The Goodyear tire store and service center in Ballston will likely be torn down at some point next year to make way for a new apartment building.
Arlington County’s Site Plan Review Committee is expected to discuss the building proposal in November. The developer hopes to start construction on the building next year, with construction wrapping up by mid-2013, according to the Washington Business Journal.
The move comes about two months after another Arlington condo project, The Myerton, was converted to rentals. Local Realtor Laura Rubinchuk says that the history of the Bromptons project — construction was stopped after the building was declared structurally unsound in 2006 — probably came back to haunt it.
“Slow sales for the Myerton definitely played a part in their decision to convert back to rentals,” she said. “But I think the 3800 Lofts are always going to carry the past with it — buyers are going to be nervous about investing in something that was once on unstable ground, regardless of County clearance and any actions taken to remedy the situation.”
The board voted unanimously on Saturday to approve the complex, which includes a 13-story building and a 6-story building connected via an elevated glass skywalk. The complex will be located on the block currently bordered by Wilson Boulevard, Fairfax Drive, N. Kansas Street and N. Lincoln Street. The block is currently home to small low-rise office buildings and surface parking lots.
The new complex, tentatively dubbed Virginia Square Towers, will include nearly 13,000 square feet of ground floor retail space, 630 underground parking spaces and a central public plaza with benches and a water feature.
The Crystal Plaza Apartments in Crystal City (2111 Jefferson Davis Highway) are under new ownership.
Archstone sold the building to real estate investor Ralph Dweck at the end of last month. No word yet on why Archstone, a major Crystal City land holder, decided to sell the apartment complex.
What started on Aug. 7 as a construction site mishap — the failed retaining wall, the muddy landslide, the threat that the apartment building might collapse — has gone from bad to worse for the Swansen residents, who say they were being told as late as Aug. 23 that they would be able to move back in to their Rosslyn-area apartment building.
That all changed on Aug. 26, residents say, with an email from landlord Mark Swansen.
A drive through parts of Lyon Park, Clarendon and Rosslyn today revealed significant progress on three large residential developments, as well as clean-up work on one ill-fated project.
In Rosslyn, Clark Construction crews are busy cleaning up from last week’s retaining wall failure at the Sedona and Slate apartment site. Workers were busy reinforcing the adjacent Swansen Apartments building, which nearly collapsed into the construction pit after the failure.
Realtor Laura Rubinchuk Schwartz tells us that slow sales and a hot rental market prompted JBG to stop selling the units at 108 S. Courthouse Road. The developer had made the decision in February to begin sales instead of renting the units.
All buyers are being offered $1,000 for their time and for agreeing to a contract release.
Demolition is underway on a block of empty warehouses on S. Fern Street in Pentagon City.
The warehouses, which used to house a DHL distribution office and a Danker furniture store, are being torn down to make way for a new 18-story apartment building called Three Metropolitan Park. The building will be the third in the Metropolitan Park development, across from Costco.
Greene Turtle Coming to Ballston — Sports bar The Greene Turtle is coming to Ballston later this year. The restaurant has signed a lease for a 7,000 square foot space on the ground floor of the new Virginia Tech Research Center (900 N. Glebe Road). [Washington Business Journal]
New Apartment Complex Coming to Ballston — A new 150-unit apartment complex called The Crimson on Glebe is coming to Ballston. The five-story mixed-use building will be located across from Ballston Common Mall at the corner of Glebe Road and N. Carlin Springs Road. Owners are hoping to wrap up construction by mid-2013. [CoStar Group]
What was once the Lee Center strip mall is now a big, dusty hole in the ground.
Construction is well underway on what is known as the 2201 North Pershing Drive project. When work wraps up in mid-to-late 2012, the $75 million project at Route 50 and Pershing Drive will consist of 188 rental apartments and nearly 33,500 square feet of ground-level retail space.
The first of the three new businesses to open will be Xsport Fitness, a 12,000 square foot, 24 hour per day, 365 day per year gym on the ground floor of the Siena Park apartment complex (2301 Columbia Pike).
If you’ve driven by during the day, you’ve probably seen muscle-bound Xsport representatives promoting discounted pre-opening memberships. General manager Matt Minuth, who can apparently bench press 900 pounds, says the company is offering free enrollment and a lifetime monthly rate of $19.95 for customers who sign up in advance. (Normally there is a $99 enrollment fee.)
New Massage Business on the Pike — A new massage parlor on Columbia Pike is advertising its services in the ‘Adult Entertainment’ section of Backpage.com. “Friendly and well trained sweet Asian staff are waiting for you!” the ad says. [Pike Wire]
Was the Internet Really Invented in Arlington? — County officials have been touting the role of the Arlington-based Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in the creation of the internet, but does DARPA — and Arlington — really deserve credit as the birthplace of the internet? In an article entitled “Mythbusting,” We Love DC’s Tom Bridge says that he’s skeptical. [We Love DC]
