House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
House fire in Donaldson Run (photo courtesy Andrew Pang)
(Updated at 11:30 a.m.) Firefighters battled a house fire in the Donaldson Run neighborhood around 10:20 p.m. last night (July 4).
The blaze broke out in the garage of a home on the 2300 block of N. Randolph Street, not far from the Stratford School (H-B Woodlawn). The fire extended into part of the home itself.
Via Twitter, the Arlington County Fire Department said that the flames were extinguished by 11:15 p.m. and all of the home’s occupants were accounted for.
Photos showed firefighters in full gear hauling pet kennels out of the home. A photographer on scene said one dog and two cats were rescued.
A fire department spokesman could not be reached for comment Tuesday morning, but ACFD sent the following tweet after the initial publication of this article.
Several pets were rescued from last night's house fire and were kept company by paramedics until reunited with fam. pic.twitter.com/BcFmmOzR1s
(Updated at 1:05 p.m.) A barbecue in the Donaldson Run neighborhood turned violent last Saturday.
Police say a 26-year-old man suffered two large wounds after being struck in the face with a wine bottle.
From this week’s Arlington County crime report:
MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 151010037, 4000 block of N. Lorcom Lane. At approximately 9:30 p.m. on October 10, a 26 year-old male victim was struck in the face with a wine bottle during a BBQ, causing two large lacerations to his head. The victim was transported to Virginia Hospital Center with non-life threatening injuries. Melissa Michelle Fredericks, 43, of Arlington VA, was arrested and charged with malicious wounding.
Arlington County Police responded to an unusual burglary call yesterday in the Donaldson Run neighborhood.
A homeowner returned to his or her residence on the 2700 block of N. Beechwood Street after a few days away, only to find that something wasn’t quite right — someone had been inside the house and had helped themselves to some sweet treats.
“Between 12:00 p.m. on August 9 and 9:00 p.m. on August 12, an unknown suspect(s) entered a residence through a doggie door and ate the homeowner’s popsicles and whipped cream,” according to a crime report. “The suspect(s) proceeded to play with Pokémon cards that were found in the residence.”
“After they enjoyed some popsicles, they played a bit with some Pokemon cards and left,” ACPD spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said of the suspect or suspects, whose identity and motive remains a mystery.
An advisory warning to people to avoid contact with water from Donaldson Run has been lifted.
The advisory was put into place on July 11 after sewage from a broken pipe leaked into the stream by Military Drive. Two additional leaks followed three days later, causing the county to issue another advisory.
The first leak spewed 4,500 gallons of sewage. The second leak released 9,000 gallons and the third had 11,250 gallons, county spokeswoman Meghan McMahon said.
The sewage in the water was naturally flushed out and the county fixed the broken pipe, as well as the protective casing around it.
The county recently tested the water downstream from the break for E. Coli and found normal levels, according to a county press release.
Although there is no more sewage in the water, people should still never drink or bathe in stream water, according to the county. Residents should also always wash their hands after coming in contact with water from local streams.
Signs are posted at different entrances of the Donaldson Run trail.
(Updated at 11:10 p.m.) Multiple sewage leaks have led Arlington County staff to warn residents to continue avoiding contact with water from Donaldson Run near and downstream from the pedestrian bridge above Military Road.
A sewage pipe running through Donaldson Run broke on Saturday, causing a sewage spill of 4,500 gallons, Arlington County spokeswoman Meghan McMahon said. Since fixing the initial break, the county has found two additional leaks.
The second leak, found on Monday, released 9,000 gallons of sewage, and the county does not yet know how much the third one — found today — has leaked, McMahon said.
Signs about the sewage are currently posted along and at entrances of the Donaldson Run trail.
“There has been a sewage release to the stream. As a precaution, please avoid contact with stream water,” according to the signs.
Arlington County also sent out two Arlington Alerts, one to notify residents of the sewage leak advisory on July 11 and a second one today (July 14) to let people know it was still in place. The advisory will be in place for several more days, McMahon said.
“Crews are working now to setup a bypass so they can completely replace the pipe in this area. Crews are working as fast as they can, but this replacement will likely take a few days,” McMahon said.
The advisory warns people and their pets to avoid any contact with the stream.
“The public is advised to stay away from the affected water and to keep children and pets away until further notice, to eliminate the risk of exposure to raw sewage in the stream. People should not fish in the stream or have any contact with the water — including wading or swimming — until further notice from the County,” according to the advisory.
The county decided to replace the entire pipe in Donaldson Run now instead of later, as planned, because of the short period of time between the three leaks, she said.
“Replacing the pipe is the best way to prevent future spills,” McMahon said. “Arlington also has sanitary sewer maintenance programs including flushing, TV camera inspection and re-lining efforts.”
The breaks in the pipe were all the result of the casing around it shifting from water erosion, which is common in older pipes like many in Arlington, she said.
“Sanitary sewer lines are common in stream valleys (the lowest point of the stream) and sanitary sewer breaks are common in urban communities like Arlington, which have older pipes and infrastructure,” McMahon noted.
When a leak happens, the county will allow nature to flush out the sewage over time. This usually takes about three to five days. The county does not consider flushing streams out with chlorine — which kills everything in the stream — to be an option, McMahon said.
“Many Arlington streams are in County parks where residents are free to walk along the stream valleys, but the stream water can contain microorganisms that can make people sick, regardless of the stream location,” McMahon said.
In order to stay safe around stream water, even uncontaminated water, residents should always wash hands after touching the water, avoid getting water in their mouths or eyes, only wade in the water instead of swimming or bathing and never drink the stream water, McMahon said.
Advisory Board Considering Vacant Rosslyn Tower — The D.C.-based Advisory Board Company is considering a move to Arlington — specifically, to the vacant 1812 N. Moore Street office tower in Rosslyn. The tower is the tallest building in Arlington and has remained without a tenant since it was completed two years ago. Arlington and Virginia officials are facing off with D.C. officials in an effort to woo the $2.4 billion company. [Washington Post]
Sewage Spills in Arlington — Two separate sewage spills were reported in Arlington this weekend. On Saturday, the county alerted residents that a broken sewage pipe had released sewage into Donaldson Run. On Sunday, the county warned of a raw sewage release in Four Mile Run, near the 700 block of Arlington Mill Drive. Residents should avoid Four Mile Run from the site of the spill to the Potomac, the county said. [WTOP]
GGW: County Must Seek Transit Consensus — As Arlington begins to chart a course for its next generation of smart growth, one pro-transit writer says the county should do a better job of seeking support for its future transit investments. “As we recently learned from the fallout over the streetcar, broad-based support has to be a top priority for any project,” writes Dennis Jaffe. “If it’s not there, sustainable transportation projects won’t be so sustainable.” [Greater Greater Washington]
Four projects aimed at improving pedestrian safety, removing invasive plants and more are likely to be approved at this Saturday’s regular Arlington County Board meeting.
The final four projects funded by the 2012 Neighborhood Conservation bond, approved in June by the Neighborhood Conservation Advisory Committee, will receive a total of $2,540,175 if the Board approves them. About $1.3 million of those funds would come from the 2012 bond, while about $1.2 million is expected come from the bond referendum on the ballot on Nov. 4.
The four projects up for approval:
Pedestrian safety and street improvements for the intersections of N. Vacation Lane with N. Stuart and N. Utah Streets in Donaldson Run. Improvements include replacing a yield sign with a stop sign at the northeast corner of N. Stuart Street, replacing sidewalks on N. Utah Street and curb extensions at both intersections. Total cost: $608,749.
Street improvements for N. Quintana Street between Washington Boulevard and 19th Street N. in East Falls Church. This includes constructing curbs and gutters on both sides of the road and installing a 5-foot-wide sidewalk on the east side on the street. Total cost: $756,581.
Park improvements for Oakland Park at 3701 Wilson Blvd. in Ballston-Virginia Square. This project is meant to give the park a complete upgrade, bringing features up to Americans with Disabilities Act standards and adding new site furnishings, ornamental plantings and wood decking. Total cost: $798,845.
Removing invasive plants from Lucky Run Stream in Fairlington-Shirlington. The project calls for creating a “pollinator habitat between the stream bank and bike trail” and creating buffers with trees on either side of the stream. Total cost: $376,000.
The four projects were selected from a pool of 26 applications from neighborhoods around the county because they scored the highest on the NCAC’s points system, which is explained in the county staff’s report.
The county also has produced a five-minute video, embedded above, in honor of the Neighborhood Conservation Program’s 50th anniversary.
“When it was created in 1964, the goal was to empower residents by having them come together to discuss and share ideas for improving their neighborhoods,” the narrator says. The video includes interviews from NCAC Chair Bill Braswell and other committee members. “Over the years, the program has moved from beautification efforts to focus more on infrastructure needs… The program enables residents to identify and plan projects in their own neighborhoods.”
The Old Dominion Civic Association says it was “blindsided” by a plan to relocate a fire station to the neighborhood — a plan the association says amounts to the county “hijacking” green space.
The plan, to relocate Fire Station 8 from Lee Highway to a county-owned parcel of land on Old Dominion Drive near Marymount University, was included in Arlington County Manager Barbara Donnellan’s recommended Capital Improvement Plan. The plan (see pp. C-86 and C-88) also calls for the county’s Emergency Operations Center to be relocated from Courthouse to the new fire station site, and for an adjacent salt and mulch storage yard to be replaced and modernized.
The existing Emergency Operation Center is located in a building that’s set to be torn down to make way for the county’s Courthouse Square project and the salt storage yard, which serves snow removal crews in North Arlington, is past its useful life, according to the CIP. The fire station is set to be relocated from 4845 Lee Highway following a 2013 study that suggested the Old Dominion location would improve fire department response times in the area.
The Civic Association, however, is not pleased with the planned facilities, which they say will utilize a piece of currently unused land that they want to be turned into a park.
“When Arlington County published their Proposed FY 2015-2024 Capital Improvement Plan on May 13th, the residents of the Old Dominion and Donaldson Run Civic Associations, did not have a clue as to the green space ‘hijacking’ the County had in store for their residential neighborhoods,” an Old Dominion Civic Association representative told ARLnow.com via email.
A flyer is being sent to local residents, encouraging them to speak out in opposition to the plan.
“STOP THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR GREEN SPACE!” the flyer reads. “The proposed CIP calls for leveling of all the county-owned green space from 25th Street through the corner of 26th Street and Old Dominion… OPPOSE THE APPROVAL OF THE 25th/26th STREET OFFICE PARK AND FIRE STATION AND MAKE YOUR VOICES HEARD!”
Richard Lolich, president of the Old Dominion Citizens Association, said that there are lots of families with young children in the neighborhood.
“Because of this there is a real need for good park space for these children and families,” he said. “The County’s proposed location for the relocated fire station is on property that is ideal for a park in the neighborhood — the only neighborhood in Arlington currently without a dedicated park. We strongly feel that the County should address this issue before destroying green space in the middle of our neighborhood.”
The proposed site is within 2 miles of Potomac Overlook Regional Park and 1 mile of Greenbrier Park.
(Updated at 3:30 p.m.) The Arlington County Fire Department is on the scene of a house fire near the intersection of Vacation Lane and 24th Street N., in the Donaldson Run neighborhood.
Fire personnel reported heavy smoke coming from the home just after 2:00 p.m., after a neighbor heard a smoke alarm, spotted the smoke and called 911. Firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze, on the home’s second floor, in a matter of minutes.
The home is now being ventilated and firefighters are packing up their gear. No occupant or firefighter injuries were reported.
Certain photos (as noted) courtesy Wes Wright and Capt. Gregg Karl/ACFD
A large tree came crashing through the roof of a house in the Donaldson Run neighborhood this morning.
Firefighters and a building inspector responded this morning after a call from a neighbor. The badly-damaged house was condemned, but no injuries were reported. What exactly caused the tree to fall is unclear — today’s weather has been relatively calm.
The house is located near the intersection of Vacation Lane and 25th Street N. and near Taylor Elementary School.
