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Morning Notes

Published August 12, 2014 at 9:05AM

APS Identifies Elementary Schools to Possibly Expand — Arlington Public Schools named two schools that could be expanded as a “plan B” if the proposal to put a new school on the Thomas Jefferson Middle School campus doesn’t go through. If the new school cannot be constructed, APS has suggested expanding Randolph Elementary School and Barcroft Elementary School. The County Board commissioned a working group last month to look into the possibility of building a new school on the Thomas Jefferson campus. [InsideNova]

Voter Registration Deadline — Today is the deadline to register to vote, both in person and absentee, in the special election next Tuesday, August 19. Voter registration can be done online. [Arlington County]

Free Tacos at California Tortilla — California Tortilla is giving away free tacos today to celebrate being voted readers’ favorite Mexican in Washingtonian magazine’s “Best of Washington 2014” issue. Arlington’s three locations, as well as all locations nationwide, will offer one free taco per customer all day.

Ballston Movie Theater Offering Free Nachos for Selfie-Takers

By ARLnow.com

Published July 25, 2014 at 2:15PM

The movie theater at Ballston Common Mall is offering free nachos to customers who take “cheesy” selfies and post them to Twitter or Instagram.

The theater’s parent company, Regal Cinemas, is running the promotion through Monday, Aug. 11. Customers can submit the self-taken photo by using the hashtag #RegalCheesieEntry on Twitter or Instagram, or can do so via the a web form.

The nachos are offered while supplies last, Regal says. If there are no nachos left at the theater, Regal will offer a $2 off coupon. Submitted photos will also be entered into a sweepstakes to win a “Hollywood VIP weekend.”

File photo

Free Smoothies in Va. Square for ‘National Flip Flop Day’

By ARLnow.com

Published June 18, 2014 at 12:05PM

Friday is apparently the 8th annual “National Flip Flop Day,” and the Tropical Smoothie Cafe store in Virginia Square will be giving out free smoothies to mark the occasion.

From 2:00 to 7:00 p.m., the store at 3811 N. Fairfax Drive will be giving away free 24 ounce strawberry banana smoothies to anyone wearing flip flops, according to owner Marcus Barnett.

“This is a nationwide event that all Tropical Smoothies will be participating in and is absolutely free to anyone that comes in wearing flip flops,” Barnett told ARLnow.com. “Donations will be accepted… all proceeds will go to benefit Camp Sunshine.”

Camp Sunshine is a retreat in Maine for children with life-threatening illnesses. It’s offered free of charge to children and their immediate families and offers on-site medical and psychosocial support.

100 Montaditos Opening Monday With Free Sandwiches

By Ethan Rothstein

Published March 28, 2014 at 3:30PM

Spanish mini-sandwich chain 100 Montaditos (1776 Wilson Blvd) is opening its first Arlington location on Monday (March 31) in Rosslyn.

In honor of the grand opening, customers on Monday will be treated to a free “montadito,” a spanish sandwich with ingredients like chorizo and serrano ham, and a drink. The montaditos typically cost between $1 and $3.

If customers can’t make it on Monday — or want to avoid the lines free food usually attracts — the restaurant is offering a buy two, get one free deal until April 6, according to the Rosslyn Business Improvement District.

In addition to the montaditos, the restaurant offers beer and sangria, with pitchers of the fruity wine drink and domestic beer offered for $8.

Photo via Rosslyn BID

McDonald’s Offering Free Coffee Starting Monday

By Ethan Rothstein

Published March 28, 2014 at 1:30PM | Updated March 28, 2014 at 4:10PM

McDonald’s restaurants in Arlington and the rest of the D.C. area will be offering free coffee during breakfast time to its customers starting Monday, March 31.

The promotion, which will run for two weeks, will include a “‘Make Friends with McCafé’ sampling events at high traffic locations and transportation hubs in multiple cities across the country. The events will provide busy commuters with free McCafé coffee and a few surprises along the way, such as live musical performances, spontaneous comedy experiences and more,” according to a McDonald’s press release.

“McDonald’s has long been part of the Greater Washington, DC community, and we wanted to show our appreciation by inviting guests to start their mornings with a complimentary cup of McCafé Coffee,” area McDonald’s owner and operator Nick Nerangis, Jr. said in the release.

The McDonald’s in Arlington are located at:

1823 N. Moore Street
4834 Lee Highway
5009 Wilson Blvd
40 N. Glebe Road
Ballston Common Mall (4238 Wilson Blvd) food court
5005 Columbia Pike
3013 Columbia Pike
Fashion Centre at Pentagon City (1100 S. Hayes Street) food court
2620 Jefferson Davis Highway

ArtFest 2014 to Kick Off Friday

By Courtney Battle

Published March 25, 2014 at 5:00PM

The Arlington Artists Alliance is organizing a week of art appreciation starting this Friday.

ArtFest 2014 will be held at Fort C.F. Smith Park (2411 24th Street N.) and will run from March 28 to April 4. Festival-goers will be able to enjoy an ongoing art show and attend workshops and demos, according to the organization’s website. This marks the 12th year the Artists Alliance will hold ArtFest, which is free and open to the public.

The Hendry House, a historic 20th century mansion on the park grounds, will host the art show throughout the week. In addition, artists such as Jackie Afram and Fran Simms will conduct workshops on painting with oil bars and watercolor.

An opening reception will kick off the week on Friday, March 28th from 6-8 p.m., at which visitors can meet the artists and enjoy light refreshments.

IHOP Offering Free Pancakes Today

By Ethan Rothstein

Published March 4, 2014 at 1:00PM

The IHOP in Ballston (935 N. Stafford Street) is far more crowded than usual today for National Pancake Day.

The restaurant chain’s location is the only one in Arlington, and it’s offering a free short stack of pancakes to all its customers today while collecting donations to the Leukemia & Lymphoma society, according to an IHOP employee.

The employee said the wait is about a half hour for parties of four and 15 minutes for parties of two at about 12:15 p.m. today. The promotion lasts all day, and the store is open 24 hours.

File photo by Tim Kelley

Free Taxis Available Every Night During the Holidays

By Ethan Rothstein

Published December 12, 2013 at 11:30AM

Late night partiers will be able to get a free taxi ride home from Friday night until New Year’s Day.

The Washington Regional Alcohol Program is offering its SoberRide program starting on Dec. 13 at 10:00 p.m. Every night until New Year’s Day, from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., D.C.-area residents can call 1-800-200-TAXI (1-800-200-8294) for a cab ride that’s free up to a $30 fare. AT&T users can also dial #WRAP to call for a taxi.

“Last December, nearly 2,000 (1,927) Greater Washington residents did the right thing and availed themselves of this lifesaving service rather than possibly driving home impaired,” WRAP President Kurt Gregory Erickson said in a press release. “For SoberRide’s hours of operation during just last New Year’s Eve, such ridership (387) translated into the removal of a would-be drunk driver from our shared roadways every 74 seconds.”

Customers must be 21 or older “who otherwise may have attempted to drive home after drinking” to call SoberRide, according to WRAP.

Image courtesy of WRAP

County to Give Away Free Trees

By Ethan Rothstein

Published October 10, 2013 at 11:45AM | Updated November 22, 2016 at 3:02PM

Later this month, Arlington residents can stop by the county nursery and pick up a free, native tree to plant on their property.

On Saturday, Oct. 26 from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., behind the ballfield at the corner of S. George Mason Drive and Four Mile Run Drive, residents can show up with a ticket, printed out from the county’s Eventbrite page, and go home with a “whip,” or a baby tree planted in a two-gallon container.

The county offers six different species of tree: sweet birch, white oak, black gum, black haw, pagoda dogwood and sweetbay magnolia. As of this morning (Thursday), sweet birch and sweetbay magnolia were sold out, and reservations for black haw were running out quickly.

Only one tree is allowed per residential property, according to Nora Palmatier, president of the TreeStewards of Arlington and Alexandria.

County staff will be on hand to provide guidance on maintaining the trees, as well as to help carry the containers to vehicles. Residents of multifamily properties are encouraged to contact TreeStewards for information about planting trees on their property.

Flickr pool photo by ddimick

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published October 8, 2013 at 8:30AM

Development Proposed to Replace Courthouse Wendy’s — Developer Carr Properties is planning to propose an office building to be built at 2038 Wilson Blvd in Courthouse, replacing the Wendy’s. The building will be similar to Carr’s planned office building at 2311 Wilson Blvd, which was approved by the Arlington County Board in December. [Washington Post]

Questions Remain As Staff Works on Urban Ag Report — County Board Chairman Walter Tejada is pressing county staff to move faster on a report on urban agriculture. The report is expected to recommend a course of action on the controversial issue of urban hen raising, an issue for which many questions remain. [Sun Gazette]

Free Tropical Plants Today — Ferns, palms, ficus trees and banana plants will be given away for free this afternoon at the Crystal City farmers market. Used to decorate outdoor areas of Crystal City during the summer, the plants would otherwise be composted in advance of winter. [Crystal City BID]

Crystal City BID is an ARLnow.com advertiser. Photo courtesy @BrianWohlert.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published October 3, 2013 at 9:00AM

Z-Burger to End Free Burger Promotion — Z-Burger is ending its free burger promotion for furloughed federal workers. The local burger chain says they’ve given away more than $60,000 worth of burgers to more than 15,000 federal workers. The company says it’s losing too much money to continue, so the giveaway will end tonight (Thursday). “In order for us to stay in business, we had to make the hard choice,” said owner Peter Tabibian.

New Townhouses Coming to Westover — A new townhouse development is coming to the Westover neighborhood. The Westover Place townhomes are replacing a series of aging but mixed-income low-rise apartment buildings on N. Kensington Street. Prices for new homes in the development start in the $800’s. [Arlington Housing Report]

CivFed Calls for County Audit Staff — Delegates to the Arlington County Civic Federation voted 40-2 this week on a resolution that calls for Arlington to hire an independent, internal auditing and financial control staff. [Sun Gazette]

WRIT Buys Crystal City Building — Washington Real Estate Investment Trust has purchased The Paramount, a 17-story apartment building at 1425 S. Eads Street, for $48 million. [Globe St.]

Flickr pool photo by Lawrence Cheng Photography