Arlington Mill Community Center

Morning Notes

By Katie Pyzyk

Shirlington Rainbow (Flickr pool photo by Christopher Skillman)

Arlington Mill Community Center Modifications Approved — The County Board approved modifications to the Arlington Mill Community Center project that are being called safety and utility upgrades. The county will use already approved project reserve funds for improvements such as parking garage security doors, an in-building wireless system antenna to aid first responder communication and a revised design for the intersection at 9th Street S. and Arlington Mill Drive. As reported last week, a Pan American Bakery and Café will open in the structure. Construction is on track to finish by early August, with a ribbon cutting ceremony on September 28. [Arlington County]

Arlington Receives Funding to Fight Childhood Obesity — The Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth has granted more than $36,000 to the county to fight childhood obesity and promote healthy living. This is the second year of a two-year grant. The money will help continue to fund community gardens, healthy school vending machine options and active recess. [Arlington County]

APS Hiring Hundreds of Staff Members —  More than 260 full time and part time employees have been hired ahead of the Arlington Public Schools 2013-2014 year. That’s about two-thirds of the more than 350 open slots APS aims to fill. Superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy expects to be fully staffed by the beginning of the school year. [Sun Gazette]

Alexandria Approves BRT Station Design — Alexandria approved the design for its Route 1 Bus Rapid Transitway stations. The seven stations include real-time bus arrival displays and will cost about $200,000 apiece. Construction of the bus dedicated lanes in the middle of Route 1 began in July 2012 and is expected to finish late this year, with the line becoming operational early next year. The BRT will eventually cover a five mile stretch to connect the Braddock Road Metro station with the Pentagon City metro station. The Arlington portion of the line is expected to open in summer or fall of 2014. [Del Ray Patch]

Father of Deceased Skateboarder Found Dead — Friends and family of 18-year-old John Malvar — a Washington-Lee High School student who died following a skateboarding accident — were supposed to gather at a memorial service for the teen on Saturday, but his father never showed up. Several friends visited the man’s apartment and had a maintenance man unlock the door, where they found George Malvar dead on his bed of natural causes. After learning of George Malvar’s death, the friends and family decided to continue on with the memorial service for his son. [Washington Post]

Snake Causes Power Outage — More than 10,000 Arlington and Alexandria residents experienced a power outage on Saturday night and Dominion says it was caused by a snake. The reptile apparently slithered into some electrical equipment and knocked out electricity at a substation on Four Mile Run. Power was restored by Sunday morning. [Washington Post]

Flickr pool photo by Christopher Skillman

Pan American Bakery Moving Into Arlington Mill Community Center

By Ethan Rothstein
Arlington Mill Community Center
Pan American Bakery and Grill
Pastries at Pan American Bakery and Grill
Pastries at Pan American Bakery
Arlington Mill Community Center
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Pan American Bakery and Café will be the in-house restaurant at the new Arlington Mill Community Center after it opens later this summer.

The location in the four-story community center, at 909 S. Dinwidde Street, will be Pan American’s fourth, but it will be decidedly different than the storefront a few blocks down Columbia Pike — which will remain open — and the shops in Alexandria and Fairfax.

The restaurant in Arlington Mill will specialize in healthier foods and offer options like specialty coffee, gelato and its specialty, salteñas, according to its lease agreement with the county. The County Board is expected to approve  the lease at its meeting Saturday. The restaurant will be on the ground floor and occupy 1,875 square feet.

The owners, Maritza Genny DeFoor and Ramiro Morgana, were chosen, according to county staff, because of their “business experience, local presence, financial strength, willingness to accept the county’s monetary terms, and readiness to proceed.”

The community center is on target for completed construction in early August, Department of Environmental Services spokeswoman Myllisa Kennedy said. The first programs are expected to be held in early September and the DES has planned a ribbon-cutting for the new building Sept. 28.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Arlington Mill Goes Over Budget — The Arlington Mill Community Center on Columbia Pike has gone $600,000 over its $31.6 million budget. The County Board is expected to approve additional funding for the project at its meeting this coming Saturday. [Sun Gazette]

New Coworking Space in Clarendon — A new coworking space has opened at 3140 N. Washington Street in Clarendon, on the second floor of the Wells Fargo bank building. Link Locale will house startup companies, entrepreneurs, freelancers and teleworkers. It’s the second coworking space to open along the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor this year. [Patch]

Redskins Player to Sign Autographs in Clarendon — Washington Redskins defensive end Stephen Bowen will sign autographs and take photos with fans tonight at the AT&T Store in Clarendon (3000 Wilson Blvd). The appearance will take place from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m.

Video: Arlington Mill Community Center Construction

By ARLnow.com

The new, under-construction Arlington Mill Community Center recently celebrated its “topping out” — the moment when the last beam is placed at the top of a building.

The complex, which is expected to open in the summer of 2013, will include a community center, senior center, gymnasium, parking garage and an affordable housing development. Arlington County’s “Arlington TV” crew produced a video about the topping out ceremony, above.

Progress at Site of Arlington Mill Community Center

By Katie Pyzyk

Work on the new Arlington Mill Community Center in South Arlington is progressing.

Crews are currently in the process of installing sewer and water lines, along with other infrastructure along Columbia Pike, South Dinwiddie Street and Arlington Mill Drive. Excavation has begun on the area that will be the garage; work on the garage foundation and walls will start soon. A new traffic light also will be installed at the intersection of Columbia Pike and S. Dinwiddie Street.

Although 9th Street has been reopened for residents of Park Glen Condominiums and to access the nearby trail, Arlington Mill Drive will be closed for the remainder of the project.

The five-story community center is still on track to open next year, along with the 122-unit affordable housing complex being built on the site. Together, the buildings will form one of four mixed use “Neighborhood Centers” developed within the Columbia Pike Special Revitalization District.

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Temporary Traffic Signal Installed on Columbia Pike

By ARLnow.com

A set of temporary traffic signals has been installed at the intersection of Columbia Pike and S. Arlington Mill Drive.

The intersection, which sits between two existing sets of traffic lights at Four Mile Run Drive and at S. Dinwiddie Street, is adjacent to the under-construction Arlington Mill Community Center and a future 122-unit affordable housing complex.

On its web site, Arlington County says the new traffic signals — which haven’t been switched on yet — are necessary because of construction. Don’t expect the lights to stay on for long, though. Arlington Mill Drive is expected to be closed during the latter stages of the community center’s construction.

“Once the traffic signal is activated, the 9th Street connection on the north side of the [Arlington Mill construction] site will be closed to upgrade water and stormwater infrastructure and install curb and gutter,” the county said. “Access to Columbia Pike will be maintained for Park Glen residents via S. Arlington Mill Drive. At this time, additional stormwater drainage facilities will also be installed just west of the site along S. Dinwiddie Street.”

“When 9th Street is reopened in two to three months, S. Arlington Mill Drive will be closed to all traffic – except for construction vehicles – for the duration of the project,” the county added. “All Park Glen traffic will be directed to Columbia Pike through the new 9th Street connector and S. Dinwiddie Street.”

Groundbreaking for Arlington Mill Community Center

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 3:40 p.m.) A groundbreaking was held this morning for the new Arlington Mill Community Center.

County Board members Walter Tejada and Chris Zimmerman, County Manager Barbara Donnellan and Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization Executive Director Takis Karantonis were among the officials in attendance, along with construction company representatives and county employees.

Construction on the new, five-story community center is expected to start shortly and wrap up in the summer of 2013. The center will include a full-size gym and fitness center, a senior center, teen center and game room, visual arts studio, a job resource center, a community learning center, several multi-purpose rooms for community events, retail space and a public plaza at the intersection of Columbia Pike and S. Dinwiddie Street. The cost of the bond-financed project is estimated at up to $25 million.

“In these challenging economic times, it is more important than ever that we invest and plan for the future of our community and provide opportunities and services for those who need it most,” Donnellan said. “The new center will benefit all who live here by serving as an anchor for the community. It will not only provide essential services for our residents, but it will also draw future development and amenities to the area.”

Separately, a 122-unit affordable housing complex is being built adjacent to the community center. Work on that project is expected to stretch through the end of 2013.

Photos courtesy Arlington County

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Pentagon City Water Balloon Prank Shatters Windshield — Someone apparently thought it would be funny to throw water balloons at cars leaving the Pentagon City mall parking garage on 15th Street. Perhaps it was funny, up until the point where one of the water balloons hit the windshield of a family’s minivan and shattered it as they were driving. [WUSA9]

Groundbreaking Set for Arlington Mill Center — The ceremonial groundbreaking for the new Arlington Mill Community Center (909 S. Dinwiddie Street) has been set for 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 24. [Sun Gazette]

Burglaries from Secure EFC Parking Garage — Two Cadillac Escalade SUVs had their tires and wheels stolen from the ‘secure’ parking garage under the luxury Crescent Falls Church apartment building (2121 Westmoreland Street) in East Falls Church yesterday morning, according to residents. Police are investigating.

Artisphere’s Shakespeare Co. Gets New Name — Washington Shakespeare Company, which now counts Rosslyn’s Artisphere as its home base, has a new name. The scrappy theater company is now known as WSC Avant Bard. [Washington Post]

Flickr pool photo by Jason OX4

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Striking ART Drivers Fired — The Examiner’s Liz Essley reports that the Arlington Transit bus drivers who went on strike yesterday have been fired by Forsythe Transportation, the contractor that operates ART buses. The paper also reports that the labor dispute came to a head when Forsythe fired the head of the bus drivers union last week. ART buses are operating on a reduced frequency schedule today, with all routes in service except the 61B route. [Washington Examiner, Arlington Transit]

Airport Uniforms Found in Ballston — Three pairs of airport employee uniforms and a Washington Reagan Airport safety vest have been found in the bushes outside Carpool restaurant in Ballston (4000 Fairfax Drive). The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and Arlington police are investigating how the uniforms wound up there. [WJLA]

Arlington Mill Construction Contract Awarded — Construction on the new Arlington Mill Community Center is scheduled to begin in August, after the County Board awarded a $27.6 million construction contract for the project over the weekend. “Redeveloping the old Arlington Mill Community Center site into a mixed-used facility with a new community center, gymnasium, retail space and a parking garage is part of the County’s efforts to foster a vibrant, walkable urban village along Columbia Pike,” the county said in a press release. [Arlington County]

Goodbye, Hollywood Video — A shuttered Hollywood Video store and a small office building along Wilson Boulevard are set for demolition this month. The buildings are being razed to make way for a 191-unit apartment complex, which will include a parking garage and ground-level retail space. [Washington Business Journal]

Arlington Mill Demolition Underway

By ARLnow.com

Demolition work is underway at the Arlington Mill Community Center site on Columbia Pike.

Heavy equipment was brought in to tear down the old building and chain link fences have been set up around the building’s perimeter. Already, the front of the structure has been demolished.

The demolition is expected to take 30-45 days. There are no road or sidewalk closures planned as a result of the work.

Once the demolition is complete work will begin on the new Arlington Mill Community Center, which is expected to open in 2013.

Arlington Mill Demolition Set for January

By ARLnow.com

Arlington is preparing to demolish the old Arlington Mill Community Center to make way for a brand new community center in 2013.

Due to some expected minor disruptions, Arlington County staff will be presenting information about the demolition plan at a public meeting next week. Update at 1/3 — The meeting has been rescheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 4 from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Greenbrier Baptist Church (5401 7th Road South).

In case you can’t make it, here’s an executive summary:

  • No explosives will be used in the demolition, which will begin in January
  • No road closures are expected
  • Traffic and transit on Columbia Pike will not be affected
  • Pedestrian access will be maintained on surrounding streets
  • The demolition will take 30 to 45 days, weather permitting
  • Debris from the site will be hauled from South Dinwiddie Street to Columbia Pike to South Four Mile Run Drive
  • Construction on the new Arlington Mill Center is expected to begin in the spring
  • Another informational meeting will be held regarding the construction plan