Clarendon

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Mannequins displayed in the window at Pacers Running Store in Clarendon

Two Add’l Endorsements for Gutshall — Democratic County Board Erik Gutshall has picked up two more endorsements. The campaign announced this week that Gutshall was endorsed by Clerk of the Circuit Court Paul Ferguson and former county treasurer Frank O’Leary. [InsideNova]

Garvey’s Idea for I-66 — In an interview with the urbanist blog Greater Greater Washington, County Board Chair Libby Garvey, who is running for reelection, talked about her belief in more Bus Rapid Transit service as a transit solution and her plans for making Arlington a “great” place to live. Among her ideas: building large decks over I-66 to provide more parkland, more bus parking and to “knit our community back together.” [Greater Greater Washington]

Barley Mac Grand Opening — Barley Mac in Rosslyn is holding its grand opening celebration this weekend: “The party will kick off each night at 8:00 p.m. and go until 2:00 a.m., and we’ll serve [complimentary] passed appetizers and light bites in the bar from 8:00-10:00 p.m.” [Facebook, Rosslyn BID]

Native Species Returning to Arlington — The removal of invasive species from Arlington’s parkland is paying off. A number of plant and animal species once thought to be gone for good have started returning to the county, including certain frogs, otters, foxes and turkeys. The county announced this in a press release with the alliterative headline “Nurtured Nature Nets New Natives.” [Arlington County]

Inexpensive Local Art on Sale — The Arlington Artists Alliance is holding an art show and sale later this month where every work of art is priced at $95 or less. [Patch]

Real Housewives Filming in Clarendon? — An episode of the Real Housewives of Potomac was reportedly being filmed at Oz restaurant in Clarendon last night. The restaurants is owned by cast member Ashley Darby and her husband. [Twitter]

Air Force Association Cycling Classic Returns to Arlington Next Month

By ARLnow.com

Air Force Cycling Classic Crystal Cup

(Updated on May 9) A weekend of cycling races is on tap for the weekend of June 11-12.

The two day Air Force Association Cycling Classic, sponsored by Boeing, is returning to Arlington for its 19th year next month.

The races will take place around Clarendon on Saturday, June 11 — busy streets like Wilson Blvd will be closed to traffic around the race circuit — and around Crystal City, the Pentagon and the Air Force Memorial on Sunday, June 12.

More details from a press release:

Kids Race: The Ethan Klancnik Memorial Kids Race supports Tay-Sachs Awareness and Prevention, and will take place in Clarendon on Saturday, June 11 and in Crystal City on Sunday, June 12.

Air Force Association Cycling Classic’s Clarendon Cup: This professional race showcases a form of cycling involving a series of high-speed bike races that take place on a 1km course on city streets. As part of the prestigious USA Cycling Professional Road Tour, the Clarendon Cup is known as one of the most difficult criterium races in the U.S. due to technical demands of the course and the quality of the participants.

Challenge Ride: The Challenge Ride is an amateur, non-competitive, participatory ride, open to cyclists of all abilities. The ride will be held on a closed, 15km circuit in and around the Pentagon, Crystal City and the Air Force Memorial. Bronze, silver and gold medals will be awarded for those who can complete 2, 4 or 6 laps within the 3-hour course closure (June 12, Crystal City). Races incorporated in the Challenge Ride include:

  • Thales Corporate Challenge
  • Navy Federal Credit Union Armed Forces Challenge
  • USAA Congressional Challenge

Some proceeds from the event will benefit wounded Air Force personnel.

“The Air Force Association’s Wounded Airman Program is the primary beneficiary of the event, receiving proceeds from pledges made by Team Sabre and from additional fundraising activities throughout the weekend,” said the press release. “The Wounded Airman Program supports wounded, ill and injured Airmen with adaptive equipment needs, financial support and care and quality of life items.”

Registration for the kids ride and for the races is open online. See photos from previous years here, here and here.

Sehkraft to Hold Beer Release Parties in May

By ARLnow.com

Sehkraft Brewing posterSehkraft Brewing (925 N. Garfield Street) in Clarendon is holding a series of beer release parties this month.

Starting on Thursday, May 5 — Cinco de Mayo — the brewery and beer hall will release varieties of its in-house brews. First up is Sehkraft’s “Good to Go IPA,” starting at 5 p.m. on May 5, followed on May 12 by the release of its “Hoptastic IPA” at 8 p.m. Both release events include a free concert from 8:30-11 p.m.

From May 19-21 Sehkraft will be holding a “haus party,” with five of its in-house beers on tap: Good to Go, Hoptastic, Sehkraft Amber, Wicked Weiss (a Berliner-style wheat beer) and Uber Awesome IPL (India Pale Lager).

“It’s American Craft Beer Week that week so what better way to ‘Say Craft’ by throwing our Haus Party/Grand Opening of Sehkraft,” owner Devin Hicks told ARLnow.com in an email. “We’ll have our friends Hardywood, DC Brau, and Left Hand Breweries over to help celebrate on the 21st. They’ll be bringing a couple of their brews over and we’ll be doing BBQ specials all day on Saturday. DC Brau is bringing over their Wings of Armageddon and 5th Anniversary brews and Hardywood is bringing over some Richmond exclusive brews.”

“Going to be quite an event,” Hicks added. There will also be free live music each night and a kids show Saturday morning, he said.

After the “haus party” week, Sehkraft will be rolling out a number of other brews, including “Pro Forma Pils,” “Hopriculous Double IPA,” “Earl of Clarendon Robust Porter,” and “Nova IPA,” a collaboration with Vienna-based Caboose Brewing.

Hicks, who has clashed with Arlington County’s zoning staff in the past, took the opportunity to say that Sehkraft would have opened earlier — it opened in November — had it not been delayed by various local regulatory holdups.

The opening was delayed for four months because, according to Hicks, zoning inspectors insisted that the “brewery tanks blocked the view in the windows to the activities inside the venue.” He called it “a huge waste of time and money.”

“Obviously, a major hardship to us eventually opening, paying taxes, providing quality jobs and contributing to making Clarendon and Arlington County a better place to live, work and visit,” Hicks said. “Obviously we had other delays via the zoning’s ‘effective methodologies’ but this definitely set the tone to our construction nightmares right off the bat.”

“I am hopeful that with my words about the difficulties with navigating through zoning’s bureaucracy, it will help other businesses have a less stressful, less time consuming and less costly ordeal in opening in a great County to do business in,” Hicks continued. “That office needs to recognize that we are all on the same team.”

Previously, Hicks said that county inspectors forced him to install a bulky wheelchair lift in the middle of the restaurant in order to provide those with disabilities access to the venue’s small entertainment stage.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Under-construction parking garage rises above the busy Costco parking lot

Oracle Acquiring Opower — Updated at 9:55 a.m. — Technology giant Oracle is acquiring Arlington-based Opower in a $548 million cash deal. Opower recently went through a round of layoffs. [Reuters, Oracle]

Clarendon Z-Burger to Get New Name — The Z-Burger location in Clarendon will be rebranded soon as part of a legal settlement between the founder and the former partners in the business. [Washington Business Journal]

Arlington Unemployment Remains Lowest in Va. — Arlington’s unemployment rate ticked up by a tenth of a percent in March, but remained the lowest in Virginia. The county’s unemployment rate is currently 2.7 percent, with just under 4,000 residents looking for work while 142,000 are employed. [InsideNova]

Foggy Morning Commute — Arlington and much of the region was under a Dense Fog Advisory this morning. [Weather Channel]

Brixx Closes Clarendon Pizzeria After Six Months in Business

By Tim Regan

Brixx Wood Fired PizzaOne of Clarendon’s newer pizza restaurants has closed its doors after only half a year in business.

Brixx Wood Fired Pizza, which opened at 1119 N. Hudson Street on Oct. 26, is now closed, the North Carolina-based company said in a Facebook post earlier this afternoon.

“Arlington friends, we have enjoyed serving you, but have decided to close our restaurant in Clarendon,” the post reads. “We will miss you, but hope you’ll visit us in Woodbridge or Virginia Beach. Thank you for your patronage and your kindness.”

The company did not say why it closed the pizzeria and a representative for Brixx did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Calls to the Clarendon location went unanswered earlier this afternoon.

Hat tip to a tipster for sending news of the closure our way

Man Struck By SUV in Clarendon

By ARLnow.com
1/3

(Updated at 1:40 p.m.) A man has been struck by a car on 10th Street N. in Clarendon.

The crash happened around 6:45 p.m., on 10th Street N. at the N. Garfield Street intersection, just west of Washington Blvd.

Initial reports suggest a driver in an SUV struck the man as he was in the marked crosswalk. The man, said to be in his 20s, was bloodied but conscious and alert when paramedics arrived. He was transported to the trauma center at George Washington University Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

A nearby resident said the intersection is dangerous because drivers speed up as they turn onto 10th Street from Washington Blvd.

“This is what I’ve feared for the longest time and why I’ve repeatedly complained to be county,” said Anne McKenna. “It is a notoriously horrible intersection.”

McKenna said she was instrumental in getting Arlington County to install bright crosswalk signs at the crossing two years ago, but they’ve had little impact on driving behaviors.

“No cars ever stop in that crosswalk and… there is no enforcement,” she wrote in an email. “I’ve never seen ONE law enforcement/code enforcement person in that intersection.”

Police are investigating the crash, but McKenna said the driver, who remained on scene after the crash, was allowed to drive off. Police charged the driver with failure to yield, a minor traffic infraction.

“No arrest or any justice for pedestrians,” McKenna said. “Huge blood stain in street.”

This is the second significant pedestrian crash in Arlington in the past two weeks. Last week a teenage girl was struck and seriously injured while walking in a crosswalk on Washington Blvd in Ballston.

Arlington County is conducting a pedestrian and bike safety campaign this week.

Editor’s note: Citing a witness, an earlier version of this article mistakenly identified the victim as female. Police say the victim was a man.

Spider Kelly’s in Clarendon to Open Huge New Beer Garden

By ARLnow.com
1/5

It’s being billed as a beer garden — arguably the first or one of the first in Clarendon — and within about a month it will start serving Clarendon bar-goers who want to want to enjoy their brews outside.

Spider Kelly’s (3181 Wilson Blvd) is currently putting the finishing touches on a new, 2,500 square foot outdoor patio. It’s located to the right of the Clarendon watering hole’s back door, behind Don Tito and across N. Hudson Street from Brixx Pizza.

No opening date has been set yet, but co-owner Nick Freshman says he’s hoping planning to open “sometime before Memorial Day weekend.”

“It’s an extension of existing SK with same style and atmosphere,” Freshman tells ARLnow.com. The beer garden will feature:

  • Capacity for 300
  • 20+ foot concrete bar with canvas awning
  • Two fire pits
  • Bar tables, communal picnic style tables, benches and other types of seating
  • A large, commissioned graffiti-style mural
  • Six-foot fence around the patio
  • Lots of beer: 16 taps, 30 cans, ciders, sangrias, etc.
  • Large, telescoping umbrellas for shade
  • Tivoli-style string lighting

Freshman said Spider Kelly’s is also adding new bathrooms inside, doubling the existing restroom capacity.

BREAKING: Rescue Underway for Man Who Fell in Trench in Clarendon

By ARLnow.com
1/10

(Updated at 2:15 p.m.) Arlington County firefighters rescued a man who fell into a trench just in front of Fire Station No. 4 in Clarendon this afternoon.

The incident happened around 1:30 p.m., in the middle of 10th Street N., where utility work associated with an apartment construction project appears to be underway.

A man — reported to be a construction worker — fell 8 feet into a trench in the street, according to scanner traffic. An ACFD technical rescue team extricated him from the trench. He was transported via ambulance to George Washington University Hospital.

Portions of 10th Street N. were closed during the rescue. Lane closures are still in place for the construction activity.

ACPD to Promote Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety This Week

By ARLnow.com

Critical pedestrian accident near the intersection of N. Highland Street and Clarendon Blvd (file photo)The Arlington County Police Department will hold its 2016 Spring Pedestrian & Bicycle Safety Awareness campaign this week.

From 8:30-10:30 a.m. tomorrow, and from 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Thursday, Arlington officers will be participating in a special detail in the Crystal City and Clarendon areas, promoting the campaign and enforcing traffic law violations by motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.

“Approximately 25 percent of the traffic fatalities in the Washington area are pedestrians and bicyclists, with nearly 90 deaths per year,” ACPD notes in a press release (below). “Motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians are reminded to pay attention to one another and always proceed with caution and care for each other’s safety.”

On Tuesday, April 26, 2016 from 8:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. and on April 28 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., officers with the Arlington County Police Department’s Special Operations Section will be out promoting the 2016 Spring Pedestrian & Bicycle Safety Awareness Program. This safety enforcement detail will be held in the Clarendon and Crystal City areas. This campaign will run from April 11, 2016 through May 8, 2016. Officers will enforce violations of traffic laws by motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians. Members of the media are invited to attend to cover the detail.

The detail is part of the 2016 Street Smart Pedestrian, Driver, and Bicyclist Safety Campaign and the Arlington County Police Department’s Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Awareness Program to promote pedestrian and bicycle safety across the region. These programs are designed to carry out education and enforcement campaigns throughout the year in order to ensure everyone shares the roads safely. Approximately 25 percent of the traffic fatalities in the Washington area are pedestrians and bicyclists, with nearly 90 deaths per year.

Motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians are reminded to pay attention to one another and always proceed with caution and care for each other’s safety.

File photo

Delays on Metro After Earlier Bomb Scare at Clarendon Station

By ARLnow.com

ACPD K9 unitNormal service is starting to resume at the Clarendon Metro station after an earlier bomb scare.

Around 7:30 a.m., police and bomb squad units responded to the station for a report of a suspicious person who might have had explosives.

Bomb-sniffing dogs swept a Metro train at the station but did not find anything. The scene has since been cleared, although Metro riders should expect residual delays.

Gutshall Goes on Offensive During First Democratic County Board Debate

By ARLnow.com
1/3

A near-capacity crowd packed into Mad Rose Tavern in Clarendon Wednesday night for a Democratic showdown between County Board member Libby Garvey and primary challenger Erik Gutshall.

The Arlington Young Democrats-hosted debate was perhaps not the battle royale some were expecting, but there were a few pointed barbs from Gutshall and an assertive defense from Garvey of her record.

Gutshall started his line of attack before the debate even started, by CCing news outlets that morning on a letter to Garvey, questioning why former Republican Congressman Tom Davis donated $1,000 to her campaign. (In 2014, Davis also donated $1,000 to the campaign of independent County Board member John Vihstadt, who Garvey endorsed over Democrat Alan Howze.)

“I was shocked to learn that someone running to be the Democratic nominee would so openly solicit, and accept, campaign contributions from someone whose job and mission it was to defeat Democrats,” Gutshall wrote. He asked Garvey to sign a pledge to only support Democratic candidates and to reject campaign contributions from current or former Republican elected officials.

At the debate, Gutshall said it was “not acceptable” that Garvey had not signed the pledge, also citing her decision not to endorse Del. Rip Sullivan during his campaign.

“Absolutely, unequivocally, 100 percent I will support the Democrat, period,” Gutshall said.

Garvey, meanwhile, declined to make any absolute promises, saying she would make decisions based on “what is the right thing for Arlington… what is best for the people I serve.”

“Generally, that’s the Democrat,” she said. Her answer was followed by a couple loud boos from the crowd.

Gutshall attempted to re-litigate the streetcar battle, saying that Garvey “has sat on the sidelines” since she and Vihstadt helped to scuttle the project, which would have brought light rail transit to Columbia Pike. (The county has said an alternative transit plan will be coming this year.)

“We don’t have the transit that’s there to meet the needs of density” along Columbia Pike, said Gutshall. “We have the right to expect more and do better.”

Garvey said that until January, when she took over the County Board chairmanship, she “did not have the votes” to push a Bus Rapid Transit plan for the Pike. With the addition of like-minded Democrats Katie Cristol and Christian Dorsey this year, she said the County Board is functioning well as a team.

“Your board is a very exciting board right now,” she said. “I have done a lot since January. I would like to build on this experience and build on this work.”

Gutshall accused Garvey of abandoning the infrastructure investment mindset that led previous generations of local Democratic leaders to support, for instance, the building of the Metrorail system.

“Progress comes by investing in the future,” he said. “The main reason I’m running here is that I have heard rhetoric that we should turn and look inward and that we cannot afford to meet these challenges.”

(more…)

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