Crystal City

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Clarendon Office Building Sells for D.C. Prices — The 200,000 square foot office building at 3101 Wilson Boulevard, located across the street from the Clarendon Metro station, has sold for a whopping $112.6 million.”Pricing was on par with building trades in Downtown DC,” reports GlobeSt.com. The building is home to a TD Bank and Georgetown’s continuing studies programs. [GlobeSt.com]

County Issues Bonds for Projects — Arlington County has sold $11.9 million in bonds at a relatively low 4.18 percent interest rate. The bonds will fund the last phase of Fire Station 3 in Cherrydale, a new park in Buckingham Village and initial construction of the Arlington Mill Community Center. Although a direct comparison is difficult, in July Arlington sold $73 million in bonds at an interest rate of 2.70 percent. [Arlington County]

Midsummer’s Night Dream Starts in Crystal City Next Week — It may be mid-winter, but Synetic Theater’s word-less production of A Midsummer’s Night Dream will start on Tuesday in Crystal City. [Shirlington Village Blog]

Flickr pool photo by Kevin H

Man Dies After Falling From Secure Office Building

By ARLnow.com

A man died this morning after falling from a secure government office building in Crystal City. Initial reports suggest the man may have purposely jumped from a second floor balcony into an outside stairwell adjacent to Crystal Drive.

The building, which houses a number of Department of Defense offices, is located at the corner of Crystal Drive and 18th Street. Arlington County Police, Pentagon Police and other federal law enforcement officers were at the scene of the incident, which occurred shortly after 11:00 this morning.

Shortly before the incident, a Twitter user reported seeing a man in a suit jump onto the tracks at the Crystal City Metro station as a train was approaching. The man then jumped back onto the platform and ran out of the station, the user said. It’s currently not known if the two incidents are connected.

If you or someone you know is experiencing thoughts of suicide, help is a phone call away. Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

Crystal Couture Schedule and Details

By ARLnow.com

Now in its third year, Crystal Couture can pretty safely be called Arlington’s premiere annual fashion event. (Due partially to a lack of competition for the title.)

Couture will be held from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. every night from Feb. 1 to 5. Organizers released additional details today about the event’s schedule and the designers and boutiques that will be participating (see below).

In keeping with Crystal City’s use of vacant space as an event venue, Couture is relocating this year from an formerly unleased retail space (which is now a Buffalo Wild Wings) to the abandoned Crystal City Food Court at 1750 Crystal Drive.

Event Schedule:

  • February 1 – Host, Philippa Hughes, Pinkline Project – T-Shirt Design Contest
  • February 2 – Host, Bianca Chardei, America’s Next Top Model Contestant
  • February 3 – Host, Karen Sommer Shallett, DC Modern Luxury
  • February 4 – Host DJ Sarah Fraser from HOT 99.5 – Go Red for Women
  • February 5 – Closing bash hosted by Bisnow – The Scene

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Congratulations to Our Arlington Holiday Poem Contest Winner

By ARLnow.com

It was hard to pick just one winner for our Arlington holiday poem contest, but in the end we went with an entry that tackled one of the most controversial issues in Arlington in 2010: towing.

Our winner, Rich, came up with a humorous and topical take on a towing story we reported on earlier this month, setting it to the tune of a classic Christmas song.

Sung to Oh Holy Night

Oh towing guy!
I found the perfect spot,
It is the night I need to drop off a package!
Though I may sin and error by parking here
I’ll only be a minute.
A thrill to know that I only blocked a few cars
For yonder breaks to beat the towin’.

I fall on my knees
Oh to see you lay the hook
Oh why are you towing my car
Oh night 3 days before Christ was born
Oh bye my car
Oh ATM here I come

Rich wins a two tickets to Synetic Theater’s performance of The Nutcracker in Crystal City.

Thank you to all the wordsmiths and songwriters who entertained us with their contest entries. Happy holidays!

Announcing the 24 Hour Holiday Poem Contest

By ARLnow.com

Update on 12/23 — We have a winner.

When Synetic Theater offered us two free tickets to their family-friendly performance of The Nutcracker — playing in Crystal City through Jan. 16 — we immediately realized that this was a perfect opportunity for a holiday-themed contest.

Since haiku and ugly holiday sweater contests are old hat, here’s what we’re going to do instead:

Compose a poem about Arlington, in the style of a classic holiday song or story. For instance, you might work brown flip flops into Twas the Night Before Christmas.

Submit your masterpiece in the comments section, and be sure to use your real email address so we can tell you how to claim your Nutcracker tickets if you’re the winner.

Please keep your poem short and lighthearted. Mean-spirited or obscene submissions will be removed.

We’ll pick our favorite and announce the champion around this time tomorrow.

Photo courtesy Synetic Theater

Model Railroad at Crystal City Sports Pub

By ARLnow.com

Crystal City Sports Pub (529 23rd Street South) is known for being a place to grab a beer and watch your favorite team. During the holidays, it’s also a place to go to check out a meticulously arranged, miniature winter village and model railroad.

The railway is set up in the back of the patio seating area, facing the sidewalk on 23rd Street.

Water Problem Near Crystal City Closes 23rd Street

By ARLnow.com

Just as we were receiving notification of a road closure between Fern Street and Grant Street on South 23rd Street near Crystal City, a tipster sent us the photo above with this description:

Good morning — There’s some sort of water problem on 23rd St South near Crystal City, between Fern and Grant, closer to Fern.  Water is out on at least that block (I live there and a neighbor has told me hers is out as well).  It looks like this utility truck has fallen through the street surface, a sinkhole or something. That could be the cause — either the water main was broken, or it was shut off to make repairs. Picture attached, though it’s not the best angle.

As we reported earlier today, this has been a busy month for water main breaks in Arlington.

Update at 1:15 p.m. — A few Washington Gas employees arrived on scene around 12:30 p.m. to check for a possible gas line rupture. Based on the public works employee lighting up a cigarette about 15 minutes later, it would appear that they gave the all-clear.

As the photos show, this is a relatively minor situation. The public works truck is now parked safely away from the hole, and there’s no water flowing from the apparent water main break. No word yet on when the road may reopen.

Buffalo Wild Wings Opens Today

By ARLnow.com

The Buffalo Wild Wings in Crystal City is officially opening to the public today.

The beer-wings-and-sports joint, with its large expanse of flat screen TVs, is sure to attract a nights and weekends crowd. Today we’ll get our first taste of what the buttoned-up Crystal City workday set thinks of it as a lunch destination. The restaurant will open at 10:00 a.m.

While today is the official opening, some lucky customers were able to sneak in for a free meal this week. The restaurant quietly opened its doors for two hours at a time for employee training. Anyone who happened to wander by got their food for free.

Big Cheese Truck Makes Crystal City Debut

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 2:40 p.m.) The Big Cheese truck made its first publicly-announced appearance in Arlington today.

Hawking $6.50 gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup, the truck parked in Crystal City around noon today and attracted a few dedicated food truck aficionados willing to brave the blustery weather.

“Craft cheese with a ‘C'” is how owner Patrick Rathbone describes the difference between his grilled cheese and the pedestrian grilled cheese your mother used to make. (Sorry, mom.)

Ingredients include artisan Cowgirl Creamery cheeses, caramelized onions, grilled mushrooms and hardy bread. The end result is certainly the fanciest mobile grilled cheese this side of the west coast, where there are at least two other grilled cheese trucks in operation. You’ll want to take the sandwich out of the aluminum wrapping quickly, however, so the bread doesn’t get soggy.

The Big Cheese, operating out of what was once the Rebel Heroes truck, is licensed to operate in the District and apparently attracted a crowd near L’Enfant Plaza earlier this week.

Owner Patrick Rathbone, a Rosslyn resident, said he was undeterred by the comparatively slow business on Crystal Drive and is still planning on splitting his time between the District and various Arlington locations. Also in his plan: serving french toast at the Courthouse farmers market.

Big Cheese will be making its first hire in the next week, which should allow the truck to serve customers more efficiently. (Each made-to-order grilled cheese takes two minutes per side to grill.)

A marathon runner and triathlete, Rathbone says pulling off the launch by himself required physical and mental stamina.

“There are definitely some marathon days,” he said. “I’m doing everything.”

Rathbone says his long-term goal is to open a brick and mortar restaurant, something the owners of the District Taco and Pupatella Pizza carts were successful in doing this year. He says the food truck allowed him to start a business for a tenth of the cost of opening a restaurant.

The truck could return to Arlington as soon as Friday. Follow Big Cheese on Twitter to find out where it’s going to be next.

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Details About Crystal City Wine Walk Revealed

By ARLnow.com

Last month we told you about a new event in Crystal City that will combine light exercise with moderate drinking. Now we get more details and a new date:

Lace up your sneakers and cleanse your palette; it’s time to start training for the Crystal City 1K Wine Walk. Presented by the Crystal City Business Improvement District in partnership with the Washington Wine Academy, the 1K Wine Walk promises “racers” the opportunity to taste and learn about between 30-40 wines as they make their way through the shops and interior walkways of Crystal City.

On Saturday, February 26th, tasters will have the option of four different hourly heats to choose from (2 PM, 3 PM, 4 PM and 5 PM) before walking and sipping through a series of hydration stations staffed by Washington Wine Academy experts. In addition to great wines, tasters will also have the opportunity to take in photographs on display from finalists and youth category winners from FotoWeek DC before ending up at the “finish festival” in the former food court turned tasting lounge.

Crystal City to Show Its Fashionable Side… In a Food Court?

By ARLnow.com

Crystal Couture is back for “five nights of fabulous fashion, fun and festivities” in Crystal City.

Now in its third year, the event will feature “runway shows, local DJs, open bar, free snacks, free makeovers from makeup artists and hair stylists – and more,” according to organizers.

In a big change, however, Couture will be changing locations — from a formerly vacant storefront, now occupied by Buffalo Wild Wings, to the abandoned food court at 1750 Crystal Drive.

Wait, an abandoned food court?

Actually, it’s all in keeping with Crystal City BID’s habit of transforming vacant spaces into venues for hip events. The Crystal City Shops food court will be “totally transformed into a rocking runway space with great lighting, a lounge and more than 20 fabulous fashion boutiques,” say organizers.

Crystal Couture will be held from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. every night from Feb. 1-5.

The kick-off event on Feb. 1 will feature a T-shirt design contest (applications are currently being accepted). The Feb. 4 event will be held in honor of National Wear Red Day and will be hosted by HOT 99.5 DJ Sarah Fraser

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