Arlington County - Coalition For Smarter Growth

Winner of the first EPA Smart Growth Award and the Coalition for Smarter Growth’s Capital Region Visionary Award, Arlington County is a national leader in transit-oriented development, affordable housing, transit, and street design. Today, Arlington boasts 50 million square feet of transit-oriented development in the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor alone and has done so without increasing traffic. Nearly 40% of trips in this corridor are made by transit, walking, and bicycling.

The County continues to make major investments in transit, bicycle and pedestrian facilities, and affordable housing with a focus on getting the details right and maintaining an inclusive community

Our Work in Arlington, VA

Plan Langston Boulevard

Arlington County is developing a comprehensive vision and policy framework for the future of Langston Boulevard, which is Route 29 and formerly known as Lee Highway. During the spring/summer 2021, the county held listening sessions and walking tours on the preliminary land use scenarios that offered different land use mixes that would enable diverse housing options, enhancements to open space and stormwater management, safer streets and better transit. Community feedback will help inform County staff what concerns and priorities to address as they move to the next phase of developing a Preliminary Concept Plan. Learn more >>>

Missing Middle Housing Study

Arlington County has initiated a Missing Middle Housing Study to explore how different housing types could help increase the County’s housing supply and diversify the range of housing choices. “Missing middle” refers to the range of housing types that fit between single-family detached homes and mid-to-high-rise apartment buildings. Having different types and sizes of homes helps provide more options at different price points. A phase I report that was just released summarizes the priorities and concerns identified by community feedback, which will be used to determine the housing types to study as part of Phase II. Learn more >>>

Latest Happening

Arlington County board member Tejada honored by Coalition for Smarter Growth

Nick Ruiz | May 22, 2014

County Board member Walter Tejada recently was honored with the Livable Communities Leadership Award by the Coalition for Smarter Growth, which lauded Tejada’s support for affordable housing and transit in the Columbia Pike corridor.

Why costs often creep on public-works projects

Nick Ruiz | May 14, 2014

What do Metrorail’s Silver Line, the Columbia Pike streetcar in Arlington County and the Intercounty Connector in Maryland have in common? They have turned out to cost far more than initially projected. And, as often happens in such cases, the public is outraged over the bill.

In Arlington, state wants to develop and build over I-66 in Rosslyn, East Falls Church Metro

Andrew Brown | July 3, 2013

The proposed area in Rosslyn where Virginia is asking for possible development suggestions. The area in pink is the main area, the areas in light green are secondary possibilities. Air rights are rapidly becoming a hot topic in Northern Virginia. Some heavy-hitters in Fairfax are pushing for development over the Silver Line

Arlington is Booming, And Traffic Fantastically Remains at 1970s Levels

Ted Van Houten | March 14, 2013

Science fiction fans will recognize this plot line. A woman travels into the past, telling her ancestors about her reality in the future, only to be called a lunatic because of the incredible nature of what she is saying. Anyone who lives and works in 2013 Arlington, Virginia might be

Comments on Arlington County’s Columbia Pike Plan and Streetcar

ian | July 23, 2012

The key to a sustainable and equitable future for our region is a network of transit-oriented communities which mix a range of housing with jobs and services. We need the next generation of transit including streetcar, light rail, and bus rapid transit to expand high capacity transit service to more of our region, expanding access to jobs, reducingvehicle trips and fighting climate change. TOD not only maximizes transit trips but it also maximizes walking and bicycling trips as demonstrated by recent Council of Governments' travel surveys.