Posts about ArlingtonRSS
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Housing gains urgency in Arlington as its budget falls short and Amazon moves in
The Arlington County Board is trying to figure out how to add more affordable housing and manage growth from Amazon as another budget shortfall looms. The Board rang in the new year with its first meeting on January 2, where newly-elected Board Chair Christian Dorsey cautioned that the county could face a budget shortfall of $70 million. Keep reading…
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The ABCs of affordable housing in Arlington
Arlington has had a shortage of affordable homes for some time, and now the problem is even more pressing given Amazon’s decision to move one of its new headquarters to the county. So what are local officials going to do, and what are they already doing about affordable housing? Keep reading…
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Best of 2018: Advocacy highlights at GGWash
By the numbers, GGWash had its most prolific year of advocacy to date. Our advocacy blog posts had over 1.4 million views, and over 5,000 urbanists signed petitions and/or emailed officials about local issues at least once this year. Keep reading…
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On-street scooter corrals pop up in Arlington
Arlington is adding painted scooter and dockless bike parking areas to its streets. Keep reading…
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Top posts of 2018: Scooters are taking cars off the road, a survey says
For DC and other cities concerned about rising traffic, a new study in Portland, Oregon suggests scooters could be a solution. Residents and tourists are using e-scooters in place of car trips, and scooters are drawing people who've never ridden a bike or never traveled in a bike lane. Keep reading…
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Top posts of 2018: Here are 5 new infrastructure projects we’ll likely get with Amazon
Amazon's HQ21/2 is coming to Crystal City, Pentagon City, and Potomac Yard, an area that local officials dubbed “National Landing” to avoid writing out three neighborhood names over and over again. Amazon’s arrival will mean at least $195 million in new transportation infrastructure from Virginia, on top of the $570 million it was already planning on investing into the area. Keep reading…
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Lime-E electric bikes are now in Arlington
On Tuesday, December 18, Lime-E electric dockless bikeshare became available to ride throughout Arlington. Lime released the bikes following receipt of an operating permit the previous week. Keep reading…
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Where the Washington region is zoned for single-family homes: an update
Yesterday I wrote a post about single-family zoning in the Washington region. I got a lot of constructive feedback on the post, some of which was incorporated into revisions. Readers also wanted to know why I hadn't disaggregated undevelopable land, such as agricultural reserve, preserved open space, and federal lands from single-family zoning. Well… Keep reading…
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The Washington region has good transit compared to others, a new “opinionated atlas” says
Christof Spieler, an urban planner and former Houston Metro board member, has written one of the best transit/planning books I’ve read in a long time. Its articulate descriptions of what makes for good transit and well-researched profiles of 47 metro areas give you the foundation necessary for having an insightful conversation. Keep reading…
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Here’s how much of the Washington region is off-limits to growth
The US urbanist community has been profoundly shewk by Minneapolis moving last week to end single-family zoning citywide. It raises the question: How much of the Washington region is locked into the least-intensive level of land use via the type of zoning that Minneapolis will now end? Keep reading…
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Who runs your street? Different governments overlap, so Arlington is simplifying.
Commuters may soon see safer bicycle lanes and pedestrian facilities in Arlington’s Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, though the details are up to you. There's a reason why these lanes weren’t there before, and that reason is still an issue for streets and roads across the Washington region. Keep reading…
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Upzoning Arlington Ridge and Aurora Highlands could house Amazon employees—and then some
On the heels of the recent Amazon HQ2 announcement, important questions have been raised about how to accommodate the 25,000 new employees who will come to the Washington region. Our housing demand far outstrips the supply, even without Amazon. Keep reading…
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Changing your neighborhood school will not destroy your community
In response to growth in attendance, Arlington County Public Schools (APS) is opening some new schools and shifting the location of county-wide “option” programs to better utilize resources. As a result, the School Board must approve new boundaries for neighborhood schools in the southern portion of the county on December 6. Keep reading…
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Pentagon City’s plan for jobs-housing balance needn’t be sacrificed for HQ2
Amazon's second (or third, who's counting?) headquarters is coming to National Landing—or more precisely, the weird no-man's-land that currently separates Pentagon City from Crystal City. Building offices on this site will require rezoning a site currently slated to become 1,400 houses. Keep reading…
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They did the math: Amazon will barely impact our already supercharged housing market
Researchers have found that the influx of Amazon employees will not significantly affect the housing supply, though the region’s housing costs will likely remain some of the most expensive in the country. That's a key finding from George Mason University’s Fuller Institute, which published a study that looks at the impact of Amazon’s HQ2 on the Washington region’s housing. Keep reading…
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Long Bridge expansion will add new railroad tracks and a bike trail between DC and Virginia
New plans call to double the number of railroad tracks over the Potomac River between DC and Arlington, and to build a new pedestrian/bicycle bridge between Southwest Washington and Crystal City. Keep reading…
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Events: Help government take better risks
How can government take better risks? We'll discuss at a fireside chat with Nelson\Nygaard's Jeff Tumlin, former DC Water head George Hawkins, and former DC planning director Harriet Tregoning. Also, talk about Spin joining the ranks of scooter companies in DC, Arlington parking, Virginia housing, the Long Bridge, and entrepreneurship. Keep reading…
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Calling all local Virginia politicos! Help with our elections coverage in 2019.
This past year, our stellar volunteer Elections Committee analyzed and endorsed dozens of candidates around the region in Maryland, DC, and Virginia. In 2019, the local elections we’ll be watching are in Virginia—can you help us write about them? Keep reading…
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Here are 5 new infrastructure projects we’ll likely get with Amazon
Amazon's HQ21/2 is coming to Crystal City, Pentagon City, and Potomac Yard, an area that local officials dubbed “National Landing” to avoid writing out three neighborhood over and over again. Amazon’s arrival will mean at least $195 million in new transportation infrastructure from Virginia, on top of the $570 million it was already planning on investing into the area. Keep reading…
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As an Arlington resident, I’m excited about Amazon—and worried about housing costs
I am genuinely excited about the news that Amazon will locate half of its highly-coveted HQ2. I am ready to embrace the new vibrancy that will come to the “National Landing” neighborhood where I already live (in a place formerly called Pentagon City). Keep reading…
