Mold Remediation in Arlington, VA

A judge has ruled in favor of neighbors who filed a lawsuit last year.

ARLINGTON, Va. — A major update in a fight over housing and zoning in Arlington County happened Friday, when Judge David Schell ruled that missing middle home zoning rules should not stand.

Back in 2023, the Arlington County Board amended zoning to allow more multifamily homes in areas zoned for single-family homes. The idea was to create more housing, that appealed to a young, diverse set of residents in the county.

However, neighbors who already lived in those areas struck back. Several plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against the county to throw out the initiative. Their chief concerns were overpopulation, devaluing their properties and sewage and runoff issues.

A judge ruled in the neighbors’ favor in 4/7 counts. The gist of it- the Arlington County board failed to pass the missing middle zoning amendment in accordance w/ Va law. Failed to consider factors like sewage influx. Unlawfully delegated authority of EHO to staff…

— Matt Gregory (@MattGregoryNews) September 27, 2024

Schell ruled in favor of the plaintiffs on four of six counts, meaning missing middle zoning changes will not happen in Arlington. He cited several failures that led to his ruling, including the Arlington County Board failing to pass the missing middle zoning amendment in accordance with Virginia law; failing to consider factors like sewage influx; unlawfully delegating authority of expanded housing options (EHO) to staff; and failure to act within the scope of duties delegated from the General Assembly.

The ruling followed a five-day trial in July during which multiple witnesses testified and hundreds of pages of documents were introduced into evidence.

“Arlington County underestimated the power of neighbors coming together to fight for the rule of law,” Marcia Nordgren, the lead plaintiff in the trial, said.

Arlington Neighbors for Neighbors, which has raised funds from more than 1,000 Arlington donors to support the lawsuit, celebrated the ruling, saying it stops missing middle in its tracks.

“This means that my neighbors cant just arbitrarily tear down a beautiful single family home and without any input from me build a huge six-plex," Nordgren said.

“Neighbors for Neighborhoods thanks all of the Arlington residents who reached into their pockets to take on the County Board and to the law firm of Blankingship and Keith, which represents the Plaintiffs and brought home today’s victory,” said Dan Creedon of Neighbors for Neighbors.

But not everyone was happy with the ruling.

"I feel disappointed," Arlington native Spencer Jones said. "Young people in this area, we are really struggling with the housing shortage and increasing housing costs."

Jones said he hopes the Arlington County Board will revisit the attempt at Affordable Housing.

“There’s nothing in the judge's ruling that says (the Board) can't pass the whole thing again," he said. "The bulk of the zoning was upheld when the judge ruled it wasn't arbitrary or capricious."

WUSA9 asked the Arlington County Board for its response to the ruling.

A spokesperson sent back:

"Arlington County is disappointed in the judge's ruling today in the Expanded Housing Option (EHO) Development trial (Nordgren v. Arlington County Board). We are reviewing the decision and determining the appropriate next steps to properly adhere to the ruling.The County Board remains committed to ensuring Arlington has housing options that meet our community's diverse and growing needs.The Board is exploring potential options moving forward, including appeal."

This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

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The so-called "comet of the century" should be bright for a few more days, especially on Monday and Tuesday. Here's how to see it in VA.

Deb Belt, Patch Staff

VIRGINIA — The so-called “comet of the century” has returned to the evening skies over northern Virginia, but there’s not much time to see Comet C/2023A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS before it disappears for another 80,000 years.

The space rock slinging toward Earth from the outer reaches of the solar system made its closest approach to our planet on Saturday, and it should continue to be bright for a few days, especially on Monday and Tuesday.

You’ll be able to see it through the end of October, but it will move higher in the sky and farther away from the sun as the month progresses and become more difficult to see. The comet should be visible to the naked eye in the coming days, but binoculars or a telescope give a better view.

Locally, the skies should be mostly clear for viewing in the coming days. Clear or mostly clear and sunny skies are predicted in the DC region through the weekend.

On both nights, you may see a rare phenomenon known as anti “anti-tail” as Earth crosses through the comet’s orbital plane. It’s an optical illusion: dust particles left behind by the comet appear to point toward the sun, opposite the direction of the comet’s normal tail.

Find out what's happening in Old Town Alexandriawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

To see the comet, look to the western horizon about 45 minutes after sunset. The comet will be located along an imaginary line between the bright planet Venus and the bright star Arcturus.

On Monday, the comet will remain visible for about an hour and 20 minutes, about 20 minutes longer than on Sunday. On Tuesday, the comet will be visible for several minutes longer, for about an hour and 45 minutes.

The comet will again be visible Wednesday in the same approximate location and will set within two hours. The comet will remain in the sky longer as the month goes on, but as it gets farther away from Earth, won’t be as easy to see.

By Halloween, the comet will no longer be visible with the naked eye, according to Sky & Telescope, but comet watchers may be able to see it through binoculars until early November.

As Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS made its closest approach to the sun in September, it was visible in the predawn sky. As the view shifted to the evening sky as it came within 44 million miles of Earth on Saturday, the view shifted to the evening sky.

Comets are frozen leftovers in what’s known as an Oort Cloud, a vast spherical region at the edge of our solar system from its formation billions of years ago. They heat up as they swing toward the sun, releasing their characteristic streaming tails.

Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS was picked up last year by the Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System, or ATLAS, at the Tsuchinshan Chinese Observatory in Purple Mountain, China. Scientists estimate the long-period comet has been making its way toward the inner solar system for about 80,000 Earth years at a speed of about 180,610 miles per hour.

The last humans to have seen the comet would have been the Neanderthals.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.

Related: As Sun Nears Solar Maximum Peak, More Northern Lights Displays Likely

VIRGINIA — A strengthening tropical storm that forecasters believe could turn into a hurricane could bring some rain and possible coastal flooding to parts of Virginia later this week, according to the latest data.

Tropical Storm Helene is expected to intensify to near hurricane strength by early Wednesday and could be a major hurricane as it approaches the northern U.S. Gulf Coast on Thursday, the National Hurricane Center said Tuesday. Landfall is most likely to occur somewhere in northern Florida along the Gulf Coast.

The current track of the storm shows it slowly turning to the northwest as it moves over Georgia and is forecast to dump heavy rains across the Southeast, the southern Appalachians and the Tennessee Valley later this week.

If the storm’s path shifts slightly, its remnants could impact the Washington, D.C., area late Friday into Saturday morning, forecasters said.

"If the track would go a little further west, we wouldn't see too much in the way of impacts here in the Washington area," FOX 5 meteorologist Tucker Barnes said. "But some of the models try to bring us some rain here by Friday and Saturday. So we've got some question marks for the end of the week."

Find out what's happening in Arlingtonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Regardless, the area is in for a wet, soggy work week, according to forecasts.

"A slow-moving weather system and persistent onshore flow continue to hinder our ability to see sunshine for the next several days," the Capital Weather Gang said in its Tuesday forecast. "Potential remnants from upcoming Hurricane Helene could then bring further cloud cover and more rain chances late this week."

The region was under a hazardous weather outlook Tuesday as rain and showers moved through the area, according to the National Weather Service. Affected areas included the Maryland portion of the Chesapeake Bay, the Tidal Potomac River and the I-95 corridor through central Maryland, northern Virginia and the District of Columbia.

A coastal flood warning was also in effect until 4 a.m. Wednesday for the shorelines in the District of Columbia, Arlington County and the city of Alexandria.

According to NWS forecasters, the unprotected area on the Southwest Waterfront at the DC Seafood Market is expected to flood. Water is expected to approach parts of the Hains Point Loop Road and buildings near King and Union streets.

Moderate coastal flooding will remain possible at times through the end of the week, especially Friday, forecasters said.

"Friday is our trickiest forecast day as the weather models diverge on how much remnant moisture from upcoming Hurricane Helene spills into our area," the Capital Weather Gang said. "Rain is possible, especially in southern and western areas toward the afternoon."

Here's the detailed NWS forecast for Northern Virginia through Saturday:

Tuesday Night: Showers likely, mainly after 2am. Cloudy, with a low around 64. East wind around 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.

Wednesday: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm before 2pm, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Patchy fog before noon. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 73. Southeast wind 7 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

Wednesday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Cloudy, with a low around 68. South wind 5 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Thursday: A slight chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 5pm. Cloudy, with a high near 79. South wind 6 to 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Thursday Night: A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 69. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Friday: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 76. Chance of precipitation is 50%.

Friday Night: Showers likely, mainly before 2am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

Saturday: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 76. Chance of precipitation is 30%.