Dear Friends JuneteenthI hope everyone has enjoyed this Juneteenth weekend, for the first time recognized as a Federal holiday. We had a thought provoking and inspiring Juneteenth rally outside the Bozeman Building on Thursday. It was a glorious day with perfect weather. Many of us saw each other in person for the first time since March of 2020. We all recognized the progress made in racial equity, but also the work that still needs to be done. It’s great that Juneteenth is now a federal holiday, but that does not change the fact that many states are … [Read more...]

Dear Friends, A number of you have asked me whom I recommend voting for in the June 8 primary. I am honored and delighted when people ask. This primary season features a lot of candidates. With Democratic primaries, I find that most candidates are very close on the issues, so it is experience and ability to work with people to get things done that are usually deciding factors for me in a primary. For GovernorI have not publicly supported anyone in this race. However, while I like Jennifer McClellan a lot, I think Terry McAuliffe has the best chance of winning in the general election and … [Read more...]

Dear Friends, Our May meetings had few, but significant, items. Police Practices Group Probably the most important issue we discussed was the advertisement of a new Police Practices Review Board and changes to our policing code. When we “advertise” an issue, it is meant to give time for residents to consider and discuss the issue and give us their opinion before we vote to adopt it a future meeting. We can adopt something narrower than what was advertised, but not broader. Although our police department is excellent, no community or police department is perfect or immune from the … [Read more...]

Dear Friends,   I wanted to make sure that all my Arlington readers know about the School Board Caucus election which will be held online all of next week. This is an important election. As my readers know, in this very Democratic county, this endorsement will essentially determine who will be our next School Board member to replace Monique O’Grady who has decided not to run for another term. It is crucial to the health of our community to have an excellent school system. A strong School Board is essential for Arlington. We are lucky that two good candidates are running. And I am … [Read more...]

Dear Friends, This time last year we had just adopted a drastically slimmed down emergency budget; were struggling to get the ability to test for Covid; and were setting up our Covid protocols to make sure people could, and would, distance and wear masks. I doubt any of us imagined that it would be a whole a year before we would be where we almost are to now, when anyone who wants a vaccination can register and get one. We continue to pre-register people for vaccinations to ensure that people who live in Arlington get priority for appointments and to keep our centers operating efficiently … [Read more...]

Dear Friends, March is a busy month for the Board and during our meetings we continued our budget work sessions and vaccination efforts. https://newsroom.arlingtonva.us/release/march-county-board-meeting-agenda-highlights-2/ Stream ResiliencyOur regular monthly meeting had a number of land-use items. However, the issue that got the most attention was awarding a contract for the construction of the Donaldson Run Tributary B stream restoration project. This project has been in the works for many years. While it is still called a “restoration” project, it is more accurately called a stream … [Read more...]

Dear Friends,  We held a Covid work session yesterday and I want to share some information. The new Virginia site went live yesterday. 1. The very good news from the session is that, although there is a new Virginia-wide pre-registration system, everyone who pre-registered with Arlington County is still in our system.  There are over 41,000 people who have pre-registered in Arlington, including myself. Virginia is incorporating our pre-registrations into their new system, and all who pre-registered with Arlington will be contacted by Arlington County when it’s time for their … [Read more...]

Dear Friends, After receiving some questions, I realize I was not clear in my previous newsletter/post when I talked about the “site” being closed. I’m resending that email – with editing – below. I was referring to our website, not a physical site. Nothing should change if you have already pre-registered via the County system, or if you have received an appointment for a first and/or second shot. However, if you have not pre-registered for an appointment yet, you will be able to starting Tuesday, the 16th, when, hopefully, the State website will be ready for everyone to use. I am … [Read more...]