Press Releases

Next week, Taco Bamba debuts a free coffee program to promote breakfast. Beginning November 17, all six Taco Bamba locations in Northern Virginia and Rockville, Maryland will open at 9am. Their all-day breakfast menu is a mix of old and new dishes, including bacon, egg, and cheese empanadas, Migas tacos, and an extra-large breakfast sandwich called the Torta de Huevos. Free coffee will be available until noon at all locations with any purchase.

Why free coffee?
“For years, we’ve offered some really delicious breakfast items on our menu, and they’ve always been available all day, every day. But, we don’t serve coffee, and I think a lot of people want coffee with their breakfast. So, we’re giving away free coffee until noon all day every day, and we’re offering some great brunch cocktails to match at all locations except Falls Church. I want people to come in and enjoy these menu items during breakfast and brunch hours, but all items will still be available all day.” -Victor Albisu

If you prefer a cold beverage at breakfast, Taco Bamba is also selling cold brew and cold brew lattes, and all locations (except Falls Church) will offer brunch-friendly cocktails like Bloody Marys, Bloody Marias, Mimosas and a Oaxacan Sunrise.

To promote the breakfast menu and the free coffee program, Taco Bamba is giving away branded coffee tumblers to the first 50 guests at each store who purchase a breakfast item. See the giveaway schedule below:

• Wednesday, November 17: Fairfax & Falls Church
• Thursday, November 18: Springfield & Vienna
• Friday, November 19: Ballston & Rockville

Bird is rolling out its Bird Three, the world’s most eco-friendly shared scooter, in Arlington. Arlington will be one of the first cities in the DMV to have an exclusive fleet of Bird Three e-scooters.

When Arlington residents choose to ride a Bird Three down to dinner at the Crossing Clarendon or to start their holiday shopping early on Rosslyn, they’ll have the safest and smartest riding experience possible. More than just a scooter, the Bird Three is the culmination of four years of experience working in partnership with cities, like Arlington, to create accessible eco-friendly transportation options and to reduce reliance on gas-powered vehicles and the congestion they create.

The Bird Three was developed by Bird‘s in-house team of top engineering and vehicle design experts with an unrelenting focus on sustainability. Key highlights include:

• Dual Independent Brakes: Superior braking performance on each wheel that results in a shorter stopping distance.

• Autonomous Emergency Braking: The industry’s only active safety technology designed to prevent brake failure.

• Speed Zone, Parking and Sidewalk Compliance: Bird OS enforces strict adherence to speed limits, no-ride, no-parking and reduced-speed zones in cities, including improved sidewalk detection, built into the scooter.

• Increased Capacity: With capacity for smart batteries of up to 1 kWh, Bird Three can travel farther and remain on the street longer while requiring significantly fewer recharges.

The U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee (JEC)–led by Chairman Don Beyer (D-VA)–released a new issue brief highlighting how defaulting on the federal debt would create a financial crisis on par with that of 2008, resulting in catastrophic economic damage with millions of jobs lost, businesses shuttered and a banking system in chaos.

The debt limit allows the federal government to make good on financial obligations Congress has already incurred. Failure to raise the debt ceiling would make it impossible for the federal government to keep its existing financial obligations, including payments to the military, veterans, Social Security and health programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, which make up the majority of federal spending.

“For 18 months, the biggest threat to the U.S. economy was the pandemic, which led to the worst recession in this country since the Great Depression,” said Chairman Beyer. “Today, the greatest threat comes from the minority party intentionally risking a default that could undo all of this year’s progress on job creation, wreck our economy, and send the country into an even worse economic crisis.

“The latest issue brief from the Joint Economic Committee details how obstructionism to raising the debt limit threatens economic harm to millions, including potentially halting the income of Social Security recipients, military families, and the federal workforce.

“By filibustering legislation that would prevent a default, they are gambling with the full faith and credit of the United States. This is poor economic stewardship. The responsible course of action is to increase the debt ceiling to prevent a catastrophic default.”

Since 1960, Congress has raised the debt limit 78 times. According to recent estimates, defaulting on the federal debt could result in six million jobs lost, an unemployment rate of nearly 9%, the elimination of $15 trillion in household wealth and a decline in real GDP of 4%.

Past debt-limit brinkmanship crises led to uncertainty for businesses, declines in the stock market and consumer confidence and higher borrowing costs for taxpayers and consumers. Even though a default was ultimately avoided, it resulted in the first-ever downgrade of the U.S. credit rating and cost the country billions of dollars in lost economic activity.

September 20, 2021

During an Arlington County Circuit Court sentencing hearing Sept. 3 for a man who had plead guilty to armed robbery and a firearms offense, Chief Judge William T. Newman made audible note of a reality that seldom is adequately recognized by the Arlington community and those who run it.

“We live in a time when a lot of people who have actually sometimes done nothing have been killed by police for things, and here, this was not a situation where you had not done anything. You had,” Judge Newman told the man. “Literally, what for the restraint shown by these police officers, you – you could be dead.”

That man had taken a vehicle at gunpoint and later run from Arlington police officers through a residential neighborhood. As officers – some of whom had their guns drawn – closed in, the man pulled a firearm from his waistband. Faced with a highly stressful, extremely dangerous situation, the officers demonstrated a degree of prudence commonly shown by the Arlington County Police Department.

The man tossed the gun aside, no shots were fired, and he was taken into custody without further incident. Judge Newman acknowledged the gravity of the discipline those officers exhibited, and if that composure is a trait Arlingtonians value in their cops, there are some other sobering truths they should know.

The Arlington County Police Department is hemorrhaging officers. Thus far in 2021, 41 Arlington cops have left or have put in notice to leave the department – approximately 14 percent of its functional strength – and in a survey conducted this month by the Arlington Coalition of Police, 99 officers said they plan to leave ACPD within the next year. Twenty of those officers said they plan to depart within the next three months.

Should even half of those decampments come to fruition, the quality of service the Arlington community receives from its police force will diminish. Fewer officers means less time and resources for investigations of every sort. It means the officers that remain will be asked to work more hours with less help. It means that when officers encounter armed subjects that just committed violent offenses, they will be operating under more cumulative stress and deeper cumulative exhaustion.

County leaders – who will convene Tuesday evening – are aware of this issue and have yet to demonstrate that they value the quality of service ACPD provides to the extent that they are willing to take immediate and drastic steps to attempt to stop the bleeding. Perhaps this is Arlington’s way of defunding the police without having to publicly proclaim that agenda.

ACPD has not yet had to pull investigators back to patrol in an attempt to sufficiently address 911 calls for service, but with each week that passes, more Arlington officers trade in their badges for more lucrative and less dangerous jobs elsewhere.

After the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services closed five of the state’s eight adult mental health institutions in July due to a dramatic increase in staff resignations and unsafe working conditions, Arlington police officers were tasked with having prolonged interactions with those in the county suffering mental crises. With nowhere to take those most in need of help from experienced mental health professionals, ACPD has staffed coverage of these patients at Virginia Hospital Center around the clock for days at a time.

The community has said it wants to limit the interactions police have with those in mental crisis – a desire overwhelmingly shared by Arlington officers. But as is commonly the case, when the community has a problem few others want to address, it turns to the police.

Nine days before the sentencing hearing in which Judge Newman highlighted the temperateness of Arlington’s officers, a man approached several ACPD officers outside the police station and asked them to shoot him. He then pulled two steak knives out of his pockets and approached the officers with one knife in each hand. The officers created space, utilized less-lethal weapons, and took the man into custody without anyone involved suffering injury.

Two days before that incident, the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police honored an ACPD officer who prevented a man suspected of having just committed an armed bank robbery from jumping in front of an oncoming train on a Metro platform. In the process, the officer suffered a fractured tibia. The arrestee was uninjured.

None of this is to suggest that Arlington cops have not or would not use lethal force when absolutely necessary to protect their lives or the lives of others. It also is not to suggest that ACPD officers are beyond reproach. The department has proven willing and able to hold its officers accountable when they demonstrate errors in judgment.

But the components of the police department that help keep Arlington safe and out of the national spotlight for negative reasons – the commitment and capabilities of its officers – are fragile. The average years of service of the 41 officers who have left ACPD in 2021 is 14.7. And of late, only approximately 30 percent of the applicants who sign up for the department’s entry exam actually show up to take the test.

Arlington is struggling to find highly qualified people who want to serve as police, and the county affords its current officers little reason to stay. Officers know some members of the public will have little sympathy for the fact that after promising police officers a 5.5 percent annual merit increase in pay in 2019, county leaders stopped following through on that after the first year. They know some people will not care that officers struggle to afford to live in Arlington despite the abundance of overtime opportunities that exist due to depleted staffing levels.

What ACPD officers are hoping is that they are wrong about Arlington’s ambivalence toward the department’s plummeting personnel numbers. They believe it is time for the county they serve to stop taking them for granted.

Adam Theo (who goes by “Theo”) has launched a campaign for Arlington County Board as an independent candidate. This 2021 bid will establish an organization, raise issues, and build name recognition. He intends to run again in 2022 or 2023 to win a seat on the Arlington County Board to fix serious problems in the community that a monopoly of one-party rule does not address.

Theo, aware of the time and resources needed along the road ahead, remarked: “Having just one political party is bad for everyone. It creates a government and elected officials that are unresponsive, slow, and poorly plan for looming crisis in housing affordability, public safety, protecting local businesses, and school overcrowding. The power of the Arlington Dems over Arlington isn’t in the quality of their ideas or candidates. It’s in their organization and fundraising prowess, and that’s where a challenger needs to be ready.”

A self-described “Independent Progressive Libertarian”, Theo will bring new ideas and practical solutions to real problems facing Arlington County. He is deeply concerned about the financial suffering that homeowners and small businesses have faced– even well before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now more than ever, he fears for the community if “Missing Middle” and affordable housing opportunities are not immediately expanded. To Theo, the challenges of police reform, public safety, government transparency and accountability, as well as a successful recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic are all tied together.

Theo currently serves as the Secretary of the Ballston-Virginia Square Civic Association (BVSCA) and is a voting delegate to the Arlington County Civic Federation. He has never affiliated as a member of either major party. Since 2018, he has served as the Chair of the Libertarian Party of Northern Virginia (LPNOVA), the local affiliate of the national Libertarian Party. As Chair, he has tripled its active volunteer base; established dedicated communications, policy, and community service teams; and expanded the organization into Loudoun County.

A long-time communications consultant and video producer, he has worked within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Navy, and public television. He is also a veteran and served almost a decade in the U.S. Air Force Reserves, deploying to eastern Afghanistan in 2011 as a structural civil engineer.

Bringing a unique perspective to Arlington County politics, Theo has gone through the criminal justice system in his home state of Florida, having served four months in county jail there in 2000. He has also twice been homeless, living out of a backpack or a car as recently as 2010. These are formative stories he is happy to share and have made him uniquely suited to empathize with and serve all Arlingtonians.

Theo’s campaign website can be found at TheoForArlington.org, and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram with @TheoForARL.

Starting September 7, 2021, Arlington Public Library will reopen two locations — Cherrydale and Glencarlyn Libraries.

Arlington residents and Library patrons will have access to seven open library locations — Aurora Hills, Cherrydale, Central, Columbia Pike, Glencarlyn, Shirlington and Westover Libraries. The Plaza branch will remain closed in preparation for a long-planned expansion and renovation.

“The Library continues to make steady progress toward filling an unprecedented number of public service vacancies caused by the pandemic and subsequent hiring freeze. We believe we are turning the corner and look forward to seeing more of our patrons,” said Arlington Public Library Director Diane Kresh.

All open Library locations will follow the same schedule.

Monday to Saturday Hours:

• Monday/Tuesday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• Wednesday/Thursday: 12 – 7 p.m.
• Friday/Saturday: 12 – 5 p.m.

The Center for Local History at Central Library is open to the public by appointment.

Indoor and outdoor storytime programs are offered at multiple locations. Starting September 13, Library patrons can enjoy indoor storytime programs at Cherrydale and Glencarlyn branches.

Arlington Public Library will continue to evaluate service levels and hopes to expand hours and offerings over the next few months.

Branch information on hours and locations is available at https://library.arlingtonva.us/locations.

The National Landing Business Improvement District (BID) partnered with local stakeholders today to launch the “People Before Cars” Coalition to unite area organizations around shared priorities to create a safer and more accessible transportation network in National Landing.

Joining the BID in the Coalition are Sustainable Mobility for Arlington County, an advocacy organization that promotes smart transportation options for Arlingtonians; Arlington Families for Safe Streets, a community voice for infrastructure and policy changes towards more safe and equitable mobility; and Washington Area Bicyclist Association, a nonprofit with the goal of a just transportation system and JBG SMITH, National Landing’s largest  property owner and developer whose projects are redefining the area’s built environment.

“We must come together as a community to advocate for improvements across National Landing’s transportation network that will lead to a more equitable and accessible neighborhood,” said Tracy Sayegh Gabriel, President and Executive Director of the National Landing BID. “The future of our downtown depends on the decisions we make today, and it’s vital that we are unified in voicing that our priority is people and their safety.”

The “People Before Cars” Coalition seeks to address community concerns around safety by championing the implementation of best practices in people-centric urban design and planning. The Coalition is centered on a set of common priorities for key projects and opportunities to enhance multi-modal mobility in National Landing, and will work together to promote those priorities through public outreach, advocacy and engagement with key stakeholders, including Arlington County and VDOT.

“The People Before Cars Coalition is possible because people-first street design helps us achieve so many different goals: fighting climate change, improving safety and building a bustling, vibrant downtown. It is rare to have residents, landowners and a business community that understand that great places are built for people, first and foremost. We have that in National Landing and together, we can do great things. Our focus is building a great place where residents have the freedom to move around however they choose,” said Chris Slatt, President of Sustainable Mobility for Arlington County.

The Coalition comes at a critical time. As described in the BID’s Mobility Next report, eight major transportation projects with a combined estimated cost of $4 billion, including VDOT’s Route 1 Multimodal Improvements Study, are currently in the pipeline and expected to deliver in phases over the next decade. Combined with the myriad private development projects that are helping to reshape the neighborhood streetscape, National Landing has an incredible opportunity to enhance walkability and deliver human-scaled mobility.

“With the current wave of development in National Landing, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to establish a safe, sustainable, equitable transportation system by looking beyond individual projects to the area as a whole. Arlington Families for Safe Streets is excited to be part of the People Before Cars Coalition to achieve this important goal.  By promoting walking, biking, and transit, our transportation system will be safer, more sustainable, more equitable and provide better support for local businesses,” stated Gillian Burgess, President, Arlington Families for Safe Streets.

“Through The People Before Cars Coalition we have an amazing opportunity to capture the energy and potential to transform National Landing into a national example of what infrastructure can look like if you prioritize the needs of walkers, bikers and public transit over cars. This Coalition of business leaders and community leaders can be a voice in the region for sustainable transportation and a leader in the movement to develop multimodal transit options for residents while ensuring those options are both equitable and address our climate crisis,” said Jeremiah Lowery, Advocacy Director of Washington Area Bicyclist Association.

“JBG SMITH has always been focused on placemaking through the creation of walkable, urban environments where people are prioritized and their experience matters. We are pleased to join the National Landing BID and community partners to help ensure that safe, sustainable mobility is a central part of the broader transformation underway in National Landing,” stated Jay Corbalis, VP of Public Affairs for JBG SMITH and Co-Chair of the National Landing BID Transportation Committee.

Street-level improvements that put people first are at the forefront of the Coalition’s efforts. Recommendations include bringing Route 1 to grade to create a more human-centric experience that prioritizes those walking, biking and taking transit; incorporating new signals, signal timing and speed enforcement at various locations to make walking easier and safer; and providing an interconnected network of protected bike lanes, bike facilities, and trails that provide a safe place for people to bike and use scooters away from people walking on the sidewalk. In addition, “People Before Cars” highlights the importance of constructing the CC2DCA Intermodal Connector, which will provide a convenient way for people to walk and bike from downtown National Landing directly to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

Expanding and enhancing mass transit also serves as an essential component of the Coalition’s ideal for greater accessibility. The pledge outlines rail and road improvements including Amtrak service in Crystal City and through-running MARC trains, as well as increased frequency on Metroway, Transitway and bus lines. In addition, the Coalition calls for various forward-looking studies to determine long-term solutions to transit, traffic and motor vehicle flow within National Landing.

The launch of the “People Before Cars” Coalition builds on the BID’s efforts to transform National Landing into the nation’s most connected urban center. In the spring, the organization launched a public awareness campaign around its work to create a greener and more inviting Route 1.  In January, the BID released its Mobility Next report, outlining a robust portfolio of public and private projects that will achieve next generation transit in the district.

For more information about the Coalition, its vision and priorities, or to join visit: https://nationallanding.org/get-around/people-before-cars-coalition

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) today announced the introduction of the Protecting Vulnerable Patients Act, which would require healthcare providers who see Medicare or Medicaid patients to be vaccinated following final FDA approval of a COVID vaccine. Beyer sits on the House Committee on Ways and Means, which has partial jurisdiction over health policy.

“America’s most vulnerable patients must be able to receiving medical treatment without fear that their health care provider will put them at heightened risk of a COVID-19 infection,” said Rep. Beyer. “From the beginning of this pandemic, our frontline health workers have shown heroism in combating the spread of this disease. Now that scientific progress has culminated in the development of a lifesaving vaccine, it is vital that we ensure everyone providing care in hospitals or other health settings is vaccinated. There is absolutely no reason why anyone who works in a medical setting with the most at-risk patients should remain unvaccinated given the overwhelming evidence that the vaccine is completely safe, drastically reduces the chances of spreading infection, and nearly eliminates the danger of hospitalization or death from COVID-19. My bill would take the commonsense step of requiring health care providers who receive federal dollars who treat patients covered by federal health programs to get vaccinated.”

Text of the Protecting Vulnerable Patients Act is available here.

Beyer helped introduce a provision which ultimately made Covid vaccines free to the American people, and was one of the first rank-and-file Members of Congress to receive their vaccine. He is the author of the bipartisan COVID-19 Long Haulers Act.

Attorney General Mark R. Herring today urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to fight back against the scourge of illegal robocalls by moving up the deadline for smaller telephone companies to implement caller ID technology. Attorney General Herring joined a bipartisan coalition of 51 attorneys general have in submitting comments to the FCC.

“Virginians continue to be plagued by illegal robocalls that are not only annoying but can also potentially scam consumers out of hundreds or even thousands of dollars,” said Attorney General Herring. “This technology has proven to be effective in reducing the number of robocalls that consumers receive, which is why I am calling on the FCC to move up the implementation date for smaller phone companies. My colleagues and I have worked tirelessly to put a stop to these annoying and illegal robocalls and protect consumers, but it’s imperative that tech companies doe their part as well.”

Under the TRACED Act, which became law in 2019, phone companies are required to implement STIR/SHAKEN technology on their networks. This caller ID authentication technology helps ensure that telephone calls are originating from verified numbers, not spoofed sources. Large companies were required to implement the technology by June 2021, and smaller phone companies were given an extension until June 2023.

However, some of the same smaller phone companies that are benefitting from this extension are also responsible for originating or facilitating high volumes of illegal robocalls that spam Americans and lead to financial or personal data loss. And without the STIR/SHAKEN technology in place, these smaller companies are failing to take a necessary step to minimize the continued onslaught of illegally spoofed robocalls that harm residents.

Attorney General Herring and his colleagues are asking the FCC to require these companies to implement the STIR/SHAKEN technology as soon as possible and no later than June 30, 2022.

Joining Attorney General Herring in submitting today’s comments are the attorneys general of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

Andrew Darneille, owner and pitmaster of Arlington’s Smokecraft Modern Barbecue, along with his Smokecraft Championship BBQ team, has been invited to compete in the Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue.  Taking place in Lynchburg, TN on on October 8th and 9th, “The Jack” as it is known, is widely considered the world’s most pretigious barbecue competition, representing the best of the best in barbecue.  To qualify, domestic teams must have won a state championship event with at least 25 competiting teams, or a competition with more than 50 teams battling in the categories of Pork Ribs, Pork Butts, Chicken and Beef Brisket. For 2021, 76 of the best teams in the world have been invited to compete (international teams were not selected this year due to international travel restrictions).

Smokecraft Championship BBQ Team are the reigning Maryland State Cup Champions, currently lead the MABA (Mid-Atlantic BBQ Association) Tier 2 Team of the Year Points, are winners of two Reserve Grand Championships in 2021, and qualified for “The Jack” by winning the Grand  Championship at the New Holland Summerfest in 2019. The team has won over 100 awards since 2018, with 26 Top-10 Finishes in 2021.  Last year’s “Jack” was cancelled due to COVID.

“It’s an incredible honor to have been invited to compete at The Jack this year. We’ve worked so hard every day to cook the best barbecue that we can, and this invitation validates that we can cook with the very best. We are looking forward to the challenge and opportunity to compete against the best barbecue teams in the world this fall!”

About Smokecraft Modern Barbecue: Smokecraft Modern Barbecue is an award-winning barbecue restaurant in the Clarendon neighborhood of Arlington, Virginia, which opened in July 2020. Born from the idea that barbecue can be more than just traditional, smoke can be more than just smoky, and passion can be crafted, Smokecraft is a team of dedicated members always striving to provide the best culinary experience. Smokecraft Modern Barbecue’s award-winning techniques are tested and perfected on the competition circuit, and the team is continuously evolving to push the boundaries of barbecue

Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall will hold a routine training event for its first responders Wednesday, Aug. 4, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the Myer side of the base.

Wright Gate, located at N. Meade Street and Marshall Drive in Arlington, will be closed from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. in support of the training.  Individuals needing to access the joint base during this time are asked to use the main gate, Hatfield Gate at Washington Blvd. and 2nd Street, or Henderson Hall’s Gate 1, at Southgate Road and S. Orme Street.  Henderson Hall’s Gate 1 may only be used by those with authorized access.

Motorists are advised there will also be a temporary road closure in support of the training.  From 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Aug. 4, Arlington County Police will block off Marshall Drive from where it intersects with  N. Meade Street to Custis Walk, the crosswalk that leads to the entrance of the U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial.  Drivers are asked to allow extra time while traveling near the joint base Aug. 4 as there may be delays due to the temporarily road closures.  Arlington County Police will be on hand to re-route traffic.

Arlington County first responders will also participate in the training, so expect to see an increase in emergency response vehicles near the base.  Neighboring communities may hear the base’s external “giant voice” loudspeaker during the training.