Here is what’s going on Friday in Arlington, from our event calendar.
No events today. Have one to promote? Submit it to the calendar.
🌤️ Friday’s forecast
Expect a transition from mostly cloudy skies to sunshine, reaching a high near 46 degrees. Morning winds will be light and variable, later shifting to southeast at around 6 mph. Friday night will be partly cloudy with a low around 33 degrees and southeast wind speeds between 3 and 5 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“Change your thoughts and you change your world.” – Norman Vincent Peale
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.
Here in Arlington, real estate is a spectator sport. Let’s take a look at some of the most and least expensive townhouses sold last month (November 2023).
Meet Skylar, the newest Adoptable Pet of the Week!
This beautiful, cream colored pup is currently in foster with the Animal Welfare League of Arlington and searching for her forever home.
Her friends had a few words to say:
Skylar is an affectionate and intelligent girl who is looking for a loving home.
Her personality shines through in her intelligence and eagerness to please. Skylar is a quick learner and will thrive with a family that can provide mental and physical stimulation to keep her happy and healthy.
Skylar is a friendly dog who enjoys the company of people. She enjoys long sniff walks and dog gazing from a distance.
While in care we have not found a dog that matches Skylar’s play style, we are willing to offer meetings if you have a dog in your home. Skylar is still young and will need guidance, an enriching home and lifestyle, as well as some basic training as she adjusts to her new home.
Skylar must definitely be a match for you, right? Don’t forget to check out her entire profile to set up a meet and greet!
Want your pet to be considered for the Arlington Pet of the Week? Email [email protected] with 2-3 paragraphs about your pet and at least 3-4 horizontally-oriented photos.
Located at the corner of S. George Mason Drive and the Pike, the 1,450-square-foot sushi restaurant celebrated its grand opening last month, taking up residence on the ground floor of the mixed-use development next to the Harris Teeter and the Vietnamese eatery Pho Saigon Pearl.
Andy Park, the owner, previously owned and sold a sushi restaurant in Illinois before moving to Northern Virginia in late 2020. He spent the last three years working at Ariake Japanese Restaurant in Fairfax before opening Bluefish.
A prominent “Grand Opening” banner has been displayed above its entrance for several weeks, welcoming diners to savor its various sashimi and sushi rolls, such as the Red Dragon, made with spicy tuna, soft shell crab, cucumber and spicy mayo.
So far, however, Park says the restaurant has not been getting the foot traffic it hoped.
“We didn’t do any advertising,” he told ARLnow. “People don’t know we’re open.”
Centro Arlington, which replaced the long-standing Columbia Pike Village Center in 2019, is a six-story complex that also houses medical and professional offices, an Orangetheory fitness studio, a veterinary practice and apartments.
As a newcomer to the local dining scene, Bluefish faces some competition on the Pike.
In October, Japanese street food and sushi restaurant Ryu Izakaya opened on the ground floor of the Days Inn. Last year another Japanese eatery, Takohachi, opened down the Pike at Penrose Square after relocating from the now-redeveloped Westmont Shopping Center.
Expect a mostly sunny day with a high temperature of around 46 degrees and a north wind at approximately 7 mph. Transitioning into Thursday night, the sky will turn mostly cloudy and the temperature will drop to around 30 degrees, accompanied by a gentle north wind of 3 to 5 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” – Steve Jobs
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.
Possible albino squirrel seen in the Yorktown neighborhood (photo courtesy anonymous)
Possible albino squirrel seen in the Yorktown neighborhood (photo courtesy anonymous)
A rare albino squirrel may be living near Yorktown High School.
A local teen sent ARLnow photos of the squirrel, above, taken in the Yorktown neighborhood. The critter has noticeably red eyes, a characteristic of albino squirrels.
Another photo of the squirrel, taken in Greenbrier Park near the high school, was posted earlier this month to the Capital Naturalist Facebook group.
The last white squirrel spotted in Arlington and reported on by ARLnow was back in 2016 near Columbia Pike.
Albino squirrels in particular are exceptionally rare — about 1 in every 100,000 gray squirrel births, according to a post on the Georgia Dept. of Natural Resources website.
“There are two basic types of white squirrels: albino and leucistic. Albinos have pink or blue eyes and no dark pigments anywhere on their bodies,” the post notes. “Squirrels that have white coats and dark eyes are called leucistic.”
“The scarcity of albino squirrels is thought to be at least partially linked to the animal’s lack of any dark eye pigment: This leaves them more susceptible to the harmful effects of sun rays, which can permanently damage their eyes,” the post adds. “In turn, their poor eyesight makes them more likely to suffer injury and death by falling out of trees.”
Alonso Abugattas, Natural Resources Manager for Arlington County and the administrator of the Capital Naturalist group, said there have also been reports of white squirrels in neighboring jurisdictions like McLean and D.C. — on the National Mall — over the past few months.
“Most of these are white squirrels, but not albinos,” Abugattas told ARLnow. “Albinos due to a lack of pigment have pink eyes [and] are indeed very rare as this affects their sight.”
Screen captures from Arlingtonians for Our Sustainable Future’s riff on the ’12 Days of Christmas’ (via ASF/YouTube)
Screen captures from Arlingtonians for Our Sustainable Future’s riff on the ’12 Days of Christmas’ (via ASF/YouTube)
Screen captures from Arlingtonians for Our Sustainable Future’s riff on the ’12 Days of Christmas’ (via ASF/YouTube)
It won’t ever beat “All I Want for Christmas is You” on the charts but a new Arlington-specific Christmas song is out, recorded by the group that was on the opposition side of several land-use flashpoints this year.
Arlingtonians for Our Sustainable Future, a neighborhood group that has advocated against everything from Missing Middle to a new planning document for Langston Blvd, dropped an alternative “12 Days of Christmas” this week.
It mocks the policy changes and projects Arlington County undertook this year — the same policies for which other local groups spent the past couple of years advocating.
The short song, brought to you by the same people who brought tombstones for the “Arlington Way” to the final Missing Middle hearing, reiterates criticism ASF raised regarding heights, environmental impacts, governance or displacement and other predicted outcomes of growth.
And the kicker? A tribute to the paused second phase of Amazon’s second headquarters in Pentagon City: PenPlace, best known for the proposed marquee glassy double-helix building.
The lyrics are below.
On the 12th day of Christmas, my true love gave to me:
12 story towers,
11 displaced tenants,
10 YIMBYs leaping,
Nine acres bulldozed,
Eight vacant buildings,
Seven cars a-swimming,
Six-plex a-zoning,
Five special GLUPs.
Four homeless birds,
Three lawsuits,
Two lame ducks,
and a PenPlace that never will be.
While this take on the “12 Days of Christmas” had a sardonic edge, the proverbial 10 YIMBYs leaping do see this year as one to celebrate, kicking off with the ratification of Arlington’s Missing Middle policies.
In late 2023, YIMBYs of Northern Virginia saw the fruits of their advocacy in the passage of similar zoning ordinances in Alexandria. In between, organization members were busy responding to engagement opportunities on development projects moving through Arlington County approval processes.
“We are proud to have joined with a diverse set of community advocates to end exclusionary zoning in Arlington and Alexandria, reduce burdensome parking mandates in Fairfax County, support new market-rate and committed affordable apartment buildings, and elect forward-looking leaders across the region who prioritize making their jurisdiction a more inclusive, sustainable, and affordable place to live,” the group said in a statement.
The group invited anyone who shares its “Yes in My Backyard” values to celebrate the New Year on Jan. 14, 2024 from 5-7 p.m. at Makers Union pub in Pentagon City.
Expect sunny skies and a high of around 46, accompanied by a northwest breeze of 5-7 mph. As night falls, the skies will remain mostly clear, and temperatures will drop to around 31 degrees. A calm wind will gradually pick up, becoming a northwest 6 mph wind after midnight. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.” – Benjamin Franklin
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.
Panera Bread in Ballston on Dec. 19, 2023 (staff photo by James Jarvis)
Panera Bread in Ballston on Dec. 19, 2023 (staff photo by James Jarvis)
Panera Bread in Ballston on Dec. 19, 2023 (staff photo by James Jarvis)
(Updated at 4:05 p.m.) Like a phoenix rising from the ashes — or a Barnes & Noble returning to Georgetown — Panera Bread is making its triumphant return to Ballston.
The fast-casual bakery-cafe chain announced today that it is gearing up for a grand opening this Thursday (Dec. 21) near the Ballston Metro station, at the corner of N. Stuart Street and Fairfax Drive.
(This morning, the company said it would be opening on Thursday. Earlier afternoon, it said the opening date was bumped back a day, to Friday. An hour later, the company said the original date was correct.)
To celebrate the grand opening, Panera is offering a special promotion in which the first 50 customers will receive free meals for a year, per a press release.
The promotional offer — redeemable for up to one free “You Pick Two” meal per month for 12 months — will only be available this Thursday and Friday. Recipients must have a MyPanera account to participate. The free food offer will then run from Christmas Day next week until Dec. 25, 2024.
Between 6-10 a.m., guests can also spin a prize wheel for a chance to win other items such as, free tumblers, cookies and bagels.
The new Panera, at 4250 Fairfax Drive, will take over the space formerly occupied by Cosi, which shut its doors in late 2019 after the company filed for bankruptcy. Cosi, a chain known for its flatbreads, sandwiches, soups, and salads, also closed its other Arlington locations in Rosslyn, Courthouse, Virginia Square and Crystal City.
Panera used to have a location in the old Ballston Common Mall, which closed in 2016 before the mall’s transformation into Ballston Quarter.
Currently, Arlington is home to one other Panera, in Rosslyn.
“We are thrilled to be opening a new Panera in Arlington,” a company representative said in the press release. “We are excited to grow our presence in this wonderful community and look forward to delivering the great tasting food and impeccable service our Virginia guests have come to expect from Panera.”
Here is what’s going on Tuesday in Arlington, from our event calendar.
No events today. Have one to promote? Submit it to the calendar.
☀️ Tuesday’s forecast
Expect mostly sunny skies and a high near 40 degrees, accompanied by a breezy northwest wind at 15-23 mph and gusts up to 32 mph. The night will be clear, featuring a low around 27 degrees and a northwest wind at 7-11 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.” – Oscar Wilde
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.
Orvis at The Crossing Clarendon on Dec. 18, 2023 (staff photo by James Jarvis)
Sporting and outdoor goods store Orvis is set to close in Clarendon and is going out with a closing sale.
The closure may not be permanent, however, as the store has hinted at reopening elsewhere in the area.
Located in The Crossing Clarendon at 2879 Clarendon Blvd, the business is scheduled to shut its doors on Jan. 20 of next year. The popularity of the closing sale has led to items selling out quickly, however, potentially leading to an earlier closure if supplies run out.
“We have been running through inventory, so we’re not 100% sure that we will make it that long, but that’s the planned date,” a store employee told ARLnow.
The employee emphasized that Orvis had “no intention of closing the store” but were left with no choice when their lease was not renewed.
“After a wonderful 20-year run, supported by amazing customers, Orvis Arlington’s lease has expired and our landlord has chosen not to renew,” Orvis said in a press release.
“We’re very sad to leave this space but are actively looking for new locations in the area,” the release continued. “Meanwhile, we thank our loyal customers and ask them to support our Tyson’s Corner store, which is entering its 30th year of business!”
The owners are seeking to reopen in either Arlington or Alexandria, though there is no set timeline for a potential reopening, according to several store employees.
Multiple employees at the Orvis store claim that the space will be occupied by a bank, though the identity of the bank is yet to be confirmed.
Regency Centers, which owns The Crossing, did not respond to inquiries about why the lease was not renewed or who the new tenant will be.
Currently, shoppers at Orvis in Clarendon can enjoy a 30% discount on all clothing, with the exception of Barbour branded items. Additionally, fishing tackle and gear are available at a 40% discount.
