Hello, Yupette,
Another older neighborhood off a major arterial, another major redevelopment to 'Shirlington' the area. Latest is Bergmann's Cleaners on Lee Highway and the neighborhood around Bergmanns.
Proposal by the same County Planning Staff responsible for Shirlington and same law firm responsible for Shirlington is...yet another Shirlington. Did I mention none of them live in Arlington?
This followed many closed-door meetings among non-resident Economic Development staff, non-resident CPHD staff, non-resident development attorneys, and an out-of-state REIT. The North Highlands neighborhood was targeted for gentrification after the usual Arlington County 2-step process - do nothing to help middle class neighborhoods along arterials revitalize, then point to the neighborhoods as 'deteriorated' and in need of massive mixed-use redevelopment.
In fact the County Board and County Planning Staff want to exactly duplicate the 12 story Shirlington hotel-apartments-supermarket-parking complex on and around the Lee Highway Bergmann's site. Even Dover, Kohl, the County Board's pet planners, stated that Shirlington was 'poorly planned'. How much more dumb growth are they going to cram into Arlington?
K.B.
Lyon Village
20 comments:
A Chris Zimmerman, Nan Walsh, Bob Brosnan Production.
Executive Producer: Barbara Donnellen - Clifton Virginia
Director: Terry Holzheimer - McLean Virginia
Screenplay: Nanny Hunt - Charlottesville Virginia
Associate Producers: Tom Miller - Falls Church Virginia; Lisa Maher - Falls Church Virginia; Richard Tucker - Washington DC
Senior Production Coordinator: McCafferey Interests - Chicago Illinois
Senior Production Associates and Advisors: Nan Walsh - McLean Virginia; Bob Brosnan - Falls Church Virginia
Technical Advisor - Carrie Johnson, Butte Montana
"June O'Connell, a Colonial Village property owner, stated that three (3) LPRC meetings were not sufficient; that many issues remain unaddressed. She did not agree with the staff findings. She noted that the approval of the proposal would set a dangerous precedent with respect to height and expressed strong concerns regarding environmental issues on the site".
Shirlington has become a hang out for Republican House of Representatives majority leadership. I've heard the County has been told to develop Bergmann's to provide an eating and entertainment mecca for the Senate's majority Republican leadership, post 2012.
I thought Shirlington was Jim Moran's hangout.
Developer - County Staff are making a big deal about on-site contamination, but the State of Virginia has environmental remediation plans in place for all current or former dry cleaner sites.
Planning Commission letter to the County Board can be found at:
http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/Commissions/plancom/2011/file82348.pdf
Another mega-mixed use development being pushed by non-residents. Is this conflict-of-interest? We get urbanized, they get to live in classic suburban homes on cul de sacs. Shop in strip shopping plazas that have had a couple modest makeovers during the past 60 years. Drive to shop, school, etc., on suburban roads with little traffic.
It gets worse...many County Board meetings the only Arlington residents on the dias are the County Board.
Based on Washington DC author Stewart Schwartz's award winning science fiction novel: 'Smart Growth for Dummies'.
Anyone know if the County Board own real estate in addition to their legal residences?
This will not be an agenda item at today's continued County Board meeting.
Lee Highway in Arlington is mostly stop and go during rushhour. Has anyone considers the link of higher density--more businesses, more jobs, more residents, and more daily commercial vehicles--to more street traffic?
A building on top of a Metrorail station (and there are few such unoccuppied locations)will likely have at least 50% of the additional trips by auto. Metrorail is totally full during rush hour and even rail transit is not an option.
Lee
Go to Shirlington where the hotel, 12 story apartment buildings, Harris Teeter, big parking garages are located. That's what they want to do to the Bergmann's site.
I wonder where Stu Schwartz's luxury rural retreat is located and how many acres of farmland / forest were bulldozed to build it.
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