After years of delays, a major redevelopment project on Columbia Pike is returning for County Board consideration later this month — offering a path forward for an abandoned strip mall.
Toll Brothers Inc. is seeking final county authorization to replace the Fillmore Gardens Shopping Center on the 2600 block of Columbia Pike with a 6-story mixed-use property with 271 apartments and about 15,000 square feet of retail space.
County Board members have set public hearings next month on increasing taxi fares, expanding a Green Valley Park and designating a home as a local historic district.
The Board also set a hearing on possible changes to the county’s residential parking program, adopted a meeting schedule for 2026, approved an office-to-residential conversion project in Courthouse and approved a contract for new pedestrian bridges in two parks.
Some Falls Church leaders are expressing concern over a possible General Assembly measure that would take away local power to regulate parking in development projects.
Such a measure could be introduced by Sen. Saddam Azlan Salim (D-37), who represents the city in the upper house of the legislature. The topic was among the key points discussed at the Nov. 7 meeting of the City Council’s legislative committee.
Layli Mediterranean appears to have closed after less than a year and a half amid redevelopment plans in Clarendon.
The restaurant at 3033 Wilson Blvd is listed as “permanently closed” on Google. Dining reservations can no longer be made through Resy, online ordering via DoorDash has halted and there are no more chairs, tables or space heaters in the patio area.
Competing visions for the future of development in Arlington are facing off as the county gets closer to rewriting a core planning document.
As a feedback form on planned changes to the Comprehensive Plan is set to close on Sunday, slow-growth advocates are vying with a broad coalition of pro-housing groups to shape some of the county’s foundational goals.
A nine-story building in Courthouse could become the latest to convert from office to residential use.
A proposal by Quadrangle Development seeks to turn 365,000 square feet of commercial space at 1320 N. Courthouse Road into approximately 295 dwelling units, plus small amounts of office and retail space.
Approval of another office-to-residential conversion, amendments to tenant-relocation guidelines and possible changes to towing rates will highlight this month’s County Board meeting.
A public hearing on just one item will be held before adoption during this Saturday’s meeting. All 33 other items slated for action that day are on the Board’s consent agenda, but individual items could be pulled off public hearings on the recessed meeting of Tuesday, Oct. 21.
Developers of commercial projects in Falls Church could for the first time be required to meet minimum tree-canopy requirements.
City Council members at an Oct. 6 work session generally were supportive of a staff proposal that would set a minimum 10% canopy for future commercial development.
Efforts to create deeply affordable housing to meet the needs of Arlington’s lowest-earning residents face significant headwinds, according to a recent presentation to the Arlington Planning Commission.
Most current efforts around affordable housing focus on households with incomes of at least 60% of the area median income (AMI) — leaving out a large swath of people earning less.
The Goodwill on S. Glebe Road is closing this month to redevelop as a mixed-use affordable housing project.
The donation center, retail store and career center at 10 S. Glebe Road is set to close for about two years beginning on Monday, Oct. 27. Goodwill expects to begin demolition this winter, making way for a six-story building with 128 units of affordable housing, a 3,000-square-foot child care, and a modernized retail and donation center.
County Board candidates are split in their thoughts about a planned update to Arlington’s Comprehensive Plan.
While some fear it could be used as a back-door effort to build denser housing, incumbent Democrat Takis Karantonis argues that concerns are overblown, or at least premature.
County Board candidates largely expressed interest in efforts to convert aging office buildings to residential and hotel uses at a recent candidate forum.
“There are huge opportunities,” Board Chair Takis Karantonis said during the Sept. 30 event sponsored by Arlingtonians for Our Sustainable Future.
