patching...
Welcome back, Patch Blogger!

Ballston Common Mall

Monday, February 25, 2013

Business Rewind: Ballston Mall, Dishcrawl, Yates Center and Where Independent Businesses Gather

The latest business news from Patch in Arlington and beyond.

The biggest business news by far this past week was that Arlington’s own Ballston Common Mall could eventually be redeveloped into a mixed-use urban development with apartments, office space and retail. The new “Ballston Center” by Forest City Washington, would include “more street-facing store entrances, two-level storefronts and outdoor terraces,” Washington Business Journal reported. On the Arlington food front, Dishcrawl (sort of like a pub crawl, but with food) will make its debut in Shirlington in March. And Wilson Tavern had a re-opening celebration after renovations. And, of course, Girl Scout Cookies are now on sale. Find out where to get Girl Scout Cookies in Arlington here. Down in Alexandria, development also dominated business…

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Ballston Mall Redevelopment Under Consideration

Redevelopment may include apartments, office space and retail, according to owner Forest City Washington.

Ballston Common Mall could evolve into a mixed-use development that includes apartments, office space and retail. The new Ballston Center by Forest City Washington, would include “more street-facing store entrances, two-level storefronts and outdoor terraces,” the Washington Business Journal reported. Forest City Washington, which also owns the Lenox Club apartments in Arlington, Twelve12 and The Yards in Washington, showcased the redevelopment plans this week at the International Council of Shopping Centers' 2013 Mid-Atlantic Conference at National Harbor in Maryland. Ballston Common Mall was built in 1986 and renovated in 2002. It is 1.3 million square feet including the movie theater, Macy's and the Sport & Health Club. The …

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Arlington Patch's Most-Read Stories in October

Hurricane Sandy, U.S. Rep. Jim Moran's son, and the Ballston Common Mall Molotov cocktail incident top the list.

Though Hurricane-turned-Superstorm Sandy is what most will remember as the top news story of October 2012, several others resonated locally. The following are the most-read stories on Arlington Patch in October. The most-read article of the month was Arlington Police Looking Into 'Every Component' of Moran Video. Arlington police are among those investigating a video from conservative activist James O’Keefe that shows Democratic Rep. Jim Moran’s son, Patrick, apparently talking about ways to skirt voter identification laws. The Molotov cocktail incident at Ballston Common Mall in mid-October took several of the top spots among our most-read stories: Celebrities rounded out our top stories, including a review of "Argo" and a visit to …

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Arlington 'Lucky' Molotov Cocktail Defused During Mall Scare

Police Chief Doug Scott: No ties to terror organizations found so far.

The lunch rush crowd at Ballston Common Mall — and Arlington County in general — was "really, really lucky" last week that a Molotov cocktail thrown into the mall's food court failed to explode, Police Chief Doug Scott said Tuesday. Scott, reporting to the Arlington County Board, told elected officials that the crude incendiary device — which has been described as a brown glass bottle that contained a flammable liquid and a cluster of matches — had a lit fuse when it was thrown from an upper level of the mall Thursday. The bottle hit the inside of the building as it fell toward the food court, knocking the lit fuse out of it, Scott said. "Had the lit fuse made it all the way down, we would have almost certainly had a fire," he said. The …

John Glanton

5:58 pm on Friday, October 26, 2012

My money is on the Hating Breitbart film opening as his motivation.   more ›

Friday, October 19, 2012

VIDEO: Arlington Police Arrest 'Molotov Cocktail' Suspect

Amateur video surfaced Thursday following the arrest of 29-year-old Leon Alphans Traille Jr.

The above video shows three Arlington County police officers arresting Leon Alphans Traille Jr., a 29-year-old man with no fixed address who authorities say threw a Molotov cocktail into the Ballston Common Mall food court around lunchtime Thursday. Police say they found Traille after an alert resident noticed someone matching his description near the Cheesecake Factory in Clarendon. The arrest took place not far away, in the Courthouse Plaza. Fox 5 aired portions of the above video and interviewed a man who said he was a co-worker of the person who filmed it. WJLA aired a different video of the same arrest and interviewed the man who filmed that. Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said he had not seen either video. He did not dispute their…

Aviatress

10:01 pm on Sunday, October 21, 2012

"They're harassing a guy as usual"??? Having lived in Arlington for 5 years, I'd say that they are some of the most professional, hard-working police officers I have seen. Let's give them some credit.   more ›

Federal Charges Brought Against Ballston Mall 'Molotov Cocktail' Suspect

Leon Alphans Traille Jr., 29, will make an initial appearance at today in federal court.

The man suspected of throwing a Molotov cocktail into the food court of the Ballston Common Mall has been charged with arson in federal court. "These are arson charges," said Peter Carr, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of Virginia. "There's nothing in the court document that says 'terrorism.' " Leon Alphans Traille Jr., 29, will make an initial appearance at 2 p.m. before United States Magistrate Judge Theresa C. Buchanan in Alexandria. He is accused of attempting to use fire or explosives to destroy or damage property used in interstate commerce. "This is an initial appearance. He goes in court, they tell him why he was arrested, what charges he's facing, and set up another court date,” Carr said. If …

Update: Leon A. Traille, 29, Charged with Throwing Molotov Cocktail in Ballston Mall

The incident spawned a four-hour mall and road closure.

Update (10:50 a.m.): Authorities have charged 29-year-old Leon A. Traille in Thursday's incident at the Ballston Mall. Traille has been charged with reckless endangerment, attempted malicious bodily injury by use of fire, and use of fire bomb. He has no fixed address, according to police. He is expected to make an appearance in Arlington County Court this afternoon. Federal charges are expected to be brought against Traille in the immediate future. ~ Original Article: Ballston Common Mall was on lockdown for four hours Thursday after a man threw a Molotov cocktail into the mall’s food court. Though the device did not ignite, the incident spawned hours of road closures and an investigation by multiple local and federal authorities. “We want…

John Glanton

11:56 am on Monday, October 22, 2012

Sporting a shaggy full-neck beard that he didn't used to have. Yelled something in a foreign language while he threw a bomb. Uh huh.   more ›

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Police Look for Ballston Common Mall Peeping Tom

Man reportedly watch young girl in the restroom.

A man in his 50s reportedly spied on a young girl this week as she was using the restroom at a Ballston Common Mall restaurant. At about 8:20 p.m. Monday, the girl was in a bathroom stall when she saw a shadow underneath, police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said. The girl looked up and saw the man. He ducked into another stall and the girl went outside to tell the two adults she was with, Sternbeck said. The adults went to confront the man, who told them he was "confused" and he thought the female bathroom was the men's room, Sternbeck said. The man then ran away, leaving the mall on the Glebe Road side. The man is described as being in his 50s with shoulder-length gray-brown hair. He was wearing baggy jeans, a light button-down shirt and …

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Sexual Assault Reported at Ballston Mall Parking Garage

Police do not have enough suspect information for a sketch.

A 23-year-old Arlington woman was sexually assaulted Wednesday in the parking garage attached to Ballston Common Mall, police said today. At about 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, the woman was walking to her car on the fourth level of the garage after shopping at the mall, police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said. The garage is located at 655 N. Glebe Road. She was within a few feet of her vehicle when an unknown man approached her from behind and sexually assaulted her with his hands, Sternbeck said. The woman screamed, and the man fled down a stairwell in the northeast corner of the garage. The woman got into her vehicle, drove out of the garage, parked on the street and then called police, Sternbeck said. The woman refused medical treatment …

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Board Approves Apartment Building Across from Ballston Common Mall

The Crimson on Glebe will replace existing Goodyear building.

The Arlington County Board on Saturday unanimously approved plans to develop a six-story apartment building across the street from Ballston Common Mall. The Crimson on Glebe will replace the existing Goodyear building and an adjacent single-family home at the corner of North Glebe and North Carlin Springs roads. The building, at 650 N. Glebe Road, will be within walking distance to the Ballston Metro Station. The 139,000-square-foot structure will include 163 apartments and 2,200 square feet of ground-level retail space. Like most major projects in the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, the county was able to leverage significant contributions from the developer for its Affordable Housing Investment Fund ($480,000), public art ($75,000) and …

julie

10:59 am on Sunday, May 20, 2012

Is the County's affordable housing program even legal? In effect it's banning low-income minorities from entire neighborhoods and concentrating them in other neighborhoods.   more ›

Got a Hot Tip?