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ARLnow Daily Update: August 19, 2026 · ARLnow Daily Update

• 0:00
  It's Wednesday, August 19th. This is the ARL Now daily update. A Mexican immigrant's account of being badly hurt by immigration agents in Arlington has drawn sharp criticism from local officials.
• 0:13
  Jose Mejia Hernandez, 45, told Univision and Telemundo that trucks pulled up as he walked to a bus stop on August 11th, and that agents shocked him with a stun gun when he ran.
• 0:26
  He says he woke in a hospital hours later with a brain bleed. Congressman Don Beyer called the injuries extremely disturbing and said he is seeking details.
• 0:37
  The Department of Homeland Security says Mejia Hernandez is undocumented and tried to flee, that officers used necessary force, and denies he lost consciousness.
• 0:48
  A suspicious object inside a military office building shut down part of Ballston this morning.
• 0:54
  Pentagon police responded to One Liberty Center, where the Department of War keeps office space, at about eight twenty, joined by Arlington County Police and the county bomb squad.
• 1:04
  North Randolph Street closed between Wilson Boulevard and 9th Street North. The all clear came just before noon and the road reopened. It is still not clear whether an explosive device was found.
• 1:17
  Arlington elementary students may get fewer than one hundred eighty days of class this year.
• 1:23
  School board members are weighing an elementary calendar change that adds time for parent-teacher meetings in October and March, leaving one hundred seventy-eight instructional days.
• 1:34
  That falls short of a commitment the board made last year, though students would still be in class about one thousand sixty-five hours, well above the state minimum.
• 1:44
  Board member Kathleen Clarke called it a really complex issue. Part of the squeeze is a late start. Arlington returns August 31st, the latest in Virginia.
• 1:56
  The new head of the Arlington Teachers Union says she wants a cooperative year.
• 2:01
  Danielle Jones, a Yorktown High School teacher for more than a decade, took over the Arlington Education Association in early August, succeeding June Prakash.
• 2:11
  She told the school board that the strongest districts are built on collaboration, transparency, and mutual respect.
• 2:19
  Board members did not respond at the meeting, but member Monique Bryant told ARL Now the school system welcomes the collaboration. This sponsored update is from Arlington Economic Development.
• 2:31
  Arlington Economic Development is the county's business development arm.
• 2:35
  Its small business program, BizLaunch, offers workshops, webinars, and free one-on-one counseling in English and Spanish, plus market research tools and a checklist for opening a business here.
• 2:47
  Its business investment group helps companies starting, expanding, or relocating in Arlington find office space and navigate local incentives and county processes. You can learn more on their website.
• 3:00
  An all-you-can-eat sushi spot has opened in Penrose Square. Mo Mo Go Go began serving this past weekend at 2501 9th Road South, with booths modeled on Japanese gazebos and screens showing scenes from Japan.
• 3:15
  Co-owner Heikwan Chang says he buys higher-priced fish and hires chefs from traditional sushi restaurants. Dinner is thirty-six ninety-five, and lunch is twenty-five dollars, with a ninety-minute limit.
• 3:27
  Chang also owns restaurants in Rockville and Tysons. A members-only indoor golf facility near Ballston says it is already close to full.
• 3:36
  The Golf Yards opened this month on the seventh floor of 3 Ballston Plaza at 1100 North Glebe Road, with eight simulators, putting areas, a gym, and a co-working space open around the clock.
• 3:49
  Membership runs two hundred and ninety-nine dollars a month, or three hundred and ninety-nine for families, with initiation fees waived for now.
• 3:56
  Co-founder David Stillman says two more locations are planned in Tysons and Alexandria. This sponsored update is from Arlington Realty Inc.
• 4:06
  Each week, their Just Reduced roundup tracks Arlington homes whose asking prices have dropped.
• 4:11
  As of August 17th, the county had one hundred and sixty-three detached homes, sixty-three townhouses, and two hundred and fifty-seven condos for sale, and twenty-nine homes were reduced in the past week.
• 4:23
  Arlington Realty says it can represent buyers on any listing, including homes listed with other brokerages, arranging showings, analyzing value, and negotiating terms. And a few things at the Rosslyn Farmers Market.
• 4:36
  Today, from noon to six, the nonprofit Turning the Page is running a pop-up sale with more than three thousand used books, with live music from Richmond singer Clay Motley in the final two hours.
• 4:49
  Next Wednesday, the market marks National Dog Day with an event the Rosslyn Business Improvement District is calling Dog Days of Summer. Leashed dogs are welcome. That's all for today. Thank you for listening.