Virginia Delegate Elizabeth Guzman (HD-31) and 16 Delegates have signed a letter urging the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority to ensure contracted workers at Reagan National Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport reach $15 per hour by 2023. Their $12.15 hourly wages are far lower than D.C.’s $15 minimum wage and many East Coast airports, where workers already earn $15 or more. On December 18, MWAA board members will hold a vote to determine wages for over 6,000 immigrant contracted baggage handlers, wheelchair attendants, lobby agents, skycaps and cabin cleaners among others.
The letter reads: “As you deliberate an extension of your wage policy, we strongly urge you to ensure that all airport workers receive an hourly wage of at least $15 by 2023. We believe that this wage level is critical to improving public safety and to maintaining the robust economic benefits that airports provide to our state. MWAA’s current policy has already had a significant impact on decreasing employee turnover. However, turnover levels remain unacceptably high. For example, at the DCA airline-catering kitchen, almost 87 percent of the turnover in 2018 was from employees making below $15 an hour.
Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) are ready to celebrate the holiday season with a variety of performances, giveaways and surprises for passengers throughout the month of December.
1. Attend a musical performance – Local bands and choirs will be performing throughout the month of December at Dulles International and Reagan National. Scheduled performances include Beltway Brass (DCA, IAD), Flint Hill School (IAD), Ft. Hunt Elementary School choir (DCA), the Georgetown University Superfoods a cappella group (IAD), Lunsford Middle School strings (IAD), Sandburg Middle School orchestra (DCA), Stone Bridge High School jazz band and jazz choir (IAD). Performances are held pre-security in the main terminal at both airports.
Majority Leader-elect Charniele Herring has appointed key leadership positions within the House Democratic Caucus. The whips and policy chairs will help guide the new Democratic majority through the 2020 legislative session as well as long-term policy goals, and the campaign chair and inclusion officer will work to ensure a diverse, robust, and inclusive caucus in years to come.
Majority Leader-elect Herring announced the following appointments on Monday:
The big exodus is on. With each passing day, the Thanksgiving holiday-related traffic back-ups and traffic delays will become progressively worse along freeways and major corridors across the Washington metropolitan area. Then there is the spill-over effect, as mind-numbing gridlock is visited upon “all types of roadways across the metro area, such as arterial roads, highways and city streets,” details INRIX, a global transportation analytics company. The worst of the worst travel delays on area freeways is yet to come, warns AAA in collaboration with INRIX.
That dubious distinction both becomes and befalls Thanksgiving Eve. That is to be expected as nearly 1.35 million people depart the area for the holiday. Here is the thing, of that tally, 1,221,000 Washington metro residents are expected to travel to their Thanksgiving holiday destinations by automobiles. This represents an increase of 2.1% from the 1,195,500 area residents who traveled by automobile over the Thanksgiving holiday in 2018. Thanksgiving also means “crowded airports and bus and train stations.”
Governor Ralph Northam today highlighted his administration’s progress in enhancing the quality, availability, and affordability of housing in the Commonwealth.
Speaking at the 2019 Virginia Governor’s Housing Conference in Hampton, Governor Northam announced several accomplishments since he signed Executive Order Twenty-Five in November 2018. The executive order outlined the administration’s priorities to confront the Commonwealth’s unmet housing needs by increasing the supply of permanent supportive housing, addressing the shortage of quality, affordable housing, and reducing the rate of evictions across Virginia.
As Virginians take to the roads this Thanksgiving to celebrate the holiday with family and friends, Virginia State Police is urging motorists to put down their phones and buckle up so everyone makes it safely to the holiday table.
With the onset of the 2019 winter holiday season, state police is proud to support the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Highway Safety Office and AAA Mid-Atlantic with its new traffic safety campaign aimed at heightening awareness of the deadly dangers of distracted driving. Earlier this month, Virginia State Police Superintendent, Col. Gary T. Settle, and Trooper-Trainees of the 131st Basic Academy Session signed a banner to pledge their support to the “Don’t Drive Intoxicated. Don’t Drive Intexticated” campaign and its life-saving messaging.
George Mason University’s Arlington Campus celebrated its storied past during a 40th anniversary commemoration in Van Metre Hall on Wednesday, Nov. 20, with an eye on an even more promising future.
Mason Interim President Anne Holton joined other university, state and regional leaders in recognizing the university’s positive presence in Arlington since 1979, and its prominent role as a hub for current and future regional innovation.
Arlington, Virginia, November 19, 2019–On Sunday, November 17, Arlington Presbyterian Church (APC) celebrated their homecoming. APC returned to their former site opening a new worship, office and multi-use space on the ground-floor of Gilliam Place, a 173-unit affordable housing community developed by the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH) along Columbia Pike.
APC’s move back to their former property where they worshipped for over a century, completes an 8-year journey for their congregation in discerning new ways they might be called to be church in the community. After their bold decision to sell their existing church building and property to APAH for the development of affordable housing in 2014, the congregation returned to lease a portion of the ground-floor retail space from APAH in the completed building. “APC’s new worship space is a communal, Spirit-filled gathering area that invites participation, creativity, and equality for the sake of South Arlington,” said Pastor Ashley Goff. The brand-new multi-use building is named in honor of Ronda A. Gilliam, APC’s first African-American elder, a community leader and clothing ministry founder.
A-SPAN announces the retirement of its President & CEO, Kathy Sibert. After leading the organization for 11 years, Sibert will continue her role through January 31, 2020.
Sibert became the President & CEO of A-SPAN (Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network, Inc) in 2008. Beginning with a budget of only $800,000, Sibert has expanded the now four-million-dollar organization from one site providing Day and Outreach services, to a multi-program organization providing a continuum of services 24/7, 365 days of the year, for homeless individuals and veterans. This culminated in the award of the Homeless Services Center contract and its Grand Opening October 1, 2015. The County’s Homeless Services Center is much more than a shelter. It has a day and outreach program, 50-bed shelter program, a 25-bed additional winter shelter program, a 5-bed medical respite and nursing services program, a full production kitchen serving 3 meals/day, and has all A-SPAN’s housing programs located in one place. The Center is a national best practice model to end homelessness as it facilitates moving someone quickly from being homeless into a home. A-SPAN has been instrumental in reducing Arlington County’s homelessness population by 60% in the last 7 years. The organization has been recognized locally, regionally, and nationally as being a leader in solving homelessness issues.
After 13 years working to bring fresh local produce to food insecure families, Associate Director of Programs and Plot Against Hunger Manager Puwen Lee will be retiring from the Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC), effective November 15.
“I started at AFAC as a volunteer, helping on Wednesday mornings with distributions,” says Lee. “I loved it because of the team of volunteers I worked with and because of the relationships with clients. After a year, I took a part-time position in the Volunteer Department and the rest is history.”
The Arlington County Democratic Committee (Arlington Dems) elected Democrats in all 14 Arlington elections on Tuesday, including four contested races, while simultaneously playing an oversized role statewide in the historic flip of both houses of the General Assembly.
In the contested races, Arlington returned Janet Howell to the District 32 state Senate seat, Alfonso Lopez to the House of Delegates District 49 post, and Katie Cristol and Christian Dorsey to the Arlington County Board.
