Real estate for sale sign in the Arlington Heights neighborhood (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
The U.S. real estate market is facing significant headwinds, but Arlington property assessments are continuing their march upward.
Arlington County announced today that overall assessments of residential and commercial properties rose 3.6% for 2023, compared to 3.5% for 2022. Residential values are up 4.5% while commercial values are up 2.6%.
“The increase in property values continues to show that Arlington remains a place people want to live and work,” County Manager Mark Schwartz said in a statement. “And it’s the revenue generated from these real estate taxes that help to fund the County’s high-quality services and public services for residents, visitors, businesses and workers.”
The average single-family home in Arlington is now assessed at $798,500, compared to $762,700 last year. The rise comes despite the local real estate market experiencing many of the challenges also seen in the national market, precipitated by rising interest rates.
The rate of property value increase, however, has slowed compared to the previous two years. Residential values were up 5.8% in 2022 and 5.6% in 2021. In 2020, residential values rose 4.3% and were outpaced by a 4.9% rise in commercial values, prior to the pandemic causing the office vacancy rate to spike and values to in turn go down.
Arlington has for years relied on a balanced residential and commercial tax base, which allows it to grow its budget and embark on large projects while keeping real estate tax rates at levels slightly below many of its Northern Virginia neighbors.
The weakness in office assessments, while offset by rises in other commercial property like hotels and apartment buildings — and bolstered by new construction — is a contributing factor what is currently projected to be a nearly $35 million budget gap.
Arlington County Manager Mark Schwartz is scheduled to present his proposed FY 2023-2024 budget to the County Board next month.
Local homeowners, meanwhile, will be able to view their new assessments online after 11 p.m. tonight (Friday), the county said. There is an appeal process for those who disagree with their assessments.
More on the newly-released assessments, below, from the county press release.
Flags flying at the Arlington County government headquarters (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
New Assistant Fire Chief — “The Arlington County Fire Department is proud to announce the hiring of Jason R. Jenkins for the position of Assistant Fire Chief. Chief Jenkins has over 26 years of experience in Fire and Emergency Medical Services (EMS), serving most recently as an Assistant Fire Chief with the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department.” [Arlington County]
Burglary Suspect Exposes Self — “The known suspect allegedly gained entry to the victim’s home. When the victim returned to the residence, he confronted the suspect and asked him to leave, which the suspect refused. The victim exited the residence when police arrived on scene and the suspect followed and was subsequently taken into custody…. During the course of the investigation, officers recovered suspected narcotics. No items were reported stolen from the home. The suspect was transported to booking where he exposed himself to law enforcement.” [ACPD]
Airbag Theft Suspects Also Hit Alexandria — “Two Manassas men arrested in November for allegedly stealing air bags in Arlington are also suspected of committing 11 similar acts in Alexandria, according to police. The 43-year-old and 25-year-old suspects were arrested on Nov. 13 in Arlington and charged in connection with three airbag thefts committed that day.” [ALXnow]
Governance Change Legislation Unlikely — “The 2023 session of the General Assembly is likely to come and go this winter without considering changes to Arlington’s governance structure proposed by the Arlington County Civic Federation. Federation delegates last fall adopted a resolution suggesting a series of changes that would impact the current governance system, which has been in place in Arlington since the 1930s.” [Sun Gazette]
Another Arlingtonian Attempts Running Feat — “Watch out, Michael Wardian! One of your Arlington neighbors is trying to claim the title of Arlington’s top long-distance runner. Arlington resident Jill Jamieson is planning to participate in the World Marathon Challenge, an event that takes runners to Antarctica, Africa, Australia, Asia, Europe, South America and North America to run seven marathons in just seven days.” [Patch, Fox 5]
Local Science Stars — Updated at 10 a.m. — Two Arlington students are among 300 selected in the “nation’s oldest and most prestigious science and math competition for high school seniors” — Washington-Liberty High School’s Ambica Sharma and H-B Woodlawn’s Julia Westwater Brodsky. [Society for Science]
Driving Oops Outside BBQ Restaurant — “Per scanner, a driver went over the curb at Sloppy Mama’s along Langston Blvd and her vehicle (likely the red car seen below) is now stuck.” [Twitter]
GMU Law Partnering with HBCUs — “George Mason University is developing a program to funnel Virginia students from historically Black colleges and universities into its law school and, more broadly, the legal field. Its first partner in the program is Hampton University and the plan is to expand it to undergraduates at other Virginia HBCUs that don’t have law schools. The aim, said Antonin Scalia Law School Dean Ken Randall, is to… bring more people of color into the legal field.” [Washington Business Journal]
It’s Friday (the 13th) — Light rain in the morning, then clearing but breezy. Not a good day to walk under ladders. High of 51 and low of 36. Sunrise at 7:27 am and sunset at 5:09 pm. [Weather.gov]
Firefighters are battling a house fire on 26th Street N. for the second time tonight.
Initial reports suggest that a fire in the basement has been extinguished, but the house is still filled with smoke. Firefighters responded to the same house around 6 p.m. tonight, after a report of a chair on fire, according to scanner traffic.
The occupants reportedly made it out of the house without injury both times.
The home is located on the 4500 block of 26th Street N., near Marymount from Washington Golf and Country Club. The road is said to be blocked due to the fire department activity.
After about two years, the local public broadcasting station WETA is set to finish off its 17,000-square-foot expansion on Campbell Avenue later this year. The refresh will include four floors of studios, offices, a consolidated headquarters, and more large spaces for public gatherings and screenings, Vice-President of External Affairs Mary Stewart told ARLnow.
It will also allow WETA to fully move out of the building down a few blocks at 3620 27th Street S, which was sold to the county in 2020 and is now scheduled to be torn down.
Some production is still being done out of the old building, which WETA first moved into in the 1980s, but that will stop once the renovation is completed on the building on Campbell Avenue, Stewart said.
The WETA building in Green Valley, set to be demolished soon (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Externally, much of the work appears to be nearing the finish line with the expansion extending into a space that was once a courtyard. It’s the internal renovations, said Stewart, that still need some time. Those are expected to be done in “late 2023,” despite some “supply chain hiccups.” Some of the studios and public spaces could be open to employees by the summer, though.
Two main studios and one flash (smaller) studio are set to be added. One of the main studios will be used by the PBS NewsHour.
The national nightly news broadcast, which recently debuted a new pair of anchors, will get an updated set, with modern tech, video walls, and an outward-facing TV screen on the ground floor. The goal for the new set is to be “flexible,” modern, and for the video screens to allow remote interviews to be more “natural and cohesive,” said Stewart.
Also set to start filming in the new studios will be the six-decade-old teen quiz show “It’s Academic.” In the fall, the longest-running TV quiz show in history announced it was moving into WETA’s renovated building with the hope it would start producing episodes there in early 2024.
The studios will also be home to PBS NewsHour Weekend and Washington Week, as well as local programming like WETA Arts. Additionally, the update will also allow pledge drives and special broadcasts to take place in the new studios.
“We will now be a 365-day, 7-day-a-week production,” Stewart said.
She said the biggest drivers of the expansion are to modernize, allow for more production flexibility, and consolidate all of WETA in one building.
The local PBS station actually first began operating out of Yorktown High School more than six decades ago, in 1961. It moved to D.C. for a time, before consolidating operations back in Arlington in 1983 at the still-standing 3620 27th Street S. location. In 1995, WETA purchased the building on Campbell Avenue and moved its headquarters there, while production remained mostly at the other building a few blocks away.
But with this $50 million expansion, WETA will be whole for the first time in its 62-year history.
“With this expansion of our building, it means WETA will have a permanent home in Arlington,” said Stewart.
The county is looking at allowing urban farms, artisan workshops, and craft beverage-making and dog boarding facilities to operate by-right in commercial, mixed-use districts throughout Arlington County. Some of these uses are already allowed along Columbia Pike.
Now above 21%, the office vacancy rate in Arlington spells lower tax revenue and belt-tightening for the under-development county budget. It ticked up during the pandemic and remained high even as buildings reopened, mask mandates were lifted and people returned to the office.
As the trend persisted, Arlington County Manager Mark Schwartz and his staff launched a “commercial market resilience strategy” to get new types of tenants moved in quickly. The strategy focuses on zoning changes with a limited impact on neighbors that can be approved with through a new, less involved public engagement process. The strategy was first used last fall to approve micro-fulfillment centers.
Last night (Wednesday), a majority of the Arlington County Planning Commission approved a request to authorize public hearings on this proposal.
“We do need to be thinking creatively,” said Planning Commission Vice-Chair Sara Steinberger. “I’m appreciative that the county came forward with a streamlined approach so we can start fast-tracking some things. The community feedback and involvement is essential and is a cornerstone of the Arlington Way and how we comport ourselves within this community. That said, it’s never fun to be bogged down in bureaucracy either, so when there is an opportunity to move more quickly on certain things in a limited field, I think it’s appropriate to do so.”
The proposal also would let colleges and universities, which can currently operate in offices only after obtaining a more burdensome site plan amendment, move in by right.
“They tend to be our strongest source of demand in office buildings at a time when we aren’t seeing much demand,” Marc McCauley, the director of real estate for Arlington Economic Development, told the Planning Commission.
Commissioners Stephen Hughes and James Schroll abstained from the final vote, reprising concerns they raised last year about the impact of these new uses on neighbors. While voting for the proposal, Commissioner Tenley Peterson questioned county staff about potential noise, smell and parking nuisances.
“I can see the good reasons for doing this,” Schroll said. “My reticicene is not necessarily what you’re doing on the zoning side, it’s more the outreach. There are some things that I feel like aren’t fully thought through… We’re pursuing these without fully understanding what use standards we need to put in place.”
Citing “incessant barking” from nearby dog-boarding facilities that can be heard from Jennie Dean Park, Hughes said he wants the community to understand that these changes would leave nuisance mitigation up to the condition of the building and county noise ordinances.
“There is no place in the entire county where your actions do not impact another person,” Hughes said, pushing staff to instead draft a document listing “externalities we can all agree to as a community that we will not do.”
Andrew Schneider, Arlington Thrive’s outgoing executive director (courtesy photo)
(Updated at 1:35 p.m.) After seven years, the executive director of local nonprofit Arlington Thrive, Andrew Schneider, is stepping down.
“After much reflection and discernment, I have decided to step down as Executive Director of Arlington Thrive to pursue other opportunities,” Schneider announced in an email Wednesday evening. “It has been an absolute pleasure to work with you to deliver Arlington Thrive’s mission over the past seven years.”
Arlington Thrive provides direct, emergency financial assistance to eligible residents to pay for unexpected medical expenses, rent and utility payments, “and other crippling expenses,” according to the website. Originally a faith-based nonprofit addressing community needs, the nearly 50-year-old organization rebranded in 2013 as Arlington Thrive to “embrace our vision of progress, which includes all Arlingtonians regardless of creed.”
When the pandemic hit, requests jumped seven times over requests made in 2019, and the nonprofit worked with Arlington County and many other nonprofits to ensure people weren’t evicted and had food on the table. Schneider said Thrive served thousands of families during the pandemic and managed more than $10 million in eviction prevention assistance.
Beyond pandemic-era assistance, under Schneider’s leadership, the organization transitioned went from being a volunteer effort to a nearly all-virtual, “technology-forward operation,” and launched two initiatives, one focused on child care and another on bringing together local clergy of all creeds, community leaders and nonprofit staff to address community needs, per his email. In addition, the nonprofit has worked with local nonprofit Arlington Community Foundation, elected officials and the Arlington County Department of Human Services to improve the safety net for vulnerable residents.
Reflecting on his tenure, he told ARLnow in a statement that everything he set out to do as has been accomplished.
“Now seemed like the right time for me to step back,” he said. “We have a terrific team and committed board in place, with systems that were battle-tested through the pandemic and are now ready for whatever may come next. When I considered my personal situation, with two children approaching high school graduation, my long-term career goals, and the fact that leading Thrive has been an all-consuming and exhausting task, especially since March 2020, I realized it was time to move on.”
Despite all those efforts, he says two fundamental issues hold Arlington back.
“First, many low-income families, despite the safety net’s best efforts, struggle to remain in Arlington,” he said. “Costs for housing and childcare are very high, and access to affordable housing is limited, dwindling, and difficult to obtain. Secondly, there are remaining structural issues related to inequity and injustice which we are working to address. We are fortunate to have a strong network of nonprofits and faith-based organizations in Arlington who are committed to working together to ensure that Arlington remains a diverse community where all neighbors can thrive.”
But Schneider says he has confidence in the interim CEO, Susan Cunningham, as well as Thrive’s Board and its strategic framework to move the organization forward and select a new leader. Cunningham recently served as the interim CEO of affordable housing nonprofit AHC, Inc., steering the ship after Walter Webdale retired amid reports of poor conditions and maintenance at its Serrano Apartments complex on Columbia Pike.
“Susan brings extensive experience leading nonprofits and community organizations,” the outgoing executive director said in his email. “She is already working closely with us to ensure a smooth transition.”
Arlington police car at night (file photo courtesy Kevin Wolf)
The Arlington County Police Department is warning residents about a rise in car thefts.
Numerous instances of vehicle thefts have been reported recently in Arlington. It’s part of a nationwide trend, which ACPD attributes — at least in part — to “videos on how to steal certain makes and models… circulated widely on social media sites.”
The targeted vehicles are largely “Hyundai and Kia models made between 2011-2022 which do not have push-button starts and use a traditional turn-key ignition.”
Amid the rise in thefts, ACPD says officers arrested four D.C. and Maryland residents last month after they were seen standing around four stolen vehicles in the Virginia Highlands Park parking lot near Pentagon City. The four range in age from 18 to 20, and are now facing charges including Grand Larceny of a Motor Vehicle, Possession of Burglarious Tools, Unauthorized Use of a Vehicle and Receiving Stolen Goods.
The aftermath of the arrests, which also followed a foot pursuit, was documented at the time on social media.
(1) @ArlingtonVaPD had a lot of action in Pentagon City yesterday. These were some of the people #police report they ran after when staking out multiple stolen cars in a parking lot. Arrests were made around 8:30 pm. (more) @CartChaos22202pic.twitter.com/flld9i0uzZ
In December, officers arrested and charged four individuals after recovering stolen vehicles which had their steering columns damaged in order to bypass the ignition. These arrests follow a rise in vehicle thefts reported in communities across the country after videos on how to steal certain makes and models have circulated widely on social media sites. The Arlington County Police Department is sharing information regarding these thefts and steps motorists can take to help protect their property.
At approximately 7:29 p.m. on December 19, police received an alert for a stolen vehicle and located it parked and unoccupied in the 1600 block of S. Hayes Street. During the course of the investigation, officers determined three additional vehicles in the parking lot were also reported stolen. Officers approached a group as they returned to the vehicles and the group ran. A foot pursuit was initiated and officers detained six individuals. Based on the investigation, four of the individuals were arrested and charged. […]
A fallen face mask, lost to the cold, wet sidewalk (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
APS Attendance Notification Change — “Beginning Tue, Jan. 17, we are modifying our attendance notification process. The changes will allow families to receive earlier and more frequent, real-time notice if their student has an unverified absence from school and/or has missed a specific class period.” [Arlington Public Schools]
Ranked Choice for School Board? — “Legislation introduced in Richmond would allow localities like Arlington to hold School Board general elections using a ranked-choice method in place of the existing winner-take-all process.” [Sun Gazette]
Legislators Select Circuit Court Judge — “The seven members of the Arlington delegation to the General Assembly have made their choice for Arlington’s next Circuit Court judge. Now they have to convince their 133 colleagues in Richmond to support him. Members of the delegation (three senators, four delegates) have announced their intention to support Daniel T.C. Lopez, currently chief judge of the General District Court, to succeed Circuit Court Judge William Newman Jr. upon the latter’s retirement later this year.” [Sun Gazette]
Eyes of Nation on DCA — CNBC’s Carl Quintanilla, in response to a photo of numerous TV cameras in a Reagan National Airport terminal during yesterday morning’s FAA system meltdown: “On the list of Most Recognizable Airport Gates, gotta be in the top 5, no?” [Twitter]
W-L Gymnasts Win Meet — “Led by Mara Gerardi’s second in the all-around with a 35.325 total score, the Washington-Liberty Generals won a recent girls gymnastics meet with a team score of 137.275.” [Sun Gazette]
YHS Boys Keep Winning on the Court — “The Yorktown Patriots (10-2, 3-0) continued their strong boys basketball season by winning two Liberty District games in recent days and were in a first-place tie in the league with the Marshall Statesmen.” [Sun Gazette]
Falls Church Identify Stabbing Suspect — “City of Falls Church Police have issued a warrant for the arrest of Gian Vi Nguyen, age 44, in connection with a non-fatal stabbing on January 5, 2023, in the 6700 block of Wilson Blvd. Photos of Nguyen are below. He is believed to be a resident of Maryland.” [City of Falls Church]
It’s Thursday — Rain in the evening and overnight. High of 63 and low of 41. Sunrise at 7:27 am and sunset at 5:08 pm. [Weather.gov]
Progress on reconstruction of the Washington Blvd and 13th Street N. intersection (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
The design plan for Washington Blvd and 13th Street N. (via Arlington County)
Washington Blvd and 13th Street N. (map via Google Maps)
Washington Blvd and 13th Street N. improvements area (via Arlington County)
The “porkchop” at the intersection of Washington Blvd and 13th Street N. (Image via Google Maps)
Recommended reconfiguration of Washington Blvd, imposed over existing conditions, in the 2015 traffic study for the Red Top Cab properties site plan (via Arlington County)
Progress on reconstruction of the Washington Blvd and 13th Street N. intersection (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Arlington County is nearing the end of project to overhaul of the intersection of Washington Blvd and 13th Street N., near Clarendon.
The redesigned intersection will have two lanes of travel in each direction, while the new 13th Street N. will make a “T” with the new Washington Blvd.
“The benefits of the wider sidewalks and utilities moved underground are a better pedestrian experience for current and future residents, and a more streamlined traffic pattern for vehicles,” Dept. of Environmental Services spokeswoman Claudia Pors said.
Previously, Washington Blvd surrounded a triangular patch of grass and dirt bordered by sidewalks — which county documents have described as a “diverter island” or “porkchop” — on all three sides. Drivers had to navigate around the island to either continue onto Washington Blvd or turn onto 13th Street N.
A busy stretch of Washington Boulevard in Clarendon has been put on the straight and narrow. Find out what happened to some quirky old reversible lanes and a traffic island, then meet a new "T" intersection. https://t.co/bNYpJUuKifpic.twitter.com/FNDXflDiuO
— Arlington Department of Environmental Services (@ArlingtonDES) January 10, 2023
When this stretch of Washington Blvd was first identified for changes in the 2014 Clarendon Sector Plan, it also had a reversible travel lane between 13th Street N. and Wilson Blvd.
This pattern appears to have been removed a few years before the construction on the new “T” intersection began in 2021, according to Google Maps street views from prior years.
The old reversible travel lanes along Washington Blvd between 13th Street N. and Wilson Blvd (courtesy of Arlington County)
The Arlington County Board approved a contract to Sagres Construction Corporation to undertake the streetscape improvements and utility undergrounding in February 2021. Work started that spring and is expected to last 18-24 months.
“The project is still under construction and is expected to be completed this spring,” Pors said. “There’s still work to be done on signals, curb and gutter, milling and paving and landscaping.”
As part of the project, the work provided public open green space with seating and trees for a future park at the intersection, Pors said. The park will be at the northwest corner of the intersection, south of a reconfigured N. Johnson Street.
The site of the proposed open space at the intersection of Washington Blvd and 13th Street N. near Clarendon (via Arlington County)
The project will also deliver wider sidewalks and improved pedestrian crossings, underground utilities, new traffic signals, street lights and street trees. It costs an estimated $6.4 million, from local commercial and industrial taxes earmarked for transportation and developer contributions.
The 2014 Clarendon Sector Plan called for these changes, which were then incorporated into the Red Top Cab properties redevelopment. The County Board approved this redevelopment in 2015, and the first phase was completed in the spring of 2021. Construction on the second phase began in January 2022.
The second phase, at the corner of Washington Blvd and 13th Street N., is comprised of a multifamily building with 269 homes.
The Arlington National Cemetery Defense Access Roads Project, set to be completed in 2025 (image via screenshot/FHWA)
(Updated at 12:40 p.m. on 8/16/23) A portion of Columbia Pike is set to close for more than a year later this month to help make way for Arlington National Cemetery’s expansion.
The half-mile section of Columbia Pike between S. Joyce Street and the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) facility just east of S. Oak Street is expected to be shuttered starting Monday, Jan. 23.
This will add about 80,000 burial sites, allowing the cemetery to continue burials through the 2050s. The expansion will also bring the Air Force Memorial within cemetery grounds as well as provide space for the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial Visitor Education Center, with construction on that currently slated to start next year.
The overall expansion project remains on track to be completed by 2027, an ANC spokesperson confirmed to ARLnow.
Some detour specifics for the Pike closure are expected to be announced in the coming days, though the ANC spokesperson did share the general plan via email.
Traffic will be redirected to travel north on a new segment of S. Nash Street that will be opened between Columbia Pike and Southgate Road and one block east of S. Oak Street. It’s marked as a “new access road” on the map below.
The new road layout circumventing the closed portion of Columbia Pike over the next year (map via Arlington National Cemetery)
Then, to circumvent the closed portion of the Pike, traffic will be sent east on Southgate Road to the existing S. Joyce Street/Columbia Pike intersection, which will remain open.
For pedestrians and cyclists, there is set to be a “dedicated” sidewalk with a buffer zone and barricades. Those “are currently being constructed in anticipation of the 1/23 closure,” the ANC spokesperson said
At the moment, there is an established pedestrian and bike detour along the north side of Southgate Road as well as a temporary sidewalk to the east of S. Joyce Street that connects with the sidewalk under the I-395 bridge.
Vehicle, pedestrian, and bike detours along Columbia Pike through Jan. 23 (via Arlington County)
Last week, though, a reader reached out to ARLnow about how a portion of the pedestrian and bike detour has a “large patch of gravel” rendering it not accessible for some.
“While a wheelchair user might be able to make it across that patch, it wouldn’t be easy,” they wrote. The reader said that locals have reached out to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) about the gravel but, so far, little has been done.
Local officials told ARLnow that they have since addressed that patch of gravel.
The first phase of Amazon’s HQ2, dubbed Metropolitan Park, in Pentagon City on Jan. 10, 2023 (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction activity continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
The first phase of Amazon’s HQ2, dubbed Metropolitan Park, in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Streetscape work near Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Construction continues at Amazon’s HQ2 in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Three years ago this month, Amazon started setting the stage for construction of the first phase of its second headquarters.
Since then, construction work has continued on-pace, with banners across the Pentagon City site, located at the corner of 13th Street S. and S. Eads Street, heralding a 2023 arrival.
Now that 2023 is here, an Amazon spokeswoman says work on the Metropolitan Park or “Met Park” phase of HQ2 — comprised of two office towers and a $14 million public park renovation — will wrap up in time to open this summer.
“Construction is well underway and nearing completion at Met Park,” says Hayley Richard. “We’re excited to open Met Park and start welcoming employees, neighbors, and visitors to our offices and public park spaces this summer. We will share a formal date and more updates in the coming months.”
In this phase, a block of warehouses were torn down and two LEED Platinum towers totalling 2.1 million square feet are being built in its place.
“Inside both towers, crews are working their way up the building installing signage, furniture, and floor paint,” Clark Construction said in an email last week.
Nearby, Amazon is also turning a large patch of grass south of 12th Street S. into a park with lush, meandering paths, dog areas and public art. The art installation — “Queen City” by Nekisha Durrett — pays tribute to the former Black community by the same name, which was located nearby before it was razed by the federal government to make way for the Pentagon. The structure’s reclaimed brick façade will highlight the area’s past as a hub for brick production.
“We have started placing exterior brick on the Nekisha art sculpture, and have added fencing and lighting around the daycare center, and begun laying stone pathways,” said Clark Construction, which also filmed a tour of the under-construction park.
The number of current HQ2 employees working from home or from leased office space in Crystal City remains somewhere above the 5,000 mark. In September this year, the tech company told ARLnow that it had assigned more than 5,000 employees to HQ2, after it was first announced in April that it had hired its 5,000th HQ2 employee. Some 28 jobs are currently posted on its job board for Arlington.
That puts Amazon one-fifth of its way toward its promise to bring 25,000 jobs to its second headquarters, in divisions ranging from web services to retail to Alexa.
Amazon and other tech companies such as ride-sharing platform Lyft are seeing their upward trajectory falter after years of accelerated growth during the pandemic. Like other companies, Amazon intends to lay off workers and pare back on spending. Some 18,000 employees could be let go in a cost-cutting effort targeting its corporate ranks, human resources, Alexa and retail.
When asked if these economic conditions were impacting hiring at HQ2, Richard demurred.
“Regarding your other questions, while I don’t have anything to share on that story, what I can tell you is that our long-term intention and commitment to the communities where we have a presence, like HQ2, remains unchanged,” she said.
