Progressive Voice

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of their organization or ARLnow.com.

Growing up in Arlington, my friends’ parents were entrepreneurs, artists, public servants, homemakers, lawyers, and service workers. In the past 30 years, I have seen Arlington change, largely for the better.

But as property values rise I wonder: “If I could buy in Arlington (that’s a big if) and raise a family here, will my children grow up in an economically diverse and largely middle class community?”

Continuing on our present course, I fear not.

Over the past several months I’ve written here and elsewhere about millennials and housing affordability in Arlington. How do we make home ownership attainable for young people? Our answer will affect Arlington’s prosperity and culture for decades to come.

Some millennials will earn well above the area median income (AMI) and have ample choices in Arlington. Others will earn well below AMI. For them, ownership here may be out of reach. To its credit, Arlington works hard to provide affordable rental housing.

The challenge is what to do for the majority of millennials who fall in between.

When my mother settled here, artists, budding entrepreneurs, and public servants could afford Arlington. With the median sale price of a “home” (detached dwellings, townhouses, and condos) now above $550,000, many find Arlington out of reach.

If ownership is unattainable to this group, they will move to more affordable urban centers. We will lose civic and artistic contributors and a significant share of a creative class that is critical to growing and diversifying our economy. Left behind will be a stratified county increasingly reliant on federal largesse.

In July 2012, Arlington initiated an Affordable Housing study. The resulting March 2015 draft plan found ownership housing affordable to families earning below 120 percent AMI “will continue to be undersupplied without public policies to stimulate and incentivize the production of lower cost ownership housing.”

In response, planners have suggested increasing the supply of affordable housing, raising density, and studying options to “enable greater flexibility in housing type.” This is promising. But to more quickly match today’s demand with existing supply, the County should also look to innovative financing options.

Upfront costs are a significant barrier to homeownership. Having graduated into a sluggish economy and saddled with student debt, few millennials have $110,000 in cash (20 percent of a median-price home).

That’s why “shared-equity” programs show significant promise.

In a shared-equity program, first-time homebuyers can get a deferred-payment, no-interest loan to partially cover down payment and closing costs. The buyer can defer payments until they sell. They then repay the original loan plus a proportionate share of the home’s net appreciation. This turns renters into buyers, helping them to build equity while putting down roots in the community. The fund is self-sustaining, refreshed with repayments and appreciation.

Arlington already has a similar program: the Moderate Income Purchase Assistance Program (MIPAP). But in FY 2014, just 14 MIPAP loans were made, up from three in the prior two years.

That’s partly because the maximum purchase price of an eligible home is $362,790, far less than the Arlington median, although the maximum allowed loan — $90,000 — and the minimum contribution required of the buyer — 1 percent — are quite helpful.

To improve MIPAP, we need to increase funding for homeownership programs. Funds to support MIPAP shouldn’t come out of support for low-income families, but rather reflect a strong commitment to both affordable housing and housing affordability.

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Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of their organization or ARLnow.com.

Metro is one of Arlington’s most valuable assets and a key to the county’s continued progress. At a time of high commercial vacancy rates, it is increasingly important to our economic future that Metro is a reliable, high-quality transit system.

However, as anyone who rides Metro knows, the system remains in need of repair, upgrades, and additional capacity even after improvements made through several years of more intensive maintenance.

That is why the decision by the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee to slash WMATA maintenance funding from $150 million to $75 million is extremely troubling for our county and region.

If this is a political statement or an attempt to send a message of disapproval to WMATA, such action should be viewed with outrage by residents of Arlington and Northern Virginia.

Now is not the time for political gamesmanship and punitive measures. Rather, we need a concerted effort to preserve Metro’s strengths, fix Metro’s problems, and recognize Metro’s major contribution to our region’s transportation and economic goals.

If the goal of reducing Metro funding is to ensure WMATA “is making significant progress in eliminating the material weaknesses, significant deficiencies, and minor control deficiencies” as the bill also requires, cutting the funding to achieve these goals in counterproductive. The regional economy and safety of individuals should not be so jeopardized.

The Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008, which authorized $1.5 billion for WMATA over ten years — or $150 million a year – is a federal commitment that should be honored. It is money that was dedicated seven years ago to improve Metro services, specifically the safety of passengers. Additionally, in response to this federal commitment, Virginia, Maryland and the District agreed to match the federal funding with $50 million each in additional annual funding. This bipartisan support for Metro was and is a vitally important demonstration of federal and state governments working together to advance a key transportation priority.

Any attempt to reduce the federal share of this money undermines critical maintenance and safety improvements that need to be completed. It is imperative that the Republican leadership of this subcommittee, the full committee and the House of Representatives heed the bipartisan advice of Congressional leaders in Virginia (including our own Congressman, Don Beyer), Maryland and the District.

With Metro’s Momentum Plan on the horizon, the Potomac Yard Metrorail Station process underway, revitalization of Crystal City and Pentagon City, additions along the R-B Corridor, I-66 improvements with a focus on transit proposed, and new apartment buildings popping up along Metro corridors that will increase ridership, we need to ensure that WMATA is actively improving maintenance, enhancing capacity, and ensuring the safety of its riders. This requires that the federal government remain a full partner with the Commonwealth and our neighboring jurisdictions in funding Metro.

The WMATA Board also has an opportunity to address operations and management issues in hiring a new General Manager and CEO. This person needs to be a stalwart of efficiency and maximizing Metro’s upgrades with available funding to prepare Metro for future realities. They must also be given a chance to succeed through the full allocation of federal funds.

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Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of their organization or ARLnow.com. This week’s column is written by Dr. Marie Price.

In our nation’s history, we have achieved great success because we have encouraged educational achievement and because of the determination, grit, innovation, and entrepreneurship of our immigrants. Those who have come to our country from elsewhere, and their daughters and sons, have been strong contributors to our economic, national security and cultural preeminence.

Through the Dream Project, which matches educational success and immigrant youth who aspire to the achievements of earlier immigrants, Arlington is making a significant contribution to our community and our nation’s future.

The Dream Project began five years ago in Arlington as a community-based non-profit organization bringing together undocumented families, their high school and college-aged children, educators, and donors. It began with parents who could not bear to see their children’s academic achievements undermined by barriers of being undocumented. Today, the Project directly supports 70 promising immigrant youth through a mentoring program for high school seniors, offering scholarships, and promoting advocacy.

Dream Scholars from our program have nurtured student-led DREAMer groups at various Virginia colleges including the Mason Dreamers at George Mason University. By becoming part of a supportive community and sharing their stories of struggle, the Dreamers have become powerful voices for change in Virginia. As one Dream Scholar describes, “I got involved with the Dream Project and realized there are more Dreamers in Virginia. Then I got more involved with advocacy and I went to California and realized that this is a national issue.”

It is estimated that up to 25,000 Virginians may be eligible for DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), which the Obama Administration initiated in June 2012. The game changer in Virginia was Attorney General Mark Herring’s ruling verifying the legality of in-state tuition for DACA holders resident in Virginia. By September 2014, over 80 percent of our 48 scholarship recipients were eligible for in-state tuition, reducing their college costs by two-thirds.

DACA is not legal permanent residence and must be renewed every two years at the cost of $465. Students with DACA are able to work, obtain a driver’s license, open a bank account and receive in-state tuition.

A distinguishing feature of the Dream Project is its mentoring and collaboration with students and families. Creating a network that feels family-like has been shown to be especially effective for undocumented college students. Through mentoring and the renewable Dream Project scholarships, the success rate of our Dream Scholars is excellent. More than 90 percent of our students are currently enrolled in university classes and our first students will graduate in May 2015.

Dream Project students come from 15 different Northern Virginia high schools and are currently attending 16 different colleges and universities. Although 90 percent of the current Dream Scholars are from Latin America (especially Bolivia, El Salvador, Peru, and Colombia), Dream Project students also come from South Korea, Mongolia, Ethiopia, and the Philippines, reflecting Northern Virginia’s diversity.

Critical to the Dream Project’s success has been its ability to partner with key institutions such as public schools, community colleges, state universities, and religious organizations. From the beginning, Arlington Public Schools opened its doors by signing a strategic partnership with the Dream Project to provide in-kind support in the form of meeting space for after-school activities.

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Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

The Arlington we enjoy today is a county where population is growing, our successful schools are attracting many more children, single family homes in our suburban neighborhoods are in high demand, we have the highest percentage of millennials in the country, our finances are rated among the best in America by rating agencies, and we enjoy a range of housing, transportation, and recreational choices due to wise investments by past generations of county leaders.

While we have challenges facing our commercial sector, in housing affordability across many income levels, and meeting the needs of our schools, we are a success by almost any measure.

We did not achieve this success by chance. It is due to visionary leadership driven by commitments to core values and investments in our future. There is no better example of such visionary leadership than Ellen Bozman, who served Arlington for 24 years on the County Board, on various regional organizations, and in civic groups.

Leaders like Ellen knew the importance of a vibrant commercial sector that reduces reliance on homeowner taxes, transit oriented development, providing opportunities for those in need, and a focus on quality of life.

I was reminded of Ellen’s contributions on a recent walk through Ballston.

There, amidst restaurants, hotels, office buildings, the Virginia Tech Research Center, retail outlets and residences, I found Ellen’s Trace. The trace is an urban park that is a great spot for pedestrians to relax and consider Arlington’s past, present and future.

You can find Ellen’s Trace between 800 N. Glebe Road (a distinctive building that features a diamond canopy and rounded glass façade reminiscent of its predecessor Bob Peck Chevrolet) and The Jordan, which provides 90 units of affordable housing. Such a joint project combining commercial sector success with housing affordability was consistent with Ellen’s approach.

Ellen had the gift to see Arlington for what it could be, and worked hard to make that vision happen. She maximized her influence through her ability to work with others to forge compromises and build partnerships within Arlington and across the region.

The commemorative markers in Ellen’s Trace describe Ellen Bozman’s contributions in ways that capture her well:

Affordable Housing: Ellen Bozman believed the opportunity to live in Arlington should be available to all. She was a strong advocate for affordable housing and worked hard to preserve and produce housing opportunities for low- and moderate-income residents. 

Health and Welfare: Ellen Bozman worked tirelessly to protect and care for the most vulnerable in the community. In the 1960s, she pioneered Arlington’s extended day program for children of working parents. She also championed day care for the frail elderly and the creation of Arlington’s first nursing homes.

Human Rights: Ellen Bozman fought hard for the rights of others. In the 1950s, she worked to eliminate school segregation in Virginia and provided support to the families of the first black children to enter a desegregated school in Arlington.

Local Government: Ellen Bozman was deeply committed to public service. An inspiration to many, she held numerous leadership roles, including 24 years on the Arlington County Board (1974-1997). She believed government should be progressive, open, inclusive, and improve the lives of others. 

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Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of their organization or ARLnow.com. This week’s author is Gerry Collins.

One of Arlington’s core values has been its support for public education — where all children can learn and a premium is placed on the quality of classroom instruction. The success of our school system is part of what makes Arlington an attractive place to live and that success has led to a growing school population.

That growth has led to budget challenges given that the county’s economic growth has not kept pace with school population growth. That is why it has been fascinating to observe the course of events that have brought us to the brink of a final, balanced budget for Arlington Public Schools.

Only four months ago in early December, the projected budget deficit for the Arlington Public Schools was $25.3 million. As adopted on April 10, the School Board’s proposed FY 2016 budget requests an additional $6.2 million from the County Board when that Board adopts the county’s overall budget.

It is interesting to reflect on the process that has brought that additional funding request down to the current $6.2 million. The process has consumed many hours on the part of many players, including the superintendent, the APS staff in Finance and Management Services, and the School Board, as well as allied groups including the Budget Advisory Committee, the Schools Committee of the Arlington County Civic Federation, several employee groups, and a host of parents and citizens who have weighed in on various components of the proposed budget.

The effort to reduce the projected budget deficit was led initially by Superintendent Patrick Murphy who, with the support of the APS finance staff, used revised expenditure calculations as well as savings from the December close-out report to present a proposed budget in February that had lowered the budget gap to $13.6 million.

To close that gap, the superintendent’s proposed budget identified additional reductions organized into three levels, or tiers. Tier 1, the first to be reduced if needed, included $4.8 million in central office efficiencies as well as payments from “one-time” money — that is, funds that cannot be used for ongoing expenses.

Tier 2, the next line of reductions if needed, included $5.1 million through reduced funding for two of the remaining four elementary schools that have a shortened instructional day on Wednesdays, as well as savings derived from increasing the planning factor for K-12 class size by one student per classroom. Tier 3, including funding for the other two schools and a 33 percent cut in the projected salary increase, amounted to $3.7 million in potential budget savings.

Some good news came from Richmond at the conclusion of the General Assembly in March, with the notice of increases in state funding amounting to $1.7 million. This came mainly from a statewide contribution to salary increases for teachers and a reduction in the Virginia Retirement System rate of 0.44 percent. This reduced the budget gap from $13.6 million to $11.9 million.

Additionally, the County Board’s decision to take a more deliberate approach with regard to the decision whether to construct a new elementary school on the Thomas Jefferson Middle School site — pushing back the CIP timeline for that school — provided a little silver lining in the form of $1.4 million in savings on debt service since the spring bond sale would be reduced by $28 million. This lowered the projected budget deficit to $10.5 million.

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Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of their organization or ARLnow.com.

Housing affordability is one of the most critical issues of our time. It is indispensable to achieving Arlington’s vision of an inclusive, sustainable and world-class community.

Around the country, communities with good jobs, great schools, and low crime rates almost always face an affordable housing crisis. Arlington is no exception. Despite our county’s award-winning efforts to preserve market-rate affordable housing, our supply has sharply declined. According to a recently released study, affordable housing units have dropped from 23,500 units in 2000 to 10,000 units in 2013, due primarily to increasing rents.

Virtually everyone is affected when a community is no longer affordable to a diverse array of residents. Housing affordability allows seniors to age in place, young professionals to start their careers, and working-class employees to live near their jobs. Single family homes in Arlington are already too expensive for many middle-class families. I

f present trends continue, increasing numbers of people will no longer be able to live in Arlington. This is a loss not only for those directly impacted, but also the larger community.

Businesses depend on having an economically diverse workforce. Localities that are not limited to the wealthy and upper incomes have a competitive advantage in attracting top businesses. A Center for Housing Policy study finds “In a national survey of more than 300 companies conducted by Harris Interactive, more than half (55 percent) of the largest companies with more than 100 employees acknowledge an insufficient level of affordable housing in their proximity.”

Companies have often acted on this understanding by relocating to localities offering broader housing options. With an office vacancy rate around 25 in Arlington, we will need housing that is more affordable to help attract new businesses.

Let’s break this down. Arlington’s tax revenues are split almost equally between the commercial and homeowner sectors. A rising commercial vacancy rate will require either higher homeowner taxes or substantial cuts in county services, including our schools. With our schools projected to add more than 6,000 students over the next 10 years, we need a strong economic development plan — including housing affordability — to accommodate such growth in school population.

Our modern, post-World War II economy was the envy of the world and had at its economic and moral foundations plans to ensure that people had an affordable place to live. In his 1944 State of the Union Address, President Roosevelt articulated the “right of every family to a decent home.” The American Dream has been built on the premise that hard work will lead to success. That success depends, however, on ladders to success being available to workers.

As Emily Badger at the Washington Post asked, “Why do some communities have more ladders for opportunity than other communities?” Affordable housing, especially housing that is close to good public transit, is one of those ladders. How can Arlington ensure a supply of affordable housing when market demand is rapidly eliminating it?

First we must protect the supply of committed affordable housing units, which is currently at 7,000. We can’t lose any more. Second, we should use the power of zoning to foster incentives for more dedicated affordable housing units. Third, we should use this power creatively and thoughtfully.

Finally, we need to bring to bear the power of the private sector to help create affordable housing. We already get $3 of private investment for every $1 of public investment in affordable housing. Perhaps we could do even more. New York City is pursuing a partnership with developers to create 40,000 new units of affordable housing. Through preservation, zoning policy, and partnerships we can toward making sure that Arlington remains a diverse, sustainable and affordable place to live.

Kip Malinosky is Chair of the Arlington County Democratic Committee. A version of this column originally appeared in the ACDC Voice.

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of their organization or ARLnow.com. The following column was written by Paul Friedman.

Last week, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed the “The Religious Freedom Restoration Act” into law. The resulting outrage forced him to go on Sunday’s ABC News show “This Week” and attempt to clarify the law’s meaning and dispel the belief that it was discriminatory. He was unsuccessful.

As The Indianapolois Star reported, “Stephanopoulos asked Pence six times whether the new law would allow a business to discriminate against gay couples, and Pence ducked the question six times.” When asked about supporting a law banning discrimination against gays and lesbians, Pence said “that was not on [his] agenda.”

Within days of the law’s passage, companies and groups began cancelling Indiana events. Singer Audra McDonald announced she would devote the proceeds from her upcoming concert to a gay advocacy group. Angie’s List put an expensive expansion on hold. The band Wilco cancelled concert dates. A major technology conference announced that it would relocate to another state. Indianapolis’ Republican mayor called for repeal of the legislation.

Companies from Marriott, Apple, Levi’s and Yelp to sports organizations such as the NCAA, NBA, and NASCAR voiced opposition to the law and emphasized their commitment to diversity and inclusion.

Fortunately, Arlington County has had diversity and inclusion as core values for many years, and those values will help Arlington in its efforts to attract the businesses that will be at the heart of the 21st century economy.

While Virginia had previously passed a state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage and kept Arlington from expanding LGBT rights and establishing benefits for same-sex couples, the Commonwealth’s current leaders have recognized the importance of non-discrimination to the success of the state’s economy.

Since January 2014, when Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam, and Attorney General Mark Herring were sworn into office, Virginia has turned a corner on human rights. All supported marriage equality in their campaigns.

Almost immediately after taking office, Attorney General Herring determined, based on federal Constitutional principles, that his office could no longer defend the Commonwealth’s position opposing marriage equality. Instead, his office argued successfully in court that Virginia’s same-sex marriage ban violated the U.S. Constitution.

When the U.S. Supreme Court decided not to review the 4th Circuit’s decision to that effect, marriage equality became the law of the land in Virginia. Governor McAuliffe moved quickly to implement the court ruling by Executive Order. In doing so, the governor emphasized the importance of marriage equality to the growth of Virginia’s economy.

“The highest priority of state government should be to guarantee every person’s right to live, learn, work, and do business, regardless of their race, gender, creed or sexual orientation … Same-sex marriage is now legal in Virginia,” McAuliffe said. “This is a historic and long overdue moment for our Commonwealth and our country … An open and welcoming environment is imperative to grow as a Commonwealth, and to build a new Virginia economy that will attract vital businesses, innovative entrepreneurs, and thriving families.

This week, Governor McAuliffe put out the welcome mat for those who felt that Indiana’s new law was bad for business.  (more…)

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

Arlington residents are focused on key community priorities — school capacity and instructional needs, housing affordability, Metro upgrades, community facilities, open space, and other areas that depend upon public funding.

However, as a recent Washington Post article highlighted, we face another threat to our community that has received less attention: a high (and rising) commercial vacancy rate. The recently launched Community Facilities Study Group was briefed last month on the current state of Arlington’s economy and the picture is sobering.

With one-quarter of the county’s 40 million square feet of office space vacant, Arlington is faced with reduced commercial property taxes at a time when the demand for county services continues to rise.

Our ability to fund county services at existing or enhanced levels requires a healthy local economy.

Arlington is the envy of many area localities because we have a balanced 50-50 tax split between commercial real estate and homeowner property taxes. However, rising commercial vacancy rates will slow commercial real estate tax receipts and homeowners could either pay more to cover the lost revenue — or services will have to be reduced.

Those are our real options. Even if the county and school budgets were scoured for every inefficiency, potential staff reduction, or unnecessary project or program, we would still face either increased residential taxes or service reductions if Arlington is not able to attract more commercial and government tenants.

Additionally, with school spending already a significant portion of Arlington’s budget, and school enrollment growing at nearly 5 percent a year, funding for schools could be in jeopardy at a critically important time if we are not competitive for major tenants with the District, Tysons, Alexandria, and outer suburbs.

Any County Board candidate (Democrat, Republican, Independent, Green, Reform, Bull Moose etc…) should have a strong economic development plan. Without a thriving business community that provides jobs, pays wages and drives county revenue, we will not be able to solve and fund our core priorities, and promote our core values.

The Arlington Economic Development (AED) team, under new leadership, is becoming more aggressive about marketing our community’s assets. This month, AED attended SXSW in Austin, Texas, to pitch companies on Arlington. We need our local government — and our elected officials — to continue developing innovative marketing techniques and have a clear understanding of what resources are needed to attract and keep major tenants.

Because Arlington’s success has relied upon federal government spending, we need a new push toward a more diversified local economy.

In addition to supporting the growth of local startups, we must focus on companies that are diverse in scope and can withstand reduced government spending — like Marriott, which happens to be looking for a new Metro-accessible office location.

We have a governor who is focused on, and has thrived during, his first year attracting businesses to every region of the Commonwealth. His energy and enthusiasm can be an added tool to recruiting world-class employers to fill Arlington’s empty office buildings. Just last week, the governor announced nearly 600 new jobs in Fairfax County with the expansion of Navy Federal Credit Union’s offices.

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Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

Arlington is now in a time of transition in its elected leadership. It happens about once a generation and we are living through such a time today.

We have elected and will again this year elect new members of the County and School Boards. We have elected new leaders at the federal and state level as well.

Undoubtedly, we all hope that our new elected officials will find ways to build on Arlington’s remarkable successes over recent decades.

Those successes were built on a broad consensus developed in the late 1970s that we should invest in and redevelop Metro corridors, protect single family neighborhoods and open space, generate substantial commercial revenues as a complement to residential property taxes, and provide for excellent schools, county services, and a social safety net.

The achievements of that progressive consensus should not be taken for granted:

• Consistent unemployment rates among the lowest in Virginia
• One of the best school systems in the country
• A low crime rate through community policing
• Low costs of capital through consistently-held Triple-Triple A bond ratings
• A robust and award-winning affordable housing program
• A range of heavily-used county programs and facilities
• Pioneering efforts on diversity, inclusion and equality

While people continue to move to Arlington in response to these achievements, we see that the long-held and broad-based community consensus is showing signs of fraying. Many Arlingtonians are facing economic challenges that feel more substantial than in prior years. There is less optimism and a lower level of trust in government and other institutions. And newcomers to Arlington have yet to get engaged in either Arlington’s civic or political life.

Arlington Democrats are committed to electing a new generation of Democratic elected officials and more generally to working with fellow Arlingtonians — from different parties and independents — to improve our county.

As for our changing elected leadership, last year six elected offices turned over. This year, there are open seats for County Board (two), School Board, and the 45th House of Delegates District. So far, there are five candidates for the Democratic nomination for the two County Board seats and two candidates seeking a Democratic endorsement for the School Board seat.

These candidates will bring new ideas and approaches to county governance. Arlington Democrats are committed to ensuring a fair process and an open series of debates. To help maximize participation, we unanimously approved a June 9 primary for all local offices where we had the ability to do so. Our caucus to determine the Democratic School Board endorsement will be held May 14 at Drew Model School and May 16 at Washington-Lee High School.

We also want to help forge a new community consensus. Our County Board and School Board members have jointly embraced a new facilities planning conversation to address our needs on a county-wide basis that will help find community consensus with regard to siting of parks/open space as well as schools, housing, public safety, and transportation facilities. (more…)

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

March 8 marked the observance of International Women’s Day and provided an opportunity to reflect on the progress we have made with regard to equal opportunities that help women and families get ahead.

While we have farther to go in promoting those goals, we are fortunate that we have, in Arlington, the momentum, resources, and leadership to continue making progress.

For example, we are fortunate to have members of the Arlington Commission on the Status of Women who are working to improve the lives of local women and families. The Commission has generated reports to promote options for affordable childcare, increased access to affordable housing, and more readily available information to help prevent and assist victims of sexual assault and domestic violence.

One place where we are in need of greater progress is in the General Assembly. Currently, only 13 percent of the members of the General Assembly are Democratic women. How to increase that number was a topic of much conversation at the annual Virginia Democratic Women’s Caucus breakfast held March 7 in Richmond.

Among the attendees in the room were Democratic women running for office this year as well as women and men ready to lend their support and help build the infrastructure needed to win key electoral seats across the Commonwealth.

One organization building that infrastructure is Emerge Virginia — a program working to empower and train smart, strong women on how to run for office and develop important leadership skills.

The program has already produced a group of women who are running for General Assembly seats this year, including Jennifer Boysko (86th District delegate) and Susan Hippen (21st District delegate). Other candidates in attendance running for office this year were Emily Francis (10th District senator), Traci Dippert (17th District senator), Shelly Simonds (94th District delegate), and Kandy Hilliard (28th District delegate).

As someone who’s worked on statewide campaigns in Virginia in 2008, 2012 and 2013, I feel confident that voters in Virginia understand the importance of electing more Democratic women who they know will fight for their day-to-day issues such as universal access to pre-K education, equal pay for equal work, paid sick leave, and Medicaid expansion.

Fortunately, women we have elected to the General Assembly have been important to successful efforts to enact legislation in the 2015 session that protects and empowers women and families.

These efforts include passage of a bill to combat human trafficking that will result in stronger penalties for perpetrators and increased protections for child victims. Human trafficking is currently the second-fastest growing crime in the country, calculated to be the largest underground crime by 2050 if we don’t work harder now.

Additionally, mothers will now have the freedom to breastfeed in public. Previously, breast feeding was permitted only on property owned, leased or controlled by the Commonwealth, as well as inside private homes. (more…)

Progressive Voice is a weekly opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARLnow.com.

(Updated at 5:00 p.m.) “Sorry young feller, but Arlington is an expensive, highly desirable part of the region. You’re just going to have to start farther away, then move up after you’ve saved money, the old fashioned way” – Online commenter “JMosesBrowning”

A month ago, I penned an op-ed for the Washington Post wherein I observed how Arlington is becoming an increasingly unaffordable place for young professionals to live. That is a change from when my mother moved here in the mid-1970s.

That’s bad news for “millennials” like me, but it’s potentially worse news for our County.

“JMosesBrowning” is one of many online critics who might be surprised by how much I agree with their sentiments. Like prior generations, Millenials are happy to start small, build equity, work hard, and climb the ladder. But Arlington seems to be missing a couple of rungs in the ladder.

When you compare median income for young professionals in DC against median rental and mortgage costs, we can barely afford to rent here, let alone buy. And that’s before you take into account student debt and wage stagnation.

The suggestion of critics that we “move farther away” creates more problems than it solves. Even setting aside the issue of regional sprawl, Arlington should want millennials to stay in the county. Young professionals typically pay more in local taxes than they use in services — especially those without school-age children.

Moreover, when millennials move “farther away,” they move much farther, to urban centers with which Arlington must compete.

Rather than migrating to exurbs like Leesburg or Bowie, millennials are moving to urban centers like Baltimore, Cleveland, and St. Louis. Between 2000 and 2010, all three of these cities saw greater percentage growth in the population of people ages 25 to 34 than did the Washington metro area.

Indeed, millennials are eschewing a car-centric suburban/exurban lifestyle. As of 2011, fewer people age 16-24 had driver’s licenses than at any point in the past 50 years. We instead seek out “dense, diverse, interesting places that are walkable, bikeable, and transit served” according to Joe Cortright, an urban economist who heads the City Observatory think-tank.

This shift isn’t a passing fad. Rather, it represents a growing recognition of unaffordable and unsustainable aspects of car-based living. In fundamental ways, this preference is a return to earlier migrations to cities. Over the course of American history, suburbanization was actually an aberration. In many ways, we’re being “old fashioned.”

The importance of this shift to Arlington’s competitiveness cannot be overstated. One need only look to Marriott’s announced relocation from Bethesda of its corporate headquarters. Marriott’s CEO cited the need to attract talent — “as with many other things our younger folks are more inclined to be Metro-accessible and more urban. That doesn’t necessarily mean we will move to downtown Washington, but we will move someplace.”

With its density, educational attainment, schools, diversity and walkability, Arlington is well positioned to attract millennials and companies like Marriott that depend on a diverse workforce. Keeping those companies and workers will, however, require addressing housing affordability.

As federal dollars dwindle, the D.C. economy has actually shrunk. Arlington has felt the pinch, with almost 29 percent of office space in Rosslyn and 23 percent in Crystal City vacant. To counteract federal cuts, we must diversify. (more…)