LOCA ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS

LOCA uses a web service, Groups.io, to distribute information electronically, including the newsletter. 92 individuals are signed up, out of approximately 900 households -- about 10%.

·         We use a free version of Groups.io and we can't sign you up.

·         You sign up yourselves — very easy!

·         Everyone on the Leeway Overlee groups.io can read all messages posted — this is an advantage as it's for community information.

·         If you wish to communicate with anyone confidentially, please email them directly.

HOW TO SIGN UP FOR GROUPS.IO:

·         Open the web site:  https://groups.io/

·         If you have not used this before, Sign Up (top right-hand corner) of opening page and create a password

·         When you are signed in, search for Leeway Overlee and sign up as a member.

Stumbling Stones Update

At the LOCA January 21, 2026, General Meeting, Tim Aiken of the Arlington Historical Society presented a powerful overview of Arlington's Stumbling Stones project. Inspired Leeway Overlee residents offered to sponsor Stumbling Stones ($300 each) to memorialize identified formerly enslaved individuals who lived in what is now Leeway Overlee. We're working with the Historical Society to dedicate Stumbling Stones at the Centennial Celebration on October 24!

Neighborhood Signs

Do you experience Sign Envy when you're greeted with a Neighborhood Welcoming Sign when entering another neighborhood? Don't despair! We've started the process to get some of our own! Arlington will help design and manufacture up to four signs per civic association. Renee Braden, our ArNAC representative, is managing the project and has at least one committee member! If you have artist skills and are interested in participating, please contact Renee at ArNAC@LeewayOverlee.org.

SAVE THE DATE: Saturday, October 24, 2026, afternoon

Lee Center & Leeway Overlee Civic Association Centennial Celebration!

The forerunner to LOCA held its first meeting in the spring 1925 at the new Lee School. Stay tuned for more information about our Centennial Celebration in the "Lee Center Park," or as I like to call it, the Park with No Name. Included in the Celebration will be the dedications of several Stumbling Stones!

Langston Arts Center Studios & Lee Center Park / Former Lee Center Updates

For the purposes of this discussion, the building and park will be referred to as Lee Center. As of this writing on April 8, 2026, Arlington County is not demolishing the building which formerly hosted the LAC Studios and Lee Community Center.

Step One: Evaluate the Building and Park: Completed

Please refer to the Lee Center Study on the Arlington County web site: open the County web site and enter “Lee Center Study” in the search box near the top of the page. The study results are presented in three sections; links to each are on the opening page of the study discussion. Public engagement will strongly influence final uses of the building.

Step Two: Public Engagement: the next phase in determining the future of Lee Center

Langston Boulevard Alliance (LBA) is partnering with Arlington County’s Department of Environmental Services (DES) to manage the public engagement phase to evaluate future community uses of the building and park and the configuration of both to best provide those uses to the community. LBA created a Community Centers Committee to assess community centers in the Langston Boulevard corridor (Langston Brown, Dawson Terrace, and Lee Center). Langston Brown is fully functional and provides a variety of Arlington Parks and Recreation programs. Dawson Terrace is closed except for one class; rooms can be reserved for meetings. Lee Center is closed. Jean Henceroth, the President of Leeway Overlee, chairs this committee.

The Leeway Overlee CA Executive Committee welcomes LBA leading this phase of the project; it has resources beyond our civic association.

Please stay tuned and participate in any future activities about the project to ensure your voice is heard regarding the future of Lee Center.

Arlington reviews its long-term capital budget (Capital Improvement Plan or CIP) every two years at which time new items for funding are added and others are modified. Two years ago, the county allocated $15+ million for future renovations to Lee Center. The County Board and staff is reviewing the CIP again this spring: the funds allocated for Lee Center renovations could be moved sooner, pushed out farther into the future, the amount reduced or increased.

Arlington Babe Ruth T-Ball

Arlington Babe Ruth T-Ball hosts games almost every weekend during its seasons in the park at Lee Center. Have your children played here? Did you play here? Please stay tuned for our discussions regarding the future of the park at the (former) Lee Center to ensure the softball backstop will continue to serve the Babe Ruth T-Ball.

COMMITTEES

LOCA Yard Sale Committee:  Chair, Ladd Connell

LOCA Sign Project Committee:  Chair, Renee Braden

Stumbling Stones Committee: Chair, Renee Braden

LOCA Centennial Celebration Committee: Open

Pollinator Garden Committee: Chair, Jennifer Michener

LOCA Membership Committee: Open

LOCA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

President:                        Karen Guevara (president@leewayoverlee.org)   

Vice President:                 Jean Henceroth (vicepresident@leewayoverlee.org)

Vice President:                     Mike Weinstein (vicepresident@leewayoverlee.org)

Secretary:                        Ladd Connell (secretary@leewayoverlee.org

Treasurer:                        Jennifer Michener (treasurer@leewayoverlee.org)

ArNAC Rep:                     Renee Braden ArNAC@LeewayOverlee.org

Website:                           https://www.leewayoverlee.org

Historian:                         Renee Braden