News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Dusty sunset (Flickr pool photo by Emma K. Alexandra)

Charga Staying Busy After Review — “Last year, business was pretty good. But not like this. Everything changed on Jan. 3. That’s when the Washington Post’s Tim Carman placed unassuming Charga at the top of his list of the area’s top 10 casual restaurants. Food critics might be the last local journalists flexing 20th-century levels of media power: Overnight, business almost doubled at a restaurant that, like many, had struggled to staff, supply, and stay afloat in the COVID era.” [Slate, Twitter]

Feel the Heritage Fest Returns — “The 2023 Feel the Heritage Festival will be held on Sat., Feb. 25, noon-5 p.m. at Charles Drew Community Center. The festival welcomes hundreds each year to learn about the Arlington’s historically African-American neighborhoods while enjoying live entertainment, delicious food and dozens of vendors. Held for the past 29 years, the festival… is free and includes a full afternoon of engaging programming for guests of all ages.” [Arlington County]

Water Main Break on the Pike — “Emergency Water Main Repairs: Crew working on 8-inch main at 4200 Columbia Pike… Update: A follow-up water main repair on Columbia Pike near S George Mason will likely cause delays Friday morning. Consider alternate routes.” [Twitter]

New Public Safety Appointments — “County Manager Mark Schwartz is announcing permanent appointments of Dr. Aaron Miller as the Deputy County Manager for Public Safety and Information Technology and Mr. William Flagler, Jr. as the Director of the Department of Public Safety Communications and Emergency Management (DPSCEM).” [Arlington County]

Favola Privacy Bill Dies — “Safeguarding personal information, or handcuffing the public-safety process? Those were the two positions staked out as a subcommittee of the House of Delegates killed a measure from a local legislator. The bill from state Sen. Barbara Favola (D-Arlington-Fairfax-Loudoun) would have prohibited the issuance of search warrants to obtain menstrual information from women during criminal investigations.” [Gazette Leader]

Va. Pot Bills Stall — “Virginia may be the first state in the South to legalize possession of marijuana, but actually getting some marijuana to possess doesn’t look like it’s getting easier anytime soon. Republican lawmakers in the House once again shot down a bill that would legalize retail sales and are pushing to defund the state’s new Cannabis Control Authority, which was established to regulate the marijuana market.” [Axios]

Historic Preservation Plan Advancing — “Efforts to update the Arlington County government’s Historic Preservation Master Plan continue to move forward… The update, when adopted, will guide the Arlington government’s efforts to preserve existing heritage – efforts that have come under criticism from some quarters in recent years, as a number of prominent homes and other structures have fallen to the wrecking ball without, critics contend, county government using existing powers to stop the razing.” [Gazette Leader]

Fast Chase Caught on Camera — From Dave Statter: “@VSPPIO 5 minute chase of a Toyota Highlander going 110 mph on Rt 50 from Fairfax into Arlington just after 3 a.m. The SUV was abandoned at a building on S. Glebe just off 50.” [Twitter]

New Temperature Record — “It’s official: Thursday is Washington’s warmest Feb. 23 on record and one of the toastiest afternoons so early in the year. The high temperature at Reagan National Airport hit 81 degrees, breaking the previous record of 78 degrees set on Feb. 23, 1874. That’s a few ticks below Washington’s record high temperature for all of February, which was 84 degrees on Feb. 25, 1930.” [Washington Post]

It’s Friday — Partly cloudy throughout the day with falling temperatures. High of 61 and low of 41. Sunrise at 6:49 am and sunset at 5:57 pm. [Weather.gov]

A D.C.-based bookstore and a local burger joint are among the new options coming to DCA this summer

By Matt Blitz
Reagan National Airport (Flickr pool photo by Kevin Wolf)

Travelers can expect several new eateries and stores at Reagan National Airport later this year.

A travel supply store with “Just Walk Out” technology, a D.C.-based bookstore, a local burger restaurant, and Chinese food chain P.F. Chang’s are all planning to open at DCA at some point this year, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) spokesperson Rob Yingling confirmed to ARLnow.

While a number of those businesses were announced last fall, many are now targeting a summer 2023 debut.

The Goods will be a traditional travel supply store located in Terminal 2 near the D gates, but what will make it unique is use of Amazon’s “Just Walk Out” technology. Meaning, customers can exit the store without going through a checkout line because ceiling-mounted cameras and artificial intelligence track selections.

Locals might be familiar with this technology since it is also employed at the Crystal City Amazon Fresh.

Inside “The Goods” will be a “store-within-a-store,” D.C.-based Mahogany Books. The Black-owned independent bookstore has a popular location in Anacostia and the airport shop will be its first location outside of the District.

Mahogany Books will not employ the “Just Walk Out” tech but will have a more “traditional purchasing experience,” per Yingling.

Both The Goods and Mahogany Books inside are expected to start selling this summer.

Also moving into Terminal 2 and near the B gates will be Lucky Buns, a popular burger and chicken sandwich spot originally started in D.C.’s Adams Morgan neighborhood. It’s run by celebrity chef Alex McCoy. The fast-casual spot, which now has several D.C. locations — as well as Baltimore and London outposts which have since closed — is expected to open this summer.

U.S.-based Chinese restaurant chain P.F. Chang’s, meanwhile, is moving into the new $400 million 14-gate concourse that opened in 2021, near the E gates. Despite a recent alcohol permit application, it remains unclear when that restaurant might open to the public.

“We are getting close to the opening of P.F. Chang’s at DCA but don’t have a date to announce yet,” Yingling said.

Over the last two years, DCA has welcomed a number of other popular and local eateries to the airport. Wolfgang Puck Bar + Bites, Peet’s Coffee, Mezeh Mediterranean Grill, Timber Pizza Company, and Elevation Burger have all opened since 2021.

Hotelier floats idea of turning Green Valley hotels into apartments and townhouses

By Jo DeVoe
1/7

The owner of a hotel in Green Valley is signaling interest in building apartments.

Capital Second Investments, which owns Hotel Pentagon at 2480 S. Glebe Road near I-395, has filed a conceptual site plan application envisioning a 467-unit apartment building and 36 townhouses. Some entities take this step before filing a formal site plan application to get early feedback on the feasibility of their proposal.

The concept from Capital Second Investments situates the housing on a site that currently houses the Hotel Pentagon — which used to be a Best Western, and consists of a standalone structure and a trio of long, two-story buildings — as well as the Comfort Inn Pentagon City, a single tower next door.

Both hotels are listed at 2480 S. Glebe Road, which is at the corner of 24th Road S. and S. Glebe Road, surrounded by I-395, the Lomax AME Zion Church, some auto body shops and two apartment complexes.

Capital Second Investments proposes to fill the 467-unit building with:

  • 99 “junior 1-bedroom” units, which are studios with a small space that can be separated off
  • 191 1-bedroom units
  • 59 1-bedroom units with dens
  • 118 2-bedroom units
  • 608 underground parking spaces
  • A pool and an amenity deck

Across a tree-lined path from the complex would be two rows of stacked townhomes, with a typical floor area of 2,425 square feet, and parking.

Renderings for an apartment building to replace the Comfort Inn 2480 S. Glebe Road in Pentagon City (via Arlington County)

Conceptual site plan applications are preliminary by nature — a step some take before submitting a formal site plan application, which would be reviewed by staff and Arlington County’s various citizen committees.

“This application, and its administrative review process, is intended to provide guidance to prospective applicants in the preparation of land use development applications,” the application says.

Prior to becoming the Hotel Pentagon, the Best Western on S. Glebe Road was the scene of prostitution-related run-ins with law enforcement. In one publicized case, a man who forced a 16-year-old girl into prostitution at the motel later pleaded guilty to sex trafficking a minor.

A new urgent care clinic is opening on Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn

By Matt Blitz
A new urgent care clinic is opening on Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn (photo courtesy of Matt Siniscal)

There’s another new urgent care clinic opening, this time in Rosslyn.

Allcare is opening a new urgent care clinic on Wilson Blvd, the company confirmed to ARLnow.

It will be located at the corner of N. Pierce Street and across the road from Fire Station 10. It’s filling a long-vacant space once occupied by Piola Pizzeria, which closed four years ago.

This will be the company’s third urgent care clinic in Arlington, with others in Ballston and Courthouse. The latter is only half a mile from the new one in Rosslyn.

A company spokesperson was not able to provide information about when the clinic might open or why the choice was made to have two clinics so close together.

The spokesperson did confirm, though, that the hours will be the same as the other Arlington clinics: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekends.

The location is not yet listed on Allcare’s website.

At least two more clinics are preparing to open in Arlington in the coming months, for both humans and animals.

NOVA Patient Care is opening a second Arlington location, in a former restaurant space at Pentagon Row. Meanwhile, an urgent care clinic for pets is fetching an early spring opening in Buckingham.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
The Marymount University lacrosse team practices in Long Bridge Park (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Civ Fed Resolution Deferred, Again — “After spending more than two hours wrangling over procedural steps while barely touching the substance, Arlington County Civic Federation delegates on Feb. 21 deferred, for a month, action on a contentious resolution related to Arlington governance… delegates spent most of the meeting sparring over the procedural propriety of considering a substitute proposal that had been offered by the Arlington branch of the NAACP.” [Gazette Leader]

New Peter Chang Restaurant — “Celebrated chef Peter Chang is bringing his renowned Szechuan and Hubei cooking to Crystal City near Amazon’s headquarters. The 2022 James Beard Award finalist is opening his newest restaurant, to be called NiHao Arlington, later this year or in early 2024, co-owner Lydia Chang — Peter’s daughter — tells DCist/WAMU. It’s moving into 1550 Crystal Drive, Chang says, nestled near buzzy bakery Mah-Ze-Dahr, Alamo Drafthouse Cinema and Amazon Fresh grocery store.” [DCist]

Goodwill Planning Store Redevelopment — “Goodwill of Greater Washington plans to redevelop one of its Arlington County properties with affordable apartments on top of a new, expanded retail store and donation center. The project, if the county government approves it, would mark the first of the charity’s operations nationwide to co-locate affordable housing above a retail store, Brendan Hurley, a Goodwill spokesperson, said in an email. Goodwill… has owned the 1.4-acre parcel at 10 South Glebe Road since 1999.” [Washington Business Journal]

Amazon Leaving Rented Offices — “Amazon.com Inc. may soon vacate hundreds of thousands of square feet of office space leased from JBG Smith Properties (NYSE: JBGS) as it makes the move to its first HQ2 towers. The first phase of Amazon’s second headquarters, the 2.1 million-square-foot Metropolitan Park in Pentagon City, is slated to open this summer. The inevitable will follow: JBG Smith expects Amazon — its second-largest tenant, behind the federal government — to vacate 300,000 square feet once Met Park opens, the company said.” [Washington Business Journal]

I-395 Wreck Caught on Camera — From Dave Statter: “Making a left turn on an interstate highway may be hazardous to the health of you & your car. 10:01 a.m. on I-395S at Exit 8C (Rt 1S).” [Twitter]

Local Civil Rights Icon Honored — “The Virginia General Assembly has adopted a resolution honoring Joan Trumpauer Mulholland for her efforts during the civil-rights movement of the 1960s and other achievements in the ensuing decades… Mulholland is a lifelong resident of Arlington… She participated in sit-ins in Virginia, Maryland and South Carolina and faced ostracism from her community for her actions, the resolution noted, before heading to the Deep South to continue her efforts.” [Gazette Leader]

Yorktown Girls Are Swim Champs — “Yorktown Coach Torey Ortmayer joined his girls’ 400-yard freestyle relay team in a poolside huddle moments before the final event of the Virginia Class 6 championships Saturday. Ortmayer understood the gravity of the moment. The Patriots were leading by 12 points and needed a fourth-place finish to take home a state crown. A fifth-place finish, assuming a Battlefield victory, would result in a tie.” [Washington Post]

It’s Thursday — Partly cloudy and unseasonably warm in the afternoon. High of 76 and low of 55. Sunrise at 6:51 am and sunset at 5:56 pm. [Weather.gov]

Proposed $1.54 billion county budget would hold property tax rate steady amid rising values

By ARLnow.com
Arlington County Manager Mark Schwartz presents his proposed budget on Feb. 18, 2023 (via Arlington County/YouTube)

(Updated at 4:20 p.m.) Arlington’s property tax rate will not be going up in the new county budget, but it looks unlikely to come down, either.

The County Board voted unanimously last night (Tuesday) to advertise a property tax rate of $1.013 per $100 in assessed value. That sets a cap on the real estate tax rate, locking in the county to a rate that’s flat or lower than last year.

But homeowners would still see their taxes go up significantly even with the rate unchanged, owing to a 4.5% rise in residential property assessments. Between taxes and fees, the average Arlington homeowner would be paying $454 more to the county compared to the previous year, a 4% increase.

That includes a $100 hike in the annual trash collection fee paid by homeowners — from $308 to $409 — which county officials attributed to a “significant increase to contractual costs due to driver shortages, current labor costs, and equipment pricing.”

FY 2024 proposed county budget slide (via Arlington County)

Arlington County Manager Mark Schwartz’s budget proposes keeping the current $1.013 real estate tax rate, despite a better-than-expected revenue outlook.

“The facts have changed since November and December,” Schwartz said, referencing what was then predicted to be a $35 million budget gap. “We’ve seen higher than anticipated real estate assessment growth. I think a number of people saw that when they received their residential real estate assessments in January.”

“On the commercial side, we had anticipated a drop in overall assessments, and there was a very small drop in the commercial assessments, but when you factor in the new commercial buildings the numbers were actually up,” the County Manager continued. “And also, our other taxes… are doing quite well.”

The county is seeing a 10.7%, 15.4% and 33.3% rise in sales, meals and hotel tax revenue, respectively, according to Schwartz’s presentation to the Board on Saturday. After a brutal couple of years for Arlington’s hospitality industry, hotel taxes are now about back to pre-pandemic levels, he noted.

FY 2024 proposed county budget slide (via Arlington County)

Schwartz’s $1.54 billion budget — up 2.8% over last year’s adopted budget — also includes a number of proposed cuts,

Just over 20 vacant positions would be eliminated, including an auditor position in the County Board office, and other savings would be found from initiatives like paperless billing of property and business taxes. In all, the cuts would save $5.6 million.

While the county is no longer benefiting from the firehose of Covid relief funds from the federal government, it will save $2.6 million thanks to energy credits stemming from its 2020 solar power agreement with Amazon.

In the expense side of the budget, however, the picture is less rosy.

Schwartz said the county is still facing a “very competitive environment in terms of workforce,” making it hard to hire for certain positions and driving up wages. The budget proposal includes a $2,000 bonus for qualified county staffers and 4.5-10% salary increases, including:

  • General Employees — 4.5%
  • Uniformed Fire — 4.5%
  • Service/Labor/Trades — 4.5%
  • Uniformed Sheriff — 8.5%
  • Uniformed Police — 10%

“We are still having challenges in hiring vacancies,” Schwartz said.

FY 2024 proposed county budget slide (via Arlington County)

Other initiatives in the budget include purchasing 22 electric vehicles for the county fleet, part of an ongoing transition, and a community engagement effort focused on libraries. The latter will “review the operating model (locations, hours) considering where we’ve seen growth in the County and how that overlaps with service demands.”

However unlikely, there could be flexibility for a slight decrease in the property tax rate. Schwartz left $4.5 million in his budget unallocated, for consideration by the Board.

Starting next week the county will start a series of in-depth work sessions focused on individual departments and offices, followed by public hearings at the end of March and a County Board vote on the final Fiscal Year 2024 budget on April 22.

FY 2024 proposed county budget slide (via Arlington County)

More from an Arlington County press release, below.

(more…)

New group plans to hold scooters mis-parked on private property hostage

By Jo DeVoe
1/9

(Updated at 3:15 p.m.) An emerging local group is looking to corral the “Wild West” of e-scooter parking in Arlington County.

The embryonic organization, which is calling itself “Purge,” will employ drivers to pile micro-mobility devices parked illegally on private property into vans and — essentially — hold them hostage until the operators of the offending devices pay a $50 invoice fee for their release.

“This is a huge opportunity and issue,” says Will, the founder, who requested to have his last name withheld until the official company launch. “We don’t want to interact with them at all: just pay it and it’ll go back on the street. They’re going to hate that but there’s nothing to say we can’t do that.”

If the business model sounds familiar, that’s because it is quite similar to how controversial Ballston-based trespass towing company Advanced Towing operates. Advanced, however, works within an established state and local regulatory framework, frequent accusations of skirting such laws by those on the undesirable end of their tows notwithstanding.

Arlington County has authorized a number of operators, including Bird, Spin and Lime, to operate some 350 e-bikes and 2,000 e-scooters within its borders. Some locals have long complained that scooter parking blocks pedestrian and, at times, vehicle traffic.

In response, the county has rolled out “corrals” to give people more legal options for parking their scooters, paid for by the cost for operators to do business in Arlington.

“Arlington has made decent strides with the corrals, but they’re a suggestion no one has forced them to operate better or develop incentivization for users to engage in better rider behavior,” Will says.

Billing operators could, he theorizes.

Something similar is happening in San Diego, where a duo impounds scooters in a lot using a flatbed truck. Scooter operators fought back with a lawsuit and later, cease-and-desist letters to private property owners using the impound service. The city has since filed its own lawsuit alleging the way these scooters are parked is a safety hazard.

“We’re trying to offer a balance here. The outcomes are they’re either forced to incentivize better behavior, or the [county] is forced to contract with us,” Will says. “We are working with local attorneys — there’s nothing in place to force them to operate legally. We think we have a low-tech solution that doesn’t require a huge investment.”

When it launches, Purge will only service private property. It doesn’t need impound authorization from private property owners, Will claims, while adding that several local private property managers, including some hotels and apartment buildings, have given the company the thumbs-up to haul away scooters.

Scooters abandoned in public right-of-way, however, could remain tripping hazards and nuisances — for now. Purge would skip mis-parked scooters on public property, at least initially.

For recourse, people can report mis-parked or abandoned devices via Arlington County’s Report a Problem tool, or via the helplines the companies operate. Operators are required to remove improperly parked devices within two hours of a report of mis-parking, according to the county’s website.

The other option is to just step around them, which can be dangerous for people who are blind or in a wheelchair or have another disability that impairs their mobility.

“Mobility only works if it works for everyone,” says Will, pointing out that these companies have raised hundreds of millions and — in some cases — billions of dollars, but in his view have not sufficiently invested in ways to incentivize proper parking.

Naturalists to study deer impacts as Arlington considers population control measures

By Jo DeVoe
Deer in a local neighborhood (Flickr pool photo by Wolfkann)

Has your garden been damaged by hungry deer?

Local master gardeners with the Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners of Arlington and Alexandria City program are asking residents to fill out an anonymous survey about the impact of deer on private property.

“Information gathered will assist Extension Master Gardeners as they interact with the public on landscape management, urban agriculture education and future outreach programs,” per a release, adding that the survey will be open until March 30 and results available in April.

Meanwhile, this evening (Wednesday), the association of master gardeners, the Arlington Regional Master Naturalists (ARMN), and others, are sponsoring a webinar with a professor who will discuss ways to address Arlington’s reported deer overpopulation issue.

“Deer are charismatic native species that belong in our fields and forests,” Cornell University professor Bernd Blossey said in a statement. “Humans have allowed them to become ecological bullies, and if we are serious about our responsibilities to protect all native species, we need to embrace the need to reduce deer impacts through reductions in the local deer herds.”

Different levels of understory foliage at Lacey Woods Park (left) and Long Branch Park (right) (photo by Steve Young/Arlington Regional Master Naturalists)

The groups hosting the survey and webinar are sounding the alarm on the impacts of deer, including the loss of understory foliage, and saying their current efforts — like protecting native plants with deer-proof cages — are not enough.

“Our suburban forests are dominated by a few native species that deer don’t find appetizing, like Spicebush and Pawpaws, and lots of harmful exotic invasive plants that deer won’t eat,” per ARMN’s website. “Early attempts at habitat restoration were frustrated when overabundant deer devoured the large native plantings.”

The study and webinar come about six months after a wildlife consultant began working with the county to determine if Arlington’s natural lands can support the current deer population and whether the county needs to step up management.

Prior to this, the county had its deer population counted by drone and a report summarizing what the drone recorded found parts of Arlington had populations of 20-39 deer per square mile, which it said was “unhealthy.”

But not everyone agrees with this assessment. Arlington County’s animal control group, the Animal Welfare League of Arlington (AWLA), maintains that the issue is not the number but how humans interact with them.

“Many conflicts with deer in our gardens are a result of planting ornamental non-native plants that are irresistible to deer,” Chief of Animal Control Jennifer Toussaint said in a statement to ARLnow.

“Deer will always seek out tasty hostas and tulips first, regardless of the amount of deer present,” she continued. “The best way to mitigate deer eating from your yard is to plant deer-resistant plant species, erect fencing, and utilize repellents. One or a combination of these techniques is an effective and humane way to co-exist with deer.”

Toussaint said AWLA is working with the county throughout the deer study.

(more…)

JUST IN: Arlington police charge 94-year-old man with child sexual abuse

By ARLnow.com
Adolfo Zambrano (photo courtesy ACPD)

A 94-year-old man has been arrested and charged with sex crimes against children.

Arlington resident Adolfo Zambrano is facing two counts of Aggravated Sexual Battery, following an incident earlier this month at a home along Columbia Pike and accusations of child sexual abuse dating back to 1999.

Arlington County police are now seeking additional potential victims.

More from an ACPD press release, below.

The Arlington County Police Department’s Special Victims Unit is seeking possible additional victims of a suspect charged with sex offenses. Adolfo Zambrano, 94, of Arlington, VA, was arrested and charged with two counts of Aggravated Sexual Battery. He is being held without bond in the Arlington County Detention Facility.

At approximately 6:25 p.m. on February 10, police were dispatched to the late report of an assault. Upon arrival, it was determined at approximately 4:30 p.m., the witness observed a suspicious incident between the known suspect and a child inside a residence along Columbia Pike. The witness confronted the suspect, he left the home and she subsequently contacted police.

During the course of the investigation, detectives determined the suspect inappropriately touched the child. Additionally, detectives identified an adult female victim who reported having been touched inappropriately by the suspect in 1999 when she was a child. As a result of the investigation, detectives obtained warrants for his arrest and he was taken into custody on the evening of February 16, 2023.

This remains an active criminal investigation. Anyone with past inappropriate encounters with this suspect or who has additional information related to this investigation is asked to contact Detective H. Molina at 703-228-4208 or [email protected]. Information may also be provided anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

‘Missing Middle’ supporters to rally this weekend ahead of Planning Commission vote

By Jo DeVoe
1/3

Supporters of Missing Middle housing options will rally this weekend in favor of allowing denser dwellings in neighborhoods zoned for single-family homes.

The rally this Saturday, Feb. 25, will be held at 1 p.m. at Courthouse Plaza near the county government headquarters at 2100 Clarendon Blvd. It will include speakers from a half-dozen civic organizations that support the proposed zoning changes, which go before the Arlington County Board for a final vote in March.

“The rally will demonstrate to the Arlington County Board the strong and widespread support for expanded housing options in the County,” Jane Green, co-founder of YIMBYs of Northern Virginia, said in a statement.

“The County Board is considering expanded housing options and will vote in March on zoning reform,” she said. “The question is, will the County Board reverse decades-long exclusionary zoning policy to bring more attainably-priced housing options to Arlingtonians — or will they scale back the expanded housing options which are much needed in Arlington?”

The rally follows one held in January by Missing Middle opponents.

Arlingtonians for Upzoning Transparency and Arlingtonians for Our Sustainable Future, both opposed to the proposed zoning changes, held a rally that drew several hundred people to hear from several speakers on their predicted effects of the changes.

Representatives from organizations told ARLnow there are no plans to hold follow-up rallies before the Planning Commission is slated to vote on the proposed changes on Monday, March 6 and the Arlington County Board is scheduled to vote on them on Saturday, March 18.

This proposal has been touted as a way to partially undo the lasting impacts of county decisions that excluded people of color from many neighborhoods, such as racially restrictive deed covenants, the decision to ban rowhouses, and a physical wall white residents built to keep out those living in Halls Hill, a Black enclave of North Arlington.

Speakers at this weekend’s rally represent the NAACP Arlington Branch, the League of Women Voters of Arlington and Alexandria City, the Potomac River Group of the Sierra Club, Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement and YIMBYs of Northern Virginia, Green said.

“This rally will feature speakers raising their voices in favor of historic zoning reform — the right thing to do for the environment, Arlington’s tree canopy, and [Black, Indigenous and people of color] and historically marginalized people in Arlington,” she said.

On these points, opponents say these changes will encourage development and thus tree removal, while failing to provide homes affordable to people making less than $100,000, and thus not doing enough to address lower levels of homeownership among people of color.

One critic recently argued a better tool for combating racial inequality would be with “housing reparations,” such as down-payment assistance. (Arlington County has a program like this for first-time home buyers.)

Price is one reason the rallying organizations have advocated for options such as eight-plexes, which the county documents suggest would be more affordable than two- to six-unit dwellings.

Last month, the Arlington County Board removed this ceiling in a 3-2 decision, with County Board Chair Christian Dorsey and member Katie Cristol dissenting. The draft zoning changes, if approved next month, would cap at six-unit dwellings.

The Arlington branch of the NAACP said this preliminary decision could violate the Fair Housing Act, though it has continued generally supporting the Missing Middle proposal.

(more…)

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Looking west in Ballston (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Labor Endorsement for Board Candidate — “The Baltimore-Washington Laborers’ District Council has endorsed J.D. Spain Sr. in his bid for Arlington County Board… Spain is one of five announced Democrats vying for two seats on the County Board. The party will select its nominees in a June primary.” [Gazette Leader]

Corvette Police Chase — From Dave Statter on Monday: “While you slept: @VSPPIO with a brief chase at 2:55 a.m. on I-395N from Washington Blvd to the 14th St. Bridge. A Corvette at 130 mph or more.” [Twitter]

Campbell Elementary Upgrades — “Arlington School Board members in coming weeks are slated to approve a $3.26 million contract for improvements to entry security and kitchen facilities at Campbell Elementary School. Proving again that we live in inflationary times, school officials originally estimated the cost at $2.75 million, but none of the responsible bidders came close to that figure.” [Gazette Packet]

Addressing Food Insecurity — “Food insecurity is a critical issue across the country and in many parts of the D.C. region, so to help one Arlington County community came together to help feed those in need. On Saturday, a handful of volunteers sporting winter clothes, safety vests and face masks filled the front yard of the Mount Olive Baptist Church in Arlington with 200 bags full of fresh groceries.” [Fox 5]

Permit System Open House — “Arlington County is expanding Permit Arlington, its online permitting system, on Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023, when Certificate of Occupancy applications and inspections will move into the online system… The virtual open houses will be held: Wednesday, Feb. 22, at 2 p.m. [and] Wednesday, March 8, at 2 p.m.” [Arlington County]

Resolution Honors Braylon Meade — “The General Assembly has memorialized the life of Braylon Meade, a Washington-Liberty High School senior who died in an auto accident last November. Meade ‘brought joy to others with his kindness, generosity, compassion and sense of humor, and he touched countless lives in the community through his commitment to servant-leadership,’ noted the resolution, patroned by Del. Rip Sullivan with support of the entire Arlington delegation.” [Gazette Leader]

Local Students Shine at Track Meet — “Four athletes from Arlington high schools won individual titles at the girls and boys 6D North Region indoor track and field championships held last week in Prince George’s County. Washington-Liberty had the most champions with three.” [Gazette Leader]

About That Pop-Up — For the first time ARLnow is running a pop-up email signup form today. We plan to activate it for a day or two at a time on occasion, as it is important that we reduce our dependency on social platforms and search engines for half of our traffic. If you close it it should go away and stay away on that browser (until our next email drive).

It’s Wednesday — Cloudy with possible light rain in the morning. High of 54 and low of 42. Sunrise at 6:52 am and sunset at 5:55 pm. [Weather.gov]

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