Flooding closes the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and a gym in Courthouse
Flooding closes the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and a gym in Courthouse
Flooding closes the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and a gym in Courthouse
Flooding closes the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and a gym in Courthouse
Flooding closes the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and a gym in Courthouse
A burst water pipe in an apartment building has closed the offices of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and the Next Phase fitness studio in Courthouse.
Restoration crews are currently on scene at the Tellus Apartments at 2009 14th St N., cleaning up the mess.
The flooding happened late Monday afternoon, when water started pouring into the offices “monsoon style,” we’re told. Chamber staff scrambled to unplug and save their computers and are currently working remotely as restoration efforts continue.
The Chamber, which has already received several offers of temporary office space, wrote the following to its members today:
The Chamber office is currently closed, due to flooding in our building, and our phone system is down. Our staff is busy handling this unexpected emergency and trying to keep Chamber operations going as best as possible. For assistance, please email full-time members of our staff, and we will do our best to assist you remotely. We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your patience and support.
Next Phase is closed and classes today cancelled, though its website still lists classes as available later in the week.
A woman walking down the street witnessed a man wearing a mask, lying atop a car and pleasuring himself last night in the Courthouse area, according to an Arlington County Police Department crime report.
The incident was reported around 10 p.m., on the 1900 block of Wilson Blvd. The masked man fled on foot after the woman screamed. Police were called but officers were unable to find him.
More from ACPD:
INDECENT EXPOSURE, 2017-11280270, 1900 block of Wilson Boulevard. At approximately 10:00 p.m. on November 28 police were dispatched to the report of an indecent exposure. Upon arrival, it was determined that at approximately 9:45 p.m. a female victim was walking in the area when she observed a male suspect wearing a mask laying across the hood of a car masturbating. When the victim screamed, the suspect fled on foot. The suspect is described as a male, with light skin, wearing light brown pants, black shoes, a black sweater and a black mask. Officers canvassed the area with negative results. The investigation is ongoing.
The rest of this past week’s crime report highlights, including some that we’ve already reported, after the jump.
Arlington County’s only Jerry’s Subs & Pizza has reopened after remodeling.
The eatery at 2041 15th Street N. in Courthouse appears to have been given a new lick of paint and some upgraded lighting.
When an ARLnow reporter dropped by on Monday evening, business was steady after the reopening, which employees said happened last week.
Jerry’s serves pizza, hot and cold subs and a variety of cheesesteaks. It is across the street from Arlington County jail, next door to a bond office and is a block away from an entrance to the Courthouse Metro station.
Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery in Courthouse will host a doughnut and beignet eating contest Sunday to coincide with the NFL game between the Washington Redskins and New Orleans Saints.
Nine participants will compete at halftime of the game, which kicks off at 1 p.m. on November 19, in the “Beignet and Brown-Butter Doughnut Eating Contest.”
Bayou chef and New Orleans native David Guas will be putting on the competition alongside District Doughnut chef Christine Schaefer.
Competitors will be asked to take on 10 beignets — a pastry made from deep-fried choux pastry — and 10 doughnuts each, and the one to get through all 20 the quickest will win $150 cash.
Anyone wishing to compete should arrive by 12:30 p.m. Admission is free, and the contest is free. Bayou Bakery is located at 1515 N. Courthouse Road.
Just in time for the holidays, a pop-up store celebrating local businesses and artisans opened today (Wednesday) in Courthouse.
The “Made in Arlington” pop-up shop is on the ground floor of county government headquarters at 2100 Clarendon Blvd, in the Plaza Library.
It will be open on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. between now and December 22. And on Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., special exhibits will take place in the lobby from local artists.
The shop, which features vendors selling food and gifts, “will help Arlingtonians find that one-of-a-kind gift during the holiday season, while also supporting local businesses and artists,” according to a press release.
The new products are just inside the library entrance, next to the shop’s usual array of Arlington-branded t-shirts, water bottles, chocolate and other items.
From an Arlington Economic Development press release, the vendors include:
Current Clarendon Blvd and 15th Street N. intersection (via Google Maps)
Arlington County will spend just over $640,000 to re-configure an intersection in Courthouse neighborhood.
The County Board unanimously approved the construction project at its meeting Saturday.
The plan is to remove a one-way portion of roadway that serves as a shortcut to 15th Street N. in front of county government headquarters, and instead have Clarendon Blvd traffic access 15th Street via a 90 degree turn at the traffic signal-equipped intersection a bit farther down the road.
As currently configured the triangle of roadway leads to conflicts between cars and pedestrians, county staff says. The goal of the project is to improve “pedestrian safety, circulation and access in and around Courthouse Plaza.”
The new intersection will include additional trees, green space and other amenities for pedestrians and bicyclists.
More from a county press release:
Clarendon Boulevard is a key arterial street in the R-B corridor, and the intersection of 15th Street is central to the busy Courthouse Metro Station. The intersection is currently designed primarily to funnel automobiles onto 15th Street North, which often results in conflicts between pedestrians, vehicles and transit users.
New safety and streetscape improvements, which will include new concrete curb and gutter, ADA compliant sidewalks, storm structures and streetscape amenities, such as benches and bike racks, will make this area safer for all travelers. The project also will improve the circulation of the Courthouse Plaza parking garage and provide better access to the surrounding street network by extending the parking garage’s entrance to Clarendon Boulevard. The bus stop waiting area along 15th Street North will be expanded and the existing bus stop at Clarendon Boulevard/N. Wayne Street will be relocated to the far right of the intersection to facilitate safer pedestrian crossing along this street segment.
“These are the kinds of projects that make Arlington such a great place to walk,” County Board Chair Jay Fisette said in a statement. “This intersection is going to function better for all who use it – and look a lot better – as a result of the improvements the Board approved today.”
Photo (1) via Arlington County, photo (2) via Google Maps
Numerous Arlington County Fire Department units are arriving at the Courthouse Metro station to investigate a report of smoke in the station.
The fire department says there is an arcing insulator near the station and firefighters are gathering on the platform level. There is a “slight haze” in the station, according to scanner traffic.
Drivers should expect road closures in the area due to the emergency response and Metro riders should expect delays on the Orange and Silver lines. A Metro emergency response team is en route to the station.
ACFD units on scene at @wmata Courthouse Metro for an arcing insulator. Firefighters are working on the platform level. Expect delays. pic.twitter.com/Cfqp48pnro
Power out at the intersection of Clarendon Blvd and N. Highland Street
Sept. 22, 2017 power outage map (via Dominion)
Update at 7 p.m. — Power has been partially restored and only 318 Dominion customers are reported to be without electricity.
Earlier: A large swath of Clarendon and Courthouse is currently without power.
The outage happened around 5:40 p.m. and may have been accompanied by a mild power surge. Arlington County offices were affected, and are being powered by generators, according to a police dispatch. Numerous businesses in the area in the dark and traffic lights are out up and down Wilson and Clarendon Blvds.
Police are setting up cones to direct traffic at the busiest intersections.
According to Dominion, just over 1,700 customers are without power following an issue with a power substation. Crews have been dispatched and power is expected to be restored between 8-11 p.m.
Power outages reported in Courthouse and Clarendon areas. Treat all uncontrolled intersections as a four way stop 🚦 pic.twitter.com/IFqyYbq9U1
Traffic is especially slow in Clarendon due to the power outage but the ladies on this Trolley Pub ride seem to be having a blast regardless pic.twitter.com/DEMiqTWtuq
Jerry’s Subs and Pizza is closed for remodeling in Courthouse
The eatery at 2041 15th Street N. is close to the county jail
Arlington County’s only Jerry’s Subs & Pizza is closed temporarily for what a sign on the door describes as “remodeling.”
A sign on the door of the eatery at 2041 15th Street N. in Courthouse does not say when it will reopen, and calls to the restaurant’s phone number were not returned.
On Tuesday afternoon when a reporter stopped by, a workman was on a step ladder doing what looked like painting of some light fixtures.
Jerry’s serves pizza, hot and cold subs and a variety of cheesesteaks. It is across the street from Arlington County jail, next door to a bond office and is a block away from an entrance to the Courthouse Metro station.
A man dressed as a seat for research purposes (via Ford video)
Behind the wheel, a driver dressed as a car seat for safety reasons (via Ford video)
Ford said it sent a “driverless” car through Clarendon to test reactions (via Ford video)
Its sightings last month left many baffled, and now, car company Ford has explained why and how it sent a “driverless” car through the streets of Courthouse and Clarendon.
In a Medium post today (Wednesday), John Shutko, Ford’s Human Factors Technical Specialist for Self-Driving Vehicles, said the company was working with Virginia Tech to test ways for driverless cars to more effectively show its intentions to pedestrians and other road users.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwujR1ARsog
Ford joined with the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute to test the technology — an animated light bar in the windshield of the video — and to see how those around reacted when they saw a car with no one in the driver’s seat.
“Anyone who has crossed a busy street likely knows the informal language between pedestrians and drivers,” Shutko wrote. “A driver might wave her hand to indicate to the pedestrian it’s okay to cross, or a pedestrian could throw up his hand like a stop sign to signal he plans to cross first. But what happens in the future, when self-driving vehicles operate without drivers – and in some cases, without anyone even in the vehicle itself?”
After being first reported by ARLnow.com, and famously further investigated by NBC4 reporter Adam Tuss — who was startled to discover a person in a seat costume inside — VT admitted it was behind the driverless car.
Ford said people are put in the cars — and dressed as car seats — for safety reasons, as self-driving technology is still in the early stages of testing and development.
The vehicle, a Ford Transit Connect van, had a light bar on top of its windshield. The bar pulsed white light back and forth when yielding, blinked rapidly before accelerating after a stop, or stayed solid when driving normally.
“Virtual reality testing with customers shows it takes a couple of exposures to signals like these before people truly understand what they mean,” Chutko wrote. “It takes even longer for signals to become ingrained in people’s brains – second nature, if you will. Through our testing, we believe these signals have the chance to become an accepted visual language that helps address an important societal issue in how self-driving vehicles interact with humans.”
Ford said it has logged more than 150 hours and around 1,800 miles in its tests in dense urban areas. Chutko said the time is right to create an industry standard for autonomous vehicle communications and to start to educate the public.
At the time, owner Alemayehu Abebe said he was hopeful of opening this summer, but that timeline has been pushed back. Abebe told ARLnow in a brief interview last Wednesday that construction will start sometime around today (Monday). He did not say what has caused the delays.
The restaurant has applied for a license with Virginia ABC, and is hoping to have more than 100 seats inside as well as more outside on a patio. Chercher offers traditional Ethiopian food and drink on its menu. The restaurant at 1334 9th Street NW was included in Michelin’s D.C. dining guide and earned a “bib gourmand” for high-quality food at a low price.
The eatery previously filed for county permits to convert what was intended as an office space to a restaurant use. As of Tuesday, the space had been completely gutted, ready for work to begin.
The space on the ground floor of a large office building is close to the county courthouse complex and police headquarters, and across the street from the Tellus apartment building. Signs in the window indicate another ground-floor unit in the same building as the planned restaurant is available for rent by a retail tenant.
