A trio of townhouses is coming to the site of a duplex destroyed in an explosion in the Bluemont neighborhood two years ago.
Construction on the project at the end of a cul-de-sac off of Bluemont Junction Trail is well underway, with an expected delivery in late summer, according to signage posted at the property. Each of the three townhomes, located at 836, 840 and 844 N. Burlington Street, are advertised with over 4,000 square feet.
The project replaces a smaller brick structure that was engulfed in a fireball the evening of Dec. 4, 2023 after a resident — 56-year-old James Yoo — poured gasoline throughout the basement and, according to an investigation, likely sparked the blast himself during a standoff with police. The explosion, which killed Yoo, hurled debris for several blocks and could be heard for miles around.
The explosion destroyed much of the original structure, which was constructed in June 1943. Arlington County hired a contractor to clear the rest of the parcel, leaving an empty lot.
The owners of the other half of the duplex — who evacuated before the explosion — had previously sought to rebuild on the property with a single-family home. They approached the Arlington Board of Zoning Appeals in October 2024, seeking a variance to build a house that would be narrower than the Arlington County Zoning Ordinance allowed.
The property is zoned in a “two-family and townhouse dwelling district.”
“Living next to James Yoo … introduced a great deal of trauma into our family’s lives, which we deal with every day,” one of the applicants told the board at the time. “We do not wish to build a duplex, for what I hope are obvious reasons.”
Developer Wilsons Ventures purchased the property in February 2025, sales records show. Wilsons Ventures is also involved in multiple projects under Arlington County’s Expanded Housing Options, and has been instrumental in appealing a lawsuit over the Missing Middle zoning change.
Most other homes in this cul-de-sac on N. Burlington Street are older brick duplexes, all of the same mid-century style, but one structure is a large triplex with a more contemporary design.
