Courthouse

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

More on Bayou Bakery — On Tuesday we broke the news that David Guas finally picked out the perfect spot for his Bayou Bakery concept: the old Camille’s space in Courthouse. Now the venerable Tom Sietsema has scooped us and a half dozen other local reporters who had been waiting patiently for an interview about the Louisiana-inspired cafe. Guas tells Sietsema that the Bakery will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner and will feature, among other things “muffalettas, layer cakes, root beer floats, blue plate specials,” and a beer selection.

The End of Free Parking in Clarendon? — Starting August 31, the Department of Human Services parking garage in Clarendon will no longer be free to the public between 6:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. With DHS moved out of the building, a private parking lot operator will be taking over. Even though garage parking rates in Clarendon are reasonable, the loss of free parking could result in even more cars coming into the Lyon Village neighborhood looking for street parking at night. More from TBD.

More Trader Joe’s Rumors — That persistent rumor that Trader Joe’s will be coming to Clarendon? We’re now hearing it too. And for everyone’s convenience, we’ve picked out the perfect spot for a new Trader Joe’s. Check out the unoccupied 10,319 square foot retail space in the Clarendon Center project (space #9). It could be a great location for a grocery store, don’t you think? But a higher-up with the developer denied that Trader Joe’s has any plans to move in.

Flickr pool photo by MichaelTRuhl

A Look Inside the New Fire Works Pizza in Courthouse

By ARLnow.com

Update at 4:35 p.m. — Exclusive: here’s a sneak peak at Fire Works’ temporary menu.

Fire Works Pizza has opened for its second night in business in Courthouse.

As of 4:00 the bar was officially open — even though employees and contractors were still busy putting cash in the registers and arranging glasses. As of 5:00, dinner will be served.

The restaurant is operating under limited hours and with a limited menu while employees get up to speed and while some of the final touches are put into place. Management expects to get all the wrinkles ironed out in 3-4 weeks.

Also worth looking forward to: the open-air fireplace on the outside patio should be working soon.

Here are a few photos we took around the place this afternoon.

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Coming to Courthouse: Bayou Bakery

By ARLnow.com

Big news. The space in Courthouse once occupied by the late, lamented Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe has a new tenant.

Culinary consultant and cookbook creator David Guas is planning on bringing a Louisiana-inspired “community bakery cafe and coffee house” to the space at 1515 North Courthouse Road, and he has applied for a liquor license to boot.

We’re working on gathering the details about the forthcoming Bayou Bakery, but suffice to say the name alone sounds mouthwatering.

Bayou Bakery just applied for a license to serve wine and beer. The form describes the restaurant of having a seating capacity between 1 and 100, which doesn’t really narrow it down much.

More info when we get it.

Update at 9:45 a.m. — As a commenter points out, Bayou Bakery was originally supposed to be the concept behind Northside Social. But a partnership between Guas and the owners of Liberty Tavern eventually dissolved, leading the Liberty Tavern folks to develop their own concept. Guas has been looking for a new space ever since.

Update at 11:15 a.m. — A representative of Bayou Bakery points out that the logo used for this story is an old one and will likely not be used for the new location.

A big, big thanks to @jamesp326 for the tip.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Fire Works Pizza Opens in Courthouse — The much-anticipated Fire Works Pizza has finally opened its doors and its large outdoor patio. A “healthy” crowd showed up for the first night, writes TBD’s Rebecca Cooper.

New APS Teachers and Staff Getting Ready For New School Year — This week, all new Arlington Public Schools employees are undergoing a comprehensive training program to prepare them for the fast-approaching school year. School starts on Tuesday, Sept. 7.

Arlingtones Looking for a Few Good Men — The Arlingtones Barbershop Chorus is looking for new members. The a cappella group meets weekly at Gunston Middle School. More from the Ode Street Tribune.

Police Investigate Disturbance at Windsor Apartments in Shirlington — After a 2:00 a.m. call from a resident who had just returned home to find his neighbor’s apartment trashed, Arlington police responded to the Windsor apartment complex at 3000 South Randolph Street. In the trashed apartment, they found a chair that had been apparently thrown through a window, a handgun and a possible shell casing lying on the floor, and a very drunk middle-aged man on a couch. The man was taken to a local hospital. No word on whether the gun had been fired in the apartment, but curiously nobody had called to complain about noise in the area.

Flickr pool photo by Christopher Doorley.

Warning: Do Not Park Here Tonight

By Scott Brodbeck

Do you want to get your car towed to a spot 50 feet away and get fined $50 for the privilege? Then by all means park in front of this office building in Courthouse overnight tonight.

The reason for the towing may not be a surprise to patrons of Saturday morning’s Courthouse farmers market. But it is a surprise to many people who park in the far southwest corner of the large county parking lot Friday night, not looking for the special farmers market parking notice on either side of the seven otherwise unremarkable metered spaces.

Nothing on the meters indicates that marking is restricted on Saturday. In fact, the meter indicates that parking is enforced from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Saturdays, when it is in fact reserved for the farmers market from 5:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Want to fight the ticket? Well, you can do that if you can get out of work for the better part of a weekday morning — and if you’re willing to pay $61 in court costs if you lose the appeal.

Do yourself a favor, avoid parking in front of 1400 North Uhle Street tonight.

Disclosure: Yes, this was written from first-hand experience. And yes, I’ve already paid the fine. This post was written in the hopes that others won’t make the same costly error. For the record, there were at least two other cars that suffered the same fate as mine on this particular weekend.


Major Repaving Project in Courthouse/Clarendon Area

By ARLnow.com

Drivers and cyclists in the Courthouse/Clarendon area should expect a bumpy ride on Wilson Boulevard over the next couple of days. Wilson has been milled between North Barton Street and North Fillmore Street ahead of a scheduled repaving.

The repaving is expected to begin on Thursday, depending on weather conditions and logistical issues.

Later this week, another stretch of Wilson Boulevard — from North Highland Street to Washington Boulevard, near the Clarendon Metro Station — is scheduled to be milled, with repaving to follow. Next week the same work will take place on Washington Boulevard from Pershing Drive to North Highland Street, according to Department of Environmental Services spokesperson Karen Acar.

Drivers should expect parking restriction in the area during the construction.

Rosslyn Farmers Market Canceled Due to Storms

By ARLnow.com

This morning’s storms did not slam Arlington with the widespread flooding and power outages with which the District is still coping.

The weather did, though, prompt Rosslyn to cancel its lunchtime farmers market and concert today.

The storms also knocked out power in some areas. As of 9:30 a.m. there were 309 Dominion customers without power in Arlington. A number of traffic lights are reported to be on flash.

During the storm, several passengers got stuck on the elevator at the Courthouse Metro station, TBD reported. It’s not clear whether the elevator problem was caused by the storm.

Fire Works Pizza Sets Opening Date

By ARLnow.com

Update on 8/16 — The opening date has been pushed back to August 23, TBD reports.

Fire Works Pizza, the massive new wood-fired pizza restaurant in Courthouse, has set next Wednesday, August 18, as a tentative opening date.

Fire Works Courthouse now has its own web presence and Facebook page, complete with photos of the nearly-completed interior.

“[The] build-out had gone well,” says general manager Jon Hoffmeyer. “[We] need to make some minor adjustments here and there, but that’s to be expected.”

Hoffmeyer says he’s expecting an initial crunch of curious first-time customers when the restaurant opens.

The Arlington location is the company’s first attempt to expand beyond its original Leesburg restaurant. It should surpass the Leesburg location in scope — with more beer (30+ on tap, 100+ in bottles), more seating (276 inside, 112 outside, pending County approval) and an expanded menu.

Not everyone is thrilled about the restaurant’s arrival, however.

“Have you seen the tacky, cheap red gate they put up around the location?” one anonymous design critic asked in an email.  “All it needs is some kindergartners running around within the fence… If they’re going to ruin a beautifully done courtyard and fountain area with their cheap tacky red fence, I won’t be eating there!”

The fence is required by law in order to serve alcoholic beverages outside on the patio.

One unanswered question: To what degree will Fire Works’ big outdoor patio eat into struggling, patio-less American Flatbread’s business during the warm weather months?

Photos via Facebook.

Weird Accident on Clarendon Boulevard

By ARLnow.com

You might have seen our Tweet about about a car accident in Courthouse Friday night, but we’re bringing it up again because it was so unusual.

Around 11:00 p.m. Friday, Clarendon Blvd was shut down between North Wayne Street and North Adams Street, near Velocity Five Restaurant, due to an accident involving a Honda and a parked Audi.

A witness says the Honda was traveling in the direction of the Courthouse Metro station at a high rate of speed, when its front driver’s side tire somehow clipped the Audi’s rear passenger side tire.

The contact apparently caused both wheels to come off the axle. The Honda came to rest a few yards away from the Audi, with much of the driver’s side front quarter panel ripped off, the wheel dislodged and the front end angled into the asphalt. The rear wheel on the Audi, meanwhile, was at a 45 degree angle.

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To Do This Weekend

By ARLnow.com

Rosslyn’s “I Love the 90s” outdoor film festival has been been plagued by rainy weather this summer. But not tonight. Expect perfect clear skies and comfortable temperatures for tonight’s screening of 1994’s “Dumb and Dumber” in Rosslyn Gateway Park (1300 Lee Highway). The movie starts around 8:00.

On Saturday, more perfect weather is expected for the Friends of the David M. Brown Planetarium fundraiser. From 4:00 to 9:30 p.m., the Friends and the Northern Virginia Astronomy Club will be holding a marathon session of planetarium shows, to be followed by a chance to look at real stars through NOVAC’s telescopes. The event is being held at the planetarium, near Washington-Lee High School (1426 North Quincy Street).

If viewing far out objects is your thing, you may also be interested in trying to spot some of the attendees at the Hidden Councils Annual Costume Ball. Held at 7:00 Saturday night at the Hilton Garden Inn in Courthouse, the ball is “the social event of the year” for The Firefly House, a “nature-based church formed in Virginia in 2009.” We’re told to expect “political intrigue, barbed innuendos, backstabbing and betrayal,” as well as “murder, weapons, [and] spells.” Oh my, indeed.

Continuing the “far out” theme, Saturday night will also feature a musical tribute to Jerry Garcia. With the 15th anniversary of Jerry’s death coming up (yes, you’re that old), The U-Liners will performing covers of Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia Band songs at Iota Club & Cafe. The concert starts at 9:00. Tickets are $15.

Crime Report: “Don’t Save the Space, Save Yourself” Edition

By ARLnow.com

In Lyon Park last week, police say a man purposely backed into a parking space, hitting a person who was assumedly trying to save the space for someone else.

ASSAULT AND BATTERY-ARREST 07/21/10, 900 block of N. Wayne Street. On July 21 at 10 pm, a man purposely reversed his vehicle into someone standing in a parking space. William Reintzel Jr., 39, of Arlington, was charged with Assault and Battery and held on a $2,000 bond.

Also last week, a purse-snatching happened in the middle of Courthouse while people were heading home from work.

ROBBERY 07/22/10, 2100 block of Wilson Boulevard. On July 22 at 6 pm, an unknown man approached a woman walking and forcibly pulled her purse from her shoulder. The suspect then fled on foot. He is described as a black male, 20 to 30 years old, 5’10” and 185 lbs. The suspect was wearing a navy blue t-shirt and jeans.

The rest of the latest Arlington County crime report, after the jump.

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