Columbia Pike

Jair Lynch says it will consider deepening affordability at Barcroft Apartments

By Jo DeVoe
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Developer Jair Lynch says it is exploring ways to make some units at the Barcroft Apartments even more affordable to families.

This comes as two organizations, Arlington Community Foundation and advocacy group ACE Collaborative, have put pressure on Jair Lynch to deepen affordability at the site over concerns of displacement.

“We have heard the assertions that tenants won’t be displaced, but we are asking for detailed plans for the displacement prevention,” ACE Collaborative Director Mitchell Yangson tells ARLnow, adding that rent for legacy residents should “be rolled back to a level that will prevent their displacement for as long as they live at Barcroft, not just on a temporary basis.”

Around this time last year, Jair Lynch acquired the Barcroft Apartments with the intent to renovate some units and redevelop other parts of the site with $310 million in loans from Arlington County and Amazon. It received these loans after promising to preserve at least 1,334 units for households earning up to 60% of the area median income (AMI).

But deepening affordability remains a live issue for two reasons. First, most residents make less than 60% of the area median income, according to the developer’s Master Financing and Development Plan, submitted to the county in late October — equating to $85,380 for a family of four. Second, the developer says next year it will begin phasing in 3% rent hikes.

A majority of the 1,100 residents living in Barcroft before the sale reported earning 40-50% AMI, or $56,920-$71,150 for a family of four, while some reported earning up to 30% AMI, or $42,690 for a family of four.

“There are some rent-burdened people here,” Jair Lynch Development Senior Vice President Ruth Hoang said in an Arlington Housing Commission meeting in November. “We are also concerned about overcrowding hiding some rent burden as well.”

The federal government defines being rent-burdened as spending more than 30% of one’s income on rent.

Range of incomes reported as of Oct. 1, 2022 at Barcroft (via Arlington County)

Jair Lynch and Arlington County have said that households will not be displaced. Rent in 2022 was frozen at 2021 levels, and increases capped at 3% per year will start in 2023.

The developer also says it will work on a case-by-case basis with residents who feel they cannot afford any rent hikes.

“As we roll out the 3% increases, those residents who are concerned and feel like they can’t pay, we’ll have those meetings with them and look at their incomes to see what they can and cannot support,” Hoang said.

Jair Lynch has committed to trying to find on-site options for those earning more than 60% AMI.

Per the financing report, Jair Lynch says it can still meet its original goals despite “significant economic and financial headwinds.”

These include scarcer affordable housing financing due to the more than 2.5 percentage point increase in interest rates and increases in operating and constructing housing, due to 8-10% inflation and a 15-20% increase in construction costs.

The report listed additional funding sources that could be used to deepen affordability levels, similar to those Arlington Community Foundation identified in a report showing how 255 units could be preserved for extremely low-income households, or those earning 30% AMI.

(more…)

ACPD: Man exposed himself to girls near Swanson Middle School

By ARLnow.com
Arlington police car (file photo)

A man allegedly exposed himself to four girls near Swanson Middle School in Westover.

Police are investigating the incident, which reportedly happened around 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The girls told officers they heard a banging sound then saw an older man inside a residence exposing himself through the window.

From yesterday’s Arlington County Police Department crime report:

INDECENT EXPOSURE (Late), 2022-12140164, 5800 block of Washington Boulevard. At approximately 3:43 p.m. on December 14, police made telephone contact with the reporting party regarding a late indecent exposure. The investigation indicates that at approximately 2:30 p.m., the four juvenile female victims were walking in the area when they heard banging and observed the male suspect in the window of a residence allegedly exposing himself. The suspect is described as an older, heavy-set, White male. The investigation is ongoing.

Around the same time on Wednesday, police say a 31-year-old Arlington man kicked and shattered an ART bus door along Columbia Pike. The man is also accused of kicking a police officer after his arrest.

More from ACPD:

ASSAULT ON POLICE, 2022-12140119, Columbia Pike at S. Dinwiddie Street. At approximately 2:15 p.m. on December 14, police were dispatched to the report of destruction of property. Upon arrival, it was determined that an Arlington Transit bus was slowing to a stop at this location when the suspect approached and allegedly kicked the door, causing the glass panel to shatter. Responding officers located the suspect and took him into custody. While conducting their investigation, the suspect twice kicked a police officer. Yohana Gebremeskel, 31, of Arlington, Va., was arrested and charged with Assault on Police, Destruction of Property and Public Intoxication. He was held without bond.

Police investigating ‘suspicious death’ on Columbia Pike

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County police are investigating the death of a man found unresponsive in a park along Columbia Pike.

Police were called around 10 p.m. Friday night for a man lying on the ground and not moving near the intersection of Columbia Pike and Four Mile Run Drive, which is also in proximity to the bike trail.

The man, who was in cardiac arrest and not breathing, was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.

While a cause of death has not been released, police are calling the man’s death suspicious. A helicopter was called in from a nearby police agency to search the area, along with officers on the ground.

No arrests have been announced and police are asking the public for additional information about the case.

More from ACPD:

The Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit is investigating a suspicious death which occurred on the evening of December 9, 2022.

At approximately 10:03 p.m., police were dispatched to Columbia Pike at S. Four Mile Run Drive for the report of trouble unknown. Upon arrival, officers located an unresponsive adult male in the park. Medics performed lifesaving measures before transferring him to an area hospital where he was pronounced deceased. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will determine cause and manner of death.

The circumstances that preceded the death remain under investigation. Anyone with information that may assist with the investigation is asked to contact the Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit at 703-228-4180 or [email protected]. Information may also be reported anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

Police on lookout for airsoft gun drive-by shooter

By ARLnow.com
Arlington police car at night (file photo courtesy Kevin Wolf)

Four people suffered minor injuries Wednesday night during a pellet gun drive-by shooting.

The incident happened on the 3200 block of Columbia Pike, just east of S. Glebe Road, around 6 p.m. It involved 3-4 male suspects in a white SUV, including the shooter of the airsoft gun, who is believed to be in his 20s.

From an Arlington County Police Department crime report:

ASSAULT AND BATTERY (Significant), 2022-12070175, 3200 block of Columbia Pike. At approximately 6:11 p.m. on December 7, police were dispatched to the report of shots heard. Upon arrival, it was determined unknown male suspect(s) discharged an airsoft gun from a vehicle, striking four victims with pellets. The victims reported minor injuries which did not require medical treatment. Responding officers canvassed the area yielding negative results. The suspect vehicle is described as a white SUV with three or four male occupants. Suspect One is described as a White male in his 20s with short dark hair and wearing a black hooded sweatshirt. There are no other descriptions for the vehicle’s occupants. The investigation is ongoing.

Back in March police responded to a series of drive-by paintball and pellet gun shootings that might have been inspired by a viral video trend. Few, if any, such shootings have been reported since in Arlington, until Wednesday’s incident.

ACPD: Would-be robber punched in Buckingham, shots fired along Columbia Pike

By ARLnow.com
File photo

Crime doesn’t pay, the saying goes, and that is particularly true if you get punched during a failed robbery attempt.

According to Arlington County police, that’s what happened early this morning in the Buckingham neighborhood.

Around 12:30 a.m., a man armed with a knife tried to rob another man of money along the 200 block of N. Glebe Road — the same block as the CVS and the post office. It did not go as planned for the would-be robber.

From an ACPD crime report:

ROBBERY, 2022-12070004, 200 block of N. Glebe Road. At approximately 12:32 a.m. on December 7, police were dispatched to the report of a robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined the victim was walking in the area when he was approached by the unknown male suspect who asked him for money. When the victim declined, the suspect allegedly displayed a knife and attempted to grab the victim. The victim then struck the suspect and ran from the area. The suspect fled the scene on foot prior to the arrival of police. Responding officers canvassed the area for the suspect yielding negative results. The suspect is described as a Hispanic male with a skinny build, 5’11, wearing a red hat, red shirt, black pants and white shoes. The investigation is ongoing.

Also in today’s crime report, someone fired several gunshots into a residential building along the 2000 block of Columbia Pike around 4 a.m. That’s the same block as the Dorchester Towers and Dorchester Apartments complexes, east of Penrose Square.

So far, there is no indication that anyone was actually shot, but a door was damaged.

SHOTS FIRED, 2022-12070025, 2000 block of Columbia Pike. At approximately 4:08 a.m. on December 7, police were dispatched to the report of shots heard. Upon arrival, officers recovered evidence outside a residential building confirming multiple shots had been fired and located property damage to a door within the building. No injuries were reported. There is no suspect description. The investigation is ongoing.

Eli’s Taqueria y Restaurante looking to open soon in the former home of Nono’s Taqueria

By Matt Blitz
The former spot of Nono’s Taqueria on Columbia Pike is set to become Eli’s Taqueria y Restaurante next month (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

A new taco spot is moving into the former Columbia Pike home of another recently-shuttered taco spot.

Last week, ARLnow reported that the Instagram-popular Nono’s Taqueria was closed and planning to open elsewhere. Now, only days later, the space between Panda Bowl and Family Kabob House is getting a new tenant.

“Eli’s Taqueria y Restaurante” has taken over the lease for the restaurant and will be filling the space at 3207-A Columbia Pike, owners of both businesses confirmed to ARLnow.

The new restaurant, which will also serve birria tacos as well as other dishes, plans to open next month, co-owner Elizabeth Marquez says.

Eli’s Taqueria y Restaurante comes from local Nevi Paredes, who owns the taco truck Taqueria La Ceibita that is often parked at the BP gas station on Columbia Pike near S. Buchanan Street. Marquez, who is Paredes’ daughter, will help run it with her family.

“We’ve become a bit popular with the locals. [The truck] is run by my mom, me and my two older sisters,” Marquez said. “My mom’s grandkids love to come help out too. It’s been a dream of my mom’s to have a restaurant so we started with a truck and are super excited to open ‘Eli’s Taqueria y Restaurante’ and expand our family business.”

Paredes has lived in Arlington for 35 years. Her daughters are Yorktown High School graduates.

The menu at the new restaurant will be the same as the truck’s, though the restaurant will serve shrimp and fish as well. There will also be breakfast and pupusas because “everyone loves my mom’s pupusas,” said Marquez. Eli’s Taqueria y Restaurante willo continue to provide halal meat, like the truck.

The opening of this new eatery continues to strengthen Columbia Pike’s case as Arlington’s taco corridor.

Nono’s Taqueria gained quite a following before it closed so that the owner can take a “mini-vacation.” The plan is to reopen next spring, perhaps again on the Pike.

The La Tingeria food truck was also quite popular, serving birria tacos on weekends on S. Courthouse Road right off the Pike. It moved to a permanent space in Falls Church earlier this year.

Just last month, Tortas y Tacos at 2911 Columbia Pike announced that it would be extending its hours to 24/7.

Columbia Pike taco spot popular on Instagram is now closed, likely moving early next year

By Matt Blitz
1/2

A Columbia Pike taco spot that has gained a following on social media has closed until next year and is likely moving.

Nono’s Taqueria announced last week to its nearly Instagram 61,000 followers that it was “temporarily closing” its location at 3207-A Columbia Pike, tucked between Panda Bowl and Family Kabob House. But “better things are yet to come” continued the post.

Those better things appear to be a “mini-vacation” and a move, per chef and owner Christian Ruiz.

“We decided to close because our lease was almost up and it was time for an upgrade. Our clientele is big and we think it’s time to stand out on Columbia Pike with a facility that’s modern, offers more parking, and easier access for all our customers,” Ruiz wrote ARLnow in an email. “Our previous location served its purpose and was a great starting point for Nono’s Taqueria and we are grateful for all that it came with. All that being said, we are taking a mini vacation meanwhile so that we can come back stronger than ever.”

Ruiz also said that all of this might not happen until “close to March.”

We asked where Nono’s Taqueria plans to move but have yet to hear back. The taco shop opened in May 2021 and is known for its “Tijuana-style” birria tacos.

Birria tacos at Nono’s Taqueria (image via Instagram/Nono’s Taqueria)

The Columbia Pike corridor is gaining a bit of a reputation for being home to popular taco spots.

Up until this time last year, the La Tingeria food truck was also serving birria tacos on weekends on S. Courthouse Road right off the Pike before moving to a permanent space in Falls Church.

Last month Tortas y Tacos at 2911 Columbia Pike, next to the Arlington Cinema Drafthouse, announced that it would be extending its hours to 24/7, at least for delivery.

ACPD nabs alleged airbag thieves

By ARLnow.com
Arlington police car at night (file photo courtesy Kevin Wolf)

Airbag theft has been an ongoing problem this year in Arlington, but police just put two alleged thieves behind bars.

The arrests happened early Sunday, after three vehicles were damaged and two had airbags stolen along the 2100 block of Columbia Pike, two blocks east of Bob & Edith’s Diner.

Police say they were able to locate the suspects in the Long Branch Creek neighborhood based on a description of their vehicle given by someone who called to report the thefts. The suspects, ages 25 and 43, are now facing a variety of charges.

More from an Arlington County Police Department crime report:

DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY (Series), 2022-11130036, 2100 block of Columbia Pike. At approximately 3:03 a.m. on November 13, police were dispatched to the report of larcenies from auto just occurred. Upon arrival, it was determined unknown suspect(s) had allegedly smashed the windows of three vehicles, stole airbags from two of the vehicles and fled the scene in a white sedan. A lookout was broadcast based on information from the reporting party and officers located the suspect vehicle at 28th Street S. and 26th Street S. Officers conducted a traffic stop and the two vehicle occupants were taken into custody without incident. Upon a search of Suspect One incident to arrest, a glass breaking tool was located. Upon a search of the suspect vehicle, burglarious tools, a radar detector and air bags were recovered. [A suspect], 25, of Manassas, Va. was arrested and charged with Destruction of Property (x3), Tampering with Auto (x3), Grand Larceny (x2), Possession of Burglarious Tools, Possession of Stolen Items with the Intent to Sell, Conspiracy to Commit Larceny (x2), Carrying a Concealed Weapon and Possession of Radar Detector. [A suspect], 43, of Manassas, Va, was arrested and charged with Destruction of Property (x3), Tampering with Auto (x3), Grand Larceny (x2), Possession of Burglarious Tools, Possession of Stolen Items with the Intent to Sell and Conspiracy to Commit Larceny (x2).

Restored gate unveiled at Arlington National Cemetery after 40 years in storage

By Matt Blitz
1/3

Arlington National Cemetery’s restored Ord and Weitzel Gate was unveiled to the public earlier this week, after more than four decades in storage.

At a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday, the historic gate was officially reopened at the north entrance of the cemetery’s hallowed ground.

The iron gate dates to 1879 when it was first designed by Montgomery Meigs, also known for his work on the U.S. Capitol dome and what’s today the National Building Museum. The columns on top, decorated with “elaborately sculpted urns,” are two centuries old and were originally part of the War Department building prior to its demolition.

In 1902, the names of Civil War officers Gen. Edward Ord and Gen. Godfrey Weitzel were inscribed on the columns, thus giving the gate its name.

As the years went on, though, the cemetery expanded and the gate became weathered. It was also too small for modern vehicles to fit through. So, in 1979, it was disassembled and put into storage.

Forty-three years later, it’s back in its original location, restored, and reopened to the public. Now, though, it’s a pedestrian-only gate.

“The opening of the restored Ord and Weitzel Gate marks an important milestone in Arlington National Cemetery’s long-range plan to preserve our priceless monumental and architectural history,” Karen Durham-Aguilera, Executive Director of the Office of Army Cemeteries, said in a press release. “Our historic gates are among the cemetery’s most unique and meaningful cultural resources, yet their stories often remain untold.”

The restored gate also came with a number of improvements to the Custis walking path, including updating the sidewalk, security features, and making other visitor-friendly infrastructure changes.

The sidewalk was changed from asphalt to concrete for design and safety reasons, per a cemetery spokesperson. A new, updated guardhouse was also added, plus a water fountain, benches, trash cans, and street lamps. There’s a new pull-off location for the ANC tram as well.

ANC is in the midst of undergoing an expansion that will add 60,000 burial sites and space for the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial Visitor Education Center.

This will require realigning Columbia Pike and moving it closer to I-395 so that gravesites can be placed where it currently curves around the Air Force Memorial. That portion of the project just got underway this past spring. The construction will eventually result in the closing of a portion of Columbia Pike near Pentagon City, which could happen as soon as early next year.

With the expansion, as well as the restoration of the historic Ord and Weitzel Gate, Arlington National Cemetery is looking to preserve, modernize, and grow.

“Just yesterday I was giving a briefing on our Southern Expansion Project, and I discussed how we were building history, a project that will last as long as there is a United States of America,” ANC’s Director of Engineering Col. Thomas Austin said at Tuesday’s ceremony. “Now, here at Ord and Weitzel, we have the honor of rebuilding history, reviving a structure with elements that go back nearly 200 years. What an honor it is and how lucky we all are to be a part of it.”

FBI raid on the Pike targeted an ABC News producer, Rolling Stone reports

By ARLnow.com
1/3

A national media outlet has shed some light on a mysterious FBI raid in Arlington earlier this year.

Rolling Stone reports that the raid on a Columbia Pike apartment building, which ARLnow first reported in April, targeted a well-known ABC News producer, James Gordon Meek.

Meek, an Emmy award winner who often broke investigative stories on the topic of national security for the TV network, has reportedly not been seen or heard from publically since the raid. His formerly active Twitter feed’s last tweet was 5 a.m. the morning of the raid, which targeted his apartment on the top floor of the Siena Park apartments at 2301 Columbia Pike, according to Rolling Stone.

From our reporting on April 27:

Photos show several unmarked federal law enforcement vehicles, including a Lenco BearCat armored SWAT vehicle, in front of the Siena Park Apartments on the 2300 block of the Pike.

An agent in camouflage and tactical gear could be seen holding a shield inside the open doors of the moving BearCat.

Arlington County police deferred comment, noting that “the police activity is part of an active FBI investigation.” The FBI, in turn, confirmed the activity but said little else.

“The FBI is present at the 2300 block of Columbia Pike, Arlington, VA, conducting court authorized law enforcement activity,” Washington Field Office spokesperson Samantha Shero tells ARLnow. “The FBI cannot comment further due to an ongoing investigation.”

More details about the investigation are unlikely to be released today or tomorrow, Shero noted.

The raid was initially brought to ARLnow’s attention by local resident John Antonelli, who is quoted in the magazine’s article.

… self-described police-vehicle historian Antonelli was about to grab a coffee at a Starbucks before embarking on his daily three-mile walk. He inched closer to get a better vantage, when he saw an olive-green Lenco BearCat G2, an armored tactical vehicle often employed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, among other law-enforcement agencies. A few Arlington County cruisers surrounded the jaw-dropping scene, but all of the other vehicles were unmarked, including the BearCat. […]

“They didn’t stick around. They took off pretty quickly and headed west on Columbia Pike towards Fairfax County,” Antonelli recalls.

So far, according to Rolling Stone, Meek has not been charged, documents related to the case remain sealed, and it’s unclear why exactly he’s under investion.

It is unusual for federal law enforcement to target a journalist, the magazine noted.

Meek has been charged with no crime. But independent observers believe the raid is among the first — and quite possibly, the first — to be carried out on a journalist by the Biden administration. A federal magistrate judge in the Virginia Eastern District Court signed off on the search warrant the day before the raid. If the raid was for Meek’s records, U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco would have had to give her blessing; a new policy enacted last year prohibits federal prosecutors from seizing journalists’ documents. Any exception requires the deputy AG’s approval. (Gabe Rottman at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press says, “To my knowledge, there hasn’t been a case [since January 2021].”)

Meek’s attorney released a statement to Rolling Stone responding to one particular detail of the story.

“Mr. Meek is unaware of what allegations anonymous sources are making about his possession of classified documents,” the attorney wrote.

A virtual indoor golf facility aims to go full swing on Columbia Pike later this fall

By Matt Blitz
A work crew inside the former LoanMax site on Columbia Pike (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

An indoor golf facility with “state of the art simulators” is set to take its swings on Columbia Pike.

Independently-owned Par Citi is opening inside of the old LoanMax building at 3102 Columbia Pike. The entertainment center and cafe will feature virtual golf simulators inside of individual bays where people can play for fun and practice, Par Citi managing partner Kristian Hara told ARLnow via email.

The golf entertainment center will be similar to Five Iron Golf in D.C., Hara said.

Like Five Iron, it will also feature a cafe that will have food and a bar serving beer and wine, with a Virginia ABC permit pending. The plan is to open this fall, “most likely November 1st,” Hara said.

When ARLnow went to the building earlier this month, construction appeared to be well underway, though the big yellow LoanMax sign remained on the building.

While the location may strike some as a bit of an odd place to put an indoor virtual golf business, between a gas station and a county-owned office building, the Pike is about to get a bit of a facelift.

Just down the street, the new Westmont development, featuring 250 apartments with ground-level retail, is also underway. It’s set to be completed in 2024. A few blocks away will be “The Elliott,” a new mixed-use development that’s set to have hundreds of apartments as well as more retail. The aim is for it to be completed in 2024 also.

Prior to LoanMax, 3102 Columbia Pike was home to Columbia Furniture. The family-owned furniture and appliance store previously served as something of a community-gathering place, where the owner would keep the store open late to allow folks to come to watch sports on Friday nights.

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