News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Fog and clouds moving in over Ballston (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

County Board Organization Meeting Tonight — “The County Board of Arlington Co., Va., will meet on Tuesday, January 3, 2023, at 6:00 p.m., or as soon thereafter as matters may be heard, at 2100 Clarendon Boulevard… for its Annual Organizational Meeting.” [Arlington County]

Covid Outbreak at Homeless Shelter — “Each night, as the temperature plummets and dozens seek refuge inside Arlington County’s largest homeless shelter, the staff runs through the same drill it has for the past three years: Before anyone is given a bed, they are tested for the coronavirus. On Wednesday, the shelter’s usual one or two coronavirus cases landed early. As more people arrived, more cases followed. By the end of the night, the staff said, a dozen people had tested positive. All needed to be isolated. The shelter had an outbreak.” [Washington Post]

Overturned Vehicle Near Pentagon — From the Arlington County Fire Department on Friday: “At 3:13p this afternoon crews were dispatched for a reported vehicle crash with entrapment in the area of Boundary Channel and 395. Units quickly arrived on scene and extricated the trapped occupant. A total of 3 patients were transported from the incident, all with NLT injuries.” [Twitter]

CivFed to Take on Controversial Proposal — “The contentious internal battle over an Arlington County Civic Federation resolution will play out at the organization’s Feb. 21 meeting… The measure in question, proposed several months ago by five former presidents of the Civic Federation, demands more accountability of the county government, and a return to a more bottom-up style of decision-making. But the measure itself has run into criticisms from some quarters, both for its tone and for some of the assertions made in the resolution itself and in its hundreds and hundreds of appendix footnotes.” [Sun Gazette]

AWS Skills Center Now Open — “Opened in October 2022 near parent company Amazon.com Inc.’s HQ2 East Coast headquarters, the 10,000-square-foot AWS Skills Center includes classrooms and interactive exhibits that demonstrate cloud computing in real time, including a miniature smart home. The Arlington location is the second AWS Skills Center; its first opened in Seattle in November 2021.” [Virginia Business]

Grocery Bills Now a Bit Lower — “For Virginians, bills at the grocery store will soon be a little less expensive. That’s because the state has repealed its 1.5% sales tax on groceries and certain essential personal hygiene items, effective Jan. 1, 2023. Among personal hygiene items, bed sheets, diapers and feminine hygiene products, such as period underwear and tampons, will qualify for the tax reduction.” [WTOP]

Nearby: Fairfax Co. Sewage Plant Saves Xmas — “Fairfax County homes were able to keep their holiday lights blazing Christmas Eve after staff at the Noman M. Cole Jr. Pollution Control Plant in Lorton turned on the facility’s generators to help avoid an electrical blackout.. Noman Cole staff switched on the plant’s five large diesel-powered electricity generators, which took the plant off the electric-power grid. The plant was able remove 5,700 kilowatts of electricity from the grid for more than 14 hours, which equates to that consumed by 4,500 households, officials said.” [Sun Gazette]

It’s Tuesday — Fog in the morning, then mostly cloudy throughout the day. High of 65 and low of 50. Sunrise at 7:28 am and sunset at 4:59 pm. [Weather.gov]

UPDATED: Driver cited after two pedestrians hurt in crash

By ARLnow.com
1/2

(Updated at midnight) The driver of a pickup truck struck a pedestrian at a busy Ballston area intersection this afternoon.

The crash happened around 3 p.m at the intersection of Fairfax Drive and N. Quincy Street. Initial reports suggest that the pedestrian, a woman, was in the crosswalk when she was struck.

The woman was said to be injured and in the roadway, but conscious and breathing, per the medic dispatch. A man is also reported to be in medical distress after the crash, though it was not immediately clear whether he was struck by the truck.

A small crowd could be seen gathered around the crash scene.

Arlington County police tell ARLnow that the driver was cited for the crash.

“At approximately 3:01 p.m., police were dispatched to N. Quincy Street at Fairfax Drive for the report of a crash with injuries involving two pedestrians,” said ACPD spokeswoman Ashley Savage. “The two pedestrians, an adult male and adult female, were transported to an area hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries. The driver of the striking vehicle remained on scene and was cited for failure to yield to the pedestrians in the crosswalk. ”

Eastbound Fairfax Drive and northbound N. Quincy Street was blocked for a time by the emergency response.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Along Columbia Pike at sunset (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

New Year’s County Closures — Arlington County facilities will be closed on Sunday and Monday for the New Year’s holiday. Metered parking will not be enforced. [Arlington County]

More Southwest Cancellations — “As Southwest Airlines continues its struggle to get planes and crews to airports, about 2,400 flights across the United States were canceled Thursday, including seven at Dulles Airport and 64 at Reagan National Airport. The airline also canceled 192 scheduled flights at Baltimore/Washington International Airport, which serves many Virginia travelers.” [Patch]

Buyer Interest Remains in Arlington — “Even as much of the rest of the region goes into winter hibernation, real-estate-wise, there is still some decent activity in portions of Arlington. In fact, five ZIP codes within the county remain in the ‘High’ level of buyer interest, according to the December T3 Home-Demand Index.” [Sun Gazette]

Award for Local Lawmaker — “Del. Patrick Hope (D-Arlington) on Dec. 17 was the recipient of the 2022 Equality Award from the Arlington-Alexandria Gay and Lesbian Alliance (AGLA). Hope received the award for patroning legislation, passed in 2020, banning ‘conversion therapy’ for minors.” [Sun Gazette]

And We’re Off — Except for breaking news and perhaps a holiday greeting, ARLnow will not be publishing during the New Year’s holiday. We’ll be back with a full news coverage schedule on Tuesday.

It’s Friday — Clear throughout the day. High of 60 and low of 34. Sunrise at 7:28 am and sunset at 4:56 pm. [Weather.gov]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Pedestrians and cars mix on Columbia Pike at sunset (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

District Taco’s Big Expansion — “District Taco has inked a trio of franchise agreements to significantly expand along the East Coast, the next step in a larger plan to broaden the reach of the Yucatán-style restaurant chain that started in 2009 from a single food cart… It’s the latest step by co-founders Osiris Hoil and Marc Wallace to turn the restaurant chain into a nationally known brand or, as Hoil put it in an August interview, to put District Taco on every American’s dining room table.” [Washington Business Journal]

Rep. Beyer Studying AI at GMU — “His phone was ringing. ‘I’ll be there,’ Beyer told a colleague wondering when he would be returning to the House floor for votes. It seemed study time would have to wait. That’s been the story of the year for Beyer (D-Va.), who has been moonlighting as a student at George Mason University in pursuit of a master’s degree in machine learning while balancing his duties as a congressman.” [Washington Post]

Trash Collection Bills to Rise — “‘We [currently] have a really fantastic deal’ on the solid-waste-collection contract, Schwartz told Civic Federation delegates. ‘That contract’s about to come due. Their labor cost has gone up 50 to 60 percent over the course of the contract.’ Any increases to future contracts will end up getting passed on to homeowners, who currently pay $318.61 for trash-collection services.” [Sun Gazette]

Brandishing Tuesday Night on the Pike — “A security guard observed a vehicle parked in the fire lane of a residential complex and approached the driver. A verbal dispute ensued, during which the driver brandished a firearm and verbally threatened the security guard. The suspect then fled the scene in a gray vehicle. Responding officers canvassed the area for the suspect yielding negative results.” [ACPD]

Workers Spend Xmas Eve Fixing Pole — From Arlington’s Dept. of Environmental Services: “After a driver totaled a signal pole at Washington Boulevard and Sycamore late Christmas Eve, a DES operations crew spent the deep-freeze early morning securing the damage and ensuring safety. Temporary armature is now in place.” [Twitter]

Top 25 Books at Arlington Libraries — “It’s no secret that Arlington is a community of readers. Here is a breakdown of combined adult eBook, eAudiobooks and print checkouts that made the 25 top list this year. In 2022, we saw six titles rising above the 2,000-checkout mark starting with ‘Cloud Cuckoo Land’ by Anthony Doerr.” [Arlington Public Library]

It’s Thursday — Clear throughout the day. High of 51 and low of 30. Sunrise at 7:28 am and sunset at 4:56 pm. [Weather.gov]

ACPD: Gunshot fired during violent Lyon Park robbery

By ARLnow.com
Arlington police car at night (file photo courtesy Kevin Wolf)

Arlington police are investigating a violent robbery in the Lyon Park neighborhood last night.

The robbery happened around 11 p.m. on the 200 block of N. Wayne Street, in the area of the Washington and Lee Apartments, and resulted in gunfire and a serious injury.

“At approximately 11:07 p.m. on December 27, police were dispatched to the report of shots heard,” Arlington County police said today in a crime report. “Upon arrival, officers made contact with the victim who had sustained serious, non-life-threatening injuries and declined the treatment of medics. The investigation determined the victim was inside his residence when approximately three male suspects entered, physically assaulted him and stole his personal belongings, including a firearm, before fleeing the scene on foot.”

“During the course of the investigation, officers recovered evidence of a firearm being discharged and located property damage to the floor of the residential building,” the report continues. “There are no descriptions for the three suspects. The investigation is ongoing.”

The crime report does not specify who fired the gunshot nor the nature of the victim’s injuries.

Beyer secures more than $2M in federal funding for water infrastructure projects

By Jo DeVoe
Raging rapids and minor flooding along Gulf Branch in North Arlington after heavy rain, August 2020 (file photo)

Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) has secured $2.25 million in federal funding for stormwater infrastructure projects in Arlington.

The funding was part of a bipartisan omnibus government funding bill that passed the House of Representatives and the Senate last Thursday, three days before Christmas.

“I am proud to announce that bipartisan legislation which will soon pass into law includes funding I secured for worthy projects in Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church, and Fairfax County,” Beyer said in a statement.

The omnibus appropriations bill helps pay for each of Beyer’s fifteen community project funding requests. Four requests were partially funded in Arlington.

It awards $750,000 for stormwater projects in the Gulf Branch watershed downstream of Military Road and in the Lower Long Branch Watershed along S. Walter Reed Drive. These will include a mix of “gray” infrastructure, such as culverts and storage tanks, and “green infrastructure,” or nature-based solutions.

“The Project will treat and store polluted stormwater runoff, reduce impervious coverage, and mitigate climate vulnerability,” the county said in its request, reprinted on Beyer’s website.

Another $1.5 million will fund rehabilitations of segments of two sanitary sewer interceptor pipes. Interceptor pipes “intercept” the flow from smaller pipes and funnel stormwater and sewage to a treatment plant.

The county requested $2 million to rehabilitate 5,876 linear feet of a 30-inch pipe that runs from Arlington Blvd to Sparrow Pond. The pond is slated to be rehabilitated next year. The pipe, constructed through the Four Mile Run stream valley in 1975, serves the East Falls Church neighborhood as well as parts of the City of Falls Church and Fairfax County.

The county also requested $1.68 million to rehabilitate a 2,906-foot section of a large but decrepit pipe in order to “support continued growth in the Rosslyn area.”

“The subject sewer was originally constructed in the 1930s,” the county said in its request. “It was most recently inspected in 2017 and many sections were deemed to require immediate rehabilitation due to structural deficiencies which allow for significant infiltration and inflow and could lead to structural failure.”

In his statement, Beyer thanked his fellow representatives for enacting the legislation and the local leaders who identified and developed the requests.

“This project funding will make our community healthier, support clean energy, boost our transportation infrastructure, support affordable housing, feed the hungry, and help improve law enforcement transparency,” he said.

Additionally, the omnibus appropriations bill included language to officially rename North Arlington Post Office after letter carrier Jesus Collazos, who emigrated from Colombia in 1978 and served 25 years as a USPS postal carrier in Arlington before losing his life to COVID-19 in June 2020.

Crime report: Man exposed himself on Christmas Eve, possibly in a church

By ARLnow.com

Police are investigating an indecent exposure incident that happened in the Tara-Leeway Heights neighborhood on Christmas Eve.

According to an Arlington County Police Department crime report, a man pulled his pants down and exposed himself to a woman after trying to engage her in conversation. Police were called and he fled the area.

The incident happened on the afternoon of Dec. 24, on the 1600 block of N. Inglewood Street. There are a pair of churches on that block, in addition to a handful of single-family homes.

From the crime report:

INDECENT EXPOSURE, 2022-12240125, 1600 block of N. Inglewood Street. At approximately 1:34 p.m. on December 24, police were dispatched to the report of an exposure. Upon arrival, it was determined the victim was inside the building when the unknown male suspect approached her and attempted to engage her in conversation. The suspect then left the area and returned a short time later with his pants down and exposing himself. The victim was able to safely exit the building and returned a short time later to find the suspect was no longer in the area. The suspect is described as a white male with a thin build, approximately 5’7″ – 5’9″ with a bald head. No injuries were reported. The investigation is ongoing.

Police would not provide any additional details about the incident and would not say whether it happened inside a church.

“There are no additional details to share beyond what is included on the daily crime report,” an ACPD spokeswoman said in response to questions from ARLnow. “The investigation into the incident is ongoing.”

Scanner traffic at the time suggests that the man was in his 30s and that the incident took place at the LDS church.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
No bones about it, winter has arrived in Dominion Hills (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Travel Woes at DCA — “Hundreds of Southwest Airlines flights have been canceled at Eastern airports Tuesday as the fallout from the pre-Christmas storm continues. At Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C., 89 flights were canceled in the past 24 hours as of Tuesday morning, according to the tracker site FlightAware. Dulles Airport said 30 flights were canceled in the past day.” [Patch]

Planning for No More DCA? — “Give Michael Imbesi credit for thinking to the future. Way into the future. At the Dec. 17 Arlington County Board meeting, the local resident used the public-comment period to press county leaders to start thinking about an eventual reuse of the land on which, for the past 80 years, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport has occupied. Acknowledging that it is probably far down the road – but perhaps within 50 years – Imbesi said the airport may become redundant owing to what he believes will be a decrease in air travel.” [Sun Gazette]

Xmas Eve Retail Rumble at Pentagon Row — “The employee observed the four female suspects, whom he recognized from previous incidents, enter the business. The employee attempted to contact dispatch, during which Suspect One knocked the phone out of his hand. The four suspects then followed the employee throughout the store and assaulted him before leaving. A short time later, the four suspects returned, during which Suspect One threw a stone towards the employee while Suspect Four assaulted him. The four suspects then fled the scene on foot.” [ACPD]

Residents Fume Over ART Bus Parking — “A seemingly pro-forma decision to remove a long-gone stretch of street from Arlington planning maps this month served as more proof that scars have not healed in a springtime battle between the County Board and one North Arlington neighborhood… The discontent overflowed in the spring, when County Board members, after a contentious public hearing, approved locating the ART buses there temporarily. The county government, civic association and some residents are now engaged in legal maneuvering on the issue.” [Sun Gazette]

It’s Wednesday — Clear throughout the day. High of 41 and low of 26. Sunrise at 7:27 am and sunset at 4:55 pm. [Weather.gov]

JUST IN: Vehicle overturns in home’s garage, injuring woman

By ARLnow.com
1/6

A vehicle overturned in the garage of a single-family home in the Yorktown neighborhood this afternoon.

The incident happened around 3:30 p.m. near the intersection of Old Dominion Drive and 29th Street N., across from Washington Golf and Country Club.

It’s unclear how exactly the vehicle overturned. A large contingent of firefighters worked to stabilize the vehicle and rescue a woman who was reported to be trapped inside.

The victim was transported via ambulance to a local hospital with unspecified injuries.

Economic downturn puts Columbia Pike redevelopment on hold

By Jo DeVoe
1/6

Construction of an approved residential development at the Rappahannock Coffee site on Columbia Pike is on hold for now.

The approved six-story, 120-unit building with ground-floor retail and underground parking would replace three one-story retail buildings and a surface parking lot on the southeast corner of the intersection of Columbia Pike and S. Barton Street, at 2400 Columbia Pike.

Yao Yao, with YW Development, told ARLnow that his firm isn’t going to pursue redevelopment at this time, citing high and climbing interest rates and a generally poor economic outlook — including mixed signals of a looming recession.

Instead, he is looking for a new tenant to fill the vacant retail space next to Rappahannock Coffee and Roasting and generate some income before moving forward with the project. It used to be occupied by Cabinet Era before the business moved to Falls Church.

Leasing agent Erik Ulsaker says the space will work as-is for a temporary retail concept. Any tenant would have to be okay with a termination option if, in three to four years, economic conditions improve and it comes time to build.

“This is a good space for startups, and people who want to get going on their business plans,” he said, adding that he and his business partner “welcome creative ideas,” like pop-ups.

“If it goes over well, it could be put into the development, as we’ve got 16,000 square feet of retail on the back end,” he said. “It’s a good way to test the market.”

YW Development’s proposal went before the Arlington County Board last year. It modified an existing, already-approved proposal for the site by adding 6,500 square feet, 15 residential units and 36 parking spaces while preserving existing building facades.

The long-delayed project — first proposed in 2013, approved in 2016 and pushed back in 2020 — was initially led by Columbia Pike-based B.M. Smith, which was behind the Penrose Square development across the street.

Hat tip to John Antonelli

New apartment complex near Clarendon expects to open this spring

By Jo DeVoe
1/3

Work on an apartment complex on the border of Clarendon and Virginia Square could be completed in the spring.

Mill Creek Residential broke ground on a 270-unit apartment building at 3415 Washington Blvd, dubbed Modera Clarendon, in December 2020.

A representative tells ARLnow that residents may be able to start moving in this April, with interior finishing touches occurring through the summer.

“We’re in the home stretch,” says Joe Muffler, the Mid-Atlantic senior managing director of development for Mill Creek Residential. “We’re on schedule if not even slightly ahead.”

External construction will be done in the first three months of 2023 and internal finishes will be done in late summer.

Those who have driven on N. Kirkwood Road recently may have noticed people in orange vests conducting traffic and replacing asphalt, known as mill and overlay.

“We did the mill and overlay last week, and we’re working with utilities and utility connections, doing streetscape elements,” Muffler said. “That’s the big stuff right now.”

Even when Modera Clarendon is complete, one community benefit will not be ready until redevelopment plans for the YMCA building next door are approved.

“The puzzle is not complete until YMCA advances. We’ve constructed an alley on the north side and a pedestrian alley on the west side,” Muffler said. “Eventually those will connect… those are streets the county will have for pedestrian and vehicular traffic.”

The multimodal path through the developments in the block bounded by Washington Blvd and N. Kirkwood Road (via Arlington County, edited by ARLnow)

After dealing with the “continuous challenge” of supply chain and labor shortage issues, Mill Creek Residential is “excited to bring more people to the neighborhood starting early next year,” Muffler said.

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