A small but critical piece of the effort to improve sidewalk conditions on S. Carlin Springs Road took a step forward this weekend.
Arlington County Board members voted to pay a property owner $29,230 for easements that will allow for a wider sidewalk at Carlin Springs and 2nd Street S., near Kenmore Middle School.
The walkway currently ranges in width from 4 to 4.5 feet, interrupted by traffic-signal poles, utility poles and pedestrian poles. The project will construct an uninterrupted, 6-foot-wide sidewalk plus a 2-foot-wide utility strip between the sidewalk and roadway.
Acknowledging that purchasing permanent and temporary easements “may seem extremely wonky and administrative,” Board member Maureen Coffey said it is a development worth celebrating.
“This is the beginning of a process to build buffered sidewalks so kids walking to school have a safe route,” she said. “This has been the focus of a lot of concerns.”
The parcel is zoned residential and currently undeveloped. Evergreene Homes, which purchased the lot for $700,000 in early 2023, is supportive of the proposal, county staff said in a report to Board members.
In addition to Kenmore Middle, that stretch of roadway is a route for students going to and from Carlin Springs and Campbell elementary schools. Those students and other pedestrians and bicyclists have to contend with about 27,000 vehicles using the stretch of Carlin Springs on a typical day.
Residents of the Glencarlyn neighborhood have expressed ongoing concerns about traffic conditions in their midst. County Manager Mark Schwartz in coming days plans to announce an update on progress.
The sidewalk project is part of a broader package of improvements along that stretch, which have been ongoing since 2018.
