poll | ARLnow.com

Morning Poll: Double-Parked Delivery Trucks

Published December 2, 2015 at 11:20AM

You see them on local streets, usually in commercial districts: double-parked trucks making deliveries to local stores and offices.

Sometimes the trucks completely block traffic, as can be seen in the photo above, taken yesterday in Rosslyn. Other times, just a lane of traffic. In both cases, other drivers are inconvenienced and forced into a potentially hazardous situation: switching lanes mid-street or driving into an opposing lane of traffic.

A hazard at worst and an annoyance at best, double-parked delivery and mail trucks are a fact of life in urban areas around the world. The need to deliver mail and packages to offices, food to restaurants and inventory to stores is not going away, and short of local governments eliminating street parking for non-commercial vehicles there are few good options for truck drivers making quick deliveries.

In your opinion, just how bad is the problem of doubled-parked trucks in Arlington?

(If a truck is illegally parked and truly presenting a hazard, it can be reported to Arlington County Police via the department’s non-emergency line at 703-558-2222.)

Photo via @dnak17

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Morning Poll: Crowds at Malls and Shopping Centers Today?

By ARLnow.com

Published November 27, 2015 at 10:30AM

In popular imagination, Black Friday is the biggest shopping day of the year.

In actuality, the Saturday before Christmas is usually the biggest shopping day of the year. And with Cyber Monday and e-commerce encouraging online shopping, and Small Business Saturday encouraging shoppers to support local businesses, Black Friday may be losing its luster.

We wanted to check with those who are actually heading out to the malls and shopping centers today: how big are the crowds?

Alternatively, if you had to head into work today instead of shopping — like us — there’s an option for you.

Morning Poll: Are You Traveling This Thanksgiving?

By ARLnow.com

Published November 23, 2015 at 10:05AM

An estimated 1.15 million D.C. area residents will travel 50 miles or more for the Thanksgiving holiday. Will you be among them?

According to AAA Mid-Atlantic, holiday travel will be virtually unchanged this year, down 0.2 percent compared to 2014.

That’s despite lower gas prices and better weather — it’s supposed to be mostly sunny and cool this week, compared to the snowstorm that was predicted around this time last year.

About 90.5 percent of all D.C. area travelers will travel by car, compared to 7.3 percent traveling via air and 2.2 percent via other modes of transportation.

Will you be among those traveling outside of D.C. this year?

Morning Poll: Syrian Refugees in Arlington?

By ARLnow.com

Published November 18, 2015 at 10:25AM | Updated November 18, 2015 at 2:15PM

The reaction to the news that Arlington County is ready and willing to help resettle Syrian refugees was largely positive on social media.

Despite a mixed bag of comments, our post on Facebook garnered more than 600 likes, making this one of our most-liked stories of all time.

What do you think of the idea of bringing Syrian refugees to Arlington?

Update at 2:15 p.m. — Arlington County released the following statement about Syrian refugees today:

Our collective conscience has been shaken by both the refugee crisis resulting from the ongoing conflict in Syria and the terrorist attacks across the world that threaten the security of the United States and our allies. The ongoing debate regarding our country’s response to these issues at the federal, state and local level is an opportunity to demonstrate the true character of our nation. While local governments have no role in the refugee admissions process or relocation decisions, we feel compelled to lend our voice to this important discussion.

The County is no newcomer to refugee resettlement activity. Over the past four decades we have welcomed those fleeing the Vietnam war, civil wars in Central America, the Ethiopian/Eritrean conflicts and the Bosnian war. We have confidence that the federal process of application, screening, placement and resettlement coupled with partnership with our regional resettlement agency, Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Arlington, can once again lead to the successful integration of refugees into our community.

We firmly believe that responding to today’s urgent humanitarian crisis by serving as a new home for those seeking refuge is in keeping with both our nation’s tradition and with the Arlington County Board Resolution Supporting Arlington’s Newcomers, passed on September 18, 2007.

We support the need for strong security and screening reinforced by recent events, yet we are confident that America can continue to serve as a land of hope and opportunity that welcomes those seeking a better life for themselves and their loved ones while also ensuring our own security. In fact, the ideals and values upon which our nation was founded require it.

Photo via Wikipedia

Morning Poll: Christmas Decorations Before Thanksgiving

By ARLnow.com

Published November 11, 2015 at 10:45AM

A photo went viral this week, showing a sign at a Nordstrom store.

“We won’t be decking our halls until Friday, November 27,” the sign said. “Why? Well, we just like the idea of celebrating one holiday at a time. From our family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving.”

Never mind that the photo was from 2009, it brings up a discussion-worthy point: has Christmas creep gone too far? Should other retailers hold off until after Thanksgiving to start putting up Christmas decorations?

Over at the Nordstrom store in the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City yesterday, there were no signs of Christmas decorations — and no signs of explanatory signs — inside. Outside of the department store was another story: the future home of the mall’s Santa Claus already had decorated trees along with red carpets and rope lines, waiting for Saint Nick to arrive along with adoring throngs of youngsters and parents.

So which would you prefer? A holly, jolly November, or some holiday restraint?

Morning Poll: Are You Taking Metro Less Often?

By ARLnow.com

Published October 15, 2015 at 10:00AM

There has been no shortage of headlines lately about problems with the Metrorail system.

Chronic delays, minor incidents fouling up entire rush hour commutes and long waits on the weekends have become the norm with Washington’s once-gleaming subway system. It’s the result, many say, of deferred maintenance and a lack of investment in the system’s upkeep.

Metro says it’s trying to catch up, but even the maintenance is causing problems. This weekend alone, “reconstruction of the Metrorail system” will result in “service adjustments” on every line other than the Green Line. The Orange, Silver, Blue, Yellow and Red lines will all see 24 minute headways between trains.

Metro acknowledged last week that service breakdowns may be responsible for steadily decreasing ridership.

Are you, personally, taking Metro less often this year as a result of less reliable service?

Morning Poll: Should APS Have a Day Off for Columbus Day?

By ARLnow.com

Published October 13, 2015 at 10:30AM

Arlington Public Schools students enjoyed a long weekend thanks to Monday’s Columbus Day holiday.

Columbus Day may be a federal holiday, but it seems that with every passing year it becomes less relevant. Arlington County offices, for instance, remain open on Columbus Day. Purely anecdotal evidence — the volume of rush hour traffic on I-395 — seems to suggest that Columbus Day is the least observed federal holiday, at least in terms of workers taking the day off.

The root cause of this is Columbus and his legacy: the soldiers he led to the New World enslaved, raped, slaughtered and otherwise destroyed native populations. In recent years, the reality of Columbus’ harsh treatment of natives has increasingly outweighed his accomplishments in the collective consciousness.

Still, Columbus Day could optimistically be said to be more about the discovery of America than the man himself. And it’s the lone federal holiday in an otherwise busy month of October.

Do you think Arlington Public Schools students should continue to get the day off?

Photo via Wikipedia

Morning Poll: How Are You Coping With the Rain?

By ARLnow.com

Published October 2, 2015 at 10:30AM

It’s expected to be a rainy and windy weekend.

While Hurricane Joaquin is looking like less of a threat to the East Coast, a nor-easter is bringing heavy rain to the region today and showers throughout the weekend.

Is the forecast changing your plans? Let us know how you’re coping with the lousy weather.

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#rain

Morning Poll: Fire Station No. 8

By ARLnow.com

Published September 30, 2015 at 11:00AM

The saga over the proposed relocation of Fire Station No. 8 continues.

Following resident outcry from those who didn’t want the Lee Highway fire station to move from their neighborhood, and from those who didn’t want it to move to theirs, last week the Arlington County Board approved the creation of a task force to study the issue and come up with a recommendation.

Now, the county is also conducting a survey of residents via its “Open Arlington” website. The survey, which closes on Oct. 6, is intended to “gather input on the proposed project criteria and the possible direction this task force may take.”

Those who argue in favor of relocating the fire station further north — including fire department officials — say it would improve fire response times to the northern reaches of Arlington, while allowing for a larger and more advanced fire station to be built within budget. Keeping the station where it is would require pricy renovations and potential land acquisition that would be more expensive than simply building the station new on exiting county land.

Those who argue against the station say that it’s a community fixture with an important history, and they like it where it is. Further, some residents around the proposed relocation site near Marymount University say the fire station would disrupt their quiet neighborhood.

We’re conducting our own survey this morning: do you think it’s a good idea to relocate Fire Station No. 8?

Morning Poll: Registered Commenters Only?

By ARLnow.com

Published September 14, 2015 at 10:15AM

When we talk to ARLnow readers, they invariably bring up the comments section of the site.

Most people say they enjoy reading the comments, even though they might not agree with what’s being said. A vocal minority, however, say they dislike the comments — they don’t like the general tone and disagree with many viewpoints.

The one constant: everybody seems to have an opinion and no one can be dissuaded from reading the comments, even if they profess to not liking them.

ARLnow believes in giving readers a relatively open forum to discuss the news of the day. The comments are often a force for good: providing valuable tips, first person insights into breaking news and some useful corrections.

However, there are some unresolved issues with the comments: consistent negativity that’s not reflective of the views of the general populace, petty back-and-forth fighting that discourages substantive discussion and occasional comment spam.

One possible solution to these problems could be to require that commenters be registered in order to post comments. That would effectively shut out some trolls and spammers, while allowing us to more effectively manage and moderate comments.

(We are not considering shutting off the comments altogether. We believe that a reader dialogue about the news is a good thing, as long as discussions don’t get out of hand.)

What do you think?

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Morning Poll: Will You Be Going Out of Town for Labor Day Weekend?

By ARLnow.com

Published September 2, 2015 at 10:30AM

AAA Mid-Atlantic came out with its annual Labor Day travel forecast earlier this week, predicting that 850,700 D.C. area residents will head out of town for the holiday.

That’s a paltry 0.4 percent increase from last year, with 743,200 residents expected to drive to their vacation destinations, 62,500 expected to fly and the rest expected to take trains and other modes of transportation.

AAA says there would have been more locals traveling this year, had Labor Day not fallen on Sept. 7, the latest possible day it can occur. Historically, that dampens holiday travel.

“While increasing travel volume is great news for the industry and economy, our survey shows a decidedly ‘un-laboring’ take on the Labor Day holiday,” said AAA’s John Townsend II, in a press release. “Many would rather spend the holiday at cookouts, relaxing or simply at home to avoid heavy holiday traffic congestion or additional spending, especially if they have already taken a vacation this summer.”

Are you planning on skipping town for one last summer trip — or staying put and firing up the grill?