An explosives detection K-9 celebrated his retirement at Reagan National Airport today.

Messi, an 8-year-old yellow lab, was feted this morning in the historic Terminal 1 lobby with a surprise tennis ball drop, a cupcake and the ceremonial removal of his TSA “Do Not Pet” patch.

“If you’ve never attended a canine retirement party, this is your opportunity,” an invite to the event said. “A training aid/decoy device will be hidden and Messi will search for it. When he hits on the item, the celebration will begin!”

Video of the big moment, captured by local TV station WJLA, is below. It was followed by another K-9 retirement tradition.

“The removal of Messi’s TSA ‘Do Not Pet’ patch will [then] take place, signaling his official retirement,” the invite also noted. “So come pet him, because he will no longer be a working dog.”

A spokeswoman for the agency said Messi “was clearly born to work for TSA because he enjoys watching airplanes and playing in the grass at nearby Gravelly Point.” She described Messi as “a lovable and hard-working dog whose favorite game is playing with a tennis ball after work.”

Messi is somewhat of a celebrity in the explosive detection dog scene. He was prominently featured in TSA’s 2023 canine calendar.

Address: 4243 Vacation Lane
Neighborhood: Lee Heights
Type: 3 BR, 3 BA single-family detached — 2,534 sq. ft.
Listed: $1,495,000

Noteworthy: Walk to Lee Heights shops from 1930s Tudor on beautiful terraced lot

Pristine Lee Heights home offers 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2 offices, main level family room, oversized garage with work bench, and big unfinished basement (another 450 square feet) for gym, storage, or in door play. Recent high end roof, siding, gutters, downspouts, garage door, and artisan stained brick to match original home.

Big kitchen with ample cherry cabinetry, granite tops and breakfast bar, stainless appliances is open to the dining room. Cozy window seat, built ins and multiple windows enhance the room’s appeal. The focus of the living room is the gas fireplace with a window seat tucked beneath an arch. A wall of cabinetry and another window seat in the office make working from home less of a chore. The main level family room can double as guest space with a nearby bathroom with soaking tub and adjoining laundry.

Upstairs, the primary bedroom has a fitted walk-in closet, a separate office with vaulted ceiling and skylights, and a high end bath with oversized shower and double sink vanity.

The second bedroom has built-ins while the third bedroom has a walk in closet and a second closet. These rooms are served bar by a renovated hall bath with heated towel bar. Taylor, Dorothy Hamm, Yorktown school pyramid

A home filled with character and light in a great location.

Listed by:
Betsy Twigg — McEnearney Associates
[email protected]
(703) 967-4391

Arlington’s response team for people in mental health and substance use crises is on track for a substantial buildout.

An additional $478,286 in federal funds would allow Arlington to hire two therapists and another behavioral health specialist for the Mobile Outreach Support Team (MOST), a county report says. This would mean expanded hours of operation for the team that launched last summer with just three personnel.

The funding would also contribute to a July 1 upgrade to the county’s crisis response process under the Marcus Alert system for behavioral health responses.

The Arlington County Board is expected to vote Saturday to accept funding from the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act to make the expansion possible.

MOST staff answer calls in a van equipped with supplies such as a defibrillator, Narcan and fentanyl test strips. They offer an alternative response to emergencies related to mental health, welfare checks, disorderly conduct and other nonviolent issues — though sometimes uniformed police are dispatched to assist with MOST responses.

“The team’s integral role in the continuum of care has reduced the incidence of police and other first responders from providing the primary or sole response to behavioral health crises,” the county report says.

As of late March, the team had assisted 323 people, 32% of whom were diverted from potential criminal charges.

The team currently operates from 1 p.m.-9 p.m. on weekdays, but with additional staffing, it plans to expand hours to 7 a.m.-9 p.m, county spokesperson Kurt Larrick told ARLnow.

More personnel would play a key role in the new Marcus Alert system — meant to formalize protocols for directing 911 calls to a Regional Crisis Call Center, a mobile response team and/or law enforcement.

“We are also using Marcus Alert as a coordination body,” Larrick said. “All the partners were working well on an individual level, but under the Marcus Alert umbrella the collaboration is better and it is a true system instead of independent agencies.”

The county has been planning the forthcoming system since 2021, with input from the Community Services Board, Police Practices Work Group and Marcus Alert Stakeholder Group.

The state requires all Virginia localities to implement Marcus Alert by 2028. In Northern Virginia, Fairfax County, the city of Fairfax, Falls Church and Prince William County have already done so.

If you’ve gotten used to the current design of the ARLnow website over the past 5+ years, get ready for an adjustment.

A new version of the site will be rolling out soon, perhaps as soon as early Monday morning. Developed by news publisher-focused WordPress agency The Code Company, the site represents a complete rebuild of our current codebase, which dates back to the early 2010s.

The overall design will be similar, but you might notice some differences. For one, blurbs on the homepage will be shorter. And we’ll start incorporating short looping video into articles, something that’s not feasible on our current site.

We encourage readers to provide feedback on the new site after its release and to point out any possible bugs. You can do so in the comments or by emailing us.

Latin food lovers will have two weeks to take advantage of some tasty deals from local restaurants.

Latin Restaurant Week is coming to the D.C. area from May 3-17 and few Arlington restaurants are participating in the culinary event.

Founded in 2019 in Houston by food enthusiasts Karinn Chavarria and Warren Luckket, the event seeks to spotlight the culinary achievements of the Latin community and empower aspiring and established Hispanic entrepreneurs and professionals in the food service industry, according to the website.

Participating restaurants are offering full-course lunches and dinners priced at $25 or $40, along with buy one get one free discounts.

Arlington restaurants participating in Latin Restaurant Week include:

• Sabores Tapas Bar offers a three-course lunch at $25 and a five-course dinner at $40
• El Pollo Rico offers lunch or dinner for two priced at $25
• Los Chamacos offers several buy one get one free deals on select entrees
• Inca Social
• Peruvian Brothers at Amazon HQ2

The latter two plan to participate but have not yet published their menus.

Business Awards Finalists — “The Arlington Chamber of Commerce has announced the finalists in its 38th annual Arlington Best Business Awards, with the honors to be bestowed next month.” [Gazette Leader]

Gun and Drug Bust — From ACPD: “On Sunday evening, officers investigating the report of a dispute between known individuals recovered narcotics and a firearm. Interdicting dangerous drugs and illegally possessed firearms is a cornerstone of the ACPD’s crime prevention and control efforts.” [Twitter]

Soon: Drug Take-Back Day — “The Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) spring National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day will be held on Saturday, April 27. The Arlington County Police Department (ACPD) is encouraging the community to take advantage of this designated day to clean out your medicine cabinets.” [ACPD]

Armed ATM Robbery — “3600 block of Columbia Pike. At approximately 3:50 a.m. on April 18, police were dispatched to the report of an armed robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined two male suspects entered the open business during which Suspect One forced entry into an ATM while Suspect Two displayed what appeared to be a firearm. Suspect One then stole an undisclosed amount of cash from the ATM before both suspects exited the business, entered a black sedan and fled the scene.” [ACPD]

Fellowship for Marymount Student — “The story of Elene Japaridze, a junior political science and international relations major at Marymount University, is a narrative woven from the threads of her personal experiences with conflict and occupation in her homeland of Georgia… Japaridze’s journey took a significant step forward when she was selected for The Public Policy & International Affairs Program (PPIA)’s summer fellowship, joining a cohort of 148 students.” [Marymount University]

Mothers Day Ideas — “Mother’s Day is May 12. That means you’ve got less than a month to package a perfect present for the mother and mother figures in your life. Don’t stress, though. This area makes it easy to shop small and deliver big.” [Arlington Magazine]

It’s Friday — Expect showers after 2pm, with mostly cloudy skies and a high near 65 degrees. The southeast wind will blow at 6 to 8 mph, and there’s a 30% chance of precipitation. For Friday night, showers are likely in a mostly cloudy setting and with a low temperature of around 54 degrees. There is a 50% chance of precipitation. [NWS]

Good Thursday evening, Arlington. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.

🕗 News recap

The following articles were published earlier today — Apr 18, 2024.

• 9:30 am: Former County Board members cast endorsements as donations flow into Arlington campaigns | 🗣️ Comments
• 10:30 am: New landmarks and historic home restoration among Arlington-funded projects requesting more time | 🗣️ Comments
• 11:30 am: GMU Arlington campus holding Taylor Swift themed pirate movie and music event tomorrow | 🗣️ Comments
• 12:30 pm: Most and least expensive townhouses sold in Arlington (March 2024) | 🗣️ Comments
• 1:30 pm: This Pentagon City intersection has seen 43 crashes since 2021 | 🗣️ Comments
• 3:30 pm: Arlington pickleball enthusiasts join inmates at second jail tournament | 🗣️ Comments
• 3:55 pm: JUST IN: FAA to investigate near collision today at DCA | 🗣️ Comments
• 7:00 pm: NOW: Fatal motorcycle crash shuts down NB I-395 | 🗣️ Comments

📅 Upcoming events

Here is what’s going on Friday in Arlington, from our event calendar.

• 10:00 am: Arlington National Cemetery Memorial Arboretum Spring Plant Tour
• 5:30 pm: Zumba Power Hour
• 6:30 pm: Mean Girls Jr.
• 7:00 pm: Cinema at Mason Square : Pirates of the Caribbean
• 👉 7:00 pm: “The Secret Garden”
• 👉 8:00 pm: Live Comedy Showcase Starring Winston Hodges

🌧️ Friday’s forecast

Expect a 30% chance of showers starting after 2pm, accompanied by cloudy skies and a high around 65 degrees. A southeast wind will blow at 6 to 8 mph. For Friday night, the chance of showers increases to 50%, with mostly cloudy skies and a low near 54 degrees. The southeast wind will continue at 6 mph but shift to a northwest direction after midnight. See more from Weather.gov.

💡 Quote of the Day

“In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.”
– Albert Einstein

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

The MonumentCam screenshot above is used with permission of the Trust for the National Mall and courtesy of EarthCam.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.

(Updated at 11:25 a.m.) All lanes of northbound I-395 were blocked at Glebe Road during the Thursday evening commute due to a fatal motorcycle crash.

State police are investigating the crash, which happened just before 5 p.m. The motorcycle rider was dead upon police arrival in a scene described by arriving officers as disturbing and spread out over a distance.

“Virginia State Police is investigating a fatal crash involving a motorcycle that occurred Thursday (April 18, 2024) at 4:51 p.m. on Interstate 395 northbound at Mile Marker 7 in Arlington County,” VSP said in a press release Friday morning. “A Honda CBR600RR was heading northbound on I-395 at a high rate of speed when it lost control, struck a 2012 Acura TL, then went off the road to the right, and struck a guardrail.”

“The rider, Joshua A Craig, Jr., 23, of Dumfries, Va., was ejected and died at the scene,” the press release continued. “He was wearing a helmet. The crash remains under investigation.”

The highway was completely blocked as of 7 p.m. but reopened a short time later.

#Shirlington: I-395 NB just past Glebe Rd, crash involving a motorcycle. Traffic getting by via right center lane, all other general lanes blocked. Delays are at 2 mi and building. Expect delays or use alt route. #VaTraffic #DMVTraffic pic.twitter.com/RBJ3nor5Lo

— VDOT Northern VA (@VaDOTNOVA) April 18, 2024

Update #Shirlington: 3 left lanes of I-395 NB have reopened near Glebe Rd. Right lane and shoulder remain blocked. Delays extend to Duke St. #VaTraffic https://t.co/7atsegD9p3 pic.twitter.com/r9JT3R3LIt

— VDOT Northern VA (@VaDOTNOVA) April 18, 2024

LOCATION: NB I-395 at MM 7.0 (Glebe Rd N Exit7B)
INCIDENT: Traffic Collision
IMPACT: All lanes are reopened. pic.twitter.com/ua6LXvrfHC

— Arlington Alert (@ArlingtonAlert) April 18, 2024