News

Top White House official selling Arlington home after activists write chalk messages on sidewalk

By ARLnow.com

White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller is selling his Arlington home after it was repeatedly targeted by activists.

The nearly 6,000-square-foot house, custom built with interiors that “embrace a refined Southern California aesthetic,” is listed for $3.75 million. Located on a cul de sac adjacent to a park in a quiet northern Arlington neighborhood, it sold new in 2023 for $2.875 million, records show.

Miller, said to be “the architect of Trump’s hardline immigration policy,” is one of the administration’s most controversial figures. On at least two occasions this year, including most recently in mid-September, activists have written messages of protest in front of his house and in the nearby park.

“Stephen Miller is destroying democracy,” “stop the kidnapping,” we [love] immigrants,” “hate has no home in Arlington,” “no white nationalism,” and “trans rights are human rights” are among the chalk messages seen last month before being washed away.

The chalk messages were written just days after the assassination of Charlie Kirk in Utah, prompting Miller’s wife, the podcaster and former communications official Katie Miller, to post a message of defiance on social media.

“To the ‘Tolerant Left’ who spent their day trying to intimidate us in the house where we have three young children: We will not back down. We will not cower in fear. We will double down. Always, For Charlie,” she posted via X on Sept. 14, accompanied by a video of some messages being removed with a garden hose.

She subsequently posted a photo of “DEI enriches us all” written in chalk on a sidewalk, labeling it “the rallying cry of the losers of the Left.” Miller’s podcast, which launched in August, was often recorded in the home’s living room.

Several media outlets including the Daily Mail (UK) reported on the chalk protest and the Millers’ reaction to it. During an appearance on The Sean Hannity Show, Stephen Miller and Hannity asserted that the messages amounted to “terroristic threats.”

The family was subsequently seen moving out a couple of weeks ago, neighbors said, and the home was listed for sale on Oct. 7. An elaborate set of Halloween decorations were also removed. It is unclear where the family moved to.

“At this time, the house is on the real estate market as the Millers have moved,” the most recent edition of the neighborhood civic association newsletter reported.

A White House spokeswoman did not respond to ARLnow’s request for comment.

An organization claiming credit for the September chalk protest, Arlington Neighbors United for Humanity, has denied handing out leaflets or sharing personal information about the Millers while writing on the sidewalk in chalk. In an Instagram post, the group said members were “expressing our concerns about the harm being done to our most vulnerable neighbors.”

Arlington voted 77.5% to 19.5% for Kamala Harris over Donald Trump last year, though Trump improved his local numbers slightly over 2020.

During the first Trump administration, Miller’s then-home in the CityCenterDC development was targeted by activists who handed out faux “wanted” posters with his photo and address. Social media photos from a few months ago alleging that similar “wanted” signs were posted on utility poles in nearby neighborhoods could not be independently verified by ARLnow.

The family’s Arlington home remains on the market, according to online listing services, despite no “for sale” sign being posted.

The home has six bedrooms and 6.5 baths, and features carrara marble kitchen countertops, a “black leathered marble island,” a “boutique style dressing room,” a “spa inspired bath [that] includes radiant heated floors,” “a covered rear porch with retractable screens,” and “comprehensive security.”

“This is luxury living at its finest,” the listing said.

This is not the only protest in front of an Arlington home to make recent headlines. In 2024 pro-Palestinian protesters spent months camped out in front of then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s house on N. Chain Bridge Road. Earlier this year, pro-Palestinian protests targeted the north Arlington home of a foundation board member; protesters spray painted the driveway, posted flyers, banged pots and pans, and called the homeowner a “war criminal.”

Around Town

H-B Woodlawn music teacher named semifinalist for Grammy educator award

By Katie Taranto

An Arlington Public Schools teacher is in the final rounds for a Grammy award honoring outstanding music educators.

Bill Podolski, the choral director at H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program, is one of 25 nationwide semifinalists for the 2026 Grammy Music Educator Award, announced last week. The accolade is bestowed on one music teacher each year who is honored during the week of the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles.

“I truly was pinching myself, because I just couldn’t believe it,” Podolski told ARLnow. “I felt quite proud of it … but more than that, I’m super humbled by this.”

This year’s semifinalists represent 23 localities across 14 states. A list of 10 finalists will come out next month before the winner of the 2026 Music Educator Award is announced in February.

This award is open to all music teachers in the United States, from kindergarten to collegiate level. Teachers are invited to apply after receiving a nomination from a student, colleague or community member.

Podolski is currently in his 18th year at H-B Woodlawn, where he teaches music, co-directs student musicals and leads the school’s choral program in Rosslyn. He is also an executive board member of the Virginia Choral Directors Association.

He instructs five choirs and interacts with about 130 students each day, in addition to leading initiatives like the school’s public Community Chorus. He also collaborates with APS’ Eunice Kennedy Shriver Program to include students with disabilities in every concert.

Bill Podolski and students (via Arlington Public Schools)

At the core of Podolski’s passion for music education is an “inherent joy in singing.”

“There’s almost no greater joy, no greater expression of emotions, and that feeling of goosebumps than I have felt in singing,” Podolski said. “My quest is to share that experience with as many people as possible, and especially my students.”

Podolski was initially selected in the spring as one of 200 Music Educator Award quarterfinalists from a pool of over 2,000 nominees. He was nominated by a local parent, he said.

In his Grammy application portfolio, Podolski spoke about his goal of creating classrooms that encourage students to be more autonomous.

“How can I teach music in a way that is not me teaching them, but them discovering at their own paces?” he said.

This is not the first time a Northern Virginia teacher has been up for the prestigious award. Last year’s winner, Annie Ray, is the orchestra director and performing arts department chair at Annandale High School in Fairfax County.

The 68th annual Grammy Awards will take place Feb. 1, 2026.

Photo 2 via Arlington Public Schools. 

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News

New report: Many Arlingtonians increasingly priced out of county’s housing market

By Scott McCaffrey

No racial or ethnic group in Arlington comes close to earning enough household income to afford median priced single-family homes in Arlington, and some groups struggle to afford median-priced condominiums, according to new data.

Even the county’s white population, which has by far the largest median household income, is “nowhere near” being able to afford median priced single-family housing, said Keith Waters of the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University.

He was speaking at the Oct. 9 meeting of the county’s Housing Commission, laying out a somewhat bleak affordability picture while saying Arlington still has done better than some communities in addressing housing shortages.

Based on Center for Regional Analysis data, the minimum household income needed to purchase a median priced home in the current market is:

  • $332,876 for single-family homes
  • $252,347 for townhouses
  • $132,224 for condominiums

Median household income in the county by race/ethnicity currently stands at:

  • $173,878 for white households
  • $154,556 for mixed-race households
  • $125,870 for Asian households
  • $105,275 for Hispanic households
  • $89,570 for Black households

From a statistical standpoint, “none of the median household income of any racial group can afford the median single-family home [and] none of the racial groups can afford the median townhome,” Waters said.

Though sobering, the information was welcomed by Housing Commission chair Kellen MacBeth.

“It’s helpful to know what the landscape is looking like,” he said.

Arlington, regional household income levels (via George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis)

The scenarios assume a 20% down payment, typical taxes and insurance costs, and residents spending no more than 30% of gross income on housing. The calculations don’t take into account the ability of some homeowners to roll over past housing profits into their next home.

Much of the data also precede this year’s federal-government and contractor layoffs. So far, the Arlington housing market has seen only modest impacts, with the per-square-foot cost of recent home sales declining but still at $500. Even with declines over the past year, that figure remains among the highest in the region.

The average sales price of single-family attached homes in the county recently surpassed $1.8 million, in part because of general housing inflation and in part due to older, smaller homes being torn down and replaced with larger properties available to those with the means to purchase them.

The Mason analysis suggests Arlington’s total households will grow 17% to more than 155,000 by 2025. The bulk of that growth will be in the rental segment, with the percentage of rental properties growing from 59% of total properties now to 64% in a quarter-century’s time.

While Arlington has limited land area for significant increases in single-family homes, the growth in multifamily housing stock has been “incredibly steady” in recent years, MacBeth said.

But Jason Schwartz, another commission member, said more needs to be done to broaden options across the economic spectrum.

“It’s just incredibly frustrating,” he said of challenges related to constructing more housing.

Schwartz brought up another issue — that of seniors aging in place in the homes they have owned for years.

With children grown, they are now “one- or two-[person] households that are in a three-, four- or even five-bedroom [home] — more bedrooms than people,” he said.

Schwartz said he wasn’t advocating for removing those property owners against their wishes.

“Obviously we’re not going to say, hey, we’re going to kick you out of your home to a studio or one-bedroom [apartment] if you’re a senior,” he said.

But Schwartz did seem to suggest making residents aware of their options when situations like those arise.

“We need to make it so we’re [taking] a balanced approach,” he said.

 

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Schools

Arlington’s sister city in Germany sends record number of fifth graders this year

By Scott McCaffrey

A record number of fifth graders from Germany have come to Arlington this year through the county’s sister city program.

Students, parents and civic leaders from the city of Aachen arrived in the United States on Oct. 8 and will stay through Oct. 16. They are being hosted by Arlington families representing 16 public and four private schools, in a quarter-century collaboration sponsored by the Arlington Sister City Association.

“There have been so many people who have rallied for this program,” said Emily Lyons, who is coordinating the visit.

She spoke during a welcome breakfast held on Saturday at Alice West Fleet Elementary School. It was part of a lengthy list of activities planned for the German families during their week-long stay.

They, in turn, will welcome their Arlington families to their city next spring.

“I’m happy to receive you all in Aachen,” said the city’s mayor-elect, Michael Ziemons, who was part of the contingent.

Speaking with County Board members Susan Cunningham and JD Spain, Sr., at the breakfast, Ziemons noted that he had met County Board Chair Takis Karantonis just the past week. Karantonis was in Aachen as part of a separate Sister Cities exchange.

“He explained to me all the systems you have here,” said the incoming mayor, who will preside over a city council of 58 members compared to Arlington’s five County Board members.

Ziemons said that Aachen’s location at the crossroads of Europe makes it a multicultural community.

“This is what makes our town special,” he said, promoting student exchanges as one way to further “warm, warm friendships.”

The exchange program has an upper limit of 50 students per year. Lyons said organizers believe this is the first time that number has been reached.

Many of the German families are fluent in English. To aid in communication and as a courtesy to their guests, some Arlington youth received rudimentary German-language instruction prior to the start of the exchange.

Aachen’s history stretches back more than 1,200 years. In 800, the German ruler who is remembered in history as Charlemagne — “Charles the Great” — was crowned in Aachen Cathedral on his way to creating one of Europe’s earliest superpowers.

At its peak, what came to be known as the Holy Roman Empire included all of present-day France, Germany and Italy plus parts of modern-day Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Spain and Switzerland. It would last, in various forms, for more than 1,000 years, with Aachen remaining its historical center.

The cathedral has survived and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site today. Its 1.3 million annual visitors have the opportunity to view the throne where Charlemagne’s coronation took place.

Cunningham noted that her family participated in the exchange in 2018. Plans for doing it a second time with her younger daughter were not possible due to the impact of Covid, which derailed in-person exchanges for several years.

“I’m glad to see you all back at full capacity,” she said. “Have a great time.”

Spain said that he and his family had lived in Stuttgart, Germany, during military service in the 1990s.

“I have a really fond affinity for all things German,” he told the crowd. “Let’s keep this going.”

Lyons noted that bonds created with student exchanges can last a lifetime. She participated in a similar event in high school, and “I’m still friends with people I met,” she said.

The Aachen students joined host families at the Yorktown High School homecoming football game and were slated to tour Nats Stadium. They also will spend tomorrow (Wednesday) at their host schools.

While the fifth-graders are visiting, a group of Aachen high-school students is spending two weeks in the county as part of another Sister Cities exchange.

With about 260,000 residents, Aachen is Germany’s westernmost and 27th largest city, and is slightly more populous than Arlington. Located on its country’s western border, the city is adjacent to both Belgium and the Netherlands.

Aachen is one of Arlington’s five Sister City relationships, along with Reims, France; Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine; San Miguel, El Salvador; and Coyoacán, Mexico. The Coyoacán relationship currently is in emeritus status, but efforts are being made to bring it back to life.

Announcement

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