boarders.
Pets will be available for adoption from the Animal Welfare League of Arlington and other rescue organizations.
“Join us for a day of pet-friendly fun and meet your local veterinarians, trainers, pet-sitters, boarders, dog walkers, groomers and more,” the CPRO said on its website. “Find your forever friend from a local shelter or stock up on homemade treats, there’s something for every pet parent.”
Planned activities include a “pup-arazzi” photoshoot with a professional photographer taking free portraits of pets. Pet owners must sign-up in advance for a photoshoot.
There will also be a DJ and “water bar” to allow pets to sample selection of different types of water. At 2 p.m., Pastor Ashley Goff from Arlington Presbyterian Church will be on-site to bless pets with a brief prayer.
Rosslyn Twin Towers at 1000/1100 Wilson Blvd (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)
(Updated 10/1) The University of Virginia is expanding its footprint in Northern Virginia, including its Rosslyn campus.
The university currently operates a satellite location of its Darden School of Business in the top two floors of an office building at 1100 Wilson Blvd, one of the two Rosslyn “twin towers.” As part of the expansion plan, announced last week, the regional campus will be renamed UVA|NOVA and will offer more courses from other schools within the university.
“UVA|NOVA will be UVA’s campus in Northern Virginia, beginning with a site in the Rosslyn neighborhood of North Arlington and ultimately expanding to other sites in the region,” the school said. “The campus will build upon, and bring together, existing programs and serve as a platform for significantly expanding offerings – including in-person, online and hybrid instruction – targeting those who are interested in advancing in their careers.”
For now, most courses will be located within the satellite campus, according to university spokesman Brian Coy. It’s unclear how much the program will physically expand within Rosslyn, but Coy said the school is currently in talks about getting more space here.
“We will operate out of the 1100 Wilson building, at least initially,” Coy said. “We are in discussions regarding additional space and will make announcements as we can. Our expansions are going to be staged, focused on both the University’s current location in Rosslyn as well as other facilities in the Northern Virginia region.”
He did not say how many new students or faculty would come to Rosslyn through the revised program, or how the expansion will impact the campus or the surrounding area.
Per UVA’s website, about 300 students are based out of the campus, which offers courses in the master’s programs of business administration and business analytics as well as lifelong learning classes.
An article published by the school last week identified which programs will be added to or expanded within the Rosslyn campus:
In the near term, the UVA|NOVA initiative will include expanded course offerings in several schools, including the School of Engineering and Applied Science, the School of Education and Human Development, the Darden School of Business, the McIntire School of Commerce, the School of Continuing and Professional Studies, and the School of Data Science. UVA will also offer a new degree beginning in the fall of 2022: a part-time MBA program in the Darden School.
The UVA article says the new classes will include in-person, online and hybrid instruction.
The announcement comes on the heels of Virginia Tech breaking ground on a high-profile campus in Potomac Yard. The Virginia Tech campus is being built alongside a new Potomac Yard Metro station, which recently had its opening delayed to next September.
Coy similarly said it was transit accessibility that played a part in the decision to expand the Rosslyn campus.
“The original decision was made to locate in Rosslyn because of its proximity to key partners in the region and to mass transit,” Coy said. “The area is also full of people who are pursuing rewarding careers in competitive industries and may wish to pursue additional education through UVA that could help them advance.”
Arlingtonians planning on taking Metro this weekend might want to allot more time than usual for their trips.
All four Metro lines running through Arlington will have delays this weekend, according to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. The transit authority said riders should expect “service adjustments” on Saturday and Sunday for lines running through Northern Virginia.
On the Blue and Yellow lines, Metro will be single-tracking between the stations at Reagan National Airport and Braddock Road. WMATA said riders should expect a train every 30 minutes.
The cause of the single-tracking is ongoing work at the Potomac Yard Metro station in Alexandria, according to WMATA. Originally scheduled to open this coming April, the station’s opening was pushed back to next September.
The Orange Line, meanwhile, will be shut down between the East Falls Church and Ballston Metro stations for radio cable installation.
“Trains will operate in two segments: Vienna to East Falls Church and Ballston to New Carrollton,” WMATA said on its website. “Free shuttle buses available.”
The Silver Line will only be running from East Falls Church out to the Wiehle-Reston East station. Silver Line riders will have to take a shuttle bus to continue on the Orange Line.
For Five Coffee is opening a new location on Lynn St. in Rosslyn next to Chopt (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
For Five Coffee is opening a new location on Lynn St. in Rosslyn next to Chopt (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
For Five Coffee is opening a new location on Lynn St. in Rosslyn next to Chopt (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
(Updated 9/23) Just a 20 minute walk away from the existing shop at Courthouse, growing cafe chain For Five Coffee Roasters is planning to move into Rosslyn.
The New York City-based coffee company is opening at 1735 N. Lynn Street, next to Chopt. It will be filling a gap on the block left by the closures of Cosi and Starbucks earlier this year.
East West Coffee Wine also closed recently, ahead of the redevelopment of its building at 1901 N. Moore Street, leaving Compass Coffee at 1201 Wilson Blvd as one of the only dedicated coffee shop options without hiking up the Wilson Blvd hill.
For Five Coffee Roasters was founded in 2010 in Queens, New York and has since branched out to Chicago, Los Angeles, D.C. and Northern Virginia. The chain’s Courthouse location opened last May with Nutella-stuffed cookies and an espresso bar.
Barron Bazemore Jr., chief marketing officer for For Five Coffee Roasters, said the plan is to open the Rosslyn location early next year.
“All I can share at this time is that the café will open [in the first three months] of 2022,” Bazemore said.
The event will feature German beer and food and some more unique local traditions, like dog-themed events tied in with the event’s support for the Animal Welfare League of Arlington (AWLA).
The Oktoberfest is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 2 in the Lidl parking lot at the intersection of Crystal Drive and 33rd Street S. The event is free to attend, and drink purchases at the event will benefit AWLA. The event is scheduled to be held rain or shine, and tickets are non-refundable.
“From live bands and crisp German Lagers to a Barktoberfest dog-run for pup-friendly activities and a variety of games to entertain all ages, this event has a little something for everyone,” the National Landing Business Improvement District (BID), host of the event, said on the event’s website. “So, break out your lederhosen, and come enjoy the fall weather, as well as a variety of food trucks and vendors serving traditional (and not-so-traditional) German fare.”
The National Landing BID and the AWLA are co-hosting the event with local brewery New District Brewing.
Pre-registration is required and there is an attendance cap in place for the event. Attendees will also have to show proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test within the preceding 48 hours. Unvaccinated attendees and children under 12 will be required to wear a mask.
Levi’s in Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, courtesy photo
For those venturing back to the mall for the first time in awhile, the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City might look a little different than you remember, thanks to some recent additions.
Four new stores have recently opened in the mall, at 1101 S. Hayes Street, with two more expected to open sometime in the next few weeks.
On the first level, denim retailer Levi’s has set up next to Altar’d State, overlooking the food court.
On the second level, luxury goods retailer Vince has set up next to Pandora and home décor store Casa Furniture has opened on the opposite side of the food court.
Down in the bottom-floor “dining pavilion” — the mall’s new term for its food court — there are a few additions underway. As Kelis attested in 2003, milkshakes are a popular attraction, and the new Day & Night Cereal Bar is offering a dozen specialized milkshakes and cereal bowls, along with coffee and flights of bacon.
The cereal-centric eatery has some unique combinations, like Marty McFly — a combination of Apple Jacks, Fruit Loops and gummy bears. Its website says it also offers oat milk and almond milk substitutions for those who are dairy averse.
A Subway had previously closed in the food court, but a new franchise for the sandwich chain is expected to open in November, a mall spokesman tells ARLnow.
Lastly, as previously reported, Mediterranean restaurant Sante’ is planning to open sometime this fall in the adjacent Ritz-Carlton hotel at 1250 S. Hayes Street.
Adam Theo, independent candidate for the Arlington County Board (courtesy photo)
In heavily-blue Arlington County, independent candidate Adam Theo faces an uphill battle to pry local voters away from the incumbent Democrats in favor of his libertarian platform.
Theo said his multi-year campaign strategy has a pretty simple tactic at its heart: showing local progressives they have more in common with him than with the current County Board members.
Theo is a freelance communications consultant and media producer who is running for the County Board right as he finishes his nine-year contract with the Department of Homeland Security. He is on the general election ballot this fall with incumbent Takis Karantonis and independent candidates Audrey Clement and Mike Cantwell, but Theo said his real plan is to use this year to set up the groundwork for a full run in 2022 or 2023.
“It is really getting off to a start here,” said Theo. “I’m using 2021 as an opportunity to launch my organization website and start meetings. In 2022 or 2023 I’ll be running for a seat on the County Board. Even if that’s next year: i’ll be ready with a good campaign and solid foundation.”
Independent and Republican candidates typically get trounced in Arlington elections, where 80.7% of voters last year voted for Joe Biden and 71.6% voted for incumbent Democrat Libby Garvey. Theo said he’s taking inspiration from one of the few times in recent memory an independent successfully wrested a local seat from the Democrats in Arlington: when John Vihstadt won a special election in early 2014.
(Vihstadt went on to hand local Democrats a defeat that fall in the general election before ultimately losing his reelection bid in 2018.)
“[John] Vihstadt really set the precedent in winning two elections,” Theo said. “I think there is an appetite for the right kind of candidate.”
Arlington in 2021 is a different political landscape in many ways than 2014, though, and Theo and Vihstadt himself both said there are several factors that will make it more difficult for an independent to repeat that 2014 victory. In 2014, the proposed half-billion-dollar streetcar project for Columbia Pike became a rallying cry for locals concerned about the County Board’s spending habits.
Theo admitted he doesn’t have as convenient a campaign centerpiece.
“Right now in the county there are a bunch of issues people are concerned about and angry over,” Theo said. “First and foremost is response and recovery from COVID. In many ways, Arlington is doing well with vaccination rates, but barely so. We need to be doing a hell of a lot better with getting people vaccinated, getting people back into schools. Small businesses have suffered and affordable housing is not doing well. It’s not one issue like it was with the streetcar, it’s many issues. The challenge that I have is to build a coalition, to build a campaign around.”
Vihstadt said another challenge independent candidates face in 2021 is the looming specter of Donald Trump.
“It was certainly kind of an unusual alignment of the stars for me in 2014 when I won the special election, and then a full four year term that November,” the former County Board member told ARLnow. “I had issues on the overspending and projects that were nice to have but not essential, like the streetcar and the Artisphere, and people were concerned about insular group thinking. The chemistry today is a little different. Part of the problem today is that Donald Trump, who I never supported and spoke out against in 2016, has so polarized the electorate.”
Vihstadt said he’s hopeful that as the memory of Trump fades and the state works on bipartisan redistricting, independents could be back in vogue.
Theo said, for his part, distancing libertarians from the GOP is part of that.
“There’s an ideological preference for Democrats in the county,” Theo said. “That’s why the GOP continues to dwindle and do poorly election cycle after election cycle. It’s largely with ideology. The good thing with libertarians is we have a lot of overlaps with democrats, liberals and progressives. We fight for civil liberties and civil rights, and affordable housing. The whole zoning battle and the missing middle, is where the libertarians have a lot of overlap with progressive warriors in the county. I don’t think it’s an impossible task. I’m not going to pretend it will be easy, it’s the fight of a lifetime.”
Theo’s vision for affordable housing reform, though, looks somewhat different from the vision expressed by incumbent Democrats.
