News

County seeks contractor to improve safety, transit along Army Navy Drive

By Jo DeVoe

A longtime project to make pedestrian, cycling and transit upgrades to Army Navy Drive has taken the next step forward.

Arlington County has sent the project out for bidding by contractors, while staff continue to acquire the easements needed for construction.

“Project staff expect the easement process to be wrapped up by the time the construction contract appears before the County Board for approval — anticipated later this summer,” Dept. of Environmental Services spokesman Nate Graham said.

Construction could start this fall and be completed in the summer of 2025, according to the project webpage. Initially, the county had expected construction to begin in spring 2020 and be complete this spring, but extra tasks required to receive federal aid dragged out the planning process by a few years.

A coalition of local transit advocates celebrated the news, which has been seven years in the making.

Crashes are a frequent occurrence along Army Navy Drive. The $16.87 million project aims to reduce conflicts among cars, buses, bikes and pedestrians with narrower lanes — to slow down vehicle traffic — as well as bus-only lanes, protected left turns and signalized right turns, clearer sidewalks and shorter crosswalks.

The south side of Army Navy Drive will have a two-way bike lane protected by a line of trees. This will link to a future two-way bicycle lane planned for S. Clark Street, between 12th Street S. and 15th Street S. and the planned protected bike lanes on S. Eads Street, which will run past both phases of Amazon’s HQ2.

Bike lanes on Army Navy Drive are visible in this 2021 rendering of Amazon’s HQ2 Phase 2 campus (via NBBJ/Amazon)

“The project will rebuild Army Navy Drive within the existing right-of-way as a multimodal complete street featuring enhanced bicycle, transit, environmental and pedestrian facilities,” the county says. “The goal of the project is to improve the local connections between the Pentagon and the commercial, residential and retail services in Pentagon City and Crystal City.”

The new Army Navy Drive will be reduced to two through lanes in each direction, narrowing to one lane east of S. Eads Street.

The reduction will accommodate a bus lane between S. Joyce Street and S. Hayes Street so that buses will not block traffic while loading passengers. This dedicated transit lane will help extend an existing network of bus lanes from the City of Alexandria to Crystal City into Pentagon City.

Plans for Army Navy Drive (via Arlington County)

Additional improvements include replacing raised medians with planted ones and planting greenery to reduce stormwater runoff. Five intersections will get new traffic signal equipment.

The project’s early phases kicked off in the summer of 2015 with a traffic analysis evaluating how biking, walking, scooting and driving conditions would be impacted in 2020 and 2040 by the ongoing redevelopment of Pentagon City and Crystal City. That has since been expedited by the ongoing construction of HQ2.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Looking up while underneath cherry blossoms on Wilson Blvd in Virginia Square as storm clouds move in (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Little League Opening Day This Weekend — “For the first time since 2019, Arlington Little League will host its Opening Day on Sun, April 3 from 1-5:30 p.m. at Barcroft Park.” [Press Release]

Arlington Libraries Highlight Banned Books — “The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom  recently issued a statement opposing widespread efforts to censor books in U.S. schools and libraries. Unfortunately, Virginia has been subject to these censorship efforts, and in light of this, Arlington Public Library is taking a stand to build awareness of these challenged books.” [Arlington Public Library]

AHC Announces New Leader — From a press release: “AHC Inc.’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Paul Bernard has been unanimously selected as the organization’s new President/Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He will join AHC in his new role on April 4.” Bernard fills a CEO seat at the affordable housing provided previously held by Walter Webdale, who retired after controversy over conditions at AHC’s Serrano Apartments. [AHC Inc.]

W-L Holding ‘Pink Games’ This Month — “W-L girls’ soccer is turning PINK for Doorways! Join the players in supporting survivors of domestic and sexual violence as well as families and youth experiencing homelessness.” [Doorways]

It’s April Fool’s Day — Mostly cloudy throughout the day today, April 1. Breezy, with a west wind 14 to 21 mph, with gusts as high as 34 mph. High of 65 and low of 43. Sunrise at 6:54 am and sunset at 7:33 pm. [Weather.gov]

BREAKING: Tornado Warning for parts of Arlington

By ARLnow.com
1/3

Update at 9:20 p.m. — There are Metro delays after a tornado might have touched down in the Tysons area.

Update at 9 p.m. — The Tornado Warning has been cancelled, according to NBC 4’s Doug Kammerer.

Update at 8:50 p.m. — Part of North Arlington is now under a Tornado Warning.

BULLETIN – EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
Tornado Warning
National Weather Service Baltimore MD/Washington DC
846 PM EDT Thu Mar 31 2022

The National Weather Service in Sterling Virginia has issued a

* Tornado Warning for… The northern District of Columbia… Southeastern Montgomery County in central Maryland… Northwestern Prince Georges County in central Maryland… North central Arlington County in northern Virginia… Northeastern Fairfax County in northern Virginia…

* Until 915 PM EDT.

* At 846 PM EDT, a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado was located over Mclean, moving east at 30 mph.

HAZARD…Tornado.

SOURCE…Radar indicated rotation.

IMPACT…For those in the direct path of a tornado touchdown, flying debris will be dangerous to those caught without shelter. Damage to roofs, siding, and windows may occur. Mobile homes may be damaged or destroyed. Tree damage is likely.

* This dangerous storm will be near… Arlington around 855 PM EDT. Bethesda, Martin`s Additions, American University, Friendship Village and Georgetown around 900 PM EDT. Fort Totten and Chevy Chase around 905 PM EDT. Langley Park, Takoma Park and Hillandale around 910 PM EDT. Hyattsville and Adelphi around 915 PM EDT.

Other locations impacted by this tornadic thunderstorm include Rivercrest, Little Falls, Brentwood, West Mclean, Chevy Chase Village, Catholic University, Langley, North Brentwood, Chillum and National Zoo.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

TAKE COVER NOW! Move to a basement or an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building. Avoid windows. If you are outdoors, in a mobile home, or in a vehicle, move to the closest substantial shelter and protect yourself from flying debris.

Earlier: Part of Arlington is now under a Severe Thunderstorm Warning.

A Tornado Warning has also been issued for parts of Fairfax County, including neighboring McLean.

More from the National Weather Service:

818 PM EDT Thu Mar 31 2022

The National Weather Service in Sterling Virginia has issued a

* Severe Thunderstorm Warning…

* Until 900 PM EDT.

* At 818 PM EDT, a severe thunderstorm was located over Centreville, moving east at 50 mph.

HAZARD…60 mph wind gusts.

SOURCE…Radar indicated.

IMPACT…Damaging winds will cause some trees and large branches to fall. This could injure those outdoors, as well as damage homes and vehicles. Roadways may become blocked by downed trees. Localized power outages are possible. Unsecured light objects may become projectiles.

* Locations impacted include… Arlington, Centreville, Bethesda, Reston, Annandale, College Park, Greenbelt, Fairfax, Langley Park, Beltsville, Vienna, Falls Church, Largo, Coral Hills, Bladensburg, Mantua, Pimmit Hills, Mclean, Fedex Field and American Legion Bridge.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building.

Wastewater may help Arlington predict the next local Covid surge

By Jo DeVoe
The Water Pollution Control Plant near Crystal City (via Arlington DES/Flickr)

For the last two months, Arlington County has been getting your sewage tested to measure community Covid infection levels.

The Department of Environmental Services is sending weekly samples to Biobot, a Massachusetts-based health tech startup that got its start monitoring wastewater for opioids but pivoted to COVID-19 testing during the pandemic. The company now tests wastewater samples for municipalities nationwide.

Wastewater surveillance is seeing more interest as reported Covid testing rates wane and the focus of the federal government and some cities shifts from counting Covid cases to tracking hospitalization rates. Indeed, wastewater surveillance is one way the Centers for Disease Control is tracking the rise of the new Omicron subvariant BA.2, now the dominant Covid strain in the nation.

“The case counts aren’t as reliable as they used to be, so we’ve seen more interest in wastewater analysis as an unbiased look at what’s going on in their communities,” Biobot’s Jennings Heussner tells ARLnow. “People aren’t getting tested because they’re being tested at home, they don’t know they’re sick, or they don’t feel the need to get a test — they feel poorly and decide to stay home.”

Even if people stop seeking out tests, there is one place where their viral load will show up: the toilet.

“You start shedding the virus in your fecal matter at the point of infection,” Heussner said. “That increases until you become symptomatic and then begins to fall off from there. You have a window of — it varies from person to person — up to a week before you know you’ve been sick that you’ve been shedding the virus in your fecal matter.”

Biobot uses PCR testing to ascertain the concentration of viral RNA per milliliter of sewage, which is the unit it reports on its webpage. Regular wastewater samples can give municipalities anywhere from a two to 10 days’ heads-up of what might be coming in terms of community infection levels, before the infections show up in testing data, Heussner said.

Covid viral load in wastewater versus case rates in Arlington County (via Biobot)

According to the Virginia Dept. of Health, the average rate of new cases in Arlington hit a seasonal low point on March 6. Biobot’s wastewater data, meanwhile, hit its low point two days earlier, on March 4.

The local case rate has since nearly doubled, rising from 24 daily cases on March 6 to a seven-day moving average of 46 daily cases today, according to VDH data. Biobot’s wastewater data, meanwhile, continues to point to an upward trajectory of infections in Arlington.

Most cases in Northern Virginia stem from the dominant Omicron variant, with subvariant BA.2 comprising a growing portion of total case numbers, according to a new state dashboard tracking variants of Covid. Biobot can detect which variants are present, although that information is currently not available for Arlington.

Cases by variant in Northern Virginia (via Virginia Department of Health)

As for the gap in wastewater sampling data on the chart above, Heussner said Biobot received samples from Arlington County last summer through a collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Sampling stopped when that partnership ended, until Arlington again began sending samples in February.

While the county is submitting wastewater to weekly testing, it is not rushing to adopt this method as a gold standard for tracking the virus.

“The Arlington County Public Health Division reminds everyone that wastewater surveillance for the virus that causes COVID-19 is a developing field,” public health spokesman Ryan Hudson said. “Wastewater testing over time may provide trend data that can complement other surveillance data to inform decision-making about the response to COVID-19.”

He noted that currently, wastewater testing cannot “reliably and accurately predict” the number of infected individuals in a community.

“As for the uptick in cases, now is the time to get your COVID-19 booster if you haven’t,” Hudson said. “It is recommended that everyone 12 years and older receive the appropriate booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.”

Photo via Arlington Dept. of Environmental Services/Flickr

Arlington’s hottest areas lack tree canopy to soak up the sun, study finds

By Jo DeVoe

The most scorching parts of Arlington are along the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor and Reagan National Airport, according to a new study.

On a hot day last July, volunteers and Marymount University research students and staff recorded temperatures at morning, afternoon and evening throughout the county as part of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges’ Heat Watch Campaign. Residents across the Commonwealth also contributed to the statewide data collection effort.

That data has since been compiled into heat maps, released this week, that cover more than 300 square miles of Virginia. Environmentalists say this information is helpful for targeting solutions to heat: planting more trees where possible and, where that is not possible, adding amenities like community gardens and planted walls.

Although Arlington County is compact, temperatures varied by up to 7 degrees depending on location. The Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, for example, recorded a temperature of 94.8 degrees at 3 p.m., and less than two miles away, neighborhoods near the Potomac Overlook Regional Park clocked in at 87.8 degrees.

Temperatures along Arlington’s roadways last July (via the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges)

Marymount University assistant biology professor Susan Agolini says highly populated areas like Ballston and Clarendon are often hotter because concrete and asphalt absorb heat and radiate it back into the environment, while the North Arlington neighborhoods closest to the Potomac River have trees and gardens to soak up that sunshine.

“I do not think there were any surprises here with regard to what areas were hotter,” Agolini said. “We know that locations with a lot of pavement and cement are going to be hotter than areas with a lot of trees and green space. The question is what do we do about that?”

Agolini says she will bring this data to conversations with county officials about urban planning and cooling solutions, such as planting trees and incentivizing the creation of community gardens around buildings and on their rooftops.

For example, 23% of the Ballston-Virginia Square Civic Association had tree canopy compared to 74% of the Bellevue Forest Civic Association, according to the most recent county tree canopy data, from 2016.

Heat maps of Arlington at different times of the day (via the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges)

“I find it really compelling that the benefits of and need for increased space for urban agriculture could actually serve multiple purposes,” Agolini said. “It would not only provide Arlington residents with the physical and mental health benefits of growing their own food, but it could also have the added benefit of decreasing the impact of heat disparities throughout the county.”

Elenor Hodges — the executive director of the community organization promoting environmental stewardship, EcoAction Arlington — helped collect temperature data last summer. She says the data provide “another way of looking at a known issue.”

And the solution — more trees and plantings — has benefits that bleed into other environmental and public health goals, she said.

“If you’re building in an area and you can think about having it be as green and plant-based green as possible then that makes the space cooler,” she said. “You can be happier in this space, healthier, and it helps with carbon and it reduces stormwater runoff.”

Hodges said EcoAction Arlington would like to see this data inform developments currently going through the county review processes so that the projects can reduce, rather than contribute to, Arlington’s heat zones.

This includes planting walls of plants, blending indoor and outdoor spaces, and adding trees and plantings to grass-covered parks, as grass doesn’t absorb as much heat.

The organization, which oversees a county program that plants trees on private property through developer contributions, will be launching a campaign to encourage planting in neighborhoods with less tree canopy that also have higher rates of poverty and substantial non-white populations.

For example, tree canopy levels are under 30% in the Arlington View, Buckingham and Green Valley neighborhoods, she said.

“Those are neighborhoods we are going to be looking at more carefully,” Hodges said.

JUST IN: Power out in part of Clarendon as Severe Thunderstorm Watch, Wind Advisory issued

By ARLnow.com
Power outage in Clarendon (map via Dominion)

(Updated at 2:05 p.m.) More than 800 Dominion customers are without power in parts of Clarendon, Lyon Village and Cherrydale.

The outage was reported around 1:30 p.m. Police are on scene along Wilson Blvd in Clarendon, helping to direct traffic that backed up as a result of stop lights going dark.

Dominion says the cause of the outage is a “circuit out.”

Rain and wind have been picking up this afternoon, ahead of potential severe weather later today. The National Weather Service has now issued both a Severe Thunderstorm Watch and a Wind Advisory for Arlington — as well as much of the region.

Forecasters say that wind gusts up to 50 mph may bring down trees and large branches. From NWS:

141 PM EDT Thu Mar 31 2022

…WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING…

* WHAT…South winds 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 50 mph expected.

* WHERE…District of Columbia, and portions of central, northern and southern Maryland, central and northern Virginia and panhandle West Virginia.

* WHEN…Until 8 PM EDT this evening.

* IMPACTS…Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Isolated tree damage and a few power outages may result.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high profile vehicle. Secure outdoor objects.

Peggy Fox, a spokeswoman for the power company, said this morning that residents should charge their mobile devices in anticipation of the expected windy weather.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Rainy day at Amazon’s under-construction HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Local Chef Now in Poland — “Bayou Bakery’s David Guas started the day the way he starts many days — before dawn with a table full of biscuit dough. This Friday morning, though, the New Orleans-native stood in a kitchen in Poland — far from his Arlington, Virginia, cafe… working with José Andrés’s organization World Central Kitchen (WCK). Guas is spending two weeks volunteering in Poland with WCK, cooking and packaging food for the tens of thousands streaming in from Ukraine.” [Eater]

Cars Collide Multiple Times on Bridge — From Dave Statter: “Caught on camera… this was a pretty wild #crash on the 14th Street Bridge (I-395N) at 2:15 this morning. Looked like bumper cars… You’ll see one car slowing down almost to a stop in VA b4 the bridge waiting for the 2nd car. Was this a #DragRace that went bad or #RoadRage or a little of both?” [Twitter]

Signs Up for New Target — The new Target store in the former Bed, Bath and Beyond space in Pentagon City is set to open on Sunday. New Target signs were just put up in advance of the opening. [Twitter]

Marine Corps Marathon Returns, Sells Out — “You’ve missed your chance if you haven’t already signed up to run the Marine Corps Marathon this year.The 47th-annual running of the famous marathon will be held in person this year, the first time since 2019, and nearly 20,000 runners from all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and 47 countries are now set to run in the event. ‘We are thrilled to announce that the 47th MCM is officially sold out…’ said Rick Nealis, director of Marine Corps Marathon Organization.” [Potomac Local]

APS Announces Staff Award Winners — “Each year, Arlington Public Schools recognizes the hard work and dedication of our staff through our Principal, Teacher and Support Employee of the Year awards… We will be honoring the winners at our Celebration of Excellence reception and ceremony on May 4, 2022, starting at 5 p.m. at Washington-Liberty High School.” [Arlington Public Schools]

Local Barber Shop Moving — Rosslyn Metro Barber Shop said via social media last month that it will be moving to Foggy Bottom from its location at 1700 N. Moore Street. [Facebook]

It’s Thursday — Chances of rain throughout the day, with storms expected in the afternoon and evening. Some storms may be severe. High of 70 and low of 55. Sunrise at 6:55 am and sunset at 7:32 pm. [Weather.gov]

Nature center supporters call for additional operating hours

By Matt Blitz
Gulf Branch Nature Center (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

Supporters of Gulf Branch Nature Center are pushing to expand the hours of Arlington nature centers, as the 2023 county budget proposes to keep hours at pandemic levels.

In a letter to the community last week, Friends of Gulf Branch Nature Center president Duke Banks took issue with the County Manager’s proposed budget, which would keep the county’s two nature centers open only three days a week. That’s in contrast with the centers’ six day a week schedule prior to the pandemic.

The reasons for the cuts are due to safety and practicality.

A new Department of Parks and Recreation directive, as director Jane Rudolph noted in a budget work session earlier this month, is that two staff members are now required to open a county facility when previously only one was needed. That policy was put in place in response to a sexual assault that occurred at the Barcroft Recreation Center in 2019.

The other is that with more virtual programs — and school field trips still restricted, in part due to a bus driver shortage — nature center staff are more often going into schools instead of students coming to the facilities themselves.

Banks says that his organization understands the challenges, but believes it’s important to hire a few extra employees to keep the nature centers open as often as possible.

“Friends of GBNC understands the need for safety, and we laud nature center staff members on their flexibility in continuing to provide programs during COVID — both to the public and schools. However, these emergency initiatives don’t justify closing Arlington’s remaining nature centers three days a week,” Banks says in the letter. “Our nature centers anchor the creative new programming, providing essential facilities like exhibits, restrooms and shelter (during storms) and serving as a physical focal point that makes nature accessible to everyone, young or old, rich or poor.”

As Rudolph brought up at the work session, staffing and hiring remains a challenge across the department (as well as in the county as a whole). She noted that the department is making an effort to “meet people where they are” by taking nature center programming out of the facilities and into community centers, as well as schools.

“There is nature center programming happening, it just isn’t always happening in the nature center,” Rudolph said at the work session.

Banks and Friends of the Gulf Branch Nature Center disagreed with the approach, saying that structured programming shouldn’t be a driver of when the nature centers should be open.

“Many folks visit nature centers without attending a program and thus would be denied access to the nature centers at a time when the public’s visits to our parks have significantly increased during COVID,” Banks said in the letter. “With our highly urbanized environment and the pandemic-related fallout, children need the respite of enjoying nature now more than ever.”

The two county-run nature centers, Gulf Branch and Long Branch, averaged about 21,000 visitors annually in 2018 and 2019, according to a county report.

Rudolph made a point to say that the operational changes may not be permanent. The department is currently evaluating not just how many days the nature centers should be open, but their hours as well.

The centers are currently open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with no evening hours, but Rudolph said that there’s a possibility of using some money to keep the centers open later this year, after kids are out of school and parents return from work. This could make centers more accessible without opening on additional days, officials said.

Friends of the Gulf Branch Nature Center is not the only organization advocating for bring nature centers hours back to pre-pandemic levels. During the work session, representatives from the county’s Park and Recreation and Forestry and Natural Resources commissions also expressed a desire to have the nature centers open longer.

Supporters of Gulf Branch Nature Center are asking those who agree with them to send an email to the County Board and County Manager expressing “how important it is to keep our nature centers accessible to the public and how disappointed you are by the proposed cuts to the nature centers’ public hours.”

The full letter from the organization is below.

(more…)

ACPD scales back some services amid reduction in staffing

By Jo DeVoe

(Updated at 9:55 a.m.) Arlington County police say they will reduce some services as the department faces staffing challenges.

ACPD is grappling with the impacts of attrition from the department, retirements and officers leaving the force for other jobs, including private-sector security jobs at Amazon’s second headquarters.

According to the department, these staffing struggles mirror national trends.

Police Chief Andy Penn said in a video message released yesterday (Tuesday) that the department has 290 “functional” police officers — those who are able to respond independently to calls for service. Another 40 officers are in training or on light-duty status, while 46 positions are unfilled.

In 2019 and 2020, ACPD had between 313 and 334 functional officers. The current figure, 290, has not changed since ARLnow reported exclusively last September on the department’s shrinking staff in the wake of anti-police-violence protests in 2020 and due to low morale, stagnant wages and burnout.

“This significant reduction in officers significantly reduces our ability to deliver the amount of services we have traditionally provided to the Arlington community,” Penn said.

As a result, ACPD says staffing and priorities are changing in three ways so that officers can focus on follow-up investigations into more serious crimes.

First, officers will be dialing back investigations into crimes like scams with “no identifiable suspects,” hit-and-run crashes that are reported well after the fact and with little evidence to identify the striking driver, and incidents involving minor property damage that lack “solvability factors.”

Second, ACPD will continue to divert the reporting of non-emergency crimes that are not currently in progress and being reported well after the fact — such as fraud, theft, vandalism, harassing phone calls and minor property damage — to its online system. Submissions are then reviewed by an officer and, if approved, an official police report number is issued.

The portal was initially a pandemic-era invention to maintain social distancing between civilians reporting crimes and officers dispatched to respond to them.

“ACPD will prioritize follow-up investigations on crimes against people and serious property crimes,” notes a police press release. “Examples include, but are not limited to, homicide, robbery, carjacking, sex offenses, assaults, burglary and motor vehicle theft.”

Finally, Penn says vacant “specialty positions” — like community engagement and transportation safety — will not be filled for the time being, so ACPD can prioritize core services.

With the changes, Penn says he aims to give overworked officers a more sustainable work-life balance while focusing on investigating and responding to serious criminal incidents across the community. In the nearly ten-minute video, he tells residents they will remain safe despite the changes to staffing and priorities.

“Arlington remains a safe place to live, work and visit and the incredibly dedicated and professional men and women of the Arlington County Police Department work each and every day to make a positive difference in the lives of those we serve,” Penn said. “I am confident that despite our service adjustments, we will continue to work in partnership with the community and remain proactive in ensuring public safety.”

Penn says the forthcoming changes also align with recommendations from the Police Practices Group — a group the county formed after nationwide racial justice protests in 2020 — and those of an external assessment released earlier this year.

These reviews concluded, among other things, that ACPD can do more to recruit and retain officers with defined career paths, while removing officers from certain incidents like mental health calls.

The department says it remains committed to the following goals, despite the service changes.

  • Maintaining operational readiness and preparedness to respond to any public safety incident that occurs in Arlington.
  • Ensuring the orderly flow of traffic in the County while conducting transportation safety enforcement and education campaigns
  • Engaging and building partnerships with those we serve
  • Proactively recruiting qualified candidates to join upcoming academy classes with the ultimate goal of returning the department to full staffing as soon as possible

In a lengthy statement released Wednesday morning, two Arlington police employee groups said that the department’s staffing challenges stem from relatively low pay. The groups — the Arlington Coalition of Police and Arlington Police Beneficiary Association — called for an across-the-board 10% pay raise for ACPD in the upcoming county budget.

“It is time for the county board to take action to retain our current employees and attract new officers who will continue the legacy of ACPD’s high quality of service,” the groups said.

Portions of the statement are below.

(more…)

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Lunchtime in Rosslyn (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Public Safety Watchdog Profiled — “Like a lot of people, Dave Statter got a bit bored when the pandemic hit and he was pretty much confined to his home. But unlike most of us, Statter lives high atop a Crystal City building overlooking I-395. Why binge Netflix when just outside the window is real-life drama, pathos, tragedy and comedy, all captured by the five video cameras Statter has trained on the traffic below?” [Washington Post]

Aquatics Center Struggling to Hire — “It’s been open for almost three-quarters of a year, but Arlington’s Long Bridge Park aquatics center is not immune for finding personnel that are plaguing the rest of the county government… The aquatics facility, which opened last summer after a lengthy and difficult birthing process, is still in need of a general manager and aquatics-program manager, and the 16 lifeguards on staff would require an infusion of eight to 10 more to bring it to a full complement.” [Sun Gazette]

APS May Add Some Instructional Time — “It’s a mystery: How does a school district that invariably has the highest (or close to it) per-student costs in the region also have the lowest amount of instructional time in a typical school year? Whatever the historical reasons for that anomaly, Arlington school officials are hoping to rectify the last half of that equation. Kind of.” [Sun Gazette]

Sailor Killed at Pearl Harbor Now at ANC — “A young sailor in the U.S. Navy who perished in Pearl Harbor has finally been laid to rest. U.S. Navy Seaman 1st Class Walter Stein, 20, of Cheyenne, Wyoming was buried Thursday at Arlington National Cemetery. Stein was killed during the attack on Pearl Harbor while serving aboard the USS Oklahoma… Stein’s remains were not officially identified until April 16, 2021 — about 80 years after his death.” [Patch]

Donation to Local Housing Nonprofit — “Arlington Community Federal Credit Union announced a $10,000 grant to local nonprofit, Rebuilding Together- Arlington, Fairfax, Falls Church (AFF). The grant was part of a national give back program award from national credit union credit card vendor PSCU to be given to a local nonprofit of Arlington Community FCU’s choice. Rebuilding Together- AFF is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that serves low-income homeowners and nonprofits.” [Press Release]

E-CARE Returning Next Month — From Arlington’s Dept. of Environmental Services: “Saturday, April 23, Earth Day weekend: E-CARE returns to Yorktown HS for fast, safe drop-off of household hazardous materials, old electronics, bikes and much more. Fun fact: Folks arriving by foot and bike get through even faster.” [Twitter]

Pair of Missing Persons — Arlington County police are looking for two missing people: a 16-year-old boy last seen in the Rosslyn area, and a 31-year-old woman last seen near the Arlington Ridge Shopping Center. [Twitter, Twitter]

It’s Wednesday — A chance of shower in the morning, then mostly cloudy throughout the day. High of 58 and low of 36. Sunrise at 6:57 am and sunset at 7:31 pm. [Weather.gov]

Historic preservation survey targeting equity and inclusion nets mostly white, older respondents

By Jo DeVoe

A recent survey of Arlingtonians found a majority say the county needs to be more aggressive about preserving historic buildings, monuments and resources from demolition.

Engagement in the survey, administered in 2021, was three times higher than engagement in a similar survey distributed two years ago, before the loss last year of two historic homes — the Febrey-Lothrop House and the Victorian Fellows-McGrath House — to make room for new housing.

The tripling, however, did not result in a more diverse group of respondents. More than 80% of respondents were some combination of white, homeowners and 45 years old and up.

The survey is part of a county effort to update its master plan governing historic preservation, with a new focus on equity and inclusion, says Department of Community Planning, Housing and Development spokeswoman Rachel LaPiana.

Adopted in and unchanged since 2006, the update — if adopted by the County Board by the end of 2022 — will direct the historic preservation priorities and programs for the next decade, she said.

Many respondents said the county should be highlighting century-old properties, historic neighborhoods, archaeological sites and resources connected to Arlington’s immigrant, African American and Native American communities. Some railed against the county and the plan for not preserving sites like the Febrey-Lothrop House, while a few said such teardowns are necessary to make room for more housing and affordable units.

The survey asked broad questions to understand what residents value, with questions like “what stories, traditions, places, buildings, and/or communities are important to you?”

But for some civically engaged Arlington residents, the demographics of respondents were more interesting. They say this survey yielded detailed feedback from passionate individuals but did not reveal how the broader community values historic preservation.

The problem, per Dave Schutz — a civically engaged resident and prolific ARLnow commenter — is how the survey is advertised and where. His oft-repeated remark about community engagement in Arlington: “You ask twelve guys in Speedos whether we should build [the Long Bridge Aquatics Center], you will get a twelve to zip vote yes.”

Schutz suggested the county keep track of how respondents hear of the survey, so they know whose perspectives are being captured.

“I might require that surveys… contain an identifier so that the people tabulating results could see which ones had been filled out by people who were notified through the, say, Arlington Historical Society website and which by people notified through the ‘Engulf and Destroy Developers Mwa-ha-ha website,’ the County Board website — and if the opinion tendencies were wildly different, flag it for the decision makers that that was so.”

Joan Fitzgerald, a local resident who works in surveying populations, says county survey questions are often worded to confirm the biases of the survey writers, while the questions can be jargon-dense.

“County survey questions are often confusing, and participants often need a strong background in the topic to even understand what’s being asked,” said Fitzgerald, who sits on the development oversight committee for the Ashton Heights Civic Association.

(more…)

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