award

ABBIE Award Voting Begins

By Katie Pyzyk

Disclosure: The ABBIE Awards/Arlington Economic Development is an ARLnow.com advertiser

Now’s your chance to make sure your favorite businesses in Arlington get recognized. Voting for the 2011 ABBIE awards begins today.

Nominations for Arlington’s Best Business Awards came via online voting from September 21-October 12. They’ve been narrowed down to the to the top five (and in one case six) finalists in each of 15 categories.

ABBIE winners will receive recognition from the Arlington County Board, a year’s worth of promotion in various local publications, and special placement in the Arlington County Visitors Guide and Map.

Voting runs through November 16. To cast your vote click here.


Arlington Cops Honored for Solving Rape Case

By ARLnow.com

Two Arlington County police officers are being honored by the International Association of Chiefs of Police for their role in the arrest of Jorge Torrez.

Torrez, a former Marine, was convicted of rape and abduction after two February 2010 incidents in Arlington. He’s also charged with murder in the 2009 death of a Naval Petty Officer.

Here’s the press release from the Arlington County Police Department:

The Arlington County Police Department is pleased to announce the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Highway Safety Committee has selected two Arlington County officers as the grand prize winners of the 2011 Looking Beyond the License Plate award. The 3M Traffic Safety Systems Division has partnered with the IACP Highway Safety Committee for 13 years to recognize police officers who use license plates to solve serious, non-traffic related crimes.

On February 27, 2010, around 4 a.m., police responded to the 600 block of North Wakefield Street for a call about an abduction. Two young women were walking to a residence when a man confronted them with a handgun. The suspect forced them inside the house where he restrained them. The suspect then forced one of the victims to leave the house with him and she was forced into the suspect’s vehicle. Four hours later, the victim was found seeking help and medical treatment in a neighboring jurisdiction. She was suffering from serious injuries and was transported to an area hospital.

During the investigation of these crimes, Corporal Timothy Clifford and Officer Andrew Nucelli recalled seeing, and running the license plate, of a vehicle that matched the description of the SUV used in these crimes. That information lead to the owner of the SUV, Jorge Torrez. This police work was instrumental in the identification and subsequent arrest of the suspect.

Jorge Torrez was not only convicted of 14 charges including Abduction with the Intent to Defile, Forcible Sodomy, Robbery, and Rape, he was later charged with the death of a Naval Petty Officer and linked by DNA to the a double homicide of two young girls in Illinois that occurred in 2005.

Corporal Clifford and Officer Nucelli will each be honored at a banquet at the IACP Annual Conference in Chicago, Illinois, next week.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Star Wars Event at Library — Arlington Central Library hosted a Star Wars costuming event over the weekend, as the above photo (uploaded to the library’s Facebook page) demonstrates.

School Stats Released — The class of 2011 at Arlington Public Schools had an on-time graduation rate of more than 87 percent, just above the state average of 86.6 percent. Arlington’s drop-out rate is declining, meanwhile. The rate was 9.8 percent in 2011, compared to 12.5 percent in 2008. [Arlington Public Schools]

Alexandria Gets Bikeshare — The Alexandria City Council voted yesterday night to join the Capital Bikeshare program. For Bikeshare members in Arlington, that means point-to-point trips to Old Town will be possible, from CaBi stations in Crystal City, Pentagon City and along the Rosslyn-Ballston Corridor. [Washington Post]

N. Va., Military Contractor Mecca –Why have military contractors been moving their headquarters to Northern Virginia? Because they want “to be where the action is,” writes Forbes. In general: “Whether they generate sizable revenues from the government or not, big companies seem to like northern Virginia a lot, despite being surrounded by some of the worst traffic jams in the nation.” [Forbes]

Last Day for ABBIE Nominations — Today is the last day to nominate local businesses for the annual Arlington’s Best Business Awards. The 15 categories include “Best Brunch,” “Best Customer Service,” and “Best New Business.” (Disclosure: The ABBIE Awards are an ARLnow.com advertiser.) [ABBIE Awards]

Photo via Arlington Public Library

Student Film Nominated for Award

By ARLnow.com

A film made by a group of students from Yorktown High School and the Arlington Career Center was nominated for an award at a local film festival over the weekend.

The film, “Not Yet,” examines an important decision some high school students face: whether to apply to college or stay home and help one’s family.

It was nominated for a Best Student Film award at the 72 Hour Film Festival in Frederick, Md. The festival challenges filmmakers to write, record and edit an original film in only 72 hours.

Directed by students Jeremy Cannon and Charlotte Pence, and starring Maddie Richhart, Steven Duffy, Nick McNulty and Ariel Cadby-Spicer, the film was shot in an Arlington home and at Yorktown High School and Tuckahoe Park.

In the end, “Not Yet” was a runner-up; a film by a group of college students won the award.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

New Mexican Restaurant Coming to Clarendon — A Craigslist help wanted ad reveals that Lime Fresh Mexican Grill is planning on coming to Clarendon. [Clarendon Culture]

Boehner at Guapo’s, Again — House Speaker John Boehner was spotted at Guapo’s in Shirlington Village Wednesday night. This is Boehner’s fourth such visit to the Mexican restaurant, that we’re aware of. While there, Boehner posed for a photo that was then posted on a local blog. [Shirlington Village Blog Spot]

Arlington Establishments Up for Radio Awards — Several Arlington businesses and neighborhoods are nominated in HOT 99.5’s “Hottys” award contest. Among the Arlington nominations: Whitlow’s for best bar, Lyon Hall for best restaurant and best bathroom, Goody’s for best drunk food and Clarendon for best neighborhood. Users can vote for each item by clicking a Facebook “like” button.

Flickr pool photo by Christaki

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Where Are the GOP Candidates? — So far, Arlington Republicans have not been able to find a single candidate willing to run in any of this year’s six county government races. The last time a Republican was elected to the County Board was the late 1990s. [Sun Gazette]

Police Looking for Missing D.C. Man — Police are hoping for the public’s help in finding a missing D.C. man. Matthew Hill, 26, was reported missing on Tuesday. His last debit card transaction was recorded at noon on Tuesday at an Exxon gas station in Arlington. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is encouraged to call D.C. police. [WUSA]

APAH Receives Housing Award — The Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing has been named “Developer of the Year” by the Housing Assocation of Nonprofit Developers. APAH received the award at a ceremony yesterday.

Arlington Gets Another AAA Rating — A third bond rating agency has given Arlington its highest vote of confidence. Moody’s affirmed Arlington’s AAA debt rating yesterday. This is the eleventh consecutive year that Arlington’s debt has received a AAA rating from all three rating agencies. [Arlington County]

Flickr pool photo by Philliefan99

Video: Arlington’s Mobile Visitors Center

By ARLnow.com

As tourists (and motorcyclists) start flocking to the Nation’s Capital for Memorial Day weekend, Arlington’s Mobile Visitors Center will be here to greet them.

The four-wheeled, electric-powered tourism information booth will be out in Clarendon Friday night, providing maps, brochures and personal guidance to visitors. The MVC hits six different Arlington neighborhoods — all along Metro corridors — in the course of a week. It typically does not operate on weekends or holidays (including Memorial Day), except for special events like the Marine Corps Marathon.

The MVC won a statewide award for Virginia Visitor Center of the Year earlier this month. In the video above, the county-run Arlington Virginia Network takes a tour of the award-winning vehicle, which is the first of its kind in the United States.

Columbia Pike Documentary Video Earns Emmy Nod

By ARLnow.com

A county-produced video about the Columbia Pike Documentary Project has received a regional Emmy nomination.

The video was produced by Arlington Virginia Network producer/photographer/editor Roger Munter. It’s nominated in the Historical/Cultural category along with video segments from the Washington Post, Baltimore’s Fox 45 television station and others.

Munter’s video follows a group of residents that has been documenting life on Columbia Pike through photographs and oral histories.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Jim Morrison in Arlington? — The late Doors frontman Jim Morrison apparently was an Arlingtonian. The son of a Navy admiral, Morrison lived at as many as three different Arlington addresses. The current resident of one of his reported former addresses says Morrison’s ghost has haunted the house on three different occasions. [Falls Church News-Press]

Pete’s Apizza Groupon Selling Fast — A 50% off Groupon for Pete’s New Haven Style Apizza (3017 Clarendon Blvd) has nearly sold out. As of this writing, 5,800 people have purchased the deal — 4,800 specifically for the restaurant’s recently-opened Clarendon location. Expect the Clarendon restaurant to get considerably more crowded over the next few weeks as a result. [Groupon]

Mobile Visitors Center Honored — Arlington’s first-of-its-kind electric-powered Mobile Visitors Center has been honored as the Visitor Center of the Year by the Virginia Association of Convention & Visitors Bureaus. The Mobile Visitors Center “serves travelers and residents at six Metro locations five days a week, and at major annual events.” [Arlington County]

Flickr pool photo by Philliefan99

http://staging.arlnow.com/2011/03/24/petes-new-haven-apizza-plans-sunday-opening/

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Free Coffee for Earth Day — To celebrate Earth Day, Starbucks is offering a free coffee or tea to anybody who brings a reusable mug or tumbler. Caribou Coffee, which has locations in Shirlington and Crystal City, is also offering free coffee for those who bring reusable drinkware. [Starbucks, Shirlington Village Blogspot]

Ballston Recognized for Environmental Efforts — Ballston has been named one of the top 10 “green” neighborhoods in the Washington area by real estate listing service MRIS. [Prince of Petworth]

Lawsuit May Be Filed to Stop Mark Center Moves — Rep. Jim Moran is urging Virginia officials to sue the federal government after the Department of Defense’s inspector general found big potential traffic problems with the new Mark Center in Alexandria. According to the inspector general’s report, the Army misled local officials about traffic issues at the site. A lawsuit could keep hundreds or even thousands of jobs in Arlington while improvements are made to the Mark Center’s transportation infrastructure. [Washington Examiner]

Post Tackles Twilight Convention — In an amusing but sadly photo-less write-up of last weekend’s Twilight fan convention at the Sheraton National Hotel on Columbia Pike, a Washington Post reporter discovers that most die-hard Twilight convention-goers are 25 to 50 year-old women. There are, however, a few male fans, who may or may not have been more interested in the female fans than in the movie itself. [Washington Post]

Shirlington Village Trades Escalator for Stairs — Eschewing the normal progression of technology, Shirlington Village has completed a project that removed an escalator and replaced it with a set of stairs. [Shirlington Village Blog]

Flickr pool photo by Philliefan99

http://www.flickr.com/photos/74104660@N00/5639010401/in/pool-arlnow#/photos/74104660@N00/5639010401/in/pool-1412700@N22/

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Route 50 Interchange Project Nears — In March, we were told that the lane closure on westbound Route 50 would finally be lifted by around this time. That’s still yet to be seen, but some new closures are just around the corner. Dr. Gridlock reports that VDOT plans to start construction on a new Route 50/Courthouse Road/Fairfax Drive interchange next month, with nightly traffic disruptions. The $39 million project is expected to wrap up in Fall 2013. [Dr. Gridlock]

Arlington’s Fuel Bill Going Up — Arlington County could spend hundreds of thousands of additional dollars on gasoline this year, thanks to rising gas prices. The county’s vehicle fleet — which includes fuel-sipping Toyota Priuses — consumes about a million gallons of gas every year. [Washington Examiner]

Emergency Personnel Honored for Valor — The Arlington Chamber of Commerce held its 29th annual Valor Awards ceremony on Tuesday. The event honored police, sheriff, fire and EMS personnel whose selfless work has saved lives. Among those honored was Jason Hart and Mark Jaquays, who managed to save the life of a young man who was painting a house last summer when his ladder touched a power line. [Sun Gazette]

Real Estate Prices Up, Inventory Down –– The sale price of Arlington residential real estate surged last month. Condos and townhouses in particular were both up by double digit percentages. Also, real estate inventory was down significantly compared to 2010. [Arlington Real Estate News]

Flickr pool photo by Aaron Webb

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