Shirlington

Lobster roll restaurant opening in Shirlington this month, giving away free lobster

By Matt Blitz
1/2

When Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls opens in Shirlington later this month, one lucky customer will win a year’s worth of lobster rolls.

That is, if one assumes that the lobster roll craving hits no more than once a week.

The Annapolis-based restaurant chain is hosting a grand opening celebration on Thursday, August 18 at 11 a.m. at its newest location at 4017 Campbell Avenue in Shirlington. Those there will get a free cup of soup, side, or fountain soda with a purchase of a lobster roll.

But the real catch is that one person will win a weekly, free lobster roll for the next year. That’s an estimated value of $730, according to a press release.

(The steep price of lobster earlier this year has fallen considerably this summer, it should be noted.)

It was first announced that Mason’s was headed to the Village of Shirlington in late December 2021, moving into the 1,334-square-foot space that was formerly occupied by Nirvana Reflexology Spa. The initial aim was to open in the late summer or early fall, so it looks like a restaurant actually hit its initial projection.

This marks the fast-casual franchise’s third Virginia location — in addition to Reston and Virginia Beach — as Mason’s continues its expansion across the country.

The Shirlington location is owned by Taj and Faries McCree, “who both have strong ties to Boston, where lobster rolls are a classic cuisine” according to the press release. Taj is also a military veteran and spent two decades as a practicing attorney, per the release.

“Arlington is unique — it has a small town feel and patrons are loyal to local businesses,” wrote Taj. “We are excited to share Mason’s lobster rolls with the community, and we know lobster aficionados and novices in Arlington are going to love it.”

Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls is one of a number of new eateries coming to Shirlington in the coming months.

The two-level beer and coffee shop Astro Beer Hall is expected to open soon around the corner from Mason’s. Just across the street, the popular Great Falls-based Greek restaurant Our Mom Eugenia is aiming for a fall opening. Jeni’s Ice Cream is opening a location down the block, though it remains uncertain when scoops will start to be served there.

Police investigating attack in Shirlington by scooter-riding kids

By ARLnow.com
Intersection of S. Quincy Street and Campbell Avenue in Shirlington (via Google Maps)

A trio of scooter-riding teens or tweens attacked and seriously injured someone in Shirlington early Friday morning, according to police.

The incident happened shortly before 5 a.m. near the intersection of S. Quincy Street and Campbell Avenue. The motive for the alleged attack is unclear.

“At 4:52 a.m. on July 29, police were dispatched to the report of an assault that had just occurred,” said an Arlington County Police Department crime report. “The investigation determined the male victim was walking in the area when three unknown juvenile male suspects approached and assaulted him. The suspects then fled the scene on scooters.”

Police described the victim’s injuries as “serious but non-life threatening.” He was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

ARLnow asked police for more information about the attack and whether anything was taken from the victim.

“Nothing was reported stolen,” said ACPD spokeswoman Ashley Savage. “The investigation is ongoing and police continue to work to determine the events that preceded the assault.”

Savage said the victim described the suspects as “possibly middle to high school-aged.”

Photo via Google Maps

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Wilson Blvd in Ballston on a rainy day (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Some 7000 Series Trains Return — “Metro today completed final review of its plan to return eight 7000-series trains to passenger service. Customers can expect service to start [on Thursday]… The popular 7000-series trains will first appear on the Green and Yellow Lines.” [WMATA, DCist]

Shuttle Buses to Run During Major Metro Work — “Starting Saturday, Sept. 10, Metro will begin work to connect the future Potomac Yard Station with the mainline rail system and to rehabilitate the Yellow Line tunnel and bridge between Pentagon and L’Enfant Plaza stations. The projects will impact Blue and Yellow line service in two phases over eight months, and free shuttle bus service will be available for customers throughout the duration.” [WMATA]

Groundbreaking for Bus Facility — “Arlington’s ART transit system is now rolling toward a much-anticipated destination: a new centralized Operations and Maintenance Facility for its buses. County officials, joined by regional transportation administrators, advocates and community leaders, broke ground Wednesday, June 15, 2022, on the 3.5-acre site in the Green Valley neighborhood.” [Arlington County]

Shirlington Eatery Makes ‘Top Taco’ List — “Graham Bartlett [of Taco and Pina in Shirlington] calls it a deconstructed chile relleno, but his taco is more an abstract take on the Puebla dish, kind of like the final drawing in Picasso’s bull series, in which the beast has only a passing resemblance to the real thing… It’s a brilliantly conceived taco, which would mean nothing, of course, if it weren’t also delicious.” [Washington Post]

Foundation Awards Scholarships — “Arlington Community Foundation (ACF) awarded new college scholarships totaling nearly $600,000 to 92 students who will attend college next year. An additional 116 scholarships were given to renewal students. More than 60 scholarship funds support these student awards, each with their own eligibility criteria, with many of them designed to support students facing significant financial barriers to higher education.” [Arlington Community Foundation]

Contamination Pushes Up Trail Cost — “Unexpected levels of contaminated soil are pushing the cost of a trail-connection project ever higher. Arlington County Board members on June 18 are expected to approve an increase from $559,000 to $939,000 in the contract for the Potomac Yard-Four Mile Run Trail connection project… The funding was designed to provide a new 10-foot-wide concrete trail connector between the two existing trails.” [Sun Gazette]

It’s Thursday — Rain and storms in the morning and also later in the evening. High of 86 and low of 70. Sunrise at 5:44 am and sunset at 8:37 pm. [Weather.gov]

Greek restaurant Our Mom Eugenia to open in Shirlington, aiming for fall

By Matt Blitz
1/3

Our Mom Eugenia, a popular Great Falls-based Greek restaurant, is opening a new outpost in Shirlington.

The family-owned Greek eatery is aiming to open by the fall, a press release announced. It’s moving into the 3,604 square-foot space at 4044 Campbell Avenue, next to CHIKO which opened late last year.

Our Mom Eugenia appears to be replacing Aroma Indian Cuisine. In early 2020, that restaurant moved from next door into the larger location. Prior to that, 4044 Campbell Avenue was the location of Hula Girl Bar and Grill but that restaurant closed in 2019.

There’s no word yet on when or if Aroma will be closing to make way for Eugenia.

This will be Our Mom Eugenia’s third location, with the original opening in Great Falls in 2016. The second location in the Mosaic District started serving in August 2020.

The restaurant is owned and named after Eugenia Hobson. A long-time local chef, she was born and raised in western Greece. She cooked at a number of other area Greek restaurants, before opening her own business a few years ago with her two sons.

“Eugenia learned the secrets of Greek cuisine from her grandmother for whom she is named,” notes a press release.

The menu consists of traditional Greek fare, like avgolémono soup, dolmades (stuffed grape leaves), pastitsio (Greek lasagna), grilled octopus, lamb chops, spanakopita, and saganaki (fried cheese).

Our Mom Eugenia is the latest in a line of other notable restaurants and businesses looking to open later this year in Shirlington. Astro Beer Hall is moving into the former Capitol City Brewing space and is aiming for a fall 2022 opening as well. Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls is also potentially looking at an early fall starting date. Last month, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream also announced its move into Shirlington, though the company only provided a sprinkling of details beyond that.

5K to close roads from Clarendon to Ballston, closures planned for three other events

By ARLnow.com
Girls on the Run 5k road closures (via ACPD)

It’s going to be a scorcher this weekend, but that’s not likely to stop a series of outdoor events planned in Arlington.

Four events in particular will prompt road closures, Arlington County police said, including two in Green Valley, one in nearby Shirlington, and one that will close roads in Clarendon, Virginia Square and Ballston.

The Girls on the Run 5K is taking place Saturday in the Dulles area and Sunday morning in Ballston. The organization, which provides a “transformational physical activity based positive youth development program for girls in 3rd-8th grade,” has held the races in Arlington since at least 2014, usually on the same weekend as the Taste of Arlington festival, now the Ballston Quarterfest Crawl.

The last two spring 5Ks were nixed due to the pandemic.

Sunday’s race will kick off at 8:30 a.m. in Ballston and wind its way through some of Arlington’s Metro corridor neighborhood.

Among the planned closures is a long stretch of Fairfax Drive. More from ACPD:

The 2022 Girls on the Run 5k Race will take place in the Ballston neighborhood on Sunday, May 22, and will begin at 8:30 a.m. The following roadways will be closed in order to accommodate the event:

From approximately 3:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

  • N. Taylor Street will be closed in both directions from Wilson Boulevard to Fairfax Drive

From approximately 7:15 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

  • Fairfax Drive, from N. Utah Street to Kirkwood Road
  • 10th Street N., from Fairfax Drive to Washington Boulevard
  • N. Irving Street, from 10th Street N. to 7th Street N.
  • 9th Street N., from N. Irving Street to N. Garfield Street
  • 7th Street N., from N Irving Street to Washington Boulevard
  • N. Highland Street, from 7th Street N. to 10th Street N.
  • N. Garfield Street, from 10th Street N. to 7th Street N.
  • Washington Boulevard (eastbound lanes only), from 10th Street N. to Pershing Drive
  • Wilson Boulevard will be closed in both directions at 10th Street N. Westbound traffic will be diverted onto Fairfax Drive, while eastbound traffic will be turned south prior to Jackson Street, where drivers can access Pershing Drive and maneuver around the race course.

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) Bus routes will be detoured but remain operational during the event.

The police department also released the following information on road closures for the other three events.

2022 Drew Dragon Dash

The 2022 Drew Dragon Dash will take place in the Green Valley neighborhood on Saturday, May 21, and will begin at approximately 9:00 a.m. The following roadway will be closed in order to accommodate the event:

From approximately 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

S. Kenmore Street, between 22nd Street S. and the Shelton parking garage (3215 24th Street S.)

Jennie Dean Opening Celebration

The Jennie Dean Opening Celebration will take place in the Green Valley neighborhood on Saturday, May 21, and will begin at approximately 12:00 p.m. The following roadway will be closed in order to accommodate the event:

From approximately 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

  • 2700 block of S. Oakland Street (Shirlington Dog Park parking lot)

The Shirlington Dog Park will remain open and will be accessible through the 2600 block of S. Nelson Street.

Shirlington Spring Fling: A Village Block Party

The Shirlington Spring Fling: A Village Block Party will take place in the Village at Shirlington on Saturday, May 21, and will begin at approximately 11:00 a.m. The following roadways will be closed in order to accommodate the event:

From approximately 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

  • Campbell Avenue, from S. Quincy Street to the Hilton Garden Inn
  • S. Randolph Street, from Dudley’s to the alleyway behind CVS

“Street parking near the events may be restricted,” ACPD noted in the press release. “Motorists should be on the lookout for temporary “No Parking” signs. Illegally parked vehicles may be ticketed or towed. If your vehicle is towed from a public street, call the Emergency Communications Center at 703-558-2222.”

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Clouds over Rosslyn (Flickr pool photo by Jeff Vincent)

New Bikeshare Station Near Shirlington — “Hey Arlington! We’ve installed a new station at S Wakefield St & 28th Rd S, and it’s a perfect day to stop by and take a ride.” [Twitter]

Data Centers Coming to Nat’l Landing — “The plan to establish 5G connectivity in Crystal City, Pentagon City and Potomac Yard, reshaping the larger community into a technological hub, includes a new addition: data centers. JBG Smith Properties, the area’s dominant property owner, will set up two “urban edge” data centers to serve as hubs for carriers and data aggregation.” [Washington Business Journal]

Clement Blasts Board Raises — “An independent candidate for Arlington County Board says she’d be OK with a major pay raise for County Board members, if they were providing adequate oversight duties. But they’re not, Audrey Clement contends. ‘Where is the hard work in avoiding hard decisions by kowtowing to staff?’ Clement asked in a recent campaign missive to supporters.” [Sun Gazette]

Metro Announces New CEO — “WMATA’s Board of Directors is excited to announce the selection of its new General Manager/CEO who will transform the agency and redefine how Metro continues to be an integrated part of the region’s success. Randy Clarke, the current President and CEO of Capital Metro (CapMetro) in Austin, TX, will begin his new position at WMATA late summer and was selected following an exhaustive nationwide search, which included important stakeholder and public input.” [WMATA]

It’s Wednesday — Partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 70 and low of 51. Sunrise at 6:01 am and sunset at 8:12 pm. [Weather.gov]

Flickr pool photo by Jeff Vincent

‘Maker’s Market’ in Pentagon City and block party in Shirlington set for later this month

By Matt Blitz
1/2

A “Maker’s Market” in Pentagon City and a “spring fling” block party at Shirlington are both set to take place later this month.

Currently scheduled for Sunday, May 15 and Sunday, May 29, a “Marker’s Market” is set to happen in the plaza at Westpost (formerly, Pentagon Row) in Pentagon City. It will feature more than 30 artists and craft vendors, including local businesses Shop by Nancy, Fera’s Loft, Chase McClough, and Victoria Barnes Photography.

The event is free and tickets are not required. The market will take place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.

Then, on Saturday, May 21, the Village at Shirlington is putting on a “Spring Fling Village Block Party” from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The event will feature live music, a market, restaurant pop-ups, pet adoptions at Dogma, and a corn-hole tournament benefiting the Alzheimer’s Association. The tournament will start at noon and cash prizes will be awarded to the winners.

A number of restaurants are also participating in a “sip & stroll,” allowing customers to take their cocktails to go.

A featured pop-up at the block party will be Astro Doughnuts, the owners of which are bringing a beer hall to Shirlington. The beer hall is aiming for a summer opening.

The Shirlington block party is also free and tickets are not required.

The retail centers, both owned by Federal Realty Investment Trust, have seen a lot of turnover in recent months. Target and Nighthawk Pizza opened at Westpost over the past several weeks, while sushi restaurant Kusshi and “taco temple” Banditos are expected to start serving very soon.

At Shirlington, a Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams is replacing I-CE-NY. The Cookery closed earlier this year and Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls is moving towards an opening later this year.

The $15 million ​​Jennie Dean Park renovation is almost complete

By Matt Blitz
1/8

The $15.5 million renovation of ​​Jennie Dean Park in Green Valley is nearly complete, poised to open to the public in the middle of next month.

A lengthy design and construction process has resulted in a major reworking of the seven-decade-old park, located along Four Mile Run, across from Shirlington.

The renovations included adding more than two acres, updating and moving the playground, rebuilding the restrooms, renovating the picnic shelter, relocating and modernizing the baseball fields, and commissioning a site specific work of public art.

Last week, ARLnow got an exclusive tour of the park, which is in the midst of getting final landscaping and aesthetic touches.

The new, re-designed playground is now closer to S. Four Mile Run Drive to make it more “visible and accessible” to the community. It’s ADA accessible with age separated areas and state-of-the-art safety features, like poured-in-place rubber. The look is “heavily inspired by the industrial character of the area,” says landscape architect and county project manager Jeremy Smith, with lots of exposed wood and bolts.

The new all-gender restrooms, now a county-wide ordinance for all county facilities, have also been rebuilt and relocated closer to the front of the park due to safety reasons. The bathrooms are designed to be open year-round and will be open from sunrise to the park closes at 11 p.m.

The two baseball diamonds, one for youth leagues and the other for adult softball, are now moved further away from Four Mile Run. Previously, the diamonds were in the floodplain, so the move is to help mitigate flooding and over saturation. The diamonds are also now equipped with more efficient LED lights that will “focus the light on the fields and not the neighborhoods,” Smith tells ARLnow. First priority for field use are for scheduled and permitted activities.

If the fields are not scheduled, they are available for drop-in and free use.

The two fields have also been renamed after long-time community activists. Ernest Johnson was the leader of one of Arlington’s first African American Cub Scout Packs while Robert Winkler was a long-time employee of the county’s parks and recreations department. He was also a youth coach who helped provide financial support to local athletes.

To celebrate the park’s long history of baseball, the diamonds will display pennants of historic Green Valley teams that played on the fields in the mid-20th century. The pennants were being designed in collaboration with the Green Valley Civic Association but, as of last week, had not yet been installed.

Near the baseball diamonds is a history walk, with plaques embedded in the ground displaying some of the significant moments in the park’s and Green Valley’s history.

There’s also new public art. Wheelhouse, a green stainless steel multi-sectioned pavilion, “​e​xplores the industrial history of the Jennie Dean Park site through the lens of the great American pastime — baseball,” according the county website.

The design is supposed to look like a mill that once stood in this location in the early 18th century, as well as the heart of a homeplate’s strike zone that is often called a batter’s wheelhouse. It was designed by artist Mark Reigelman with community input and was budgeted at $200,000.

(more…)

Area 2 Farms, an indoor vertical organic farm, is putting roots down in Green Valley

By Matt Blitz
1/8

(Updated, 1:50 p.m) A new indoor vertical organic farm has put down roots in Green Valley, looking to deliver Arlington-grown farm to table produce.

Inside of a nondescript warehouse on S. Oxford Street near the Shirlington Dog Park, Area 2 Farms is growing — both produce and as a company. Racks of green-leafed, brightly-lit veggies are stacked on top of each other. Water pipes twist between the planters. The smell of soil permeates the space.

Some of what is being grown is familiar to the average supermarket-goer, like carrots, arugula, and tomatoes. Others not so much.

Co-founder Tyler Baras hands over a green leaf with a warning. It’s fish mint, he says, and tastes exactly what it sounds like it would. He’s right.

There are also buzz buttons, the inside of a flower that tastes like a cucumber with honey, and foliage that’s reminiscent of Luxembourg cheese.

The aim of this community-supported indoor urban farm in Arlington isn’t just to deliver freshly-picked produce to customers within a ten mile radius — Arlington, Alexandria, parts of Fairfax County, and D.C. — on a weekly basis. It’s also about fostering a relationship between the community and the farmer.

“People want to know where they are getting their food from,” Baras tells ARLnow. “People can come get a tour of the farm, meet me, and have a relationship.”

Baras and his co-founders aren’t the only ones that think a local indoor vertical organic farm is a good idea. Today, Arlington County and the state announced a pair of $40,000 grants that will provide Area 2 Farms with for a total of $80,000 in public funding.

“It is always exciting when successful entrepreneurs like those behind Area 2 Farms bring their ideas and technologies to help grow Virginia’s largest and oldest industry, agriculture,” said Va’s Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry at the press conference this morning revealing the grant. “This project adds to the region’s growing cluster of innovative, indoor urban agricultural operations and shows us how the Commonwealth’s oldest industry will remain a vital and growing part of the Virginia economy going forward.”

Baras has spent his career being an indoor vertical farmer and has written a number of books about it. His methods are a combination of hydroponics and traditional farming, including using soil, worms, and compost.

It was about a year ago that he moved to Clarendon and realized that Arlington could be a perfect fit to set up an indoor urban farm.

“[Arlingtonians] love their food. So, everyone’s been so supportive,” he says. “I’ve seen vertical farms do really well when they act like traditional farms — when they do farm stands and build relationships with customers.”

The plan is to start slow and let the farm take root in the neighborhood. Area 2 Farms only moved into the warehouse on S. Oxford Street in October, so it’s still growing.

Next week is Area 2 Farms’ first big harvest. It will begin sending out boxes of their produce to the few dozen customers that have signed up so far later that week. At this point, that’s mostly friends and family, but new customers are welcome to sign up for boxes through the company’s website.

(more…)

UPDATED: Motorcycle cop injured in Shirlington Circle crash

By ARLnow.com
1/3

(Updated at 11 p.m.) An Arlington County Police Department motorcycle officer has been hurt in a crash.

The officer was struck by the driver of a Chevrolet in Shirlington Circle, the I-395 interchange that has been the scene of a number of crashes, amid larger safety questions. The other vehicle and its driver remained on scene.

The officer was able to use his radio to request that medics and other officers respond to the scene. He suffered serious injuries not believed to be life-threatening, police said Tuesday night.

“At approximately 2:36 p.m., an Arlington County Police motorcycle officer was traveling in the area of Shirlington Circle when he was struck by another vehicle attempting to merge into his lane,” said ACPD spokeswoman Ashley Savage. “The officer was transported to an area hospital with serious but non-life threatening injuries and has been released. The driver of the striking vehicle remained on scene and was cited.”

Jeni’s is opening a scoop shop in Shirlington

By ARLnow.com
Jeni’s is coming soon to Shirlington Village (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

A new Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams location is coming to Shirlington, though only a sprinkling of details are available so far.

Signs are up but the company and its PR reps have given the cold shoulder to ARLnow’s requests for more information.

The new ice cream shop is located in the former storefront of I-CE-NY, a Thai rolled ice cream purveyor which opened in 2018 and closed late last year. The windows of the 4150 Campbell Avenue location, near Signature Theatre and the Shirlington branch library, are now covered in colorful Jeni’s posters that say “Hello, Shirlington” and “Scooping Soon.”

There’s no word of an opening date and the location is not yet listed on the Jeni’s website.

The Columbus, Ohio-based premium ice cream company has existing scoop shops in Alexandria, Tysons, Bethesda and the District.

Hat tip to @DionMitchellVT

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