This week’s Arlington County crime report contained an item seen only once or twice in the past year and a half. A couple was carjacked while parked in Pentagon City early Saturday morning.

CARJACKING, 07/09/11, 400 block of S. 12th Street. On July 9 at 1 am, a couple was sitting in a parked vehicle when two unknown men approached the car. The suspects opened the doors and demanded the victims exit. One suspect displayed a handgun and valuables were stolen from the victims. The suspects then drove off in the victim’s car. The car was later recovered in Maryland. The suspects were both African American men approximately 20 years old. One suspect was 5’9″, 140 lbs and wore a grey hooded sweatshirt. The second suspect was 5’5″, 140 lbs, and wore a grey hooded sweatshirt and dark pants.

On Friday, a man was arrested and charged with assaulting a police officer in front of his 11-year-old son.

ASSAULT ON POLICE-ARREST, 07/08/11, 4200 block of N. 2nd Road. On July 8 at 6 pm, a man was seen stealing a bicycle. During the investigation, the suspect assaulted a police officer in front of the suspect’s 11-year-old son. Manuel Antonio Alvarado, 28, of Washington D.C., was charged with Assault and Battery on Law Enforcement, Petit Larceny and Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor. He was held on a $2,500 bond.

Finally, early Sunday morning, a man allegedly cornered a woman at a bar in Ballston, then lifted her skirt and touched her underwear.

SEXUAL BATTERY, 07/10/11, 600 block of N. Glebe Road. On July 10 at 1:15 am, an unknown man cornered a woman at a bar and lifted her skirt, touching her underwear. The suspect is described as a white male with brown hair in his 20’s, 6′ and 180 lbs. He was wearing a blue polo shirt and jeans.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump.

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A new discount tattoo removal shop is coming to the corner of Wilson Boulevard and N. Pollard Street in Ballston.

Called “Zap a Tat,” the shop is “a new concept in laser tattoo removal,” according to a help wanted ad on Craigslist. The store will attempt to undercut other tattoo removal services on price, according to the Linked In page of its owner, a Harvard MBA alum.

Zap a Tat will “provide high quality laser tattoo removal at a reasonable price,” according to the Linked In page. “We are testing our concept and will begin roll-out soon thereafter.”

The Ballston storefront, at 820 N. Pollard Street, is “our first retail location,” according to the Craiglist ad.

Tattoo removal is a booming business. About a quarter of the population between the ages of 18 and 50 has at least one tattoo, according to study published in 2006.

Hat tip to Tim J.


The Red Hook Lobster truck made its public Northern Virginia debut in Ballston today.

Camped out near the corner of N. Stuart Street and Fairfax Drive, the truck served lobster rolls, shrimp rolls, Whoopie pies, Maine Root sodas and other New England-inspired fare to Ballston lunchgoers.

The truck is the second operated by Red Hook. The first lobster truck has been attracting crowds in the District since last summer.

On Twitter, Red Hook announced plans to eventually serve Courthouse, Rosslyn and Crystal City.


As lawmakers in Greece could attest, tackling a large national budget deficit is a thankless job.

Either you make steep cuts that will inevitably draw the ire of many constituents, even your supporters, or you don’t cut enough and allow your country to gradually slip into the fiscal abyss.

Cognizant of the political challenges, nonprofit deficit hawks have stepped in to try to rally public support for tough budget choices by giving voters the chance to play congressman for a day — and thus experience the challenges themselves. One such exercise is coming to Arlington next week.

Rep. Jim Moran is teaming up with the nonpartisan Concord Coalition to host “Priniciples & Priorities,” described as an “interactive exercise in which participants team up to tackle the federal budget deficit by making many of the policy decisions facing lawmakers today.”

The event, which is open to members of the public who register online, will take place at the National Rural Electric Cooperative building in Ballston (4301 Wilson Boulevard), from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Monday, July 11.

Moran is not exactly known as a fiscal conservative, thanks in part to public remarks about “earmark[ing] a lot of money through the appropriations process.” Still, the long-time congressman acknowledges that “difficult choices must be made” regarding the budget.

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Greene Turtle Coming to Ballston — Sports bar The Greene Turtle is coming to Ballston later this year. The restaurant has signed a lease for a 7,000 square foot space on the ground floor of the new Virginia Tech Research Center (900 N. Glebe Road). [Washington Business Journal]

New Apartment Complex Coming to Ballston — A new 150-unit apartment complex called The Crimson on Glebe is coming to Ballston. The five-story mixed-use building will be located across from Ballston Common Mall at the corner of Glebe Road and N. Carlin Springs Road. Owners are hoping to wrap up construction by mid-2013. [CoStar Group]

Buck-a-Burger Sale at Whole Foods — Get ready for your Fourth of July cookout with the Buck-a-Burger deal at Whole Foods. Today only the Clarendon Whole Foods is offering eight varieties of burger patties for $1 each. (They’re normally $2.) [Clarendon Culture]

Remy ‘Dissed’ in Video — A pair going by the names of Barack Flobama and St. Fatrick have released a music video “dissing” Arlington Rap guy Remy Munasifi. [YouTube]


The woman who died in a crash inside a Ballston parking garage Thursday morning worked as an interpreter for the Justice Department’s Arlington Immigration Court.

In a letter to colleagues, Chief Judge Brian O’Leary said Adele Lapinell, 74, will be remembered for her “patience and understanding.”

I am saddened to announce that Ms. Adele Lapinell, a staff interpreter with the Arlington Immigration Court, passed away today in a single car accident in the parking facility at the court.

Ms. Lapinell first joined the Department of Justice/EOIR in January 1988. Throughout her years as a staff interpreter at the Arlington Immigration Court, Ms. Lapinell assisted thousands of limited English proficient individuals in better understanding their immigration court proceedings, and helped each of the immigration judges communicate with those who appear before them. The agency greatly depends on staff interpreters like Ms. Lapinell to provide a communicative bridge between the immigration court staff and the aliens who appear in proceedings. Her colleagues and friends at the Arlington Immigration Court will greatly miss her. She will be especially remembered for her patience and understanding.


Construction blocked the sole northbound lane of N. Randolph Street at the Glebe Road intersection around lunchtime today.

A dump truck and a backhoe made travel on both northbound Randolph Street and northbound Glebe Road a bit tricky for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians. A lone worker with a florescent vest tried to get southbound traffic on Randolph to stay out of the turn lane so northbound traffic could get around the construction. Meanwhile, a lane was also blocked on northbound Glebe Road.

Crews appeared to be doing some sort of work on the sidewalk.


(Update at 2:35 p.m.) An elderly woman is dead following a car fire in the parking garage below the Ballston Hilton (950 N. Stafford Street).

Homicide detectives were called to investigate the woman’s death, but according to police spokeswoman Det. Crystal Nosal the death is now being investigated as a probable accident.

Police believe the woman, 74-year-old Adele Lapinell of Annandale, suffered some sort of medical emergency that caused her to crash her vehicle on the G-1 level of the garage. The crash caused the fire, Nosal said — likely the result of a gas line that was damaged by the collision. The first and second floors of the hotel were evacuated during the fire as a precaution.

Lapinell’s body was found as firefighters extinguished the blaze. Nosal said she was identified as a “registered parker” in the garage. She was the only person in the vehicle at the time of the collision.

Police shut down Stafford Street between Fairfax Drive and 9th Street N. while emergency responders were on the scene. The road has since reopened. Washington Gas crews are on the scene to help repair the gas line.


Featuring next-generation internet connectivity, computational laboratories and multiple meeting and conference spaces, the new 144,000 square foot Virginia Tech Research Center building in Ballston (900 N. Glebe Road) celebrated its grand opening today.

Virginia Tech President Charles Steger, Rep. Jim Moran, and County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman were on hand this afternoon for a ribbon cutting ceremony on the glimmering glass-and-steel building’s seventh floor.

Zimmerman kicked off the ceremony with references to the “human bandwidth” and “internet firepower” that the building brings to Ballston, Arlington’s science and technology hub. Dr. Steger spoke about the research already underway in the building, including research into military medical care, renewable energy and cyber security.

Calling Virginia Tech’s Ballston presence an “international center of excellence” and an “investment in our future,” Rep. Moran remarked on the benefits it will bring to the area and to the university.

“It will pay substantial dividends to Virginia Tech and enhance its mission to become one of the leading research institutions in the world,” he said. Moran added that it would be a mistake to cut federal research funding in the interest of deficit reduction, citing what he said was the need to supplement the “short term, bottom line” focus of corporate research.


Grand Opening for Virginia Tech Research Center — The shiny new Virginia Tech Research Center at 900 N. Glebe Road in Ballston will celebrate its grand opening on Friday. Virginia Tech President Charles W. Steger, Congressman Jim Moran and County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman are among the scheduled speakers. The seven floor, 144,000 square foot facility boasts next-generation internet connectivity, computational laboratories and multiple meeting and conference spaces.

School Board Asks for Definition of Homework — A proposal before the School Board states that homework should count for no more than 15 percent of a student’s quarterly grade. However, Board members have asked for clarification after learning that certain take-home projects apparently aren’t considered “homework.” Some parents have complained that students are being asked to do too much school work outside of school. [Sun Gazette]

Signature Theater Open House Planned — Returning for another year, Shirlington’s Signature Theater will be holding its “open house” next month, complete with indoor and outdoor performances, master classes and the popular Signature Idol singing competition. The open house is being held from noon to 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 23. [Signature Theater]


A FroZenYo self-serve frozen yogurt shop is under construction in Crystal City.

The store will be replacing a closed Quizno’s Restaurant, next to the Chipotle at 2231 Crystal Drive. No word on when it will be opening, but building permits are now posted in the windows.

New FroZenYo locations are also planned for Rosslyn and Ballston. Late last year the company told TBD.com that all three Arlington locations would be opening in 2011.

Hat tip to “Atleeelmont”


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