Waverly Hills

BREAKING: ACFD Battles Apartment Fire on Lee Highway, Rescues Dog

By ARLnow.com
1/7

(Updated at 1 p.m.) Arlington County firefighters battled a fire in an apartment building on Lee Highway today (Tuesday) and rescued a dog in the process.

The fire was reported just after noon on the third floor — the top floor — of the apartments at 4356 Lee Highway, just east of the Lee Heights Shops in the Waverly Hills neighborhood.

The fire was on a balcony in the rear of the building, according to scanner reports, and had also spread to the ceiling of the units below.

As of 12:25 p.m., the fire department reported that the fire was out. No injuries were reported, though a dog was rescued from one of the apartments.

County road crews were called in after the fire was out to spread salt on portions of the roadway that had been drenched with water from the firefighting effort.

https://twitter.com/ACFDPIO/status/818878637575389185

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Crime Report: Armed Robbery in Bluemont

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County police carA man with a gun robbed a couple of people on N. George Mason Drive in the Bluemont neighborhood yesterday evening.

The crime happened close to the entrance to the Bluemont Junction Trail. Attempts by police to find the suspect were unsuccessful.

From an Arlington County Police Department crime report:

ARMED ROBBERY, 161004036, 700 block of  N. George Mason Drive. At approximately 6:00 p.m. on October 4, officers responded to the report of an armed robbery. When on scene it was determined that a male subject approached the victims, brandished a firearm, and demanded money. The suspect then fled the scene with an undisclosed amount of cash. A K-9 track was attempted with negative results due to the amount of pedestrian traffic in the area. The suspect is described as a black male in his twenties, approximately 6’0″ tall and weighed 225 lbs. He was wearing a blue t-shirt, dark pants, and had dreadlocks.

Also in this week’s crime report, a man with a gun was able to detain a suspect who allegedly broke into his Waverly Hills home and stole booze from his refrigerator.

BURGLARY, 160929016, 4300 block of N. Old Dominion Drive. At approximately 10:03 a.m. on September 29, officers responded to the report of a fight in progress involving a firearm. Upon arrival, it was determined that a male victim witnessed a male subject exit his apartment through a window. The victim retrieved his firearm, chased the subject and was able to hold down the subject until officers arrived on scene. The firearm was not discharged and there were no injuries. It was later learned that the suspect took alcohol from the victim’s fridge. Ben Houssen, 39, of no fixed address, was arrested and charged with burglary, grand larceny, and identity theft. He is being held without bond.

The rest of the past week’s crime report highlights, including some that we’ve already reported, after the jump.

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Downed High-Voltage Line Sparks Car Fire on Lorcom Lane

By ARLnow.com

Smoke from a car fire on Lorcom Lane (photo courtesy Sophie Pyle)Update at 2:20 p.m. — The scene is being cleared and nearby roads are being reopened.

Firefighters are on the scene of downed wires and a car fire near the intersection of Lorcom Lane and Lee Highway in Waverly Hills.

A high voltage line came down on top of six cars around noon, according to Arlington County Fire Department spokeswoman Lt. Sarah Marchegiani. At least one of the cars caught fire and smoke from the blaze could be seen from as far away as Ballston.

Video (below) show the smoke and fire coming from what appears to be a small parking lot next to an apartment building.

It’s unclear if anyone was inside the cars when the power lines came down, but no injuries have been reported. No word yet on what caused the wires to come down.

Firefighters were unable to douse the flames with water due to the live wires, Marchegiani said. A Department of Defense foam tanker was dispatched to the scene in order to extinguish the fire, according to scanner traffic.

A Dominion Power crew has arrived on the scene and will be working to shut off power to the lines.

Northbound Lorcom Lane is currently closed between Old Dominion Drive and Lee Highway due to the fire department activity. Police are planning on closing two lanes of Old Dominion at Lorcom, according to scanner traffic.

Photo (top) courtesy Sophie Pyle

BREAKING: Bank Robbery on Lee Highway

By ARLnow.com
1/4

(Updated at 6:15 p.m.) Arlington County Police are on the scene of a reported bank robbery in the Waverly Hills neighborhood.

The robbery was reported around 5:00 p.m. at the Capital One Bank, at 4700 Lee Highway.

Initial reports suggest a man dressed in all black and armed with scissors robbed the bank and ran off with cash. He was last seen heading westbound on Lee Highway.

The man had a t-shirt wrapped around his face during the robbery, according to scanner reports. He was reportedly wearing a black shirt, black pants and white socks with holes in them, but no shoes.

A witness, Bryan Hudzina, was walking his dog in the area at the time of the robbery. He told ARLnow.com that he saw the man run by him, behind the bank.

“As I’m walking… we turn around at the corner of the back of the bank [and see] a gentleman wearing all black, covered face, carrying something,” Hudzina said. “[He] ran to the side of me and headed down toward the back side of the buildings.”

Police officers and K-9 units are searching the surrounding neighborhoods for the suspect. Detectives are talking to employees and witnesses, and processing evidence at the bank.

Progressive Voice: Waverly Hills, A Success Story

By Ginger Brown

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.

Ginger BrownAs Arlington faces challenges that are not easy to resolve, it is important to take note of a recent success story about Arlingtonians working together to build consensus around a dynamic vision for the future of a neighborhood.

During a two-year process driven by resident input and feedback, the Waverly Hills Civic Association (WHCA) developed the Waverly Hills Neighborhood Conservation Plan (NCP) — a document that fosters a more closely knit community, identifies citizen-driven capital improvement projects, and lays out a dynamic vision for the future of our neighborhood.

Last Saturday, the WHCA’s hard work resulted in a unanimous vote by the Arlington County Board to approve the NCP. The WHCA members’ consensus building efforts are a testament to the power of grassroots, citizen-led planning and to the trust placed by the County in the NCP process as a way to improve neighborhoods and help them thrive.

The creation of the WHCA’s NCP was an exercise in community building. Different generations with varying needs came together to forge an updated vision for Waverly Hills. All of us who participated received an education about the neighborhood’s rich history, its connections to Lee Highway, and its perceived strengths and weaknesses. Long-time residents listened to the concerns of newcomers, and vice versa. Neighborhood residents built shared understanding and trust through well-attended brunches, bake sales, and happy hours.

Through its process, the WHCA identified several capital improvement projects that would be beneficial to the neighborhood and around which consensus had developed, focused principally on Woodstock Park and pedestrian safety.

Woodstock Park — like most parks in Arlington — is a valuable resource. WHCA reached a consensus that the park should be more than just a children’s play area; it should be place for all ages to enjoy. A section of the park was identified as a top-priority capital improvement project, which will result in the addition of recreational uses primarily for adults such as a formal garden area for reading, chess tables, and a place for yoga classes.

The WHCA NCP also included spending recommendations for sidewalks and other pedestrian safety projects. Waverly Hills is within walking distance of Lee Highway and Ballston, both of which are major transportation and shopping hubs. We are also proximate to three schools — Glebe Elementary, Washington-Lee High School and the H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program — that are experiencing the capacity challenges that come with increased enrollment. Because sidewalks are expensive, the WHCA prioritized projects that connect residents to transit, shopping, schools, and parks.

The WHCA NCP also addresses critical issues confronting seniors in our community. Seventy percent of Waverly Hills’ residents expect to retire in the neighborhood. This has prompted a community goal of creating a comprehensive aging-in-place strategy, including supporting the “Villages” concept, expanding senior housing options so that seniors can stay in the neighborhood, and ensuring that the local hospital has the capacity to keep up with the coming wave of healthcare demands.

This vision for Waverly Hills is ambitious, but it is also workable and affordable. Hopefully, the successful implementation of the NCP will help create bonds within the neighborhood and restore faith in the ability of Arlingtonians to work together in a fiscally responsible manner to enhance the quality of life for our residents and to improve a neighborhood that is rich in history and tradition.

Ginger Brown is the immediate past president of the Waverly Hills Civic Association. She is a co-founder of the Lee Highway Alliance and currently serves on the Arlington County Planning Commission.

Board Approves Resident Plan for Future of Waverly Hills

By Ethan Rothstein

Woodstock Park (photo via Google Maps)The residents of the Waverly Hills neighborhood in North Arlington want more mixed-use development and to be able to age in place, according to the community’s just-approved Neighborhood Conservation plan.

Waverly Hill is the area north of I-66, south of Lee Highway between N. Glebe Road and Utah Street. According to a survey of almost 400 residents in the 3,800-person neighborhood, 70 percent of Waverly Hills residents want to retire in the neighborhood.

“Seventy percent is a very large number, and I don’t want to say we’re transient, but there are a lot of people that come and go from Arlington,” Arlington County Board Chair Jay Fisette said. “It shows how many people like it enough to suggest that they want to live their whole life here and take advantage of the services into retirement.”

The County Board approved the new neighborhood conservation plan, which includes a request to implement a master plan for Woodstock Park (pictured), which would include a vision for future improvements. The County Board approved a $644,000 renovation for the park in June, which will include a new playground and basketball court, under construction now.

County Board members said they expect the update to the NC plan for the community to serve as a model for other civic associations, both with a focus on aging in place and the update’s thoroughness; according to the county’s press release, the civic association spent more than 1,000 hours on the process.

“This plan gives us an inclusive outline for preserving our livable community while addressing the concerns of our residents,” Michael Polovina, president of the Waverly Hills Civic Association, said in the release. “We are very proud to have accomplished this revisioning after a process that took several years to complete. The next 15 years look very bright for Waverly Hills.”

Other priorities for the update include facilitating mixed-use development along Lee Highway and Glebe Road, with nods to affordable, senior accessible housing. The neighborhood also requests a sidewalk on 20th Road N. adjacent to N. Utah Street and further pedestrian improvements for walking to nearby schools like Washington-Lee High School and Glebe Elementary.

Six Neighborhood Improvement Projects Could Secure Funding

By Ethan Rothstein

arlington-va-logoThe Arlington County Board could approve another round of neighborhood improvement projects at its meeting this Saturday.

Six projects are slated to receive $3.5 million in funding in the fourth and final round of appropriations from 2012’s $11 million Neighborhood Conservation Bond.

The projects are:

  • Street improvements to the 5700 block of 2nd Street S. and the 100 block of S. Kensington Street in Glencarlyn. Cost: $724,042. Expected completion date: June 2016.
  • A trail connector from the 4800 block of 7th Street S. to the W&OD trail in Barcroft. Cost: $135,317. Expected completion date: October 2015.
  • Pedestrian safety improvements to 19th Road N. between Woodstock Street and Upton Street in Waverly Hills. Cost: $753,845. Expected completion date: May 2016.
  • Street improvements to S. Lang Street between Arlington Ridge Road and 28th Street in Arlington Ridge. Cost: $713,003. Expected completion date: October 2015.
  • Streetlights and trail improvements on N. Ohio Street between 22nd Street and Washington Blvd in Highland Park Overlee Knolls. Cost: $380,369. Expected completion date: July 2015.
  • Park improvements to Woodlawn Park in Waycroft-Woodlawn. Cost: 795,000. Expected completion date: None given.

The projects were chosen based on a priority scale and approved for recommendation by the NCAC in December.

The projects given the highest priority were those in neighborhoods that have recently updated or completed new conservation plans and in neighborhoods that have waited for projects the longest. The county staff report has the full list of criteria.

Civic Associations Partner for New Lee Highway Plan

By Ethan Rothstein

Power lines on Lee Highway near N. Quincy StreetAll 12 of the civic associations along Lee Highway in Arlington are forming a partnership to try to shape the future development along the corridor.

With the stated goal of “a more economically vibrant, walkable, attractive Lee Highway corridor — one that benefits neighborhoods and the business community,” representatives from the civic associations have already met with the Arlington County Planning Commission for guidance, according to representatives of the Waverly Hills Civic Association.

Along with Waverly Hills, East Falls Church, John M. Langston, Glebewood, Yorktown, Leeway Overlee, Old Dominion, Donaldson Run, Cherrydale, Maywood, and Lyon Village have also joined what the group is calling the “Lee Highway Grassroots Re-visioning.”

Waverly Hills Civic Association President Ginger Brown says the group hasn’t discussed specifics on what the future Lee Highway should look like, calling these first months since the group formed in February “the educational phase,” which includes meetings with the county’s planning staff.

Among the issues the group will be examining and presenting to staff and, they hope, the County Board, will be land use planning and zoning, housing, transportation and parking, demographic trends, tax increment financing and transferable development rights.

“It is anticipated that the new vision will be sent — in early 2015 — to the Arlington County Manager’s office with a request that the County Board appoint and fund a Task Force,” Brown wrote in an email. “Its purpose would be to formally develop a Lee Highway Sector Plan that guides future rezoning and development applications.”

FBI Conducting Training Exercise in Waverly Hills

By ARLnow.com

The FBI is conducting a training exercise on the 4400 block of 16th Street N., in Waverly Hills, until about 4:00 p.m., according to an Arlington Alert.

The exercise inadvertently drew a large police response to the area when a 911 caller reported seeing a man dressed in camouflage with an assault rifle strapped to his back near Glebe Elementary School. Police searched the area and eventually discovered the training exercise, according to scanner traffic.

This is the third such FBI training exercise in Waverly Hills in the past year and a half.

File photo

New Apartment Building Coming to Waverly Hills

By ARLnow.com

 

Archstone has broken ground on a new 227-unit apartment building next to the strip mall at the corner of N. Glebe Road and 20th Road N. in Waverly Hills.

Parkland Gardens, as the project is currently known, is billed as a high-end residential community in a “pedestrian-friendly, North Arlington neighborhood.” A press release (after the jump) claims the building will be “in close proximity to the Ballston Metrorail station,” though the station is a mile and a half away.

The building will be four stories high, according to county building permit records. The complex will have a variety of desirable features and amenities, Archstone says.

“The one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment homes and lofts will showcase a host of high-end finishes, including large, open floor plans, nine-foot ceilings, built in book cases, crown molding, European-style kitchen cabinets with glass doors, stainless steel appliances and master bathrooms with double vanities,” according to Archstone. “In addition, residents… will have access to a variety of unique amenities, such as a resort-style pool with a sun deck and private nooks, two courtyards, an outdoor amphitheater with tiered seating and a pet spa.”

The project is being constructed in a large, empty, fenced-in lot just south of the Thirsty Bernie Sports Bar & Grill. No word yet on how much the project will cost or when it’s expected to be complete.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Car Runs Into Apartment Building — A car ran into an apartment building on Lee Highway over the weekend. The impact punched a big hole in the side of the brick building, located at 4343 Lee Highway in Waverly Hills. [WUSA9]

Chorus Performances Relocated — The Potomac Harmony Chorus has announced that its 35th anniversary show, Melodies, Memories and Magic, will be relocated to the Washington-Lee High School Auditorium from the earthquake-damaged Thomas Jefferson Community Theater. The all-woman chorus is also seeking a new venue for its December holiday concert and sing-along. [Potomac Harmony Chorus]

Merrick Holds Cash Advantage — As of Aug. 31, Republican state Senate candidate had a nearly 9-to-1 campaign cash advantage over Democrat Barbara Favola, who had just emerged victorious from a bruising primary. [Sun Gazette]

Julia’s Empanadas Now Served at Boccato — Clarendon’s Boccato Gelato (2719 Wilson Blvd) started serving D.C.’s famous Julia’s Empanadas over the weekend. The expanding eatery is planning to start serving baguettes and pastries from Arlington bread delivery service LeoNora Bakery on Oct. 1. [Clarendon Culture, Twitter]

Photo courtesy David Johnson

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