CORRECTED: County Giving Away Light Bulbs
Arlington County is giving away free energy-efficient light bulbs next week as a part of its greenhouse gas initiative.
The lights are compact fluorescent bulbs and they last up to ten times longer than incandescent light bulbs. According to a statement put out by the county, if every household in Arlington replaced an incandescent bulb with a compact fluorescent one, the households would collectively save $500,000 a year and reduce as much carbon dioxide as is emitted by 1,000 cars.
The free light bulbs are a part of the Arlington Initiative to Reduce Emissions (AIRE), spearheaded by County Board Chairman Paul Ferguson (D), that seeks to reduce the county's greenhouse gas emissions 10 percent by 2012.
The first giveaway will take place on Tuesday, April 10 from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Sierra Club's monthly meeting at the NRECA Building at 4301 Wilson Blvd. The second giveaway will be held on Saturday, April 21 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Home Expo being held at the Walter Reed Community Center, located at 2909 16th St. For both giveaways, there is a limit of one bulb per family.
This is one of many light bulb giveaways that the county has conducted for the initiative and it plans on continuing them throughout the year. Call John Morrill at 703-228-4426.
Crime Rate Reaches Historic Low
The amount of crimes committed in Arlington reached a 40-year low in 2006 according to a report issued by the County Police Department.
There were 2,212 index crimes — the types of crimes that police keep statistics of — per 100,000 people in Arlington committed in 2006, down from 2,447 in 2005. Index crimes include homicides, forcible rapes, robberies, aggravated assaults, arsons, burglaries, larcenies and vehicle thefts.
Police Chief M. Douglas Scott said in a statement that while he is "Proud of my officers’ hard work and accomplishments… the police can not take all the credit for this achievement. The outstanding support we receive from Arlington residents also contributes greatly to our low crime rate."
Out of all the index crime categories, rapes showed the biggest change — dropping by almost 40 percent from 2005. Robberies increased by more than 3 percent, making them one of the only categories to go up over last year.
The lowered crime rate reflects a downward trend in Arlington since a peak in 1991 of over 6,000 crimes per 100,000 people. In the past decade, burglaries and larcenies have fallen by more than 50 percent and vehicle thefts have fallen by more than 70 percent.
"We welcome this good news," said Paul Ferguson (D), chairman of the Arlington County Board, in a statement last week "The safety of our community is one of the important reasons that Arlington is such a great place to live, work and visit."
Historic Wedding Planned
The National Park Service and the Robert E. Lee Memorial are looking for a couple to participate in a historic wedding as a part of their celebration of the famed Civil War general’s 200th birthday.
The Lee Memorial, located on the grounds of Lee’s mansion in what is now Arlington National Cemetery, will conduct an authentic, 19th century-style wedding for a willing couple on June 30th, the date of Lee’s marriage to Martha Washington’s great-granddaughter Mary Custis.
According to a Park Service statement, the wedding will be "An interpretive and educational examination of wedding customs and traditions in the mid-19th century, including a focus on period music, dancing, food and clothing.
"The culmination of the day’s activities will be the actual marriage of a couple that will demonstrate historic wedding practices of Lee’s time and explore the ramifications of personal events and how they intersect with the larger, public story that becomes our history."
Interested parties should submit an application to Emily Weisner at the Robert E. Lee Memorial. Applications should include the couple’s names, contact information, a reference and a written statement detailing why they would like to participate and how they are qualified to represent 19th century social practices. All applications are due by May 15.
— David Schultz
School Records To Be Destroyed
Arlington Public Schools is set to begin destroying the records of special education students born prior to 1980.
If a former special education student wants a copy of their records, they must request it from Arlington Public Schools' Office of Records before May 1 of this year.
Xenia Castaneda, a clerk at the Office of Records, said that they are required to keep special education students' records until they turn 27 years old.
"We're trying to get rid of [the] old records we've had," she said.
For more information, contact Castaneda at 703-228-6062.
— David Schultz