News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
“DMV” painted in Ukrainian colors in Arlington Ridge (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Rent Keeps Going Up — “Arlington’s median apartment-rental rate remains highest in the metropolitan area and has fully rebounded from dropoffs during the early part of COVID, according to new data. With a median rental rate of $1,999 for a one-bedroom unit and $2,391 for two bedrooms in May, Arlington’s average rental… is now up just under 13 percent year-over-year.” [Sun Gazette]

Arlington Making Much Multifamily — From a spokesperson, about a new set of national rankings: “Multi-family units authorized in Arlington increased by 1,095.8% — a total addition of 2,838 units — between 2020 and 2021. Out of all midsize cities, Arlington experienced the 5th largest increase in multi-family home construction.” [Construction Coverage]

Group Decries Missing Middle ‘D-Day’ — From WAMU’s Ally Schweitzer: “With Arlington expected to enact zoning reforms allowing denser housing in more nabes, the group [Arlingtonians for Our Sustainable Future] is ramping up its rhetoric in opposition. The group’s latest blast calls the expected vote day ‘D-Day.’ They’ve said the county is ‘declaring war’ on single-family nabes.” [Twitter]

Parking Removed for Transitway Extension — From the National Landing BID: “Parking lanes along Crystal Drive and 12th Street South will be closed to make way for the Transitway Extension Project beginning Wednesday, June 15, 2022.” [Twitter]

Pedestrian Struck in Bluemont — From Dave Statter last night: “Report of a pedestrian struck at Wilson Blvd & George Mason Dr. Appears to be a bicyclist. There was also bicyclist struck last week a block away. @ArlingtonVaFD & @ArlingtonVaPD handling.” [Twitter]

Amazon Buys HQ2 Phase 2 Site — “Amazon.com Inc. has acquired the roughly 11 vacant acres in Pentagon City that will soon be developed as PenPlace, the massive second phase of HQ2. The $198 million deal with JBG Smith, as expected, follows Arlington County’s late April approval of PenPlace, a nearly 3.3 million-square-foot project slated to include three traditional office buildings, a spiral Helix tower, three retail pavilions, a central park and an underground parking garage.” [Washington Business Journal]

Environmental Finding on HQ2 Site — “Crude oil particles have been found in the soil at Amazon.com Inc.’s PenPlace, the site of the second phase of its second headquarters buildout in Arlington County, per a public notice published Monday in The Washington Post… The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality conducted a risk assessment for the particles, finding that the amount poses ‘no material risk to current or future site occupants,’ according to the notice.” [Washington Business Journal]

It’s Tuesday — Mostly cloudy throughout the day with some rain possible. High of 76 and low of 63. Sunrise at 5:45 am and sunset at 8:33 pm. [Weather.gov]

Bear spotted casually walking around Arlington today

By ARLnow.com
Bear spotted in Arlington Monday (photo courtesy Animal Welfare League of Arlington)

A bear was spotted walking around an Arlington neighborhood this morning, prompting a warning from animal control.

The Animal Welfare League of Arlington said it confirmed a resident’s report of a young black bear roaming around, “likely… in his search for a new home habitat.”

“While bear sightings are rare in Arlington County, they are not unheard of,” AWLA said. “Unfortunately in past bear sightings, we have had issues with members of the public going out in search of the bear to take their own photos or see it for themselves. This is VERY dangerous.”

Residents who see the bear are asked to “call AWLA immediately” at 703-931-9241 and advised to keep a safe distance or get inside.

Patch reported earlier that the bear “was spotted in Arlington’s Maywood community Monday morning, walking through people’s yards and onto porches as it headed to a park on the east side of the neighborhood near the Custis Trail.”

Just over two years ago a black bear was seen walking around near Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington. Animal control officers were unable to locate the bear after the initial sighting.

More from AWLA, below, on the latest bear incident.

On June 5th, 2022, a young black bear was spotted by a member of the public in Arlington County. Our Animal Control Officers confirmed the sighting and immediately contacted the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) and Virginia State biologist. The bear seems healthy and is likely a male yearling moving through Arlington Co in his search for a new home habitat. We are continuing to update these agencies as the location of the bear changes.

While bear sightings are rare in Arlington County, they are not unheard of. Unfortunately in past bear sightings, we have had issues with members of the public going out in search of the bear to take their own photos or see it for themselves. This is VERY dangerous, and can cause harm to you, others, and the bear. Instead, we ask that residents call AWLA immediately at (703) 931-9241 if they spot the bear, and keep to a safe distance or indoors.

We also urge residents follow these recommendations from DWR:

  • Secure garbage: Keep in a locked shed or inside until collected or use a bear resistant container.
  • Secure any compost piles
  • Take down bird feeders.
  • Secure pet food in bear-resistant containers or inside locked sheds.
  • Clean up porches/decks: Clean grills including drip pans, remove any potential food sources, and remember a screened in porch is not a “secure” storage area from a bear’s point of view.
  • Never leave food, trash, or pet food inside your vehicle.
  • Keep dogs on a leash at all times

Thank you for helping us keep people and wildlife safe in Arlington!

 

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Another eyeglass store robbed, this time in Ballston

By ARLnow.com
LensCrafters at Ballston Quarter

Another Arlington optometrist location has been robbed of eyeglass frames.

Police say a store on the 4200 block of Wilson Blvd was robbed of eyeglasses by three suspects shortly before it opened Sunday morning. One of the suspects allegedly “made threatening statements” to an employee before fleeing.

Police were called about a half hour later.

Arlington County police do not typically identify businesses that have been victims of crime, but the information provided in an ACPD crime report, below, corresponds to the location and hours of a LensCrafters location and affiliated optometry practice in an open air portion of Ballston Quarter mall.

This is at least the third such eyeglasses robbery in Arlington this year and the latest in a spate of such robberies across the D.C. area. Previous robberies in Arlington have taken place in Clarendon and along Columbia Pike.

The full ACPD crime report entry is below.

ROBBERY, 2022-06050114, 4200 block of Wilson Boulevard. At approximately 11:30 a.m. on June 5, police were dispatched to the report of a larceny just occurred. Upon arrival, it was determined that at approximately 10:50 a.m., the male suspect entered the closed business and an employee advised him to come back during their business hours. A short time later, the male suspect returned, followed by two additional male suspects. Suspects One and Two began to grab eyeglass frames from the shelves, while Suspect Three acted as a lookout. The employee confronted Suspect One, who made threatening statements towards her before the three suspects fled the scene on foot with the stolen merchandise. Suspect One is described as a Black male with a medium build, approximately 25-30 years old, 6’1″-6’3″, wearing a peach shirt, tan pants and small black cross body bag. Suspect Two is described as a Black male with a thin build, approximately 25-30 years old, 6’0″, wearing a gray hoodie, black pants, gator-style mask and black sneakers. Suspect Three is described as a Black male with a thin build, approximately 25-30 years old, 6’0″, wearing a gray hoodie, black ripped jeans, face mask and black shoes. The investigation is ongoing.

Covid cases down but positivity rate up in Arlington

By ARLnow.com
Arlington’s Covid case rate on 6/6/22 (via Virginia Dept. of Health)

Arlington has seen a dip in its average daily Covid case counts, but the county’s test positivity rate has continued to rise.

As of this morning the seven-day moving average reached 154 daily cases, down from 200 cases per day in late May. But the test positivity rate ticked up to 16.2%, the highest point since January, according to Virginia Dept. of Health data.

The dichotomy is not unique to Arlington — Virginia as a whole is also seeing falling daily case counts but rising test positivity rates, per VDH data.

Arlington’s Covid test positivity rate on 6/6/22 (via Virginia Dept. of Health)

Hospitalization rates, meanwhile, appear to be falling. The current Covid hospitalization rate in Arlington is 6 weekly admissions per 100,000 residents, according to Centers for Disease Control data. That’s down from 7.7 weekly admissions per 100,000 last week.

Mike Silverman, emergency department chair at Virginia Hospital Center — now known as VHC Health — said in his weekly public Facebook post that patient volumes at the ER are up, but not necessarily due to Covid. He noted that the hospital is also seeing high Covid test positivity rates.

An excerpt from Silverman’s post is below.

Our May numbers finished 24% above our volume last May… Typically, we’ll have a month of super high volumes in the winter, whereas summer volumes tend to be a touch below average. It’s unclear to many of us why volumes are so high. While COVID account for some of the bump, it’s actually only a fraction of the overall volume increase. In theory, there’s not bent up demand for emergency care like there might be for colonoscopies and mammograms, yet across the country, ER volumes are soaring. May was actually our busiest month ever.

Our percent positivity and COVID numbers continue to increase in the ER. We’re at 6 week highs for percent positivity and case numbers for our symptomatic, asymptomatic, and total cases. These are not winter-like Omicron level surge numbers but there’s plenty of COVID around. In fact, the community testing rates are higher than the hospital testing rates.

Whereas last summer felt like a return to normal, it seems like most people are just living their normal lives now. However, Hopkins data shows that the country’s seven-day average of COVID cases is six times higher than it was last year.

Online fundraiser underway for woman pushed out of SUV near Ballston

By ARLnow.com
The woman who was injured after being pushed out of an SUV (via GoFundMe)

(Updated at 10:45 a.m.) The woman who was pushed out of a moving vehicle along Wilson Blvd near Ballston has a long road to recovery from her injuries, according to an online fundraiser.

The victim, 25, suffered a traumatic brain injury that required extensive surgery and left her in critical condition, her sister wrote on a GoFundMe page. Two weeks after the incident she was in stable condition but expected to require 6-12 months of recovery.

“The hospital bills and the rehab center will be very expensive, so we appreciate all the help we could get,” says the fundraising page, which has raised more than $40,000 towards its $50,000 goal.

The page notes that the victim is from Ukraine and her father is currently fighting in the war there.

“We are from Ukraine, so our dad is defending our homeland while our mom had to flee the war to Germany,” it says.

A GoFundMe spokesperson tells ARLnow that the fundraiser has been verified by the company’s Trust and Safety team.

The fundraiser sheds little light on the circumstances leading to the woman being pushed out of the vehicle.

“She was going home from a night out, but at 3am she was pushed out of a speeding car onto the [road] by an UNKNOWN DRIVER, and her phone was stolen,” it says. The Arlington County police crime report from last month said that a witness saw the woman pushed out of the passenger door of a black SUV, but no further description of the vehicle or the driver was given.

An ACPD spokeswoman said this morning that police are still investigating and seeking tips.

“The investigation into the incident is ongoing and detectives continue to follow up on investigative leads in the case,” said Ashley Savage. “No arrests have been made at this time.”

“Anyone with information that may assist with the investigation is asked to contact the Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit at 703-228-4180 or [email protected],” Savage added. “Information may also be reported anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).”

The full fundraising message from the GoFundMe page is below.

Hi, my name is Polina – I’m Maryna’s sister.

On our dad’s 50-year anniversary, Maryna, 25 y.o., has been a victim of a SEVERE crime. She was going home from a night out, but at 3am she was pushed out of a speeding car onto the highway by an UNKNOWN DRIVER, and her phone was stolen. When the paramedics arrived, her skull bone was out in the open, she had bruises, scratches, and road rash all over her body… Doctors have performed two different surgeries on the brain right away – one lasted 5 hours, the other one lasted another 2,5 hours; and still she was in a critical condition.

Police called me and woke me up at 4am with these terrible news. My husband and I drove up to DC from NC right away. I am the only family Maryna has in the USA . We are from Ukraine, so our dad is defending our homeland while our mom had to flee the war to Germany. When I came to the hospital and saw Maryna, I didn’t recognize her. Her long beautiful hair was shaved, she had two huge ridges on both side of the head, plenty of tubes in her to keep her alive, she was pale and motionless…

The first few days were critical – people die from these injuries, and you don’t even need to be a doctor to understand that. The fact that she’s young made a big difference in this case, otherwise she wouldn’t have survived. She’s super smart and kind, and always helps people – she volunteered to help with the humanitarian catastrophe in Ukraine, while working for an NGO. She has 2 masters degrees and speaks 4 languages fluently. It’s terrifying to think what would have happened if the ambulance didn’t arrive on time. This kind of crime is for horror movies, not for real life. Nobody deserves this.

Now it’s been about two weeks since the incident, and she is stable. Maryna would need about 6 months to a year to recover. The hospital bills and the rehab center will be very expensive, so we appreciate all the help we could get.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
“Bike route sign at the intersection of 15th Street N. & Taylor Street directing bikes onto Taylor Street, which is a dead end” (Flickr pool photo by Cyrus W.)

‘Conservation’ Nixed in New Name — “The Neighborhood Conservation Program has a new name: Arlington Neighborhoods Program. [Three county departments] announced the new name for the interdepartmental program after almost a yearlong renaming process… The Neighborhood Conservation Program Review (NCPR) Final Report recommended changing the program name because the word ‘conservation’ often evokes a negative connotation and suggests exclusivity.” [Arlington County]

Big Scholarship Match for WHS Grads — “A newly announced dollar-for-dollar match could net the Wakefield High School Educational Foundation’s scholarship fund as much as $2 million over the coming year. It was announced June 2 that Henry ‘Ric’ Duques, a 1961 graduate of the high school, and his wife Dawn had made an up-to-$1 million pledge to the foundation, which will match funds raised by the organization for the year ending June 30, 2023.” [Sun Gazette]

Remembering Local Desegregation Efforts — “Our racial history commemorators have thoroughly marked the 1959 integration of Stratford Junior High School, a first for long-segregated Virginia. But those four African American student pioneers stood on the shoulders of a select group of older peers, whose legal efforts have gone relatively unsung.” [Falls Church News-Press]

New Monument at Arlington Nat’l Cemetery — “A monument now stands in memory of the first astronauts to die in their spacecraft, 55 years after a fire on the launchpad claimed their lives. Family members of the fallen Apollo 1 crew came together with NASA officials, space industry leaders and members of the space community to dedicate the new monument during a ceremony(opens in new tab) held Thursday (June 2) at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. The memorial is located… in Section 3 of the cemetery.” [Space.com]

ARLnow Cartoonist’s Work Highlighted — “But the father of two has long been a fan of the art form and in the past year, he has become a community cartoonist. [Mike Mount] creates weekly cartoons for an online news outlet in his Northern Virginia county, capturing within those scribbled squares the weird, comical and relatable parts of living in one of Washington’s suburbs.” [Washington Post]

Nature Center Advocate Keeps Advocating — “Look up ‘indefatigable’ in an online dictionary, and a photo of Duke Banks might pop up. Recently given the brushoff – politely but for the second time – by the County Board, Banks is not stopping in his efforts to restore hours that were cut at Arlington’s two local nature centers during the pandemic. Banks pressed his case at the May 24 meeting of the Arlington Park and Recreation Commission.” [Sun Gazette]

It’s Monday — Clear throughout the day. High of 80 and low of 61. Sunrise at 5:45 am and sunset at 8:32 pm. [Weather.gov]

Sewage release into Four Mile Run prompts warning

By ARLnow.com
Four Mile Run in Shirlington (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Stay out of Four Mile Run from the Bon Air rose garden to the Potomac River for at least the next day or two.

That’s the message from Arlington County following the release of sewage into the local stream.

“People and pets should avoid entering Four Mile Run from the Bon Air Memorial Rose Garden near Wilson Boulevard downstream to the Potomac for at least 48 hours due to a sewage release,” the county said late Sunday afternoon.

Later that evening, the county said the sewage came from a clogged sewer line, which had since been fixed.

“A clog has been cleared from the sanitary sewer line and the stream is being flushed,” the county said. “Continue to avoid contact with Four Mile Run downstream over roughly the next 48 hours.”

Even after the sewage gets flushed out of the stream, the county recommends against pets playing in Four Mile Run.

Firefighters battle apartment blaze in Buckingham

By ARLnow.com

Firefighters battled a fire inside an apartment in the Buckingham neighborhood Saturday night.

The fire broke out around 8 p.m. in a garden apartment building along the 4300 block of N. Pershing Drive. As of 9 p.m. the fire was out, but firefighters were still working to ventilate smoke from the building.

Pershing Drive was blocked in both directions as a result of the large emergency response.

So far there have been no reports of injuries.

 

JUST IN: Northbound I-395 blocked after high speed chase ends

By ARLnow.com
1/2

(Updated at 2:25 p.m.) Northbound I-395 traffic is partially blocked at King Street, near Arlington border, after a reported high speed chase involving Virginia State Police.

After the chase ended with a crash, an apparent arrest could be seen being made in the middle of the highway, with a man kneeling down with his hands in the air.

Numerous Arlington police units were dispatched to the area, near Fairlington, to look for a suspect who may still be on the loose. Initial reports suggest that person may now be in custody.

Arlington medics are also en route due to at least one reported injury from the crash. The chase reached speeds of up to 120 mph as it traveled through Alexandria, Arlington officers were told by state police.

The highway was completely blocked immediately after the crash, but some traffic is now squeezing by the scene. Delays have been building and are now approaching the Landmark Mall.

ACPD: Pair beat man who tried to intervene in Crystal City dispute

By ARLnow.com
File photo

Police are looking for two men who seriously injured a would-be Good Samaritan who tried to intervene in a dispute in Crystal City.

The early morning incident happened around 2 a.m. Thursday, on the block of 23rd Street S. near the 7-Eleven and the Exxon station. It reportedly involved the victim, the suspects, and a woman with whom the pair were engaged in an argument.

Despite being serious injured, the victim declined medical treatment, according to police.

More from an Arlington County Police Department crime report:

… the male victim stated that at approximately 1:40 a.m., he observed a dispute between a female subject and the two male suspects. The victim intervened, during which Suspect One struck and kicked the victim. A witness assisted the victim who was able to enter his parked vehicle. Suspect One then struck and damaged the window to the vehicle before fleeing the scene on foot. The victim sustained serious, non-life threatening injuries and declined the treatment of medics.

The suspects remain at large and “the investigation is ongoing,” ACPD said.

Asian American group to hold event in Ballston next week

By Mavis Chan
1/3

Since starting Arlington-based Cozy Cleaning during the pandemic, its co-owners have viewed it as a way to support other Mongolian Americans.

Otgon Altankhuyag and Munkhzul Nergui, who are both Mongolian, decided to start the house cleaning and organizing service after hearing that demand for residential cleaning was up given that many people were stuck at home all day.

“We can also help Mongolian women,” Altankhuyag said. “We pay our employees, so we support Mongolian women who (are) staying home with lots of kids. They can’t work full time.”

The owners are planning to join other local business owners for a fundraiser in Ballston organized by Hamkae Center next Thursday, June 9, to support Asian American communities. It’s the first fundraiser for Hamkae Center since it changed its name from NAKASEC VA, which stood for National Korean American Service & Education Consortium Virginia, in November 2021.

This is the first time the center has organized the event on its own, and it’s the first in-person fundraiser since the pandemic began, said Growth and Operations Team Lead Patrick Canteros. The event was canceled in 2020 and virtual in 2021.

“A lot of our sponsors previously were national organizations,” Canteros said. “This time around, a lot of our sponsors, a lot of the organizations and businesses that are supporting us, this time around with food and auction items, they are all local businesses.”

Altankhuyag had previously worked with Hamkae Center as a translator, as well as donating masks to the organization during the pandemic. Her company decided to join the upcoming fundraiser because she wanted to encourage others and contribute, said Altankhuyag.

“I would like to show the neighbors that everybody has the potential to learn a small business and make a small amount of money and enjoy their (lives),” she said.

As of 2021, there were over 70,000 businesses owned by Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the Washington region, which accounted for 12.4% of all private businesses in the area, according to a report from the Virginia Asian Advisory Board.

The fundraiser, called Pursuing Our Dreams 2022, is set to feature around 20 Asian American businesses in the D.C. area, including various restaurants, a rock-climbing gym and the soccer team The Washington Spirit. The event is set to be held between 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Marymount University’s Ballston campus (1000 N. Glebe Road).

Participants can choose to sponsor and donate to the fundraiser, according to its application form. Canteros said Hamkae Center wishes to have 20% of its funding come from community donors.

During the event, Hamkae Center is set to give out a few awards to individuals and organizations for their work in issues in which the center is also involved.

“We definitely selected them based on the work that we’ve done and who have been key instrumental folks in helping us move that needle forward,” said Policy and Communications Team Lead Zowee Aquino.

The four awards this year will go to Del. Kathy Tran (D-42), the Virginia Poverty Law Center, the Vietnamese Resettlement Association and organization member Onion Ha, according to the organization’s Twitter announcement.

The fair is set to include a range of activities such as origami tutorials, tarot card and birth chart readings, and a silent auction. Food and drink will be provided by local AAPI-owned restaurants.

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