FLARE, an electric shuttle service, has partnered with the Ballston Business Improvement District to collect and deliver food donations for the Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC) every Friday beginning on April 24, 2020. FLARE is encouraging residents in Arlington to drop off food donations at several locations throughout Ballston starting today.
“We are excited to partner with the Ballston BID to expand our food collection efforts to benefit AFAC. There is an overwhelming need right now for people in our community to receive food donations, and we strongly encourage those who can donate food to find one of our donation boxes in Ballston. We’ll take donations the rest of the way to AFAC,” said FLARE CEO Andres Delgado.
Restaurants are the heart and soul of any neighborhood. It’s in all of our best interest to ensure they are kept afloat while we wait out the coronavirus shutdown. We’ve all formed special memories in local eateries such as birthday celebrations with friends, graduation parties with family or serendipitously meeting a lifelong soulmate at the restaurant bar.
Arlington resident Michael Lovett is doing what he can to help keep some of his favorite local spots open, including the one where he met his soulmate. He is aiming to help restaurants put some staff back to work while reducing costs associated with delivery operations with the help of technology provided by his company, Vagabond.
Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), during House Floor debate on the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act, urged his colleagues to send urgently-needed federal aid to state and local governments on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Beyer, a formal small business owner, serves as Vice Chair and top Democrat on the Joint Economic Committee, which advises Congress on economic policy. The Committee recently released an economic report entitled “Massive Aid to State and Local Governments Needed to Slow Economic Damage.”
The Crystal City Business Improvement District (BID) announced today that it will give $100,000 to the Arlington Small Business Emergency GRANT (Giving Resiliency Assets Near Term) Program, which provides immediate financial assistance to Arlington’s small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Announced by Arlington County on April 16, the GRANT Program is designed to bridge the gap by offering near-term relief for businesses, which may have experienced delays or limitations in receiving Federal relief initiatives. The program will provide grants of up to $10,000 to businesses and nonprofits with less than 50 employees that can demonstrate revenue losses of 35 percent or more as a result of the pandemic.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Arlington Community Federal Credit Union announced a holistic community support initiative focused on philanthropy and community service. The plan directs funding to local non-profit organizations and encourages staff volunteerism. In addition, ACFCU commits to community leadership, program development, and financial education. Components of the Community Support Plan include:
Donations totaling $15,000 to organizations addressing urgent issues as a result of COVID-19:
A group of House Democrats today raised serious issues with the Trump Administration’s handling of the supply chain for COVID-19 response, and sought improved transparency and federal coordination to mitigate the inadequate, harmful, and dysfunctional engagement. The letter was signed by Reps. Don Beyer (D-VA), Gerry Connolly (D-VA), David Price (D-NC), Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), Terri Sewell (D-AL), and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA).
The Representatives wrote:
St. Thomas More Cathedral School (STM) moved swiftly and seamlessly to fully instruct students online in PreK to 8th grade amidst the Coronavirus crisis. With a 1:1 mobile device ratio already in place, students departed school on Friday, March 13 (a previously scheduled early dismissal) with their books, in addition to their iPad, Chromebook or HP touchscreen laptop prepared to learn virtually for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, teachers spent the remainder of that fateful half day in professional development to fortify their Google Classrooms and Seesaw accounts with activities. The foresight of having faculty and students experienced in online educational techniques since its inception has proven fruitful in the first weeks learning at home, particularly since Governor Northam closed Virginia schools for the remainder of the 2019-20 year.
STM students are now learning online with all of their teachers in a modified 4 hour daily classroom schedule that meets and exceeds the Diocese of Arlington requirements for instruction. Students participate live via Google Meet amongst other interactive applications, while the parents support each other in a private Facebook parent group dedicated to the school community. IT support tickets and even a Virtual Spirit Week have been successfully managed online in this ‘new normal.’ The teachers at STM have long embraced technology for integration into all subject areas.
Extended lane closures will occur this weekend beginning at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 17, on I-66 East between the Dulles Connector Road and Sycamore Street for bridge work and other construction for the I-66 Eastbound Widening Project.
Details include:
Less than a week after announcing a transition to a vote-by-mail process for its School Board candidate endorsement caucus, the Arlington County Democratic Committee (Arlington Dems) has received more than 2,000 ballot requests representing all 54 Arlington voting precincts. This strong early response, precipitated by the statewide stay-at-home order triggered by the coronavirus pandemic, exceeds the total number of ballots cast in the 2019 School Board Caucus, and sets the stage for a potentially record-breaking Arlington Dems School Board Caucus.
“Arlington voters clearly are motivated by the vote-by-mail process necessitated by the current public health crisis – and so are we!” Arlington Dems Chair Jill Caiazzo said. “Arlington Democrats is on track to demonstrate that the vote-by-mail process is effective, secure and transparent, which is especially important during these challenging times. Our experience refutes the baseless attacks by President Trump and others against this important voting method.”
Delegate Alfonso Lopez (D-Arlington) released the following statement after Governor Northam’s signing of HB 1547, popularly known as the Virginia Dream Act:
“After years of work in the legislature–and decades of activism from educators, students, and advocates across the Commonwealth–the Virginia Dream Act has finally been signed into law, expanding in-state tuition to undocumented students for the first time. For young people across Virginia who were denied the opportunity to earn a higher education due to their immigration status, this law will have a dramatic impact on their lives.
Extended lane closures will occur on I-66 East between the Dulles Connector Road and Sycamore Street from 10 a.m. tomorrow, Friday, April 10, through midnight, Saturday, April 11, for the I-66 Eastbound Widening Project. Single- and double-lane closures will be needed for bridge joint reconstruction work over Williamsburg Boulevard and Westmoreland Street. At least one travel lane along I-66 Eastbound will be maintained at all times during this work.
Details include:
