controversy

‘Horrible’ Local Sports Club Ad Slams Paula Deen

By ARLnow.com

Celebrity chef Paula Deen recently attracted some controversy when she revealed last week that she was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes three years ago. But a health club ad apparently poking fun at Deen in a local newspaper is attracting some controversy of its own.

Today’s Washington Examiner contained an ad for Washington Sports Clubs that presumably references Deen, who’s known for her butter and sugar-laden recipes.

“Paula, you made a fortune off of fat,” the ad says. “Call us if you want to be around to enjoy it.

One local resident emailed us to say the ad was offensive.

“This is so completely horrible,” said the tipster. “I was shocked to read it.”

Other locals we talked to in Clarendon today agreed the ad was offensive — or at least could be interpreted as offensive — but thought it would be effective in terms of attracting attention to the company.

Mud Slinging in County Board Race Targets Bondi

By ARLnow.com

Over the past two nights, civic association debates between the six candidates running for County Board have been a remarkably civil affair. The candidates — five Democrats and one Green Party member — touted their records, focused on the issues, politely disagreed with some county policies, and refrained from directly criticizing one another.

Behind the scenes, however, mud is being slung, and it’s being directed at one Democratic candidate in particular: Melissa Bondi.

For the past couple of weeks, Republicans and Democrats alike have been bombarding local media outlets with dirt on Bondi — on and off the record — claiming she failed to register a car in Arlington and she has been late in paying her taxes on multiple occasions.

In an interview with ARLnow.com on Tuesday, Bondi had some answers, but professed surprise at the most serious charge: that she failed to pay the IRS $19,252.23 in taxes accrued between 2005 and 2006, resulting in a federal tax lien being filed in March 2011. (See: document provided to ARLnow.com.)

According to Bondi, she was not notified about the lien at the time and only found out about it this week via a post on a local blog. She said she immediately contacted the IRS and tried to find out why the lien was assessed.

“I learned about when I learned about the blog post, and I was shocked and extremely concerned,” Bondi said. “I believe it’s an error, I believe it’s a mistake. I don’t know what the circumstances are, but I’m anxious to get to the bottom of it as soon as possible.”

Asked if she has, to her knowledge, paid all her federal taxes “in full and on time,” Bondi said yes.

But according to the Arlington County Treasurer’s Office, Bondi has not always paid her local taxes on time. A FOIA request filed by a local resident reveals that Bondi was twice delinquent in paying Arlington personal property taxes on her car. In 2004, Bondi was 14 days late in paying the tax. In 2005, she was 53 days late, and only paid “following a threat of seizure by the Treasurer’s office,” according to Treasurer Frank O’Leary.

O’Leary, who’s supporting the campaign of County Board candidate Terron Sims, did not mince words when sharing his professional opinion of Bondi with the Clarendon Patch.

“She is a scofflaw and tax evader,” O’Leary told the website. “If I sound a little angry about it, I am. She simply ignored us.”

Asked about the past delinquencies, Bondi would only discuss her current county tax situation.

“I believe I am fully paid up with Arlington County with any obligations I have,” Bondi said. “I try to be responsible on my obligations, and I believe I am responsible on my obligations.”

If there were any tax delinquencies, she said, they were not intentional.

The questions surrounding Bondi’s personal property taxes don’t stop there. Critics say Bondi kept a car in Arlington from 2006 to 2008, despite the fact that her car was reported as sold and removed from Arlington’s personal property tax rolls in February 2006.

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Optimistic Artisphere Supporters Ask for More Time

By Katie Pyzyk

It’s no secret the one-year-old Artisphere in Rosslyn has vocal critics, who harp on the fact that the cultural venue has been bleeding taxpayer dollars while attracting a lower-than-expected audience. But supporters say the Artisphere still has promise, and needs more time to prove itself while a new business plan is implemented.

Artisphere Executive Director Jose Ortiz admits that errors have been made, but hopes that even Artisphere’s most ardent critics can place their focus on the future.

“We have all acknowledged we didn’t meet the unrealistic goals set in the original plan,” Ortiz said. “Not all of these ideas and thoughts were great and now we’re fine tuning that.”

One of the main goals supporters deem unrealistic was the thought that Artisphere would quickly make back the money invested in it, and then turn a profit. They say it’s now clear to everyone that’s not the way a business works. Ortiz believes the project simply needs more time.

“Creating an urban art center of this magnitude is really an enormous task,” Ortiz said. “It’s unrealistic to think you’re going to open the doors and have success from the first day.

“Everything takes time,” agreed Rosslyn BID Executive Director Cecilia Cassidy. “These things don’t become overnight successes.”

While addressing low attendance and revenue, Cassidy emphasizes that Artisphere was designed to be one piece in a larger puzzle of developments intended to give Rosslyn a boost. It was slated to open nearly simultaneously with several other large developments within walking distance, such as JBG’s CentralPlace project. However, a lagging economy delayed the nearby developments, and Artisphere had to bear the load of drawing people to the area on its own.

“Artisphere is here a bit ahead of those major developments that are going to bring thousands of people to Rosslyn,” Cassidy said. “Timing is everything. Who would have known the economy would be struggling as much as it is at this point in time?”

Ortiz said another problem is that Artisphere was sold differently to different people. He said it was being billed as an art place for everyone without specifying what that meant.

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Board Approves Courthouse Building Purchase, Amid Homeless Shelter Controversy

By ARLnow.com

The Arlington County Board authorized the county manager to purchase a Courthouse office building last night, the first step to the creation of a new, year-round homeless shelter.

Arlington first publicly proposed the purchase of 2020 14th Street N. last month, saying that the building would help the county consolidate overflow office space, would facilitate the redevelopment of the Courthouse area, and would serve as the site of a long-desired comprehensive homeless service center. The homeless shelter would take up two floors of the seven-story building, which the county has valued at $25.5 million, and would replace the current emergency winter homeless shelter, located two blocks away.

Most of the several dozen people who spoke at last night’s marathon county board meeting stated their support for a year-round shelter. But the speakers were split between those who voiced support for 2020 14th Street being the site of that homeless shelter and a very vocal group — largely residents of the Woodbury Heights condominium, located next to the proposed shelter — who spoke out against it.

Concerns about safety and property values were the crux of the opposition to the proposed shelter.

“I just want to say that we’re not assholes… because that’s what it’s going to sound like,” said Woodbury Heights resident Meredith Fox. “I absolutely support, one million percent, helping homeless people getting full care. My issue… is safety. For any woman to enter our home, we are now going to have to walk by many [homeless] people who are standing outside.”

“Would you buy a [condo] right next to the homeless shelter?” asked resident Kerry Britton. “Maybe the one six blocks away looks better all of a sudden. If my property goes down 10 percent, that’s $42,000 for me and my husband.”

Britton noted that she and her self-described “NIMBY” neighbors all support the idea of a comprehensive homeless shelter — just not next to their condo.

“There are many other less expensive parts of the county where the homeless shelter and government offices can locate,” said resident Joanna Kim.

Other speakers against the shelter included a Woodbury Heights resident who broke down in tears as she described being sexually assaulted by a homeless man in a train station years earlier, and two young girls who said that, as Woodbury Heights residents, they worried about homeless individuals cursing, smoking and drinking on the street where they catch the bus to school.

“That may influence us to make poor choices later in life,” one of the girls said.

The intense opposition was counterbalanced by passionate supporters of the year-round homeless shelter, who made a strong showing at the board meeting.

Among the pro-shelter speakers were church pastors, representatives from community groups, a real estate developer, a business improvement district director, and volunteers from the Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network. A-SPAN runs the emergency winter shelter and would run the proposed year-round shelter.

“We are poised at a moment in Arlington’s history where we have the resources and we have the opportunity to do what is right and to do what is just,” said Rev. Tim Hickey, of the Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Church in south Arlington. “The measure of the values of any community can be seen in how they treat and deal with one another, but most importantly in how they treat and deal with those that are most vulnerable among them.”

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Condo Owners, Homeless Advocates Face Off Over Shelter Plan

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 3:35 p.m.) Arlington County’s plan to buy a Courthouse office building and place a year-round homeless shelter on two of the floors is drawing intense opposition from residents of a nearby condominium building.

Residents of the Woodbury Heights building (1301 N. Courthouse Road) have been distributing flyers (pictured), emailing officials and calling media outlets with a litany of concerns over the plan. Chief among them: worries about safety, property values and neighborhood “charm.”

“I work long hours, which often means I am in this area when it is dark,” said one female resident, in a letter to County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman. “I would feel considerably less safe with the shelter’s entrance so close to what is in essence the front door of my home.”

“The shelter will drive down property values in the area, especially the values of the homes in Woodbury Heights,” the resident continued. “Considering the weak housing market, my home will be even less attractive and competitive to prospective buyers.”

Residents brought their concerns to a Tuesday night meeting with Deputy County Manager Marsha Allgeier and Kathy Sibert of the Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network, which runs the current emergency winter shelter and would run the new shelter.

Sibert said the meeting was “very emotional” for residents but added that she can understand the worries.

“Anytime there’s a change in your neighborhood, you’re very, very concerned, and I understand that,” said Sibert, A-SPAN’s Executive Director. “What I can assure them is that we will have staff there 24/7, and they will have our number, and we will be their neighbor, and we will address any concern they have.”

Sibert pointed out that the office building, at 2020 14th Street N., is directly across the street from the entrance to Arlington County Police headquarters, and only two blocks from the emergency winter shelter. By being open year-round, she continued, the shelter will actually keep homeless individuals off the streets of Courthouse.

“The design… is such that there will be less loitering, less homeless living on the street,” Sibert said. “The police are literally across the street. That can’t get any safer. And we have a really good working relationship with the police.”

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Artisphere Critics React to New Business Plan

By ARLnow.com

Three outspoken critics of the Artisphere are giving a lukewarm reception to a new business plan created to help boost the money-losing, county-run cultural center’s finances.

Arlington County Board members on Tuesday expressed cautious optimism about the plan, which would cut Artisphere’s hours, close its restaurant, and generate more revenue via private event rentals. Critics we spoke to, by and large, agreed that the new business plan was an improvement over the flawed, original business plan. But they also questioned whether the County Board should have even bought in to the original business plan in the first place.

“In retrospect, it’s unfortunate the Board didn’t have the foresight presented in the task force’s business plan,” wrote Tim Wise, president of the Arlington County Taxpayers Association. “That said, it’s not clear the new business plan will fix what needs fixing. What is clear, however, is that government should restrict itself to core government functions such as police enforcement, and stay out of places where it doesn’t belong, e.g., the arts.”

“Was this all a mistake in the first place? I submit it was,” wrote Wayne Kubicki, another Arlington fiscal watchdog. “As currently projected, by the end of FY 2013, Artisphere will have cost Arlington taxpayers a total of $10.6 million in construction costs and unanticipated operating subsidies. How long can this go on?”

Kubicki also questioned whether a governmental entity should be actively competing in the private event rental business.

“The new plan… relies heavily on increased event rentals for corporate and social events,” he wrote. “Well and good, if it works — but, in truth, this would probably take this business away from Arlington’s private sector hotels, other conference facilities and restaurants.”

Green Party activist Audrey Clement, who ran unsuccessfully for the County Board this fall and is expected to run again in a special election this winter/spring, said that the county should try to speed along the eventual transformation of Artisphere into a self-sustaining non-profit.

“While the proposed solutions all sound reasonable, I am concerned that the task force still projects an operating deficit of $2.3 million for FY 2012 alone,” Clement told ARLnow.com. “In light of this report, I recommend that County Board follow the recommendations of the Artisphere Task Force with a view towards transferring its lease on the Artisphere to a trust or foundation better equipped to absorb the operating cost of the facility.”

County Board members were universally supportive of the new plan — Walter Tejada said Artisphere still has “a great deal of potential” — but some left open the possibility of eventually closing or significantly changing the venue if the plan fails to live up to expectations.

“I think that where we’ve gotten to at least gives us something that’s within reach,” said Board Vice-Chairman Mary Hynes. “Now we’ve got to get the people there, and the programming in place, to know whether we can make this work or not. And if we can’t, then we can’t, and we have to say that too. But I think we have a much better chance with this plan… than the one we saw three years ago.”

DEVELOPING — Major Changes Proposed for Artisphere

By ARLnow.com

A plan to boost the finances of Artisphere, the struggling county-run arts center in Rosslyn, includes dramatic changes to the original vision for the venue.

A revised business plan, which will be presented to the County Board this afternoon, will suggest slashing Artisphere’s hours, shuttering its restaurant and retail store, and generating more revenue via corporate event rentals.

Even if the plan is implemented, however, the task force expects Artisphere to burn through more than $2.3 million in taxpayer funds in financial year 2012 and another $1.6 million in financial year 2013. If the new plan is shelved, Artisphere will require nearly $2.7 million in taxpayer support in FY 2012, the task force said. The one-year-old venue’s original business plan projected only $739,975 in county taxpayer support in FY 2012.

In its report to the Board, the Artisphere Task Force said Artisphere is an attractive venue that benefits from a Metro-accessible location and an experienced management team. But the task force was critical of the lack of focus in the center’s marketing, among other perceived weaknesses.

“Originally billed as an ‘Arts Space for Everyone’, the Artisphere strove to be free from the constraints of a singular vision, performance type or audience,” the task force wrote. “However, the unintended consequence of the individual interpretations that arose from such branding has been confusion over what exactly Artisphere is supposed to be, and for whom.”

The task force also accused Artisphere of practically ignoring families and older adults in its programming.

Artisphere, following the original business plan, has oriented much of its programming to attract a core audience of 20-35 year olds. While Arlington has one of the largest concentrations of 20 to 35 year olds in the nation, and while this demographic — like others who are highly educated, highly paid, and with disposable income — is known for its inclination to patronize the arts, they are faced with multiple options for spending time and money. Given those competing interests, and the somewhat “fickle” nature of this age group, it is very difficult to consistently attract them. Conversely, the 35-45 year olds with families and 55-65 year old empty-nesters, all with heavy populations in Arlington and the Washington, D.C. region have not been a target.

(Current programming at Artisphere includes the “largest collection of hand-crafted harmonica cases in the world” and an interactive exhibit that requires viewers to scan bar codes with their cell phones. The venue named a new programming director in late October.)

In the end, Artisphere has fallen well short of its original attendance projections. As the report noted, the lack of foot traffic is especially pronounced during the day.

“The space has been underutilized for many of its daytime hours,” the task force wrote. “Often, patrons who may enter in the early afternoon hours find the Artisphere extremely quiet and almost deserted. This lack of excitement and vibrancy often discourages return visits.”

To help place Artisphere on a more sustainable path, the task force is recommending several dramatic changes. One of the most pronounced is the proposed change in Artisphere’s hours. Whereas the center is currently open seven days a week, for a total of at least 85 hours per week, the task force wants to slash the days and hours the venue is open to the public. Under the new plan, Artisphere would be closed to the public on Monday and Tuesday, and would only be open for a total of 40 hours Wednesday through Sunday.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Mailer Blasts GOP State Senate Candidate — A mysterious last-minute political mailer has been sent to voters in the 32nd state Senate District. The mailer attacks GOP state Senate candidate Patrick Forrest for being “openly homosexual,” supporting “illegal immigration reform” and for supposedly working for President Obama’s transition team. Forrest’s opponent, incumbent state Sen. Janet Howell, spoke out against the mailers, calling them “disgusting and despicable.” The mailing’s return address comes back to a parking lot, and the organization it purports to come from does not exist. [Blue Virginia]

Arlington Man Charged With Murder — A 27-year-old Arlington man has been charged with second degree murder in Hawaii. Christopher Deedy, a special agent with the State Department, allegedly shot a man during a late-night argument at a McDonald’s in Waikiki. [KHON 2]

Post Endorses Tejada, Hynes — The Washington Post has endorsed incumbent Democrats Walter Tejada and Mary Hynes for reelection to the Arlington County Board. The paper’s editorial board called their opponent, Green Party candidate Audrey Clement, “well informed” but “anti-growth.” Clement, meanwhile, is accusing Tejada and Hynes of being “in bed with developers.” [Washington Post]

D.C. Cop Seeks Legal Fees from Arlington Lawyer — A D.C. police officer is asking her ex-boyfriend, an Arlington lawyer, to pay her legal fees (more than $70,000) in a case that included accusations of “attempted stalking,” defamation and civil rights violations. [Legal Times]

Marines Want More Access to APS Students — The U.S. Marine Corps is asking Arlington Public Schools to relax its restrictions on military recruiting at school facilities. While more restrictive than Fairfax County or other local jurisdictions, the school system argues that its rules are consistent with federal law. The Marine Corps says its rate of enlisting Arlington students is far below expectations. [Sun Gazette]

Candidate Defends Remarks About Gays and God

By ARLnow.com

Republican State Senate candidate Tim McGhee is catching some flak for comments he made to the Arlington Gay and Lesbian Alliance Monday night.

During his closing remarks at the group’s candidates forum in Ballston, McGhee started opining about the relationship between gays, lesbians and God.

“Each and every one of you is a uniquely valuable human being created for a purpose,” McGhee told the group, according to an audio recording and transcript on the Not Larry Sabato blog. “Some of you are beyond frustrated with God right now. Some of you refuse to believe in him altogether. You’ve asked the question or perhaps given up asking a long time ago ‘Why? Why would God make me who I am and then tell me that’s wrong?'”

Needless to say, some AGLA members took exception to the implication that being gay is “wrong” — or that a discussion of God and morality was appropriate during a local political debate.

“Sitting in that room while the above was happening was insanely awkward,” wrote one Not Larry Sabato commenter.

McGhee, however, defended his remarks when asked about them by the Del Ray Patch.

“It was a personal view… It was meant to be an added perspective on who God is and his mercy,” said McGhee, a database administrator for The Falls Church.

McGhee’s opponent in the race for the 30th District state Senate seat is Del. Adam Ebbin, a Democrat who was the first openly gay member of the Virginia General Assembly.

Board Stays Up Late to Approve New Boeing HQ

By ARLnow.com

It was 12:50 a.m. by the time the Arlington County Board adjourned last night, having spent three hours debating a proposal for aerospace and defense giant Boeing to build a new regional headquarters complex near Crystal City.

After a lengthy back-and-forth discussion, the Board voted unanimously to approve the project, which won high marks for its economic benefits to the county but which was strongly opposed by the county’s own citizen-led transportation and planning commissions.

Opponents of the Boeing plan argued that allowing six-story, single-tenant office buildings on the 4.7 acre property — located between Crystal City and the county’s new Long Bridge Park — ran counter to Arlington’s original “smart growth” goal for a mixed-use office, residential and retail development there.

The Boeing complex, which the company will own instead of lease, won’t provide the kind of active streetscape befitting a property so close to a multi-million dollar county park and recreation center, opponents said. Instead, the property will be largely closed off to the public; buildings will be set back from the sidewalk with no ground floor retail and no public-use parking spaces (which could have been utilized during special events at the park). Transportation Commission Chair Bill Gearhart called the complex, which will have 555 underground parking spaces, “auto-oriented” as opposed to transit-oriented. The Planning Commission called the architecture of the proposed buildings “mediocre.”

“If this project is approved, the County would be setting a precedent that it is okay to shred everything in order to keep a company that is not working, living or playing well with its neighbors,” the Planning Commission wrote.

But Boeing supporters — including county staff, Arlington Economic Development, and the Crystal City Business Improvement District — argued that the hundreds of jobs and millions in annual tax revenue that will be generated by the new Boeing complex represents significant a benefit to the county that more than justifies the shift in land use goals required to approve the project.

“I think tonight presents us a unique opportunity in recruiting and retaining a major employer,” said County Manager Barbara Donnellan. “At a time of increased economic uncertainty, this level of commitment to a major employer is critical to the county’s future economic sustainability, especially in Crystal City, where the future impacts of BRAC are yet to be seen.”

In pushing for the proposal’s approval, however, even Donnellan admitted that it “was not without controversy.”

“I acknowlege that my recommending steers slightly away from some of our urban planning ideals,” she said. “But I believe we’re facing a set of extraordinary circumstances.”

Supporters made the case that the plan for mixed-use development on the proposed site — two run-down square blocks of abandoned industrial buildings and a shuttered, deteriorating hotel — was unrealistic in the near-term. Waiting years for market conditions to be right for a high-density mixed-use development, some said, could jeopardize the county’s plan to build an aquatics center as part of the second phase of the Long Bridge Park project. As part of the agreed-to Boeing proposal, financially-challenged developer Monument Realty will engage in a land swap with the county that will allow the aquatics center to be built.

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Two Views on Artisphere

By ARLnow.com

Is Artisphere (1101 Wilson Blvd) a funky, welcoming arts venue that’s contributing to the vibrancy of Rosslyn? Or is it a disappointing, poorly-managed waste of taxpayer dollars?

Depends who you ask.

Artisphere turned one year old yesterday, but the young venue has yet to become a consistent draw or even a household name. Instead, scenes of young people having fun at an Artisphere birthday bash over the weekend contrast with the cold, hard numbers from a recent Washington Post article: attendance 70 percent below expectations, operating expenses more than 25 percent over budget. Although Arlington County taxpayers helped front Artisphere’s $6.7 million build-out cost, only 28 percent of visitors are actually from Arlington.

The libertarian Cato Institute, which has been critical of government subsidies for entertainment venues like sports stadiums, took aim at Artisphere in a recent blog post.

“Surprise! Arts Center Predictions Flawed,” Cato’s headline blared. The article blasted the projections made in Artisphere’s original business plan, including the assumption that every single performance at Artisphere would be sold out and at capacity.

A new business plan is expected to be presented to the Arlington County Board later this year.

Cato also criticized the fact that Artisphere was built while other county budgets were being cut.

“Maybe the next time Arlington County — or any other state or municipality — needs to cut its budget, it might think about cutting subsidies for money-losing venues before going after police officers, firefighters, and math teachers,” Cato’s David Boaz wrote.

The Washington City Paper, however, is taking a more optimistic view. The weekly agrees with Artisphere managers, county leaders and Rosslyn business boosters who say that Artisphere is an important step toward a revitalized Rosslyn — a Rosslyn that stays active even after 5:00.

“Artisphere, I think, deserves to succeed,” wrote Alex Baca for the paper’s Arts Desk blog. “Its programming nicely walks the line between avant-garde and accessible, and varies from film to installation art to performances. It’s a punch in the gut to Wilson Boulevard’s otherwise un-fun corporate landscape.”

“Two or three years from now… it’s very likely that someone will be able to credit Artisphere for the third-place-ification of Wilson Boulevard,” Baca concluded. “Artisphere might not be Rosslyn’s panacea, but it very well might be its catalyst.”

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