Rosslyn

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

More on Proposed Rosslyn Residential Tower — As first reported by ARLnow.com, a residential tower is being proposed to replace the RCA office building in Rosslyn. A new preliminary site plan filing provides some additional details: it will be 24-story residential building with 407 units of both apartments and condos, plus some ground floor retail and three floors of underground parking. [Washington Business Journal]

Caucus Voting Starts Today — Voting in the Democratic caucus for County Board and School Board starts today. The first day of caucus voting will take place between 7-9 p.m. at Key Elementary School, followed by additional caucuses on May 11 and 13. ARLnow recently published “why you should vote for me” essays from each candidate. [Arlington Democrats]

Arlington Couple’s Soccer Devotion Recognized — A local couple “is among three finalists in the international family category for Bayern [Munich]’s Fan Awards, recognizing dedication to the fabled club.” Their devotion includes regular attendance Saturdays at Summers Restaurant in Courthouse for games, and holding up matching husband and wife jerseys following their 2015 nuptials. [Washington Post]

Scalia Son Is an Arlington Priest — Paul Scalia, the sixth child of the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, is a Catholic priest who serves as Episcopal Vicar for Clergy — an assistant to the Bishop — in the Diocese of Arlington headquarters (200 N. Glebe Road). Scalia just released his first book and NBC 4 used the occasion to ask him about growing up in the Scalia household. [NBC Washington]

Nearby: Amazon Opening Store in Georgetown — Amazon.com will be opening one of its first brick-and-mortar retail stores in Georgetown, at 3040 M Street NW. It has existing physical bookstores in Seattle, Portland and San Diego. [Washington Post]

ACPD Seeking Sexual Assault Suspect Who Posed As Maintenance Worker

By ARLnow.com
1/2

A man posing as a maintenance worker sexually assaulted a woman in her Rosslyn apartment Sunday morning.

The attack happened around 9:45 a.m., on the 1500 block of Key Blvd, according to an Arlington County Police Department press release.

Police are asking for the public’s help in identifying the suspect, a man believed to be in his early 20s, who was caught on video surveillance footage.

More from the ACPD press release:

The Arlington County Police Department’s Special Victim’s Unit is asking for the public’s assistance in identifying and locating a suspect involved in the sexual assault of a female victim which occurred at a residence in the 1500 block of Key Boulevard.

At approximately 9:45 a.m., an unknown male suspect entered the residential building and began knocking on various apartment doors claiming to be a maintenance worker. Once the female victim opened her door, a physical struggle ensued between the victim and the suspect. During the attack, the suspect sexually assaulted the victim. The suspect then fled the scene on foot.

The suspect is described as a black male in his early 20s, approximately 6’0″ tall with a slim build. He was wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt with dark pants and carrying a backpack.

Arlington County Police remain in the area investigating this incident. If anyone has information on the identity of this individual or details surrounding this incident, please contact Detective P. Pena of the Arlington County Police Department’s Special Victim’s Unit at 703.228.4183 or at [email protected]. To report information anonymously, contact the Arlington County Crime Solvers at 866.411.TIPS (8477).

Update at 3:20 p.m. — Police have released surveillance footage of the suspect allegedly fleeing the scene of the crime.

Rosslyn Outdoor Movies to Kick Off in June

By ARLnow.com

Rosslyn’s annual outdoor summer cinema series is set to kick off one month from now.

The free Friday night movies in Gateway Park (1300 Lee Highway) will begin June 2 and run through Aug. 25.

There will be food trucks on site to serve dinner and popcorn, while a “Pub in the Park” will offer beer, wine, mocktails and movie-themed cocktails. On five nights — June 2, June 16, July 7, July 28 and Aug. 18 — a DJ will perform before the film.

The films on the docket for 2017 are:

  • June 2 — Grease
  • June 9 — Frozen
  • June 16 — Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
  • June 23 — National Lampoon’s European Vacation
  • June 30 — Some Like It Hot
  • July 7 — GoldenEye
  • July 14 — The Father of the Bride
  • July 21 — Moana
  • July 28 — The Wizard of Oz
  • August 4 — When Harry Met Sally
  • August 11 — Lego Batman
  • August 18 — The Avengers
  • August 25 — Mary Poppins

The films generally start shortly after sundown. The event is sponsored by the Rosslyn Business Improvement District.

Another local BID, Crystal City, decided to discontinue its usual summer movie nights this year, citing a crowded marketplace of similar events around the area.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

McDonald’s to Open Next Week in Rosslyn — The new McDonald’s restaurant in Rosslyn is expected to open on Monday, May 8. It will feature “mobile and kiosk ordering, with six touch-screen kiosks,” as well as “table service, with servers bringing customers their food after orders are placed using the screens.” [Washington Business Journal]

Petition Against Proposed APS Policy — Among those signing a petition against a proposed new school enrollment and transfer policy is former U.S. CTO Aneesh Chopra. He writes: “We need to be expanding, not restricting access to Arlington’s award-winning, integrated elementary school science curriculum! Counter to the data-driven ‘Arlington Way,’ this proposal is inappropriately rushed with debate or impact analysis. Sad!” [Change.org]

ACPD Officer to Be Added to Memorial — Arlington County Police Cpl. Harvey Snook is being added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in D.C. Snook died last year of cancer caused by his service during the recovery effort at the Pentagon following the 9/11 attack. Snook will also be added to Arlington’s Peace Officers Memorial on May 10, the first name added since 2005. [WTOP, Arlington County]

Arlington Woman, 109, Still Stays Up Late — Viola Graham, a 109-year-old resident of Arlington, says she still feels young and still doesn’t go to bed until midnight. Graham also “takes no medicine, besides the occasional Tylenol.” [WUSA 9]

Britt McHenry Goes Off the Air — Arlington’s own Britt McHenry is among the mass layoffs at ESPN. Though the sportscaster is going off the air, she said last week via Twitter that her fans would see her again on TV “soon.” McHenry formerly worked for WJLA (ABC 7) in Rosslyn. [Florida Today, Twitter]

Gubernatorial Candidates in Arlington — Democratic candidates for governor in Virginia, Ralph Northam and Tom Perriello, will be debating at a progressive forum in Ballston tonight. [Facebook]

Flickr pool photo by GM and MB

Car Flips on Lee Highway Near Rosslyn

By ARLnow.com
1/5

A collision between two cars that left one on its side closed two lanes of Lee Highway near the Key Bridge Marriott Hotel in Rosslyn.

The crash happened around 4 p.m., near the intersection with N. Oak Street. A driver heading west on Lee Highway in a grey Audi collided with an Infiniti looking to turn right from N. Oak Street. The two collided, with the Infiniti left on its side.

Police closed the two outside lanes of Lee Highway, but left traffic through in the right-hand lane with an officer directing traffic.

Paramedics were dispatched for three reported injuries according to scanner traffic, none of them said to be life-threatening. Medics did not appear to require a stretcher, as it was removed with no one in it.

Just before 4:30 p.m., crews were preparing a winch to upright the stricken Infiniti. The Audi’s front was smashed in and it was still in the roadway.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

New Elementary School Approved — After a years-long process that included neighborhood opposition and lots of community discussion, the Arlington County Board has approved a use permit and ground lease for a new elementary school on the Thomas Jefferson middle school and community center site. [Arlington County]

Rosslyn Farmers Market Approved — Also at its Saturday meeting, the County Board gave the go-ahead to a new FreshFarm Markets-operated farmers market that will be held at the new Central Place public plaza in Rosslyn. The market will be open on Wednesday evenings from April to November. [Arlington County]

Bebe Closing at Pentagon City Mall — The Bebe store at the Pentagon City mall will close by the end of May. It’s part of a larger restructuring for the struggling young women’s clothing retailer. [Patch]

County Board to Honor Trees — “Arlington has about 755,400 trees of at least 122 species that provide $6.89 million in environmental benefits to the County annually in pollution removal, carbon storage, energy savings and avoided stormwater runoff. The Arlington County Board will honor 10 of these trees as Notable Trees at the April 25 County Board Meeting.” [Arlington County]

Blue Virginia’s School Board Endorsement — Local Democratic blog Blue Virginia has endorsed Monique O’Grady in the race for the Democratic endorsement for Arlington School Board. The endorsement cites incumbent James Lander’s recent controversial remarks about a murder victim as a reason for not endorsing him. [Blue Virginia]

Flickr pool photo by Ameschen

Board to Consider Rosslyn Farmers Market

By Katie Pyzyk

Rosslyn could be getting its own farmers market. The Arlington County Board is scheduled to take up the issue at its meeting on Saturday.

FRESHFARM has applied to operate a farmers market in the Central Place plaza (1800 N. Lynn Street), which would run on Wednesday evenings from 4-8 p.m. from April to November.

FRESHFARM anticipates that up to 10 vendors would sell at the market for the first year.

County staff have not identified any issues with the request and recommend that the Board approves the permit for the farmers market, with a review in one year.

Signs Up at New Rosslyn McDonald’s

By Chris Teale
1/5

(Updated 4:10 p.m.) A new McDonald’s in Rosslyn appears close to opening in the new Central Place building.

External signage is up for the fast food restaurant, and on Tuesday morning construction crews were installing signs inside the windows too. Preparations continue inside the ground-floor space, while the sidewalks around the property appear largely complete.

Rosslyn’s previous McDonald’s at 1823 N. Moore Street closed in 2014 to make way for the Central Place development. At that time, a sign in the McDonald’s window stated it would be closed “indefinitely,” which left open the possibility that the eatery would return to Rosslyn in the future.

A company spokeswoman said the eatery is set to open this spring, although an exact date is to be determined.

Dirt Bike and ATV Riders Again Roll Through Arlington

By Katie Pyzyk

(Updated at 12:40 p.m.) A group of people riding dirt bikes and ATVs drew resident and police attention two separate times this weekend.

This is the third consecutive year the riders have caused a stir. Past incidents sometimes have included more than 100 riders.

The first incident took place around midnight on Saturday. A witness reported in a tweet that more than a dozen riders drove the wrong way on the Key Bridge on their way into Arlington, and police followed.

Arlington County police say they were notified of the approaching group by Metropolitan Police around midnight Saturday. The riders traveled through Rosslyn onto westbound Route 50, worked their way south to Army Navy Drive, then turned back north on I-395 and re-entered the District at 12:12 a.m., according to ACPD.

The second incident happened around 7 p.m. on Sunday when an Arlington police officer patrolling the 1200 block of N. Courthouse Road spotted a group of about 75 dirt bikes and ATVs driving on Arlington Blvd. They traveled to Route 1 and south into Alexandria.

Police say that during both occurrences they monitored the group of riders and maintained a rolling roadblock to keep pedestrians and motorists safe.

State law prohibits the operation of ATVs on public highways. An ACPD spokesperson says the drivers in question operate the vehicles without considering the care and safety of others; they have been seen locally traveling at high rates of speed, veering into oncoming traffic and driving on sidewalks. Police are investigating the incidents to identify those involved.

Several law enforcement authorities in the region report that they’re aggressively working together on a solution. Last April, they held a joint press conference regarding ATV operation on area roadways. Metropolitan Police offer a reward of $250 for information leading to the identification of suspects in these incidents.

Anyone who sees ATVs operating in Arlington County — or who knows the identity of someone riding the vehicles on county roads — is encouraged to call the police non-emergency number at 703-558-2222. Information can also be provided anonymously to Arlington County Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS.

File screen shot via PoPville

Morning Notes

By Katie Pyzyk

Washington Business Journal Downsizes HQ — The Washington Business Journal has moved out of its headquarters at 1555 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn, where it had been for 20 years. The publication moved just down the street to 1100 Wilson Blvd. The downsize puts WBJ in a location that is about 3,000 square feet smaller than its previous space. [WTOP]

Civic Leaders Honored — The Arlington County Civic Federation honored two residents for their years of community leadership and activism. The organization recognized Jim Pebley and Stefanie Pryor at its anniversary dinner on Friday. [InsideNova]

Northern Virginia Businessman Dies at 100 — Well-known sportsman and businessman Randolph “Randy” Rouse died on Friday. A long-time Arlington resident, Rouse is a Washington-Lee High School graduate and began his foray into real estate in 1947. He was said to entertain visitors at his 10-acre Arlington estate — the Febrey-Lothrop house on Wilson Blvd and N. McKinley Street — with tunes from his saxophone. Rouse was 100. [Fauquier Times]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Update on New Hotel Near Rosslyn — A new Homewood Suites hotel being built near Rosslyn recently celebrated its “topping out.” The 11-story hotel, which replaced the former Colony House Furniture store, is expected to be completed by early 2018. [Commercial Property Executive]

Gov. Recommends Changes to Towing Bill — Gov. Terry McAuliffe has sent a trespass towing bill back to the General Assembly with significant recommended changes. The bill in its current form would raise towing fees in Northern Virginia and prohibit Arlington from enacting its new “second signature” requirement on tows during business hours. [InsideNova]

Hospitality Workers Lauded — The Arlington Chamber of Commerce held its 13th annual Hospitality Awards on Tuesday. From a press release: “One winner, Fayssal Samaka of the The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City once checked in a family at the hotel, when he overheard that the father was recovering from cancer. Samaka arranged for the family to stay in the Presidential Suite and even booked them a tour. A few months later, the family informed the general manager that the father had passed away, and because the last trip they took together as a family was at The Ritz-Carlton, they would come back every year on vacation.” [Arlington Chamber of Commerce]

Project Explores Arlington Communities — A just-submitted doctoral dissertation examines “the processes of community development, suburbanization, and segregation that Arlingtonians, black and white, used to create lasting communities that met their own needs and reflected their own preferences.” The project’s exhibits include the local history of government housing during World War II, Arlington’s historically black communities, and the history of the American Nazi Party in the county. [Built By the People Themselves]

Flickr pool photo by Lisa Novak

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