County staff are seeking feedback on competing visions for a more verdant and multi-functional Gateway Park in Rosslyn.
Following an initial round of community feedback on the recreation area at 1300 Langston Blvd, which the county hopes to overhaul several years earlier than expected, a new presentation outlines three possible paths forward. All of them involve keeping popular features including Gateway Park’s lawns and dog park, while adding more greenery and new areas geared toward a variety of activities.
“We remain excited, as I know you are too, about the potential for a new Gateway Park to catalyze Rosslyn’s transformation from being a great place to work, into an extraordinary place to work, live and play — a real anchor of the community and destination within the D.C. metro area,” a county staff member said in the presentation.
The first option, dubbed the “Potomac Stitch,” would involve the installation of a rocky sound buffer along Gateway Park’s northern edge, muffling noise from Langston Blvd. Multi-use sports courts and pavilions would complement garden areas and a tree-lined perimeter, with a lawn and event pavilion on the eastern edge.
This design would remove the concrete bridge that currently connects the two sides of the park, “creating a more welcoming and permeable arrival experience,” according to the presentation.
An alternative option, the “Rosslyn Ramble,” would put a premium on green space. A sloping path through trees on the eastern side of the park would lead up to the existing bridge, connecting pedestrians to “an urban forest” with more leafy walkways and a playground on the western side.
The design also includes a large hill on the eastern side, “which could be the best place to sled in Rosslyn in the event of a winter snowfall.”
A final design, the “Gateway Commons,” would include a substantial lawn facing a stage and food trucks on the eastern side, plus play areas and a cultivated meadow on the western side. This option would also retain a redesigned version of the pedestrian bridge.
Ultimately, the new layout for Gateway Park is expected to include some combination of the different options, based on further community input.
“By sharing these three schemes, it is not our intention that we pick one and move forward, but that we take the best aspects of each and combine them into a different fourth, final scheme that best respects your values and aspirations for a future Gateway Park,” the presentation says.
Respondents have until July 19 to submit feedback.
Currently, the county only has funds to pay for upgrades to the eastern half of the park. West side work was originally slated to happen in 2032 — but the timeline could take a leap forward if the Arlington County Board finalizes a deal with the CoStar Group.
The company, which announced in February that it is moving its corporate headquarters from D.C. to Rosslyn, is offering the county $14 million to help fund a full redesign and reconstruction of Gateway Park. In exchange, it is asking the county to restrict access to the View of D.C. observation deck, which is currently a public amenity.
If plans move forward, the County Board would likely approve a construction bid this winter, with design projected to begin in 2025 followed by construction starting in 2026, county staff told ARLnow in April.
