Write-in Theo Stamos for Commonwealth's Attorney

Hi, Yupette,

I'm a 53 year old Yuppie with kids out of college several years. I live in Lyon Park.

I'm posting this to ask Arlington Voters to write-in Theo Stamos for Commonwealth's Attorney on November 5th.

We have enough problems with the homeless, drugs and alcohol, crime by non-residents, and free-range Millennials now. If Team Parisa takes control of the Commonwealth's Attorney's office it's going to be "Party's Over Here, in Arlington".

If I wanted to live in "vibrant" and "trendy" DC, I would. I don't need or want the bad behavior that's epidemic in DC moving here.

Thanks for a blog that's an alternative to a continuous stream of infomercials for the status quo, e.g., ArlNow, Sun Gazette, Inside Nova.

L.J.

Discussion: Is County Government Environmentally Responsive and Responsible?

Hi, AY contributors wanted a discussion about the level of County Government's environmental responsibility. So AY is asking for your thoughts.

Replacing Brick Sidewalk Paving is No Big Deal

Hi,

Thanks for this blog.

I live in the B-R Corridor and the brick sidewalks here continue to deteriorate. What's the reason not to replace them with concrete? No good reason. I called one of the local construction companies that bids on County public infrastructure projects and asked. Was told that the bricks are removed and recycled, sand and gravel under the bricks is leveled, concrete is poured. Not a big deal unless other improvements are made, like new curbs. So why not just replace the bricks and make the sidewalks in the Corridor much safer? Funds being used for dedicated bicycle lanes? Or what?

Ted, 22201

Multi-Modal Safety PSAs - Conspicuous by Their Absence

Hi,

I sometimes visit this blog and agree that there's a big problem in Arlington with multi-modal safety.

I took an early vacation in upstate NY after Memorial Day and there are lots of safe pedestrian-bicycle-auto PSAs produced by NY State Government, on network TV and on YouTube. Here's one of them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6ct-uSo10c

Why not in Virginia, especially inside the DC Beltway?

Thanks again for your blog.

John, Dominion Hills

Historic Cemetery to Become a Dog Park

Hi, Yupette,

I work at 2100 Clarendon Blvd., and am not happy where the County is going. I'm a long-time County employee and bought a nice 3-bedroom 2 bath ranch home in Westover 30 years ago. Now, as I approach retirement, I am finding the assessment increases on my home are going to put me under some significant financial stress once I retire.

Never mind about me. You should be aware that several years ago at least two County Board members promised Ballston-area dog owners that historic Ball Cemetery off Washington Blvd. would be "repurposed" into a Dog Park. On the County Board's Regular Hearing Agenda tomorrow (June 18th),

Until about 30 years ago the Ball Family Cemetery was preserved, but after 'Smart Growth" got started the cemetery was allowed to go to ruin, along with the neighborhood's commercial infrastructure.

So now it's Mixed-Use Redevelopment time for the neighborhood and the cemetery.

If the County Board, and it's Progressive-Socialist-Urbanist cronies, can desecrate a cemetery that has no connection whatsoever to the Confederacy to provide a playground for dogs, the County Board is capable of anything.

Mary 22205

No Pay Increases for County Board Members

Hello,

Based upon AY's perusal of County Board Members' desk appointment calendars over several years, and conversations with employees and former employees who worked in the County Board Offices, AY believes that County Board Members should not vote themselves pay increases on June 18th.

Bottom Line: Service on the Arlington County Board (of Supervisors) is a part-time job which many County Board Members over the past three decades have chosen to make a full-time job.

County Board Members already enjoy a 2-month paid Summer Vacation - July 15th to September 15th. In recent years the County Board placed Consent Agenda items related to appropriations off-limits for citizen comments, ostensibly to 'streamline' meetings.

Four Members of the current County Board work for, consult for, or lobby for non-profits. AY has no information about conflicts-of-interest that may occur or are occurring vis a vis them and County Government. The fifth CB Member is apparently growing his "Missing Middle" residential housing corporation through numerous contacts with prospective clients while on the County Board.

Consequently, AY requests this pay request mess be deferred while being evaluated by the County Auditor...however long that takes. Nobody on the current County Board will apparently suffer any financial harm while the audit is occurring.

AY

Theo Stamos for Commonwealth's Attorney

Hello,

Given the direction Arlington County's been headed since before the last Commonwealth's Attorney election, in 2011, and the very different perspectives of the candidates running this year for Commonwealth's Attorney, the choice for Commonweralth's Attorney isn't difficult - re-elect Theo Stamos.

As one Independent told us: The difference between Theo Stamos and Parisa Dehghani-Tafti is the difference between "Party's Over Here in Arlington" and "Woodstock's Over Here in Arlington".

Theo Stamos's current term of office coincided with the rise and fall of pub crawls in the B-R Corridor, near-universal scofflaw behavior by bicyclists, electric scooter riders, and pedestrians, and almost complete lack of community policing in Arlington's residential neighborhoods away from major arterials. Which we blame on the Progressive-Democrat County Board and ACPD, which would rather chase "bad guys" and earn lots of overtime being a nanny police force for Millennials than engage in any community policing. We also blame the avaricious and reckless local media, especially ArlNow, for putting profits over responsible journalism.

We don't like to think about what a circus the County would become if Parisa Dehghani-Tafti became Arlington Commonwealth's Attorney. Therefore AY endorses Theo Stamos in Tuesday's Democratic Primary.