How Much Would You Pay for Parking in Clarendon?

The Arlington Sun Gazette's Scott McCaffrey recently took aim at a proposal to charge for parking after 6pm and on weekends in the Arlington County garage in Clarendon at 3033 Wilson Blvd (entrance on Highland Street):

THUMBS DOWN: To one of the dumber proposals being considered by county officials to help solve their budget shortfall.

Board members this weekend will be asked to advertise for public hearing a proposal to start charging residents $3 to park on nights and weekends at the Department of Human Services garage on Wilson Boulevard. Parking is now free, and keeping it that way will encourage patronage of Clarendon venues as well as keep vehicles off neighborhood streets.

This proposal is a nickel-and-dime approach to governance that is beneath Arlington’s leaders to propose, let alone enact. County Board members can make quick work of this wrongheaded proposal by simply refusing to advertise it for a hearing.

There are certainly drawbacks to the proposal. But considering these fees would be on the low end of current parking fees in Clarendon, Scott's rhetoric is a little over the top. Would any husband really turn to his wife and say, "Honey, I was going to take you to Restaurant 3 for our anniversary tonight, but it's $3 for parking now, so we're having Hungry Man TV dinners instead. Hope you like salisbury steak."

The current subsidized free parking also incentivizes driving over Metro, biking or walking. Why make the effort and pay at least $1.35 to Metro to Clarendon when parking's plentiful and free?

What do you think? Would a $3 fee be a reasonable considering the county's $35 million budget gap? Or is it a "nickel-and-dime approach," as Scott suggests, and the deficit could be better made up through general tax increases?

Out with the Old, In with the New at EatBar

Tallula (Washington Boulevard & Pershing Drive, closest Metro: Clarendon) is featuring a special inaugural menu tonight through Wednesday. But it looks like they're having much more fun on Tallula's EatBar side, with special "Out with the Old, In with the New" menus on Monday and Tuesday:

MONDAY NIGHT | OUT WITH THE OLD | TEXAS BBQ PARTY

Eatbar specials will include: Country-Fried Steak Strips w/ Black Pepper Gravy, Brisket or BBQ Plate with Corn Bread & Slaw, Texas-Style Chili, Texas Chili Burgers, and Texas beer specials from Shiner

TUESDAY NIGHT | IN WITH THE NEW | CHICAGO STREET FOOD

Eatbar specials will include: Three of Red Apron’s famous Chicago Style Dogs (Chili dog, straight Chicago dog, BBQ dog), Italian Beef Sliders, Italian Sausage “Pigs In A Blanket” - also, Chicago-scene cocktail specials will be offered all night long!

My only objection: italian sausage? This is a town known for its superfans, its polish sausage, and a certain team known as Da Bears.

Has Arlington Reached a Smoke-Free Tipping Point?

When Clarendon Grill decided to go smoke-free, they didn't mess around. Not only is there a ginormous "NO SMOKING" sign right on the front door, there are those white fliers plastered all over the windows:

Just this year, we've seen three types of places go smoke-free that cynics claimed never would never flip voluntarily:

• A sports bar (Thirsty Bernie's)
• A brew pub (Cap City)
• And a music venue (Clarendon Grill)

Now that in Clarendon alone, Clarendon Grill, Eleventh, Clarendon Ballroom, Liberty Tavern and others are all smoke-free, do you think we'll see more of a chain reaction in that area? Who would you like to see go smoke-free next? (My vote: Whitlow's.)

For more smoke-free establishments, check out Arlington County's Smoke Free Restaurants guide.

UPDATE: Thanks to commenter JohnAlex, I called Whitlow's, who informed me that they're now mostly smoke-free. There's a small smoking section in the back (if you've been there, it's near the beach mural). OK, so I have to change my vote, I guess ... I know it's a stretch, but I'll go with Jay's. How great would it be to have a smoke-free dive bar? Close second would be for Tallula's EatBar to go 100% smoke-free, it'd be nice to hang out in that back lounge without smelling like an ashtray afterwards.

Odd Coincidence or Brilliant Placement?

Ever notice that the Cheesecake Factory is directly across from the Gold's Gym in Clarendon? Are they hoping people will leave Cheesecake Factory, feel guilty for having just consumed enough calories to make The Michael Phelps Diet seem sensible, and cross the street to join Gold's?

What's the next hot neighborhood?

Washington Business Journal recently published an article titled "The hunt for the next hot spots" in which Richard Florida identifies trends in DC area development. He highlights Arlington as a place that 20 years ago no one would have predicted as a popular place for young professionals to want to live.

Ballston and Clarendon are highlighted as trendy urban neighborhoods that came as a surprise to demographers.

According to the article, 77% of Gen Y-ers (or Millennials) plan to live in an urban core. This is a dramatic departure from the suburban ideal that was embraced by our parents. Another interesting trend is the end of "White Flight" which had a major effect on housing trends of our parents generation. DC has seen an increase in the white population since 2000.

So what is the future hot spot? In Arlington, this article points to Shirlington and Columbia Pike as examples of areas that are benefiting from an increase in transit options and development.

What do you think?

Hanna Leaves Arlington

Walked through the back streets of Ashton Heights last night on my way to Clarendon looking for damage from Tropical Storm Hanna and couldn't find any. Just scattered twigs and leaves. I've seen worse from your standard summer thunderstorm.

But I did get some cool pictures of the last storm clouds exiting Arlington:

Gelato has come to Clarendon!

My day was just totally made by the discovery of a new Gelato and Coffee shop called "Boccato". Haven't heard of it? That's because it's only been around 3 months and its crowded on Wilson Blvd across from Whole Foods and between the Latino Mercado and the Halal Deli.

As a chocolate addict I have been searching for great places to get my chocolate fix near work.

The Chocolate Gelato at Boccato's is my new favorite vice. At $3 a scoop I will need to keep things in moderation, but the price is justified by the quality of the product as well as fabulous service.

If coffee's more your thing you'll want to check out the "caffeinato" side of Boccato. Rob, one of the owners, made me a taste of the Decaf coffee. He grinds the beans right there and brews it right in front of you for a truely fresh cup (at $2.50). I do not drink black coffee ... until now.

By now I'm sure you're going to try this place yourself so a couple of things to know:

*You need cash. They do not take plastic.

*Be careful on the way in, there's a large step down.

Enjoy!

Tallula/EatBar To Roll Out New Menus

From the Washington Business Journal via DCist comes word that Tallula/EatBar is getting a new executive chef:

The previous chef of both restaurants, Nathan Anda, will be staying with the local ownership group, Neighborhood Restaurant Group.

Anda plans to open a butcher shop and restaurant for the group. He is currently nailing down the concept and finding a spot for it.

[New executive chef Andrew] Markert plans to roll out new menus in both restaurants that stick with seasonal fare.

I'm a big fan of EatBar, but I'm happy they'll be getting a new menu. I've had just about everything on the current menu and let's face it, you can only eat so many risotto fritters. I'll be looking forward to EatBar's fresh start!

Now just to get them to make the whole place smoke-free ...

Spider Kelly's in Clarendon

I was driving home from a CRM event the other night when I noticed the new Spider Kelly's in Clarendon next to Ballroom. I was about to snap a cell phone pic when an SUV pulled up next to me. Damn gas-guzzlers.

Anyway, reviews are up at Clarendon Nights, Daily Candy and Apples and Bananas. Reviews at Yelp seem generally positive. However, WashingtonPost.com seems to think it's a bit faux neighborhoody and overpriced.

Have you been yet?

Getting in the Swing of Things at Mister Days

I was walking by Mister Days recently and noticed they've added porch swing-type tables out on their patio:
My immediate reaction was, "Great! There's nothing I want more when I'm drinking heavily than motion sickness."

But maybe I'm being too harsh. Have you tried the table-swing-things?

Tonight: Rewarding a Bar That's Doing the Right Thing

OK, so have you ever heard of a flash mob?

Well, this guy out in San Francisco decided to use the concept to reward businesses that go green.

And this guy in Arlington decided to completely steal that idea to reward a bar that went smoke-free, putting the idea on Facebook and hoping a few people might show up.

Apparently I'm not the only one sick of Virginia's smoky bars, because a pretty amazing 22 people say they're coming tonight. Although you never can trust those Evite/Facebook RSVP totals, can you?

Anyway, if you're looking for something to do on an otherwise-boring Tuesday night (y'know, besides voting), come to Eleventh in Clarendon tonight from 6-9pm and look for the guy in the green CRM t-shirt.

Monday: Wii Bowling Night at EatBar

A friend forwarded me this email announcing a Nintendo Wii Bowling Night at Tallula's EatBar:

C'MON, LET'S GO BOWLING!
JOIN US FOR LEAGUE NIGHT AT EATBAR EVERY MONDAY BEGINNING AT 6 O'CLOCK

The nutty Wii phenomenon has finally hit EatBar! Join us each and every Monday night in the ultra-hip back lounge and bowl on our deluxe new Wii console. No special shoes required, no bowling balls allowed.

Teams of four will play against each other and the winning team with the highest cumulative score will be rewarded with a complimentary round of beers (as well as full bragging rights until the following week). Bring your friends or pair up with others - there are no league fees and no charge to play.

The games will begin promptly at 6 PM, though we encourage you to sign up as early as 5 PM since team play will be granted on a first-come, first-serve basis. League Specials: $3 Miller Genuine Draft Bottles + $4 Lebowski White Russians.

While The Green Miles loves his Wii, I doubt I'll be going to the Wii Bowling Night. It's in EatBar's smoking lounge. Why can't EatBar just go totally smoke-free?

Cool Spot Gets Cooler: Eleventh Going Smoke-Free

UPDATE 5/20/08: This great new Arlington website listing smoke-free establisments just went live.

In light of the Virginia General Assembly's ongoing refusal to do anything to protect Virginia consumers from the health risks of secondhand smoke, last year I emailed eight Arlington bars to see if they'd be willing to go smoke-free voluntarily. Got this semi-cryptic response from Eleventh in Clarendon:

The basement is smoke free and chances are the main floor will go that route soon.

Then today, stumbled upon this on their website:

Eleventh is going NON-SMOKING, effective June 1!! Look for our ashtrays to appear on Ebay!

Eleventh will become one of the few nightspots in Arlington to go completely smoke-free. Sure, there are plenty of restaurants that are completely smoke-free, but anywhere that you'd go for just a drink? Tallula's EatBar, Four Courts, Summers, and Crystal City Sports Pub all have separate smoke-free bars, but that's about it.

Ooh, almost forgot the new Busboys & Poets in Shirlington! OK, so Busboys & Poets and soon-to-be Eleventh. Any other entirely-smoke-free nightspots in Arlington I'm missing?

Uh Oh: DC's Murky Coffee Closes, Arlington Location in Trouble

With the possible exception of Java Shack, there is no better coffee shop in Arlington than Murky Coffee. Great coffee, cool staff, fun place to hang out or miss a connection.

But according to the Washington Post, Murky owes Virginia about $20,000 in sales tax and its DC location is closed and will not reopen:

Murky Coffee, according to the tax office, owes more than $427,000 in sales and franchise taxes. A lien filed against the business shows that Cho paid sales tax to the government in only three of the 24 months from November 2004 to October 2006. Officials with the tax office said Cho missed payments in 2007 and 2008 as well.

There's a lot to like about Murky's public business practices, using fair-trade beans and giving away used coffee grounds for garden fertilizer. But as for Murky's private business practices ... well, the article speaks for itself. As WashingtonPost.com Small Business blogger Sharon McLoone writes, "Murky Coffee is a classic example of a well-intentioned small business that failed due to financial mismanagement - not because it lacked customers or a good product."

What would go in if Murky left? There are already eight Starbucks locations in the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor alone, but none between Virginia Square and eastern Clarendon. One would think they'd target that spot in western Clarendon for number nine. There has also been talk of a major Dunkin Donuts expansion in Northern Virginia for years, but the R-B corridor remains without a single one.

New Year's Eve: Party with a Purpose

Here's a cool way to celebrate New Year's Eve and help some great nonprofits:

Join the "Party with a Purpose" on New Year's Eve to help the Environment

Mexicali Blues will host the second annual New Year's Eve "Party with a Purpose" to raise funds for two long-established environmental organizations, EarthEcho International and Carbonfund.org. Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment and Eco-coach.com are co-sponsoring the party, which begins at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, December 31 at the Clarendon restaurant, 2933 Wilson Blvd., Arlington.

This event will offer a great opportunity to bring in the New Year and benefit the environment.

Carbonfund.org is the country's leading carbon reduction and offset organization. Carbon offsets enable individuals and businesses to reduce carbon dioxide emissions that they are responsible for in their everyday lives by supporting renewable energy, energy efficiency and reforestation projects where they are most cost effective.

EarthEcho International, founded by Alexandria and Phillipe Cousteau, grandchildren of legendary explorer Jacques Cousteau, uses media, experiences, and storytelling to empower people to use information that can restore and protect the ocean and freshwater systems that sustain life on Earth.

Tickets for the event are $100. For information about the event, to purchase tickets or to make a donation, please contact Sona Virdi.

Parking Meter Roulette

Different parking meters in different areas have different rules. But in looking for parking in Clarendon recently, I've noticed how wildly different parking rules can be, not just from one block to another, but from one space to the next.

On Clarendon Day I was trying to find a spot that I could stay in for the two-hour shift I was working at the CRM booth. I ended up pulling into three different spots -- all with different rules. The most egregious spread came on the meters to the right -- one a 1-hour meter in effect from Monday-Saturday, the other a 12-hour meter in effect from Monday-Friday. Driving around in traffic, of all that was impossible to know until you pulled into the spot.

The next week I hit the Clarendon post office to get my first-ever passport. The meter on the left is 8am-6pm while the meter on the right is 8am-5pm.

Why is The Green Miles so sensitive to these subjects? Because he got nailed with a parking ticket in Rosslyn a couple of years back at a spot where the parking meters had been changed but the parking street signs hadn't. The signs still said "metered parking Mon-Fri" but on the meters the "Fri" had been covered with a "Sat" sticker. Weak.

So how can you know what you're getting into before pulling in? While the Arlington County Parking Meter Guide has plenty of information, it doesn't make things much simpler. It's six printed pages long. You could try to memorize the parking meter color codes, but there are five of those.

I know the parking planners are just trying to keep cars turning over fast in high traffic areas while letting workers and residents park longer in less-busy spots. But it can certainly make parking a pain.

Clarendon Comings and Goings

A walk around Clarendon on a recent evening revealed good news and bad news for Clarendon. Which would you like first?

I'll save time and decide for you. First, the bad news. Clarendon's last remaining ice cream shop has closed. The Green Girlfriend and I tried to go to Ben & Jerry's for an ice cream cone only to find the storefront dark and the sign gone. With Lazy Sundae having moved to Falls Church, there are now only a handful of ice cream shops left in the entire county, like Scoop Beauregard's in Westover.

Now for the good news -- Restaurant 3 has opened at the corner of Clarendon Boulevard and Garfield Street. It's the third restaurant on the site in just the last year or so, longtime home of Aegean Taverna and more recently the short-lived Mama Quan's Tiki Hut. You can get more details on the restaurant and its owners at the Arlington Economic Development Office's website.

The glowing orange sign is certainly eye-catching, and I liked the southern/soul food menu. However, The Green Girlfriend thought it looked a little pretentious, something that's getting more and more common in Clarendon (and Arlington in general) as places like Liberty Taven and Ri Ra crowd out the Lazy Sundaes and Aegean Tavernas.

Have you been to Restaurant 3 yet? Please post your reviews in the comments!

Arlington Wants to Know: How Would You Change Neighborhood Day?

Would I go to Arlington's Neighborhood Day parade if I didn't get to be in it?

Honestly? No.

I've marched in the Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment contingent at the parade three different years now, each time as National Wildlife Federation's mascot, Ranger Rick. That's me to the right with Arlington County Board Chair Paul Ferguson. (Did you hear that Ranger Rick recently got kicked off Facebook? Lame.)

But if I didn't have the incentive of getting to be a giant raccoon for the day, there's not much else that would draw me to the event. While there are other Neighborhood Day community events elsewhere in Arlington, along the route from Clarendon to Courthouse, the parade is pretty much it.

There are no food stands like at Taste of Arlington. There's no stage with bands like at Clarendon Day. There are no booths with information about community groups like at the County Fair.

So Arlington County wants to know how you would improve Neighborhood Day. Should it continue as-is? Should the event have additional attractions? Should it be combined with another event?

Take the survey here!

All the Arlington News You Care About - June 1 - June 11

A Clarendon For Everybody

Washington City Paper

This is as much a beast on the Washington Post's obsessive coverage of Clarendon as anything else, but all the same the story's a decent snapshot of Clarendon.

2 Democrats Offer Plans for Change

Washington Post

I can't say an article about a local Treasurer's race would normally interest me, but this one just sounds like good old fashioned hard nosed local politics, and I found that interesting.

Red Top Turns to Hybrid Cabs

Sun Gazette

And the environmental movement marches on!

Got Plans?

Washington Post

The Post Going out Gurus (always a worthwhile read), recommend Eat Bar for a night out in Arlington.

A Little Rain Doesn't Stop Community Bike Ride

Sun Gazette

Quick review of the recent Community Bike Ride (as highlighted in the What's Up Arlington! e-newsletter)

Getting To Know... Michael Wardian

Article about an Arlingtonian who recently ran the Frederick marathon while pushing a stroller! I'm impressed. This guy has also qualified for the Olympic Trails - interesting article.

Sound of Success: WETA Thrives on Classical Music

What do you think? Do you like the classical format better than the all news one?

Classy -- and Classic -- Pizza in South Arlington

Good review of Cafe Pizzaiolo.

Sowing a Different Tomorrow
Washington Post
Article about Arlington's trees, including it's free tree give away.

Washingtonian's Annual 100 Best Bargain Restaurants

I can't find an online link for this (anyone out there, got one?), but someone sent this info along to me:

Arlington restaurants claimed 13 listings in Washingtonian’s annual 100 Best Bargain Restaurants.

A “cheap eat” is defined by the Washingtonian as a meal for two under $55, including tax and tip…and “at some places, staying within the Cheap Eats budget means abandoning the notation that three courses make a meal.” (Personally, I'm not sure I would claim under $55 as necessarily cheap!)

Arlington winners include: 1. Bangkok 54 – also winner of best tofu dish 2. Bebo Trattoria – also winner of best doughnuts for their bomboloni 3. Costa Verde 4. Delhi Club 5. EatBar 6. El Pike (Pike Pizza) 7. El Pollo Rico 8. Guajillo 9. Minh’s – also winner of best Vietnamese pork dish 10. Moby Dick House of Kabob 11. Pho 75 12. Ravi Kabob House 13. Thai Square

What do you think of Clarendon?

Did anybody read the article in yesterday's Washington Post about whether Clarendon has "lost its edge". There's also a discussion piece with the author, another article about urban villages with a focus on Clarendon, and an audio file about Clarendon.

There definitely was a Clarendon theme going on in the Post yesterday.

So, I'm curious. What do you think? Has Clarendon "lost its edge". Is that a good thing? A bad thing? What do you think?