News

Suspect in stolen ambulance chase had a recent Arlington arrest

By ARLnow.com
Stolen ambulance chase in Pentagon City (photo via Dave Statter/YouTube)

(Updated on 8/16/23) The man accused of damaging upwards of 20 vehicles after stealing two trucks and an Arlington County ambulance over the weekend was previously arrested in Arlington in May.

Darell Caldwell, a 30-year-old Maryland man, is facing both federal and local charges in the wild Saturday afternoon incident, in which he led police on a winding chase of the stolen ambulance across parts of Arlington and into D.C. before his arrest, according to Virginia State Police.

New video from local public safety watcher Dave Statter gives an extended look at the chase.

Traffic camera video posted by Statter also shows how the series of crashes started: with the stolen truck sideswiping a vehicle in the Rosslyn tunnel along I-66. Prior to that, a truck was reported stolen from a construction site in the City of Falls Church.

https://twitter.com/RVANOVA01/status/1691146095764582423?s=20

Caldwell has a criminal record in Arlington, Fairfax County, D.C. and Prince George’s County, according to court records. He was out on bond from a recent Arlington case but became a fugitive after not showing up to a July court hearing, records show. The bond, for a drug possession charge, was approved by a magistrate judge.

“At no point before trial was the Commonwealth in a position to argue for or against Mr. Caldwell’s release,” Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti noted to ARLnow.

He was due in court after an incident just before midnight on May 25 along N. Glebe Road, a few blocks north of Ballston. According to Arlington County police, Caldwell was tried to run from police after he was seen walking in the middle of Glebe Road.

From ACPD:

NARCOTICS VIOLATION, 2023-05250307, N. Glebe Road and 14th Street N. At approximately 11:43 p.m. on May 25, 2023, a patrol officer observed two intoxicated males walking in lanes of traffic on N. Glebe Road and detained them. While conducting the investigation, Suspect One attempted to run from the scene while Suspect Two resisted arrest. With the assistance of an additional arriving officer, both suspects were taken into custody. Suspect One was transported to an area hospital for medical evaluation and during a search of his property, officers recovered narcotics. Darell Caldwell, 30, of Brandywine, MD was arrested and charged with Drunk in Public, Disorderly Conduct, and Possession of Controlled Substance I/ II. Suspect Two was evaluated by medics on scene and, during the course of the investigation, officers determined he was in possession of two concealed knives. Anthony Jeffers, 38, of Arlington, VA was arrested and charged with Drunk in Public, Disorderly Conduct, and Possession and Concealing a Weapon by a Convicted Felon (x2).

The advanced life support ambulance Caldwell is accused of stealing and crashing into a dozen or so vehicles on I-395 and in Southwest D.C., meanwhile, is set to be repaired. The Arlington County Fire Department will utilize a spare unit until the ambulance, dubbed Medic 110, is back in service.

“The damage is repairable and depending on parts availability, should only take one to two months,” fire department spokesman Capt. Nate Hiner tells ARLnow. “We do have a reserve medic unit to use, as we have five spare ambulances in our fleet.”

Stolen ambulance damaged in chase (photo via Virginia State Police/Facebook)

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Eagle perched on a utility pole in Arlington View (photo courtesy Sean Hackbarth)

Pentagon City TSA Site Proposal — “Two apartment towers would go on the site’s western half, along South Hayes Street. The site’s southeastern corner, at the intersection of 12th Street South and South Fern Street, would become home to either an office or another apartment tower. The site’s northeastern corner, along South Fern Street, would become home to either a condo tower or a hotel.” [Washington Business Journal]

Road Closures for County Fair — “The Arlington County Fair will take place from August 16 – 20, 2023, at Thomas Jefferson Community Center located at 3501 2nd Street S. The Arlington County Police Department will conduct the following road closure to accommodate the event: 2nd Street S., between S. Jackson Street and S. Irving Street, will be closed from 8:00 AM on August 16 until 11:00 PM on August 20.” [Arlington County]

Survey About Arlington Traffic — “Another reader said they believe Arlington’s efforts to improve traffic flow over the past few years have paid off. ‘There are still a few places with ‘blind’ intersections — mostly due to heavy vegetation at the corners — but, in general, I feel safer driving in Arlington than I did five years ago,’ the reader said.” [Patch]

Teen Team Near Top in Tourneys — “In a four-week stretch, the Arlington Senior Babe Ruth age 15 All-Stars finished first, second and third in postseason Babe Ruth baseball tournaments, compiling a 9-4 overall record with two shutouts in those competitions. Arlington won the District 4 tourney with a 2-0 record, finished third in the state event in Williamsburg with a 3-2 mark, then concluded play with a runner-up in the seven-team Southeast Region tournament at 4-2.” [Gazette Leader]

YIMBYs Reflect on Missing Middle Fight — “They workshopped public comments, helping residents hone in on what they wanted to say. They worked to make testifying easier day-of by monitoring the speaker list and contacting people when it was almost their turn at the mic… Hogan, Green and other advocates believe the unity of the coalition was what ultimately led to its success. In March, the Arlington County Board passed a version of the policy — with some compromises — unanimously, making Arlington one of the first localities in the country to end single-family zoning.” [DCist]

WaPo Editorial: Keep RCV — “But after ranked-choice tabulation, one winner supported the [Missing Middle] plan and the other opposed it. This choice was more representative of how the community felt than the one voters would have faced if the county had used the traditional first-past-the-post system… Arlington should continue experimenting with ranked-choice voting despite complaints from a small number of people.” [Washington Post]

It’s Monday — There is a 50% chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm, with otherwise partly sunny skies and a high near 89°F. Calm winds will shift to a southern direction at 5-8 mph. Monday night sees a 60% chance of precipitation, with intermittent showers and thunderstorms, mostly cloudy skies, and a low around 73°F. Southeast winds at 6-10 mph will become southwest after midnight. Rainfall amounts may range from a tenth to a quarter of an inch, with higher amounts in thunderstorms. [Weather.gov]

BREAKING: Numerous crashes block I-395 after truck hit-and-run suspect steals Arlington ambulance

By ARLnow.com
1/5

(Updated at 11 p.m.) A suspect in a truck crashed into multiple vehicles on I-66 and I-395, then led police on a wild chase in a stolen Arlington ambulance.

The incidents started shortly after 3:30 p.m., with reports of a stolen Freightliner truck striking vehicles on I-66 in the Rosslyn area and again on northbound I-395 just before the 14th Street Bridge. I-395 was blocked by the crashes and at least two people were hurt, including one with reported significant injuries.

The same hit-and-run suspect then allegedly stole another truck before hopping in and stealing an Arlington ambulance around 4:15 p.m. Medics tried to pull the suspect out of the ambulance but he drove off, leading Virginia State Police — followed by Arlington police — on a chase through parts of Crystal City and Pentagon City. The suspect struck numerous vehicles on the northbound HOV lanes of I-395 as he fled into D.C., according to Virginia State Police.

Eventually the ambulance was stopped on I-395 in southwest D.C. and the suspect taken into custody, according to Virginia State Police.

All northbound lanes of I-395, including HOV lanes, were blocked as of 4:45 p.m., with delays on the highway extending upwards of two miles. The HOV lanes reopened by 6:15 p.m. while crews continued to clear the crash scene in the still-blocked main lanes. As of 7:15 p.m. two main lanes had reopened, per VDOT.

At least 20 vehicles were damaged over the course of the hour-long string of incidents, including the ambulance, a VSP cruiser, a parked vehicle in D.C., vehicles on the GW Parkway and I-66, and well over a dozen vehicles on I-395.

Virginia State Police said in a press release Saturday night that the suspect is a 30-year-old Maryland man.

At 3:40 p.m. Saturday (Aug. 12), Virginia State Police responded to a two-vehicle crash in the eastbound lanes of I-66 near the 74 mile marker. The truck that caused the crash fled the scene. The truck had been reported stolen out of Falls Church, Va., and the driver was later identified as Darell T. Caldwell, 30, of Brandywine, Md. The driver of the other vehicle involved in this crash was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment of minor injuries.

At 3:41 p.m., VSP responded to a multi-vehicle crash in the northbound lanes of I-395 near Exit 10 in Arlington County. The crash was caused by the same stolen truck being driven by Caldwell. A total of five people were transported to a nearby hospital as a result of this crash. Meanwhile, Caldwell fled the crash scene on foot.

Minutes later, State Police received a report of a crash on the George Washington Parkway involving another truck being driven by Caldwell that was driving the wrong way when it struck another vehicle. An Arlington County Fire Department ambulance responding to I-395 came upon the crash on the GW Parkway. The ambulance stopped and the medics got out to render aid to the drivers. While the medics were tending to the one driver, Caldwell ran up to the ambulance and drove off in it.

The medics waved down a VSP trooper who was responding to the crash scenes to alert him to the stolen ambulance. The trooper caught up to the stolen ambulance.  When the ambulance refused to stop for the trooper, a pursuit was initiated. At one point, the ambulance stopped in the road. As the trooper was getting out of his patrol car, Caldwell put the ambulance in reverse and rammed the state police vehicle and fled the scene.

The pursuit continued with Virginia State Police being assisted by Arlington County Police. During the course of the pursuit, the stolen ambulance accessed the I-395 Express Lanes and then entered Washington, D.C., where it struck head-on a parked vehicle at 14th Street NW and D Street NW. State police and Arlington County Police took Caldwell into custody without further incident. Caldwell was transported to a nearby hospital for medical evaluation.

The parked vehicle that was struck by the ambulance was occupied by one person. That individual suffered minor injuries.

During the course of the pursuit, the stolen ambulance struck multiple vehicles and again rammed the trooper’s patrol car. At this time, state police have accounted for and are investigating 13 hit-and-run crashes committed by the stolen ambulance. State police has not received any reports of serious injuries resulting from the crashes. No law enforcement were injured during the course of the pursuit. Anyone who was struck by the ambulance during the course of the pursuit is encouraged to contact the Virginia State Police at 703-803-0026.

Caldwell has been charged by federal and local law enforcement. State police charges are still pending.

Videos of the crashes, the chase and the arrest are below.

https://twitter.com/DCShariG/status/1690479104204677122?s=20

JUST IN: Man killed in moped crash near Courthouse

By ARLnow.com
Scene of fatal moped crash on Clarendon Blvd (photo courtesy anonymous)

A 44-year-old Arlington man died after he crashed into a light pole while riding a moped.

The crash happened around 9:45 p.m. Friday on the 1900 block of Clarendon Blvd, in the Courthouse area. The force of the crash caused the light pole to topple onto the sidewalk and reportedly left the moped rider in cardiac arrest, with significant facial injuries.

Police are investigating the crash but note that the moped was being driven at a high rate of speed.

One local resident who emailed ARLnow said the stretch of Clarendon Blvd where the crash happened is dangerous due to a steep downslope and bend in the road.

“This intersection is very unsafe and drivers go way too fast down the steep hill,” the resident wrote.

The full ACPD press release is below.

The Arlington County Police Department is investigating a fatal single-vehicle crash that occurred on the evening of August 11, 2023.

At approximately 9:44 p.m., police were dispatched to the 1900 block of Clarendon Boulevard for the report of a crash with injury. The preliminary investigation indicates the driver was travelling eastbound on Clarendon Boulevard on a moped at a high-rate of speed when the vehicle left the roadway and struck a utility pole.

The adult male driver was located unresponsive on the scene and was transported to an area hospital where he was pronounced deceased.

The driver of the moped has been identified as 44-year-old Solomon Zeleke of Arlington, Va.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation. Anyone with information related to this incident is asked to contact Detective S. Lafley at [email protected] or 703-228-4052. Information may also be reported anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

Construction could begin next year on affordable housing redevelopment in Crystal City

By Jo DeVoe
1/4

Construction could start on the redevelopment of Crystal House Apartments in Crystal City late next spring.

Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (A, which is spearheading the project along with D.C.-area developer EYA, expects to kick off construction in May or June of 2024, APAH spokeswoman Elise Panko tells ARLnow.

Arlington County selected the two companies build more affordable housing on the Crystal House apartment property after Amazon granted the county development rights to the vacant land, worth approximately $40 million. APAH and EYA have plans to construct 844 units on this empty plot, of which 655 will be designated as affordable.

Meanwhile, existing units will be kept affordable through a separate loan from Amazon. In an effort to mitigate the impact of its move to Arlington on the local housing market, the tech giant loaned the Washington Housing Conservancy money to purchase and stabilize rent at the complex, located at 1900 S. Eads Street, just one block from its second headquarters.

Several months after being selected to lead the project, APAH has requested the county’s permission to amend the previously approved development plans for the site, aiming to incorporate affordable housing, according to recently filed application materials.

APAH began by redesigning the project’s first phase, dubbed “Crystal House VI,” which is set to be located at the corner of 18th Street S. and S. Fern Street.

A rendering of Crystal House VI (via Arlington County)

When the project was approved in 2019, the “Crystal House VI” was envisioned as a five-story building housing 63 units. However, APAH now intends to pivot towards affordable senior rentals, which the developer says is necessary to secure additional financing.

The developer requested permission to increase the number of units to 80 and halve the number of parking spaces.

It also requested different façade materials that “maintain a high quality and appealing design while reducing construction costs,” according to land-use attorney Nicholas Cumings.

According to a letter from Cummings, the increase in units can be achieved without changing the building’s overall footprint. The units will be smaller than the originally planned market-rate condos.

“The proposed minor site plan amendment represents a significant milestone in realizing the county’s goals,” APAH Executive Vice President Carmen Romero wrote in a letter of support to the county. “Creating these homes requires the approval of this minor site plan amendment in order to make the design compatible with an affordable senior rental project.”

Once construction starts next year, Panko says APAH anticipates Crystal House VI to be done in the fall or winter of 2025.

“This phase will reconnect the streetscape to the surrounding community as well as provide carefully crafted amenities for our seniors that foster a sense of belonging and enhance the overall quality of life for residents,” Romero said in her letter.

When asked for a timeline of the other projects in the pipeline, Panko said “there are two buildings on the site that will remain occupied, so the development will be phased to accommodate existing operations.”

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
A building in Crystal City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Amazon Pushes Return to Office — “Amazon.com Inc. is warning employees who haven’t been complying with the company’s mandate to work at least three days per week in an assigned office, according to emails seen by Washington Business Journal sister paper Puget Sound Business Journal. Workers who haven’t been following the policy were sent an email Wednesday telling them they weren’t ‘meeting our expectation of joining your colleagues in the office at least three days a week, even though your assigned building is ready.'” [Washington Business Journal, New York Post]

School Board OKs More Office Space — “In a world where tenants are departing and downsizing commercial office space in droves, why does the staff leadership of the Arlington school system want to rent more of it? That was a question several School Board members had as a proposal moved forward for the school system to spend $186,000 next year – and more every succeeding year – to rent additional office space in its leased headquarters facility. The proposal, which also involved spending to set up and furnish the additional space, passed on a 3-1 vote.” [Gazette Leader]

Police Motorcycle Crash — From Dave Statter: “A #motorcycle officer escorting buses in I-395S express lanes near the Pentagon lost control of their bike & appeared to hit the jersey wall. Injuries not believed serious. All express lanes were shut for 20 minutes but right lane now gets by.” [Twitter]

Encore Learning Schedule — “Registration for the fall semester of Encore Learning will open on Sept. 11 at 10 a.m., with classes beginning in early October. Now in its 21st year in Arlington, the initiative provides college-level, non-credit educational opportunities for those age 50 and above, with both in-person and online options. Members also can access special events, such as presentations and tours, and take advantage of breakfast, cinema travel and other active clubs.” [Gazette Leader]

Electronic Sign at Penrose Square — The driver drama at Penrose Square has prompted the Arlington County Police Department to deploy an electronic signboard that reads “stop sign violators ticketed.” [Threads]

Optimists Optimistic About Tree Supply — “It may be the doggiest of summer’s dog days, but the Optimist Club of Arlington’s hunt for additional Christmas trees has paid off. The organization, which has been selling trees for more than three-quarters of a century to raise funds for youth programs, has found an additional 550 Fraser firs from a supplier in Jefferson County, N.C.” [Gazette Leader]

It’s Friday — Expect mostly sunny weather with a high near 87 degrees and a west wind of about 8 mph. In the evening, expect partly cloudy skies with a low around 69 degrees and a southeast wind at roughly 6 mph. [Weather.gov]

Rocks commemorating gun violence victims vanish from Courthouse garden

By James Jarvis
1/4

More than 100 painted rocks commemorating victims of gun violence seem to have gone missing from a garden in Courthouse.

The Arlington chapter of Moms Demand Action suspects someone may have stolen most of the 150 rocks in “Hope Garden,” a memorial garden located near Courthouse Plaza.

“Sometime in the last week, most of the rocks were stolen. Now about 25 remain,” says Susan Koch, the group leader, adding that she has “no idea who did it or why” and that members are “heartbroken.”

The garden near the intersection of N. Courthouse Road and 15th Street N. was dedicated in 2019. Since then, Koch says many group members have painted rocks and placed them in the garden to honor friends and relatives affected by gun violence, either through tragic loss or enduring trauma.

Apart from the stolen rocks, the rest of the garden remained untouched, she said.

Koch said the group plans to ask for the community’s support to restore the garden but she remains wary of future incidents occurring.

“We’re going to paint more rocks for sure to try and make up for the ones that were stolen,” Koch said. “But…how do we protect them from not being stolen again?”

Founded in 2012 after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, Moms Demand Action has emerged as a platform for some 10 million members to advocate for statewide and national gun safety measures.

Over the last decade, the local chapter has worked with elected officials, including Del. Patrick Hope (D) and State Sen. Barbara Favola (D), on gun safety laws, including a series of bills, such as universal background checks and “Red Flag” laws, passed by the General Assembly in 2020.

The group also discusses gun safety with schools and community organizations and works with local nonprofits, such as Doorways, which provides resources to victims of domestic violence.

“We have a program called, ‘Be Safe,’ which basically tells people how important it is to store their guns safely,” Koch said.

She emphasized that the group is not “anti-gun.” Instead, its members advocate for gun safety education as a crucial aspect of weapon ownership.

“We don’t want to take people’s guns away. We just want them to be safe,” Koch said.

Koch said the group might go to the police and file a report. Whatever the outcome, she noted the incident would not “break” them.

“We will persevere,” she said.

Parks department reports credit card payment issues during fall class registration

By Jo DeVoe
A frustrated technology user (illustration by ARLnow)

(Updated at 2:45 p.m.) Registration for fall classes through the parks department hit a snag this afternoon.

Spots opened up Tuesday for this fall’s slate of recreation and nature and history classes, dubbed ENJOY classes. Today, however, users may have experienced a slow system with error messages not authorizing credit card payments or delays receiving receipts.

Early this afternoon, the Arlington County Dept. of Parks and Recreation announced it was having technical difficulties with accepting payments by credit card.

In posts on social media, DPR encouraged people to instead pay by eCheck as it does not go through the same payment system as credit cards.

About 30 minutes later, the parks department said the issue had been resolved.

DPR spokeswoman Jerry Solomon tells ARLnow the payment snafu only briefly affected registration today. Between Tuesday and yesterday, she said, the system successfully logged more than 8,000 total registrations, including more than 7,000 completed online.

“The payment issue was only experienced during today’s registration,” she said. “We posted on our webpages and social media to make sure the community was aware, however as soon as the issue was rectified, people were able to resume their registration process as normal.”

Just after 12:50 p.m. the parks department received the all-clear from the payment processor that the system is fully functioning. By 1:20 p.m., more than 3,600 people were able to successfully register for classes, Solomon noted.

“We will have a better sense of what occurred today once our payment processor has diagnosed the issue,” Solomon said.

There was an issue with the payment processor during the Summer ENJOY registration process but she said it is unclear if this issue is the same.

“During the summer, staff were able to quickly respond by sharing an announcement online, helping callers, and making arrangements for payment by eCheck or at a later date,” she said.

This bug may be new but DPR has a history of issues with its registration platform.

In recent years parents would wake up bright and early, mouses at the ready, they would encounter problems logging in and navigating error messages — due to the crush of people trying to register at the same time.

Longstanding issues bubbled over last year when, despite efforts to beef up the system, it still crashed. County leaders put pressure on DPR to study what went wrong and develop a corrective plan. The break down also prompted the county to focus on ensuring departments properly vet technology services vendors.

After some tweaks and the addition of a wait room, this year’s summer camp registration process seemed to go off without a hitch — only for this new credit card payment issue to arise.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
ART bus getting towed (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Truck Crash Caught on Camera — From Dave Statter: “One of the scarier I-395S 8C crashes with a truck & 3 cars at 9:05 am. The car trying to make the exit just kept going south on Rt 1. Don’t know if they ever stopped.” [Twitter]

Accidental Gunfire in Arlington Mill — “5100 block of 7th Road S. At approximately 11:37 p.m. on August 8, police were dispatched to the report of a shooting. Upon arrival, it was determined the suspect was inside his residence when he allegedly unintentionally discharged a firearm, causing damage to the interior of his home. No injuries were reported.” [ACPD]

Arlington Rent Still Rising — “Arlington’s apartment-rental market bucked a national trend in July, as its year-over-year average prices remained higher even as, for the first time since the pandemic, the national rate declined. Arlington’s year-over-year growth rate of 1.9 percent stood 17th best among the 100 urban areas tracked by Apartment List. Updated data sets were released July 26.” [Gazette Leader]

Office Vacancy Worries in Nat’l Landing — “JBG Smith, the largest commercial landlord in the Northern Virginia area that is now called National Landing, expects a wave of tenants not renewing their leases by the end of next year. National Landing includes the Arlington neighborhoods of Crystal City and Pentagon City. JBG Smith reports 1.8 million square feet of office leases coming up for renewal across 72 leases by the end of 2024.” [WTOP]

New Coworking Space in Crystal City –“Orchard Workspace by JLL, a 39,000-square-foot flexible office and coworking space, opened this week in Arlington, Va. The office is located at 2451 Crystal Drive and is owned by JBG Smith (JBGS), which developed the property as part of its National Landing portfolio.” [Commercial Observer]

Awards for County Department — “The Department of Human Services (DHS) has been awarded two Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) 2023 Achievement Awards, which recognize excellence in local government programs.” [Arlington County]

Warner Wants Robocall Action — “U.S. Sen. Mark Warner joined Sens. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Edward Markey (D-MA), and others to urge the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to enforce its existing regulations regarding consent for receiving telemarketing calls, also known as robocalls.” [Press Release]

Cristol Profiled in New Role — “[Former Arlington County Board member] Katie Cristol wants to help Tysons become what the community imagines it could be. Since taking over as the Tysons Community Alliance’s first permanent CEO on July 5, Cristol has been busy overseeing the creation of a Tysons strategic plan to identify priorities and needs for the 2,100-acre area envisioned by Fairfax County as an urban downtown where ‘people live, work and play.'” [FFXnow]

It’s Thursday — Showers and potential thunderstorms throughout the day, with highs near 78 degrees and south winds between 5 to 15 mph, gusting up to 22 mph. Precipitation chances peak at 80%, with new rainfall amounts of a quarter to half an inch possible. On Thursday night, precipitation chances drop to 30%, with showers and thunderstorms likely until 11pm. The sky will gradually clear, reaching a low of around 66 degrees, with west winds of 6 to 10 mph. [Weather.gov]

Arlington County eyes better coordination after tech struggles

By Jo DeVoe
A frustrated technology user (by Jane Michelle Sayson for ARLnow)

For the sixth year in a row, Arlington County has been named the No. 1 Digital County for 2023 for counties of comparable size.

The accolade highlights Arlington’s progress toward moving its operations onto the cloud — which Arlington County Chief Information Officer Norron Lee says makes county processes safer, greener and easier — as well as its broadband access study and the priority placed on customers.

These achievements exist alongside the reality that many residents have reported not-so-seamless experiences interacting with certain county processes online. Perhaps this happens once a year when the sign their kids up for camp or apply for a residential parking permit or more frequently, for instance when builders interact with Permit Arlington.

System crashes, delayed launches and slow service have made local news headlines over the past few years. While not headline grabbing, other issues linger: having separate logins for various county systems, minimal online-based support, and — in at least one recent case, for a specific business tax — a requirement to receive mail or make phone calls in order to register for a new “paperless” system.

One issue, according to multiple interviews conducted by ARLnow over the past month, is a highly siloed approach to technology at the county level, with departments making their own tech decisions despite limited expertise.

“I think we started to deviate from best practice when, in other parts of the world, technology was more of a component of every other department’s daily life, not a separate entity unto itself,” says Aneesh Chopra, a longtime resident, who was appointed by former President Barack Obama to be the first Chief Technology Officer of the U.S.

Arlington may have world-class broadband but, he says, “when it comes to these applications that are effectively run by different departments, it feels like they stopped innovating since the 1990s.”

Arlington County Board members and the County Manager’s Office say they are aware of the frustrations their constituents face and envision a day when technology does a better job of streamlining bureaucratic processes, freeing up staff for complex issues, and houses all government interactions in one place.

“We are in a good place, in my opinion, but I do think — instead of trying to adopt a relatively bureaucratic system with a digital face or front — we have to think about how those processes can be streamlined,” County Board member Takis Karantonis said, when talking about Permit Arlington. “This is a work in progress, still.”

He and County Board Chair Christian Dorsey say Arlington needs a one-stop shop for people to take care of all the ways they interact with government.

“There ought to be some… seamless way to [respond to bureaucratic needs] in a central web portal that’s also optimized for mobile use as well, where people can do this with a minimum of user names passwords to recall,” said Dorsey.

Dorsey alluded to “an articulation of way forward” before he leaves the Board this December.

“We can easily articulate what we need to be doing but getting there needs resources the Board has felt uneasy committing while we’ve had other pressing priorities,” such as the response to Covid, he said.

The county does not have someone whose sole responsibility is inter-departmental technology integration. The effort instead falls to the County Manager’s Office and the Dept. of Technology Services, which is guiding a cooperative effort across 26 county departments that have staff with varying technological literacy.

For Deputy County Manager Aaron Miller, the county’s “federated” structure has its pluses, like staff who are more responsive when there are problems, but there are downsides.

“When we do have to have centralized discussions it takes a lot of time to get everyone on the same page,” he said. “It’s a lot of time to pull everyone together… What we want to do is make sure that we are implementing systems that get the best experience but, sometimes, that comes with trade offs. When you look to centralize those systems, you essentially can water down functionality that might be important.”

Striking that balance and reaching this goal is fraught technological and legal hurdles, Miller says, but the county is motivated by hiccups people experienced getting permits and signing up for camp.

Already, the Dept. of Technological Services has stepped up its vetting of technology vendors for other departments. Miller says vendors often come “promising us that they can solve all of our problems,” but it can be difficult for someone without a technical background to evaluate a vendor’s ability to actually deliver on their promises.

(more…)

Arlington historians are collecting documents that tell the history of the county’s Latino community

By Jo DeVoe
Arlington Central Library (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Arlington County historians are collecting artifacts to document the history of the Latino community in the county.

So far, some notable contributions include personal effects from former Arlington School Board member Emma Violand-Sanchez, who has been active in the Latino community for many years, Arlington Center for Local History Manager Judith Knudsen tells ARLnow.

“She is a wonderful resource and has also introduced us to several organizations [and] people who also have material we would like to receive and preserve,” Knudsen said. “The Bolivian Soccer League has donated their records and Kathie Panfil who worked in the schools for many years has also donated material.”

Between 1990 and 2000, Arlington’s population of Hispanic and Latino residents increased by nearly 53% and today, this group makes up 15.7% of the population, according to the Center for Local History, or CLH. But the Arlington Community Archives stewarded by the CLH did not grow at the same rate.

To remedy that, county archivists embarked on this multi-year collecting initiative, dubbed “REAL,” or el Re-Encuentro de Arlington Latinos. The CLH is looking to fill the holes in its archives with donated materials from people, businesses, civic groups, schools and the government documenting the history of Arlington’s Latino community.

“Community archives play a vital role in documenting all voices of a community,” the library website says. “Understanding the diverse experiences of these individuals, students, families, businesses, officials and community groups is critical to understanding Arlington’s history. With four decades of rich community history, it is vital to begin collecting materials that capture this story.”

Efforts like this take time, Knudsen says, adding that REAL has always been seen as a long-term project.

“Current organizations are busy working to help their communities, understandably, and donating material to an archive is not the first thing on their mind,” she said. “However, as more groups donate the word spreads and we get more donations. We just have to be patient and remind organizations/individuals from time to time. The interest is there.”

The CLH is accepting any and all materials “created in the process of engaging in community, civic, educational or personal pursuits in Arlington County.”

Examples include:

  • Meeting Minutes or notes
  • Fliers
  • Financial Materials
  • Publications
  • Photographs
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Papers such as diaries, journals, notes, lists, etc.

“Donated materials will become part of the Center for Local History’s Arlington Community Archives, and will be available to donors and other researchers,” the website says. “Donations may be digitized to increase access.”

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