New county grants worth $80,000 seek to support renewed vibrancy in the Green Valley neighborhood — although leaders acknowledge the funding may not go very far.
The funds, which will be split among four organizations, will “jump-start some neighborhood activity that would bring neighbors together, create an environment of civic engagement and civic exchange,” Board member Takis Karantonis said.
Board members voted unanimously on Saturday (April 19) to approve a staff recommendation for the four grants. They were selected from among 13 total requests.
Organizations receiving funding were:
- Challenging Racism: $30,000 for a four-party initiative to “foster dialogue, empathy and unity”
- Latino Economic Development Center: $23,762 for a three-month financial empowerment course for up to 20 participants, focused on building generational wealth
- Arlington Thrive: $13,571 for quarterly nutrition-education programs
- Macedonia Baptist Church: $6,667 for “serving as a convener and community builder in collaboration with other proposals”
Karantonis and Board member Julius “J.D.” Spain, Sr., said the total amount funded, though small, should be seen as a first step.
“This is not the end of action here. It’s the exploratory beginning of it,” Karantonis said.
Calling the total funding “just a drop in the bucket,” Spain said that it comes after years of county leaders neglecting the community.
“It’s taken a long time” to start funding projects, Spain said. “Too long.”
At a forum held with prospective grant applicants last November, county staff acknowledged the call for applications was lacking in specificity on the objectives.
Elizabeth Matlock of the county manager’s office acknowledged that “there was not a lot to go off of” in the notification beyond “things that can benefit the whole [Green Valley] community.”
County staff evaluated proposals and recommended the recipients.
At the April 18 Board meeting, Karantonis said funding for the Latino Economic Development Center might have the most importance, as Green Valley needs economic investment. He said Green Valley is “a neighborhood that has seen stagnant outcomes in retail, in the ability of people to start their own businesses, to have entrepreneurship supported.”
“We need to stay the course and lean in,” Karantonis said.
The ebb and flow of county-government interest in Green Valley and its vitality has been well-documented. Periods of support seem to alternate with times of benign neglect before the cycle repeats itself.
One sign of improved conditions came last year with the opening of the Green Valley Farmers Market. The market is set to reopen for 2026 today (Friday) and continue on Fridays from 4 to 7 p.m. through autumn.
Like Karantonis, Spain said the latest infusion of cash would have little meaning unless it is part of a broader, sustained effort.
“There’s going to have to be a next [step]. If not, this is just performative,” he said.
Founded in the 1840s, Green Valley for generations was one of the few Arlington neighborhoods available to African-American households during Virginia’s lengthy era of segregation.
More recently, gentrification has swept in as real estate prices have soared and many longtime residents or their heirs opted to sell the homes and move out. As a result, what had been a 99% Black community in 1960 now has a population less than 20% Black, according to 2024 estimates.
Changes coming to voting precinct: Voters who normally go to the Madison Community Center will be casting ballots elsewhere for the next year.
With renovation of the community center starting over the summer, Board members on April 18 voted to move Precinct 135, located at the center, to nearby St. Mark’s Episcopal Church for the duration of the work.
Madison Community Center also has served as an early-voting site leading up to primary and general elections. While construction takes place, early-voting operations will be moved to Langston-Brown Community Center.
The first impact of the changes will come in the lead-up to the Aug. 4 state primary. Changes also will affect the Nov. 3 general election and, likely, next year’s state primaries that typically are held in June but this year were pushed back two months.
Voting at the renovated Madison Community Center should resume for the November 2027 general election.
Voters who live in the boundaries of Precinct 135 will receive mailed notification of the changes. The estimated cost to provide notification is $4,500, county officials said.
