Next "Affordable Housing" Mega-Deal Will Gentrify Out Shirlington Workers

Hi Yupette,

I live in the Park Shirlington Apartments, which are located on South 31st Street between Fairlington Villages and Shirlington. I'm an assistant manager of a Shirlington restaurant and I walk to work every day. I don't own a car, don't need one, shop at Harris-Teeter in Shirlington Village and take public transit. I pay $1345 for a 2-bedroom apartment and I have a roommate to share rent.

You should be aware that the County's Planning and Housing Divisions are in active negotiations with the landlord to tear down Park Shirlington Apartments, owned by Home Properties, and replace them with luxury condos. I understand this is being pushed by some people in Fairlington who don't want minorities living next to Fairlington.

Many of us who live in Park Shirlington walk to work in Shirlington or take public transit (the bus stops in front of Park Shirlington) to the Pentagon and then to D.C.

This seems to be another attempt by a County Government that hates middle class and minority workers to gentrify us out and replace us with yuppies and upscale older people. I have to come to believe what I hear is true - Arlington is run by Racists and Elitists.

Jorge, Park Shirlington Apartments, S. 31st Street.

School Board - There's a Trailer Classroom in Your Child's Future

Hello Yupette,

I attended the School Board's annual charade at the Civic Federation meeting tonight. As usual, the School Board members were long on promises and short on performance. Often heard were promises of some new program to evaluate an existing program.

One thing seems sure, there will be 5,000 more students in the Arlington School System in 2016. What does the School Board propose to do about that? Looks certain that class size will grow and there will be many more trailer classrooms. The School Board would rather spend money on sports and a variety of esoteric classes than on the 3 new schools that will be required to educate Arlington's K-12 public school students in 2016.

Wakefield Parent

Zimmerman's "Community Leaders" Threaten Pike Middle Class With Arrest

Hello, Yupette,

I am a resident of the Barcroft Apartments, and for years I've been trying to become a part of the so-called "Arlington Way." But I only earn $32,000 a year. And Chis Zimmerman's "Community Leaders" won't let me on any committee, commission, anything related to the Pike.

Recently I've been threatened with arrest if I continue speaking out against the total gentrification of the Pike that Mr. Zimmerman proposes. I am not a Latino or Latina. They have been repeatedly threatened anyone who speaks out about the "Zimmerfication" of the Pike with being arrested for speaking out against the blatant discrimination by Mr. Zimmerman's North Arlington Democratic Party "facilitators" that he's appointed to committee after committee to gentrify the Middle Class out of South Arlington.

Any suggestions as to how I deal with these repeated threats of arrest by Zimmerman's ward heelers?

J,M., Barcroft Apts.