News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
A runner and fallen leaves long the Bluemont Trail (Flickr pool photo by Tom Mockler)

Veterans Day Closures — Arlington schools, libraries and most local government facilities are closed today due to the observance of Veterans Day. Additionally, parking meters will not be enforced. [Arlington County]

Event at Arlington National Cemetery — “Join ANC for the National #VeteransDay Observance this Sat., Nov. 11 at 11… You must use the tram to go to the Memorial Amphitheater, walking to the event will not be permitted.” [Twitter]

Gun Brandishing Incident — “4600 block of King Street. At approximately 7:17 a.m. on November 8, police were dispatched to the report of a brandishing. Upon arrival, it was determined the female victim was walking in the area when the female suspect approached and began yelling and filming her before allegedly brandishing what appeared to be a firearm. The suspect subsequently left the scene in a vehicle. During the course of the investigation, officers identified the suspect, located her inside her vehicle and took her into custody.” [ACPD]

Comcast Gets Another Extension — “Arlington County Board members on Nov. 11 are expected to extend, again, the franchise agreement that allows Comcast to provide cable-television service in the county… The extension will allow both sides to continue working on an agreement through late 2024. In a letter to the county government, Comcast officials agreed to the extension.” [Gazette Leader]

Another Snowy Winter Prediction — “We’re anticipating a harsher winter ahead, and one that is much more satisfying for those who love the snow. Our outlook calls for above-normal snowfall for the first time since the winter of 2018-2019, when Reagan National Airport, Washington’s official observing location, received 16.9 inches.” [Capital Weather Gang]

It’s Friday — Expect rain mainly from 10am to 4pm, accompanied by cloudy skies and a high near 52. Northwest winds will shift west, blowing at 6 to 10 mph, with a 70% chance of precipitation. Rainfall amounts will be less than a tenth of an inch. Friday night will be partly cloudy with a low of 38 and a light west wind. Veterans Day will be mostly sunny, featuring a high around 55 and northwest winds at 6 to 8 mph. [Weather.gov]

Flickr pool photo by Tom Mockler

NEW: Protests come to Arlington amid Israel-Hamas war

By ARLnow.com
1/7

Protests have been targeting the Arlington offices of military contractors amid the Israel-Hamas war.

At least the second protest in as many days was being held outside of the Lockheed Martin building at 2121 Crystal Drive today. The midday protest featured about ten demonstrators carrying Palestinian flags, holding signs and conducting a “die-in” on the public sidewalk.

They also placed child-sized coffins and baby dolls splashed with red paint on the ground around them. A contingent of Arlington County police officers stood watch over the protest and at one point directed the demonstrators off of private property.

Organizer Hazami Barmada, who was holding a sign with the words “Your Weapons Are Killing Babies,” said the group has been conducting protests around Arlington and D.C. for the past 15 days.

“We do die-ins and silent protests like this to help hopefully inspire the hearts and minds of more people to understand the plight of what’s happening to the… Palestinian population,” she said. “Today, we are in front of Lockheed Martin. We’ve actually been in front of all the weapons manufacturers in the D.C. area. And we’re going to continue to do that to put pressure on corporations that are benefiting financially from the genocide and ethnic cleansing that’s happening towards the Palestinian people right now.”

“The seventh of October, we saw a massive spike in [Lockheed Martin’s] stock and also the revenue of the support for these companies that are benefiting,” Barmada continued, referencing the day that Hamas militants crossed into Israel from Gaza and killed over 1,000 Israeli civilians. “So we’re putting our bodies out on the line right now. To say enough benefiting financially off of the murder of innocent civilians.”

Since Oct. 7, Israeli bombardments and a currently underway ground invasion have reportedly killed more than 10,000 Palestinians. Pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian protests have broken out worldwide since the start of the war, and international pressure has ramped up for a release of the several hundred Israeli hostages being held by Hamas and for Israel to minimize civilian deaths.

“Human rights for the Palestinians does not negate human rights for someone else,” Barmada said. “We do this in from the White House, the State Department, all buildings around D.C., to remind people of the cost of inaction and the human realities behind it.”

Barmada said the group protested at the U.S. Capitol yesterday and plans to protest in front of Raytheon in Rosslyn later today.

The Rosslyn protest will be at least the second this week at the now Arlington-based company’s headquarters. Yesterday six activists were charged with trespassing by Arlington police during a protest “to confront the war profiteer on its role in producing weapons that are causing extreme suffering and death to innocent children, women, and men around the world,” according to the anti-war group Code Pink.

ACPD spokeswoman Alli Shorb confirmed the incident. A group of six people from Pennsylvania, Maryland, Wisconsin and New York — ranging in age from 28 to 77 — were arrested, charged and released, she said.

More, below, from ACPD.

TRESPASS, 2023-11080112, 1100 block of Wilson Boulevard. At approximately 12:12 p.m. on November 8, police were dispatched to the report of trespassing. Upon arrival, it was determined a group of individuals were protesting on private property. The property manager reportedly spoke with the group and asked them to leave which they refused. Responding officers then spoke with each member of the group regarding the request from the property manager and advised they would be subject to arrest if they remained on the property. The below listed individuals remained on the property following the announcement and were arrested and charged with trespassing and released on personal recognizance.

James Jarvis contributed to this report

County weighs tentative wage increases for trades workers against predicted 2025 budget gap

By Jo DeVoe
County workers fix a valve in Ballston (via Arlington Dept. of Environmental Services/Flickr)

Unionized trade workers have tentatively negotiated with Arlington County for wage increases and safety protections for the next four years.

Predicting a budget gap in the 2025 budget, however, the county says it will have to raise taxes or make budget cuts to pay for these provisions, according to a fiscal analysis the Arlington County Board is set to hear about during its Saturday meeting.

If the county opts to raise taxes, residents could see their bill go up $5-9 on average. This would be in addition to a predicted 1.8% increase in real estate values, which works out to an average increase of $146. For reference, property values increased 4.5% for 2023.

Higher taxes or budget cuts would cover most of the increases. The rest would be covered with a nearly $3 utility fee increase and a new stormwater utility fee that residents will begin paying in 2024 in lieu of the current sanitary district tax.

Arlington County held steady residential real estate taxes this year, at $1.013 for every $100 in assessed value. Arlington County Board Chair Christian Dorsey has foreshadowed this could go up next year, however. To cover the tentative wage increases, county officials are suggesting raising the rate to $1.0136 or $1.0141.

County government and the Service, Labor, And Trades (SLT) Bargaining Unit have tentatively agreed to 55 provisions, of which only a handful, including higher wages, have financial impacts, according to the county. Another would ensure employees do not end up getting less weekly pay after responding to emergencies.

“Crews work on emergency situations, like water main breaks, often outside of the normal workday schedule and can be scheduled outside of their normal hours to complete such work,” Director of Management and Finance Maria Meredith says.  “In cases where this occurs and impacts the normal work schedule, this premium ensures that staff will receive at least 40 hours of pay in the week if such a situation arises.”

SLT union members also requested more subsidized parking for unionized employees and the ability to do union-related work without forfeiting docked pay or paid time off.

This works out to about $1 million in additional expense in the 2025 fiscal year budget: $511,000 from the General Fund, $401,000 from the Utility Fund and $94,000 to other funds. Budgets through the 2028 fiscal year will be affected, too, and the county is now looking for funding sources.

“Given the projected budget gap in the FY 2025 General Fund budget, the $0.5 million FY 2025 impact of this potential agreement cannot be absorbed within estimated revenue growth without taking service reductions, increasing taxes, or a combination of these options,” per a county report.

The following chart shows two scenarios for how the tax bill could go up to cover the tentative agreement:

Scenarios for paying for wage increases for service and trades workers (via Arlington County)

If the Board opts not to raise taxes, it could pay for the $511,000 General Fund obligation with across-the-board cuts to the tune of 0.1% or eliminating about four full-time employees who earn $125,000 each, including benefits.

Any reductions “would be considered with input and engagement from the community,” the county says.

“In prior years, similar FTE reductions have been taken across a variety of agencies, including planning, public safety, human services and environmental services,” the county says.

Arlington County proposes a modest increase to the water-sewer rate to cover the $401,000 in increased costs coming from the utility fund.

On average, residential customers would see their water bill go up $2.85 per year. A $0.20 per thousand gallon rate increase to cover expenses to the Stormwater Utility Fund will be included in next year’s new stormwater utility fee.

In December, the County Board “can resolve to make a good faith commitment to appropriate funding to meet the obligations under the tentative agreement,” the report says. If the Board does not, either the County Manager or the union may reopen negotiations.

Photo via Arlington Dept. of Environmental Services/Flickr

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
A crape myrtle and a blue wall (Flickr pool photo by Jeff Vincent)

Veterans Day Concert Today — “In honor of all who proudly serve and defend our nation, Arlington County will host a Veterans Day Commemoration and Concert, featuring the Brass Quintet from the U.S. Army Band ‘Pershing’s Own.’ Everyone is invited to join us in person at Bozman Government Center Plaza (2100 Clarendon Blvd.) Thurs., Nov. 9, at 11:30 a.m.” [Arlington County]

Pedestrian Struck in Crystal City — From Dave Statter: “Watch: Pedestrian struck, apparently without serious injury, at Route 1 and 23rd Street in Crystal City just after 6p.m. @ArlingtonVaFD & @ArlingtonVaPD handled.” [Twitter]

APS May Nix Wellness Reporting — “Arlington Public Schools apparently has not been abiding by its own requirements to present the public with annual reports detailing how each school is progressing as is works to meet the school system’s overall student-wellness goals. Instead of forcing schools to follow the rules and create/disseminate those mandated reports, the school system likely will rescind the requirement altogether unless School Board members step in.” [Gazette Leader]

Write-down for Local Developer — “The loss includes about $59.3 million in impairment charges related to reduced values at three properties… JBG Smith wrote down the values of two office buildings, both decades old, at 2100 Crystal Drive in Arlington and 2101 L St. NW in D.C., and of an unspecified development parcel, per the company’s quarterly report filed Nov. 7.” [Washington Business Journal]

Whitlow’s Gets Closer to Arlington — “WoW. It’s those three yellow letters with green shadowing that at one time marked the home of Whitlow’s on Wilson, the venerable Clarendon restaurant and bar that shuttered in 2021 after nearly three decades. Prepare for the return of the WoW factor. It won’t be on Wilson Boulevard this time; it’ll be a floating watering hole on the Potomac River.” [Washington Business Journal]

It’s Thursday — Expect mostly sunny skies with a high around 77, accompanied by south winds at 10 to 13 mph shifting to the northwest in the afternoon, and gusts reaching up to 20 mph. Clouds will increase Thursday night as temperatures drop to around 49, with northwest winds continuing at 8 to 14 mph and gusts still reaching 20 mph. [Weather.gov]

Flickr pool photo by Jeff Vincent

Deep blue Arlington played a supporting role for Dems in competitive state races

By Jo DeVoe
1/6

(Updated at 4:10 p.m.) Tight races for the state legislature and proposed restrictions on abortion motivated Virginians to the polls on Election Day.

This was despite the lack of statewide and federal elections, which typically drive turnout. The races for local office and the Virginia General Assembly played out against the backdrop of Republicans vying for a trifecta — control of the governor’s office as well as the lower and upper legislature chambers — and Democrats trying to stop them.

At stake were abortion rights, as Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) floated trying to pass a 15-week ban if Republicans took the Senate and kept the House.

Arlington had two state Senate and several House of Delegates seats on the ballot. Only three races had challengers, however, and among them Democratic incumbents Sen. Adam Ebbin, Sen. Barbara Favola and Del. Alfonso Lopez all won last night. While their road to victory was easier, the competition was stiff elsewhere in Virginia, commanding their attention and that of other politically minded Arlingtonians.

“It’s a little strange in Arlington because we’re in this blue bubble in what’s essentially a purple state leaning slightly toward Democrats,” says Sam Shirazi, an East Falls Church resident and Virginia elections analyst. “Virginia is just one of those states where, especially in these state elections, as opposed to federal elections, it’s almost always going to be close. ”

Shirazi had predicted Democrats would secure slim majorities in the Senate and House of Delegates, which he says is coming to pass. Democrats flipped the House and retained the Senate, not in a sweep but by securing key seats in suburban counties such as Loudoun and Henrico.

Arlington played a supporting role in these races, says Arlington County Democratic Chair Steve Baker. Volunteers spent 40 days canvassing, making thousands of phone calls and sending out 18,000 postcards and targeted seven districts of which Democrats won in six.

“Grassroots organizing works,” said Kip Malinosky, chair of the initiative dubbed Beyond Arlington. “Democrats win when we’re talking about issues that matter: abortion rights, voting rights, and gun safety. I’m proud that we played a role in helping Democrats win across the state.”

State Sen. Adam Ebbin, who was re-elected in the 39th District, said Virginians sent their governor a strong message last night.

That message would be that you can work with people across the aisle to get things done for the betterment of the Commonwealth rather than dividing them in a cynical and twisted manner. And I believe that Virginians don’t want, and will express by the end of tonight, that we don’t want the government banning books. We don’t want people interfering with our personal freedoms, whether it’s reproductive rights, your right to breathe clean air, or the safety of our communities from gun violence.

Shirazi says the state races were closer due to Virginia’s 2021 redistricting effort, in which he participated.

“Previously the maps were drawn by the legislatures themselves and obviously they had an incentive to try and protect themselves, to maybe protect their party,” he said. “This time… a lot of the incumbents, either in the primary or the general election, lost, so we had a lot of turnover in the General Assembly, and then, both chambers were competitive because they weren’t drawn to favor either party.”

“That’s why there was a lot of suspense going into the election,” he continued.

(more…)

Arlington eyes $1.2M house for Lang Street Community Gardens expansion

By James Jarvis
1/5

The Arlington County Board is considering buying a property adjacent to the Lang Street Community Gardens to expand its gardening space.

The Board is set to review — and likely approve — the $1.2 million sale agreement for the house at 1128 28th Street S. during its meeting this Saturday.

If approved, it will be the county’s ninth property acquisition on this same block in the Arlington Ridge neighborhood since 1969, according to a spokesperson for the Arlington Dept. of Environmental Services.

The most recent was a 0.2-acre site at 2822 S. Arlington Ridge Road — situated on the block’s southeastern edge — which the county bought in 2015 for $699,000. That house was demolished to create 45 half-sized plots.

Following the purchase of the nearly 0.3-acre property on 28th Street, the house would be razed to add “approximately 43 new 10’ by 20’ garden plots,” according to a county report.

Arlington County’s Office of Historic Preservation determined the residence, built around the 1930s, does not have any historical or architectural significance, per the report. The item is on the Board’s Consent Agenda, reserved for items deemed noncontroversial by county staff.

Arlington County aims to enlarge Lang Street Community Gardens by acquiring residence at 1128 28th Street S. (via Arlington County)

By creating more garden plots, the county aims to ease the high demand for the nearly 2.3 acres of community garden space throughout Arlington.

The waiting period for larger gardens, including Lang Street, is often under a year, but for smaller ones, such as 1601 Key Blvd, the wait can extend to three to five years, according to a spokesperson for the Dept. of Parks and Recreation.

As of this past Monday, the waitlist for Lang Street Community Gardens had 1,094 hopeful gardeners.

The potential purchase also advances the county’s strategic plan to add at least 30 acres of new public space, including two more community gardens, over the next 10 years as part of the 2019 Public Spaces Master Plan.

In addition to the property’s purchase price, county officials estimate that demolition costs would be about $350,000.

Alleged pickleball masturbator nabbed after Columbia Pike peeping incident

By ARLnow.com
File photo

A man whose stroke on the pickleball court was most unwelcome has allegedly been identified and arrested.

Police say a 49-year-old Arlington resident was taken into custody Monday after a peeping incident along Columbia Pike Friday night.

Just before 7 p.m. Friday, according to Arlington County police, the man was spotted masturbating while peeping into a business on the 1000 block of S. Edgewood Street. A source tells ARLnow that the business was a boxing gym.

Police were only told about the incident the next day, but a “review of evidence in the case” led them to the suspect, who was then also linked to a public masturbation incident on the morning of May 3 at the Walter Reed Community Center pickleball courts.

ARLnow previously reported about a pair of masturbation incidents at the Walter Reed courts in April. A police press release makes no reference to those incidents.

The suspect is currently being held in jail on two counts of public masturbation and one count of peeping, according to police.

More, below, from the ACPD press release.

The Arlington County Police Department’s Patrol Section is announcing the arrest of a suspect following investigations into exposure incidents. Alexei Rodriguez, 49, of Arlington, VA is charged with Public Masturbation (x2) and Peeping. He is being held without bond in the Arlington County Detention Facility.

At approximately 1:45 p.m. on November 4, police were dispatched to the 1000 block of S. Edgewood Street for the late report of a peeping. Upon arrival, it was determined at approximately 6:55 p.m. on November 3, the occupants of an open business allegedly observed the suspect peeping through a window and masturbating before leaving the scene on foot. Following the review of evidence in the case, officers identified the suspect and obtained warrants for his arrest. He was taken into custody on the morning of November 6.

As a result of the ongoing criminal investigation, officers identified Mr. Rodriguez as the suspect in an exposure incident from May and obtained an additional arrest warrant. At approximately 10:44 a.m. on May 3, a patrol officer was contacted by a community member regarding a male suspect allegedly observed masturbating by the courts of the Walter Reed Community Center located at 2909 16th Street S.

Crime prevention and control is a key initiative of the Arlington County Police Department and officers are committed to conducting active patrols throughout Arlington and comprehensive follow-up investigations to identify, deter and prevent criminal activity. Community members observing in-progress criminal activity should report information immediately for police investigation by calling the Emergency Communications Center at 703-558-2222 or 9-1-1 in an emergency.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Autumnal scene at Sharps Park in North Arlington (Flickr pool photo by Michael McCullough)

Flyover This Afternoon — From AlertDC: “The Naval Air Force Atlantic will conduct a military aircraft flyover in the NCR over the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery on Wednesday, November 8, 2023, at approximately 3:10PM.”

Parents Still Coping With Son’s Death — “Some families cope with loss behind closed doors. Rose and Kris chose to shoulder theirs frequently out in the open. As the months passed, rather than avoid situations where Braylon should have been, they embraced them—and were embraced in return. They were in the bleachers for as many W-L basketball games as their schedules would allow. In the spring, they attended pre-prom gatherings and graduation parties for Braylon’s peers.” [Arlington Magazine]

Arlington Rents Dip Slightly — “Median Arlington apartment rents dropped 0.9 percent from September to October, in line with historic norms but slightly above the 0.7-percent national dropoff. The median rental rate for county apartments for the month was $2,275 ($2,146 for one-bedroom units and $2,567 for two bedrooms), according to figures reported Oct. 31 by Apartment List.” [Gazette Leader]

Local Thanksgiving Pie Guide — “Spend more time with family and guests—and less in the kitchen—with the help of these area bakeries.” [Arlington Magazine]

Guilty Plea in Child Exploitation Case — “A former FBI contractor pleaded guilty today to production and receipt of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). According to court documents, beginning in February, Brett Janes, 26, of Arlington, groomed a 13-year-old minor (MV1) to transition from playing Valorant with him, a popular first-person shooter game, to engaging in “strip” games on a video chat function in Discord.” [ARLnow]

Morning Robbery in Virginia Square — “At approximately 8:00 a.m., the female victim was inside her parked vehicle when the two suspects approached. Suspect One opened the passenger door while Suspect Two opened the driver’s side door, assaulted the victim and stole her cellphone. The victim screamed and Suspect One ran from the scene and Suspect Two fled in a white SUV. Medics evaluated the victim on scene.” [ACPD]

Local Company Makes Acquisition — “Arlington health-tech company Surescripts LLC has acquired Minneapolis-based analytics startup ActiveRadar Inc. in a deal the local firm says adds an important dimension to its electronic prescription service for health systems and pharmacies.” [Washington Business Journal]

HQ2 Lit Up in Green — “In honor of Veterans Day, more than 30 of Amazon’s operation sites around the U.S. and the company’s headquarters in King County, Washington, and Arlington County, Virginia will participate in Operation Green Light for Veterans from November 6 – 12.” [Press Release]

Doug Kammerer Predicts Snowy Winter — “Get those waterproof boots and snow shovels ready — because if you want snow, and lots of it, Storm Team4 says this could be your year. Storm Team 4 is predicting: 22″-30″ of snow this winter for the I-95 corridor and the D.C. metro area.” [NBC 4]

It’s Wednesday — Expect sunny skies and a high of 61 degrees, accompanied by a north wind at 6 mph, later becoming light and variable. For Wednesday night, the sky will be partly cloudy with a low temperature around 49 degrees and a southeast wind at 6 mph. [Weather.gov]

Flickr pool photo by Michael McCullough

DEVELOPING: Arlington Democrats celebrate another local election sweep

By ARLnow.com
1/2

(Updated at 11:15 p.m.) It is another good election night for Arlington Democrats.

While some might have hoped for a Missing Middle-inspired upset in the two-seat Arlington County Board race, Democrats Maureen Coffey and Susan Cunningham have commanding leads over Republican Juan Carlos Fierro and independent Audrey Clement.

All but one Arlington precinct have reported results as of 10 p.m.

There is some evidence of a relatively minor Missing Middle backlash at the ballot box on Election Day: Cunningham — who advocates for “closely monitoring and revising” the policy, also known as “Expanded Housing Options” — is running just shy of three points ahead of Coffey, who generally supports it.

Clement, the most outspoken Missing Middle critic among the four candidates, has nearly 13% of the vote, about the same as Fierro. That compares to about 35% and 38% for Coffey and Cunningham, respectively.

Elsewhere down the ballot, it’s a sea of blue votes.

Among competitive races, GOP state Senate candidate Sophia Moshasha kept it closest, with about 24% of the vote to 75% for incumbent Sen. Adam Ebbin. Republican David Henshaw has 21% of the vote to 79% for incumbent Sen. Barbara Favola. And incumbent Del. Alfonso Lopez is defeating independent Major Mike Webb 81% to 18%.

The remaining races have no active second candidates, resulting in the election of incumbent Del. Patrick Hope in the 1st House District, Adele McClure in the 2nd House District, incumbent Clerk of the Circuit Court Paul Ferguson, incumbent Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti, Sheriff Jose Quiroz, Commissioner of Revenue Kim Klingler, incumbent Treasurer Carla de la Pava, and School Board member Miranda Turner.

“We’re really excited,” Arlington Democrats Chair Steve Baker told ARLnow. “It seems like the voter turnout was really high all day long… We had a lot of local issues this year that brought people out in the primary. I think that helped Democrats.”

“With respect to the General Assembly, it was every bit about protecting the progress Democrats made after the 2019 election on voting rights, on education, on common sense gun safety, on protecting reproductive rights,” Baker continued. “Arlington voters were motivated to go to the polls.”

On the County Board race, Baker said he expects “difficult conversations” to continue while Board members “find the right approach and combination of policy to solve the issue of housing.”

Local Democrats potentially have another reason to celebrate tonight: election watchers project the party has won control of both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly.

While the Arlington GOP came up well short in the vote tally, it did notch a national news story today.

A voter’s expletive-filled rant against local party chair Matthew Hurtt, who was handing out sample ballots — as previously noted by ARLnow — ended up on the homepage of Fox News, Townhall and other media outlets.

James Jarvis contributed to this report

Costs go up for forthcoming traffic signals along Courthouse ‘Landmark block’

By Jo DeVoe
1/2

Costs are rising for some traffic signal upgrades in Courthouse.

Developer Greystar is installing new traffic signals at three intersections near its new, 423-unit, 20-story building that replaced several restaurants, including Summers Restaurant, in an area known as the “Landmark block.”

The new signals are part of a host of other county-funded projects the developer agreed to undertake in January 2022, along with pavement, sidewalk and curb and gutter improvements to public streets.

These improvements have progressed on a separate timeline from the building, approved in March 2021 and on which Greystar broke ground that fall. This July, as construction on the apartments drew to a close, Greystar received extra time for the transportation projects.

Earlier this year, when the civil engineering plan for the traffic signals was under review, county staff made some “refinements to technical details” regarding the signals, per a county report.

These tweaks increased the overall project costs by $1.1 million, according to the county. Greystar is requesting the additional funding to complete the work and the Arlington County Board is set to review this ask on Saturday.

The overall cost of the project is now $3.5 million, up from $2.4 million.

The traffic signals will be installed where N. Courthouse Road bisects Wilson and Clarendon Blvd as well as the intersections of N. Courthouse Road and 15th Street N. and N. Uhle Street and Clarendon Blvd.

The changes, which the county describes as “refinements to technical details,” are as follows:

A. Increases in all mast arm lengths, which require more costly structures and foundations.
B. Increases in the lengths of trenched conduits due to the density of the underground utilities.
C. Changes to equipment specifications to accommodate newer technologies in the control cabinets.
D. Increases in signal and civil design costs.
E. Additional duration of maintenance of traffic due to the complexity of the anticipated work.

DES obtained an independent cost estimate of this work, $2.77 million. The county says Greystar’s $2.75 million request is thus “fair and reasonable.”

As for the apartment building, the first set of tenants were set to move into “The Commodore” starting last month. The first retail tenants in a slate of restaurants and fitness studios were also set to move in last month, too, though others will not open until next year.

Arlington sees a busy start to Election Day

By Jo DeVoe
1/5

Election Day got off to a busier-than-expected start this morning.

As of this morning, some 9,200 voters turned out to vote today, according to the Arlington County’s Dept. of Elections.

“So far, the pace today has been slightly busier than June,” observed Tania Griffin, the communications director for the elections department.

This year is an off-off-year, or one with neither gubernatorial nor presidential offices on the ballot. In Arlington, voters are selecting candidates for local offices as well as representatives to the state Senate and House of Delegates.

Mallory McPherson, who is chief of precinct 146, told ARLnow that the flow of voters has been stronger than she expected.

“Usually the state elections are a little quieter but it’s been steady all day,” she said, noting a mix of voters so far. Before 9 a.m., it was mostly people voting on their way to work and since then, more families have stopped by.

Griffin says early voting, which ended Saturday, “definitely picked up in the last week.”

Early voting kicked off in September to a muted start, with only one poll open. After additional locations opened, the pace ramped up and on the last two days of early voting, more than 800 people cast ballots.

Overall, early voting far outpaced numbers in the last comparable election year, 2019. This year, 7% voted early and in-person while another 9% requested mail-in ballots.

In 2019, 9% of voters voted absentee, both in person and mail, Griffin said. Total turnout in 2019 was 37%.

“The difference between in-person absentee voting today vs. 2019 is in 2019 voters were required to provide an excuse to vote early,” Griffin said.

The morning kicked off with a confrontation outside one of the polling places involving Matthew Hurtt, the chairman of the Arlington GOP, which he recorded and posted on social media.

Hurtt was near the Dawson Terrace Community Center, offering people sample Republican ballots, when an unidentified voter confronted him, making liberal use of expletives.

“You might as well have been walking up to my head and… putting a gun to my head and telling me not to vote and you expect me not to take that [expletive] personally?” the man said.

The scene appeared notably calmer at Arlington Central Library, where Democratic Arlington County Board candidate Maureen Coffey observed a lot of activity this morning.

Coffey is one of four candidates vying for two seats on the Arlington County Board, along with Democrat Susan Cunningham, Republican Juan Carlos Fierro and independent Audrey Clement.

The victorious candidates will replace a seat Katie Cristol vacated this summer and a seat that Board Chair Christian Dorsey will leave behind this December.

Two Virginia State Senate races are also competitive: incumbent Democrat Sen. Adam Ebbin is going up against Republican Sophia Moshasha for the 39th District and incumbent Democrat Sen. Barbara Favola is going up against Republican David Henshaw for the 40th District.

Races are less competitive for local delegates to the lower chamber of Virginia’s state legislature.

(more…)

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