Every year since 2005, Arlington’s Treasurer Office holds the Decal Design Competition for Arlington high school students. The competition gives competitors a chance to have their pictures or designs appear on the official County decal sticker along with a cash prize sponsored by John Marshall Bank. This year junior Tommy Casey was chosen as one of four finalists with his picture “A Nod to History.”

Casey knew about the contest from previous years and with some encouragement, he decided to enter this year.

“I heard that you could get your picture on every car and I thought that that would be fun,” said Casey.

Casey’s photo is of the building on 800 North Glebe Road, a modern structure built over the old Bob Peck Chevrolet car dealership. The former dealership was known for its classic diamond designs, and when people heard that they were going to get rid of the well known design, they were upset. However, Bowman Consulting (the company who designed the new building) added diamonds to the new facade and Casey feels that the compromise is a perfect example of combining the past with the present. In his competition application he wrote, “I wanted to create a photo that represents the modern city that Arlington has become while recognizing the importance of Arlington’s landmarks.”

When asked what it felt like to have the possibility to have his picture on all Arlington registered vehicles, Casey laughed and said, “It’s a little bit of an overwhelming feeling. I don’t know how to describe it.”

Casey, at the time the picture was taken, had been doing photography for about a year. He got into it because of his father who does it as a hobby. The Arlington Decal Design Competition is the second photography competition that he has entered, the first being the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards competition. After the Decal Design Competition, Casey is planning on entering more competitions.