Blame Democrats for Arlington's Transportation Mess

Hey, Yupette,

As long as you're at it, what about Arlington's transportation mess? Who's to blame? Start with the last three Democrats appointed to the WMATA Board -- Chris Zimmerman, Mary Hynes, and Christian Dorsey. More than a decade of "Don't Worry. Be Happy" while Metrorail went from terrible to horrible. Continuous massive construction in Metrorail corridors, but Metrorail was never designed to operate in a high density urban environment. It's a two-track system. Consequently, Metrorail is a bottomless money pit.

So what would Erik Gutshall do about it? Same as he's done on the Planning Commission -- more density, more unaffordable housing via AHIF gifts to developers and non-profits. Erik will also make a fortune building apartments that are actually affordable...in single family homes and townhomes, will defer to County Staff who won't live in Arlington no matter how much they are paid, keep raising taxes to pay for his and the other PlutoCrats' Smart Growth addiction, and gridlock the County with a more car, more bicycle, more pedestrian diet. Look at what a mess Erik and the Planning Commission made of Rosslyn. No one was happy except the developers who received corporate welfare from Smart Growth addicts like Erik. Same is occurring in Ballston.

Bottom line -- we can't afford any more Democrats on the County Board.

Ken, 22205

Blame Democrats for Arlington's Housing Mess

Hey, Yupette,

I wanted to know why Arlington's housing is such a mess and who's to blame. So went back 20 years and the answer is --- Arlington Democrats and the Arlington Democratic Party. As soon as Jay Fisette, Chris Zimmerman, Paul Ferguson, and Barbara Favola come onto the County Board they embraced New Urbanism / Smart Growth, which meant gentrifying the poor, working poor, and middle class out and replacing then with an upscale elite. That meant no more affordable housing that was / is actually affordable. So they didn't allow any to be constructed in Potomac Yards. Or anywhere else where there were large parcels of land to be developed.

So, having gentrified the middle class out of Arlington the gentrifiers, like Jay Fisette and Erik Gutshall, complain about the "missing middle" and their "solution" is to re-purpose older residential neighborhoods for "Accessory Dwellings", a code word for re-purposing single-family homes and town homes into 2, 3, 4, or more apartments. Coming to your quiet neighborhood soon.

Of course it's all a big joke, sham, charade to Erik and Jay. Erik is going to make millions when his construction company, Clarendon Home Services, converts single-family homes and town homes into apartments. Jay will be retiring to his estate on Florida's Trump Coast, until recently referred to as the Treasure Coast. And Jay's kept Smart Growth out of his Ashton Heights neighborhood for two decades.

Jay, Erik, and the others are nothing like Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt who promoted the construction of middle-class housing in Arlington eight decades ago. Arlington Democrats like Jay and Erik are Bill and Hill wannabes.

No way will I vote for any Arlington Democrat on the ballot in November.

Thanks for your blog.

Tom, Westover

Smart Growth II - Gutshall Will Be C.Z. on Steroids

Hey, Yupette,

Think Chris Zimmerman was/is a fanatic for Smart Growth? Wait until you see what Erik Gutshall has planned when he's on the County Board.

Right now Erik's the Chair of the Planning Commission and rubber stamps any and all plans for mixed-use redevelopment. Never mind the County's car-free diet is a more-car diet, never mind affordable housing is for people who earn $50,000 to $80,000 a year and costs $200,000 to $300,000 per affordable unit. Erik and the other Smart Growth Cult members on the P.C. only care about enriching their fat cat Democrat corporate cronies, as anyone can see from what they've approved.

That's now. In the near future Erik and the Smart Growth Cult's VIPs are going to bring Smart Growth to your quiet residential neighborhood in the form of all types of so-called Accessory Dwelling Units, or ADs. These will range from the home next to yours being converted into a boarding house, a Bed and Breakfast, a dormitory for college students, a dormitory for interns, a daycare facility for between 5 and 30 children, a granny cottage in the back yard, another granny flat in the basement, live-work offices use for business with up to 20 employees, and other uses yet to be determined.

Who will get the gold mine from all that? Besides Young Plutocrats emulating their elders (e.g., Bill and Hill)? None other than Erik Gutshall and his residential construction firm, Clarendon Home Services. Erik's firm is already involved in luxury upgrades to small homes in older neighborhoods. Erik stands to make a fortune from Smart Growth II if he's on the County Board and the County Board approves infilling older neighborhoods with any and all types of ADs.

BTW, the other three Democrats running in the Caucus are also Smart Growth Cult VIPs. So yeah, I'm going to attend the Caucus, sign the stupid pledge, write-in Audrey Clement, and leave. You should too if you want to continue living in a suburban residential community, rather than an urbanized mess.

Ted 22205

Write-In Audrey Clement When You Vote at the Democratic Caucus

Hello, Yupette

Do you plan to vote at the Democratic Caucus next week?

If so, you should first consider that the Democratic Caucus will not be run like County Government runs a Primary election under State election laws. The Democratic Caucus will be run under the Arlington County Democratic Committee's rules. So candidates are free to do anything they can get away with to win. Meaning surrogate voting, persons who are no longer legally Arlington residents voting, and campaigns gaming instant runoff voting. So, it's going to be a charade "selection" to begin with.

Second, when you look at what all four of the Democratic candidates say they intend to do if elected to County Board it's clear what they intend to do is put Smart Growth on steroids. That is, massively in-fill the County with more upscale people, vehicles, events, and activities in both residential and commercial neighborhoods. They will, in effect, do to our suburban lifestyle what Donald Trump is doing to Obamacare.

What to do? If you don't want your neighborhood to be "Clarendoned" attend the charade caucus, sign the charade pledge, write-in "Audrey Clement for County Board" (don't let the ACDC ward heelers see you) and leave.

If you want to vote for a School Board candidate you could just write-in "Same Old Same Old".

We don't need any more Smart Growth destroying our quality of life. We need Intelligent Growth.

I'm for Audrey but I don't have anything to do with her campaign.

Fed Up Dem

Arlington Police - More Reactive, Less Effective

Hey Yupette,

I had a near miss with a bicyclist running a stop sign without slowing down and making a left turn a week ago. An Arlington police officer was stopped at the intersection. The bicyclist waved to the cop and sped on.

What I'm finding, checking news blogs and talking to Arlington residents in several neighborhoods, is that the Arlington Police are more reactive, and less effective, than ever. They respond to a huge number of complaints phoned into the County's communications center every year. Whether these complaints have merit or are meritless nothing is done to remediate whatever generates the complaints. A-Town is an excellent example. Goes on being a big drain on police resources. As for bicyclists, like A-Town they're another special interest group that's allowed to do it's free range thing. But if you drive a motor vehicle Arlington Police are becoming increasingly punitive. You better stop for that free range jaywalker, even if he or she is not in a crosswalk.

Arlington Police apparently can't effectively deal with armed robberies of convenience stores and domestic arguments. If you want to argue with your significant other about who gets to take out the garbage don't let your neighbors hear you. Police have begun considering domestic arguments hostage situations. Then there are the malicious complaints called in by neighbors, whether it's the butterfly garden on your front lawn or because you don't go along with what your Democrat-controlled civic association wants for your neighborhood. All taken seriously by the ACPD.

It's more than obvious that policing in Arlington is just a paycheck for 80% of Arlington police who don't live in the County. The other 20% enjoy zooming around reacting to whatever is called into the communications center. But that gets old after a few years. Best advice for now, until there's significant reform of the ACPD is - stay away from the police unless you have to contact them for something important.

And stay safe navigating around the Smart Growth mess the County's become.

Mark, 22205

Gutshall a Leading Contender for Reeves Farmhouse Ownership

Hey Yupette,

Discussion continues about which Young PlutoCrat is going to own the Reeves Farmhouse, which the County Board decided to sell last month rather than renovate and turn into an environment education center.

For years speculation has been that the Arlington County Board and Arlington Democratic Party wanted the Reeves Farmhouse to go to a deserving Democrat, perferably someone who works at home and has a thriving and expanding business.

Lately the sentiment around ACDC is for a self-employed Democrat with a family to more into Reeves Farmhouse rather than the farmhouse become a law office or real estate office.

So a tentative decision has been reached among the ACDC movers and shakers to give County Board candidate Erik Gutshall, who is a successful self-employed gentrification contractor, the right of first refusal on buying the farmhouse. Of course nothing will be announced until after November's elections.

Meanwhile the County (Parks and Rec) is spending several hundred thousand dollars fixing up the farmhouse in advance of a sale.

Decision to sell the farmhouse to a deserving Dem was made years ago, and now it's just a matter of which Dem finally gets it.

Later,

Mike Bluemont

APS Reported Close to Naming New Elementary School on TJ Site?

Hey Yupette,

I tuned to last night's Planning Commission meeting via AVN and saw the plans for the County's latest Space Age Elementary School. To be crammed onto the TJ Middle School campus. At least 292 total parking spaces planned on-site, for now, and likely many more in the future. Energy efficiency? What's that? As for the school's design, it's back to the future - 1962. Since the architects obviously lifted the school's design from an early-60's futuristic cartoon series the only possiblity for a name is "The George and Jane Jetson Elementary School".

Thanks for your blog.

P.K.