local business

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Clarendon Crash Suspect Has Long Record — The suspected DUI driver in a critical pedestrian accident in Clarendon over the weekend has a long history of driving violations, including speeding, unsafe lane changes and reckless driving. [Washington Post]

N. Va. Senior Olympics Wrap Up — The Northern Virginia Senior Olympics has wrapped up after distributing 94 Gold medals, 68 Silver medals and 41 Bronze medals over the course of two weeks. Some of the Senior Olympics events were held at Thomas Jefferson Community Center in Arlington. [Arlington Mercury]

Arlington Wages Rising Slower than Average — Wage growth in Arlington for the first quarter of 2012 was 4.3 percent year-over-year. That’s below the national average of 5.4 percent wage growth. The average gross yearly salary for those who work in Arlington, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, is $84,084. [Sun Gazette]

Flickr pool photo by Damiec

Rosslyn’s Santa Fe Cafe to Close

By ARLnow.com

After 24 years in business, Santa Fe Cafe (1500 Wilson Blvd) will be closing its doors.

The restaurant — the longest-running in Rosslyn — will be closing around Oct. 27 (exact date TBA). Owner Kip Laramie said he made the difficult decision to close after finding out his rent was to increase nearly 30 percent should he renew his lease.

“It has been an honor and a privilege to help people have a howling good time at Santa Fe Café for the last 24 years,” said Laramie. “My staff and I have seen Rosslyn develop from a convenient but somewhat sleepy neighborhood into one of the most vibrant places in the country to live, work, play and learn.”

The news comes as Santa Fe Cafe is in the midst of its annual Hatch green chili harvest festival. During the festival, which runs through mid-October, the restaurant serves special dishes made with the famous green chiles from Hatch, New Mexico. The spicy chiles are flown in fresh from a local grower in Hatch, then roasted and peeled.

Over the years, Santa Fe Cafe has served its New Mexico-focused cuisine for a number of notable people and organizations, including the New Mexico State Society, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, former Governor Bill Richardson, the U.S. Supreme Court and a number of local trade associations and nonprofits. The restaurant has hosted benefits for the Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network and BRAVO.

Laramie, who will turn 60 in March, said he would have liked to run the restaurant for a few more years, before retiring and handing it over to his staff. Now, he said his goal is to make sure his 11 employees — three of whom have been with the restaurant since it opened on May 1, 1988 — find new jobs.

“I’m very fortunate to have this wonderful group that i’ve worked with for so long,” he said. “I’m going to do everything I possibly can to find them an even better job than they had here.”

Laramie said he has had a good relationship with the owner of his building — which is now vacant, after some 1,300 Air Force personnel moved out as a result of BRAC — but the extra rent required to renew the long-standing lease was too much for his small business.

“It was just a decision by the landlord that the space is worth more than I can afford,” he said. “I don’t hold those cards, unfortunately.”

Laramie, a former restaurant broker, said it’s tough for a small, locally-owned restaurant to succeed in a high-rent environment like Rosslyn, but added that he’s not alone.

“I think some of the chains that moved in here are even having a tough time,” he said. Still, Laramie thinks Rosslyn will be an even more attractive place to own a restaurant once a few of the large planned or under-construction new buildings open.

“A couple of years from now, it will be a wonderful place to have a business, with all these buildings that are going up,” he said.

Tourism Spending in Arlington Rises to $2.7 Billion

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County says tourists and visitors spent $2.7 billion in Arlington in 2011, an increase of 7.6 percent over the $2.5 billion spent in 2010.

The $2.7 billion in spending represents 13.1 percent of all tourism dollars in the Commonwealth of Virginia, making Arlington the top county in the state for visitor spending.

The tourism industry is responsible for 24,000 jobs in Arlington and generates nearly $74 million, according to the county, citing data from the U.S. Travel Association. Tourism payroll and employment in Arlington both outpaced the statewide averages, up 3.2 percent and 1.9 percent respectively.

“We’re very pleased with the steady growth of the County’s tourism sector,” Arlington Convention and Visitors Service Director Emily Cassell said in a statement. “While we’re still progressing toward the peak hotel occupancy and revenue levels of 2008 and 2009, the significant growth in visitor spending is a sign of good things to come.”

Virginia lawmakers failed to renew Arlington’s 0.25 percent hotel tax surcharge in 2011. The surcharge expired after Dec. 31, 2011, and is expected to result in the loss of just over $1 million in annual revenue used for tourism promotion by the Arlington Convention and Visitors Service. Although some general county funds were allocated to make up for the shortfall, the Convention and Visitors Service budget for Fiscal Year 2013 is only $500,000, compared to $1.4 million in FY 2011.

‘Dinette Design’ to Move into Saah Furniture Space

By ARLnow.com

Dinette Design, a furniture store, is moving from Ballston Common Mall to Columbia Pike.

The store is moving into the former Saah Furniture store at 2330 Columbia Pike, according to permits.

Dinette Design sells custom-designed furniture, including couches, chairs and tables. It’s unclear if the Ballston Common Mall location at 4238 Wilson Blvd is still open; no one answered the phone there earlier today (Thursday) and the store was recently holding a “closing” sale.

No word yet on when Dinette Design will be open on the Pike, but interior construction appears to just be getting underway now.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Policy Prompts Parents to Walk, Drive to School — A controversial new busing policy that has resulted in more students walking to school prompted many parents to walk with or drive their kids to school yesterday (Tuesday). A number of parents talked to the TV news crews who were camped outside schools to report on parents’ discontent with the policy. [WJLA, MyFoxDC]

More Troubles for Crystal City Head Shop — Now it’s not just Arlington County that’s telling the owner of a new head shop in Crystal City to take down a colorful mural outside the store. The shop’s landlord has told the store’s owner to take down the mural. A lawyer for the landlord also says the store owes back rent. [WUSA]

New High School in Arlington? — The Arlington Mill Continuation Program, which currnetly serves 127 students in grades 9 to 12 and 176 adults, may soon get accredited as a full-fledged high school, according to an article published by the Sun Gazette. The article is no longer on the paper’s website, but we’re told that it’s being integrated into a future article.

Arlington Woman Convicted of Double Murder — Arlington resident Natalia Wilson, 48, has pleaded guilty to the February 2010 double murder of her perceived romantic rival, Slavka Naydenova of Dale City, and the woman’s 8-year-old son. [Associated Press]

Flickr pool photo by Enigmatic Traveler

Office Owner Sees Tech, Start-Up Future for Arlington

By ARLnow.com

Arlington is attracting a growing number of start-up and tech companies, and the co-owner of a new coworking space in Rosslyn is placing a big bet on that trend continuing.

Raymond Rahbar, a Courthouse resident, is a founder of UberOffices, a shared office space located on one floor of a high-rise at 1400 Key Boulevard. The office opened in July and already a number of young companies now call home.

Rahbar says he was able to attract a number of companies from other parts of the D.C. area thanks to a number of factors, including: Rosslyn’s central location relative to federal offices in D.C. and Northern Virginia; an abundance of nearby transportation options; proximity to the homes of potential employees; and relatively low taxes in Virginia.

“Arlington makes the most amount of sense for start-ups,” he said, before rattling off some additional advantages of Arlington in general and Rosslyn in particular. “The educated workforce… major highways all around us… the high average salary, so that means people have a savings and can take risks.”

Unsaid in that list is the fact that rent is generally lower outside the District, a key consideration for start-ups looking to conserve cash. The rent for a desk at UberOffices starts at $300 per month, compared to $700+ per month in many D.C. coworking spaces. Private offices range from $1,000 to $3,600 per month, and are large enough to host 2 to 8 employees respectively.

Among the companies that have set up shop at UberOffices are Votifi, which moved from Bethesda, and Lemur IMS, which moved from D.C. Votifi seeks to provide a “platform for modern political exchange,” while Lemur IMS promises to save the retail industry money and increases its profits via a “revolutionary inventory management system.”

Even though one might think of the District as more of a tech hub — it’s home to Living Social, perhaps the most high-profile local tech firm — Rahbar says Northern Virginia offers distinct advantages that large companies already are well aware of, but which the start-up community is beginning to recognize.

“Our taxes are lower, our crime is lower, our government is more stable,” he said. “They’re completely different environments. I’m sure D.C. has a couple of its own advantages, but I would bet on this area before I would bet on D.C.”

All that might explain why Northern Virginia has four times as many Fortune 500 headquarters as the District, he said.

Rahbar says he thinks the entire D.C. region is going to continue to continue to experience economic growth, even if the federal budget is cut. Among the factors contributing to that growth is the increasing amount of money flowing into politics.

“The size of government might be shrinking, but the size of politics is also increasing at the same time — campaigns and committees and all sorts of things,” he said. “So now we have more media firms, more PR firms, more lobbyists, more lawyers. Everything is just growing, even if government contracting ends up slowing down.”

(more…)

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Streetcar Video Came at a Cost — An Arlington County-produced video that makes the case for the planned Columbia Pike and Crystal City streetcar lines cost the county $3,400. Arlington officials greenlit the video because they “felt there was a general ‘lack of public awareness and education'” about the streetcar. [Washington Examiner]

Beef ‘O’ Brady Eyes Arlington — The Florida-based Beef ‘O’ Brady chain of sports bars/restaurants is apparently looking to open in Arlington. Arlington is a “key component to the company’s growth strategy in Virginia,” according to a press release. “While there’s definitely a market for Beef ‘O’ Brady’s in the Arlington market, we’re taking a careful approach to finding a franchise partner with business savvy, tenacity and a readiness to reinvest in the communities they serve,” said James Walker, Chief Development Officer of Beef ‘O’ Brady’s, in a statement. “ [Restaurant News Release]

Donations Sought for USS Arlington Commissioning — The commissioning of the USS Arlington, a new Navy transport ship, is six months away. The USS Arlington Commissioning Committee is now seeking donations to help support the commissioning ceremony and to build a “tribute room” within the new ship. [Sun Gazette]

Flickr pool photo by Wolfkann

Earl’s Sandwiches Expanding to Ballston

By ARLnow.com

Earl’s Sandwiches, located at 2605 Wilson Blvd in the Clarendon/Courthouse area, is expanding with a second location in Ballston.

The restaurant will be replacing an existing deli across the street from the Ballston Metro station. Co-owner Steve Dugan told ARLnow.com that he hopes to open in early September, after a couple days of renovations. Dugan was unable to confirm the exact address of the restaurant due to a confidentiality agreement.

Earl’s of Ballston is applying for a license to serve beer and wine, according to Virginia ABC records.

Earl’s in Courthouse offers sandwiches, burgers, hot dogs and wraps, as well as soups, chili, fries and salads. Most sandwiches are made with fresh-roasted meats and range in price from $7 to $9.

Photo via Facebook

Five Arlington Companies Make Inc. 500 List

By ARLnow.com

Five Arlington-based companies have made Inc. Magazine’s prestigious Inc. 500 list of the fastest-growing private companies in the U.S.

The highest on the list, at #80, is Innotion Enterprises, which has 43 employees, $35.8 million in revenue (as of 2011) and a 3-year growth rate of 3,500 percent. The company, based in Ballston, offers information technology services to the federal government and asset management services to real estate firms.

Another Ballston-based real estate management firm, Matt Martin Real Estate Management, ranked #116. The company had $31.4 million in 2011 revenue, a 3-year growth rate of 2,669 percent and has 110 employees across the country. It provides services to the real estate industry, and to the General Services Administration and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Evoke Research and Consulting, based in Rosslyn, ranked #283. The company had $8.9 million in revenue in 2011 and a 1,291 percent growth rate. Evoke employs 49 people and offers project management, budgeting, contract, portfolio management and business management strategy services to government clients.

Ballston-based Global Telesourcing is #441 on the Inc. 500 list, with $8.4 million in revenue (in 2011), 847 percent growth and 410 employees. The company provides outsourced inbound and outbound sales call centers, utilizing native-level English speakers at a facility in Monterrey, Mexico. “We achieve results and quality scores that typically outperform domestic U.S. competitors, but at a dramatically lower cost,” the company said in a press release today.

Courthouse-based A+ Government Solutions rounds out the Arlington list at #468. The company provides management and IT consulting services to government clients, specializing in health programs and human resource management. A+ had $24.5 million in revenue in 2011, a 821 percent 3-year growth rate, and has 128 employees.

Bill Colton, president of Global Telesourcing, said making the Inc. 500 list is an honor for growing companies.

“We are thrilled to make this list,” he told ARLnow.com. “It’s the ‘gold medal’ for entrepreneurs and is particularly meaningful to have earned the honor during one of the most challenging economic environments in a century.”

Ballston Office Building to Be Vacated, Renovated

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 12:40 p.m.) The Webb Building, a 10-story office building at 4040 N. Fairfax Drive in Ballston, is being renovated.

The building’s current tenant, the Department of Defense, will be moving out in December as a result of the Base Realignment and Closure Act (BRAC). In anticipation, the building’s owner is embarking on a major renovation project to “re-position” the 1960s-era building for occupancy by a new tenant.

“The building… will be fully renovated, with a new lobby, landscaping, façade improvements, fitness center, updated common areas, updated HVAC and fire and life safety systems, and a roof deck with extensive views,” according to a press release. “We see a unique opportunity to deliver a fully refreshed, high quality work environment at a price point substantially lower than the new buildings being delivered in the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor.”

To fund the $5 million renovation project and the leasing efforts, owner RESI Management has raised $21.2 million from Chevy Chase-based Federal Capital Partners, along with a $33.5 million loan from Wells Fargo. The renovations are expected to be complete by mid-2013.

The 184,216 square foot building first opened in 1966. Located two blocks from the Ballston Metro station, the building has been serving as the headquarters for Department of Defense Education Activity, which manages  schools for military children.

Shirlington to Host ‘Wags n’ Whiskers’ This Weekend

By ARLnow.com

Hundreds pet lovers are expected to flock to Shirlington this weekend of the fifth annual “Wags n’ Whiskers” event.

Wags n’ Whiskers, which is taking place at the Village at Shirlington on Campbell Avenue, is described as a “community-oriented event for animal enthusiasts and their four-legged friends.” The event is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 25 from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

“The afternoon animal extravaganza will feature pet adoptions from local shelters, pet contests, demonstrations, exhibitions, pet portrait photos, live music, and children’s activities including face painting, balloon animals and more,” according to a press release. “The merchants at Village at Shirlington will also host in-store specials, promotions and free giveaways.”

In addition to specials at Shirlington Village merchants, like Dogma Bakery and Ah Love Oil and Vinegar (which will have a booth handing out olive oil dog treats and demonstrating “methods of pet care using extra virgin olive oil”), a number of exhibitors will be on hand at the event.

Those exhibitors include Arlington Welfare League of Arlington, Barkley Square Pets, Caring Hands Animal Hospital, Dog Paws n Cat Claws Pet Care, Fetch! Pet Care, Fur-Get Me Not, Helping Hands Affordable Veterinary Surgery and Dental Care, The Mid-Atlantic Chinese Shar-Pei Rescue Operation, Inc., Nova Mobile Vet and NOVADog Magazine.

Courtesy photos

 

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