County Board

Neighbors ask county to reconsider dense residential development planned for Pentagon City

By Jo DeVoe
RiverHouse in Pentagon City at sunset (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

A group of neighbors is calling on the county to take a moderate approach to residential redevelopment in the shadow of Amazon’s HQ2.

Next month, on Tuesday, Feb. 22, the Arlington County Board is poised to consider adopting a new planning document that lays out a vision for the next 30-plus years of growth in the Pentagon City neighborhood. The plan calls for a significant amount of redevelopment and infill development, mostly residential, more green spaces and new “biophilic” walking and biking paths.

The Pentagon City Planning Study draft was created because Amazon’s arrival exhausted nearly all the development envisioned in the 45-year-old plan currently guiding the neighborhood’s growth.

One significant source of near-term infill development would be at RiverHouse apartment complex on S. Joyce Street. Its owner, once Vornado and now JBG Smith, has long eyed redeveloping its surface parking lots and open spaces. The document recommends no more than 150 units per acre on the 36-acre site, which currently has a ratio of 49 units per acre.

That’s excessive for a complex with 1,670 units already, according to members of “RiverHouse Neighbors for Sensible Density.” The group and an associated movement, “Dense That Makes Sense,” are made of nearby residents who say a lack of community engagement has allowed the draft to move forward that recommends adding too many units to RiverHouse, among other concerns.

Pentagon City Planning Study Area (via Arlington County)

“RNSD is especially concerned about the Plan’s proposal for developer JBG Smith’s property, RiverHouse — already the fourth largest apartment complex in the Greater Washington, D.C. area,” the group said in a statement. “Because the Plan was developed without wide and diverse community representation, the Plan 1) does not represent a balanced community perspective, and 2) fails to articulate how it will deliver the community benefits it promises.”

Since August 2020, the county’s outreach has included interviewing stakeholders and property owners, asking the public to submit slides showing their vision of Pentagon City, and holding focus groups, five virtual public workshops, and a walking tour, said Erika Moore, a spokeswoman for the Department of Community Planning, Housing and Development.

They received 60 slides from community members on their vision, and 146 responses on an online engagement after a virtual open house, she told ARLnow. County staff also met with several county commissions, committees and civic associations as the plan was being drafted. In addition to emails and newsletters, she said there have been signs sharing information on the plan in public spaces.

“The population growth scenarios in the draft plan are not requirements for development,” Moore said. “The scenarios were developed to analyze implications for population growth, transportation, urban design, economic development, and other factors.”

This is not a new concern. Neighbors pushed back against JBG Smith’s 2019 proposal to add 1,000 units to the site (for a density of 72 units per acre) and at the time, some Arlington County officials and planners were also skeptical of the plan. Now, the new plan’s upward limit of 150 units per acre has some Dense That Makes Sense members longing for JBG Smith’s initial plans.

With seven weeks until the County Board is set to vote, the group is urging the Board to pause the plan.

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Morning Notes

By Brandi Bottalico
Some remaining snow on a Courthouse sidewalk (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

DCA Has One of TSA’s ‘Top 10 Catches’ of 2021 — “On March 6, 2021, TSA officers at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) stopped a traveler carrying a well-worn, heavy-duty, wooden-handled machete. Officers noted the blade showed significant wear, as if it had seen a lot of use.” [Patch]

Arlington Apartment Rentals Rebound — “After falling 13 percent in 2020 as the pandemic roared in, median apartment rents in Arlington were up a tidy 16.8 percent in 2021, according to new data, leaving renters paying more now than they did before the COVID crisis started.” [Sun Gazette]

Hundreds Use SoberRide Over Holidays — “While the count was impacted by the ongoing pandemic, 461 individuals in the Washington region availed themselves of a SoberRide free ride home during the holiday period, the sponsoring organization said on Jan. 6.” [Sun Gazette]

State Police Give Arlington Company Kudos — “The state police said a trooper waved a group of men from CG Remodeling Services of Arlington driving by to ask for a shovel, and instead ‘they all jumped out of their trucks and dug the motorist out in minutes and got them safely on their way again.'” [WJLA]

County Board Names Commission Leaders — The delegations to the advisory boards, which range from groups on transportation to housing to economic development, will run through the end of 2022. [Sun Gazette]

It’s Tuesday — Today will be sunny, with a high near 28. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph. Sunrise at 7:26 a.m. and sunset at 5:06 p.m. Tomorrow will be sunny and a bit warmer, with a high near 43 and south wind 7 to 11 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. [Weather.gov]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Wednesday’s sunset in Westover (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

County Covid Testing Booth Still Closed — From Arlington County: “The @curative #COVID19 testing kiosk at Arlington Mill Community Center will be closed tomorrow, Jan 6, due to COVID-related staffing shortages. The kiosks at Court House Plaza and Virginia Highlands Park are scheduled to open at 9 AM. Thank you for your flexibility.” [Twitter]

APS Orders Tests for All Students, Staff — “We have ordered a supply of KN95 masks, particulate filters for an APS provided mask, and at-home rapid antigen test kits for every staff member and student. Supplies for these items are limited but we anticipate them soon and will send additional communication when available.” [Arlington Public Schools]

APS Custodians Clear School Sidewalks — From Arlington Public Schools yesterday afternoon, before the announcement that today would be another snow day: “Thank you custodians and grounds staff for clearing our walkways, roadways and buses to ensure a safe return to school!” [Twitter]

Flight Cancellations at National Airport — From NBC 4’s Adam Tuss yesterday: “MAJOR problems at @Reagan_Airport right now as flight cancellations and delays have piled up. One traveler just told me their flight was cancelled 5 times over 3 days. Airlines tell me there are staffing issues and the winter weather didn’t help. This is a SIGHT!” [Twitter]

Florida Men Stopped With Guns at DCA — “During a search of a Florida man’s carry-on bag on Dec. 28, TSA officers using an X-ray machine discovered an unloaded .40 caliber handgun and 116 bullets. On Saturday, TSA officers stopped another man at a DCA checkpoint with a .40 caliber handgun loaded with six bullets. In both unrelated cases, TSA officers alerted the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority police, who arrested the men and confiscated the guns an ammunition.” [Patch]

No County Board Tie-Breaker This Year — “State law allows the Arlington board to appoint a tie-breaker from within the ranks of the public. It also requires that, if the board does not want to do so, it must hold a vote to that effect at the start of each year. Board members dutifully voted down a tie-breaker at their Jan. 4 organizational meeting, which had been delayed a day due to inclement weather.” [Sun Gazette]

Photos of Aftermath of GW Parkway Crash — “#DCsBravest Fireboats assisted @ArlingtonVaFD as they conducted an extremely difficult rescue of a victim trapped in a car 70 feet down a cliff. Our Fireboat returned in daylight to retrieve gear and check vehicle stability. Photos show how challenging this rescue was.” [Twitter, Twitter, Patch]

It’s Thursday — Today will be partly sunny, with a high near 39. Sunrise at 7:27 a.m. and sunset at 5:01 p.m. Snow tonight and overnight, 2-4 inches of accumulation. After the snow, Friday will be sunny and breezy, with a high near 32. West wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. [Weather.gov]

Arlington County Board elects Cristol as chair, Dorsey as vice chair

By Jo DeVoe
County Board Chair Katie Cristol (via Arlington County)

Members of the Arlington County Board say they have their work cut out for them in 2022.

They were unanimous in their chief priorities for the new year — COVID-19, housing, climate change and equity — just as they were unanimous in choosing a new board chair, Katie Cristol, and a new vice chair, Christian Dorsey.

These aims and others need to be tackled with a budget that, despite being impacted by high office vacancy rates, must put the wages of county employees first, they said.

“By no means is this pandemic over, but since it’s clear that COVID-19 will be providing us no respite for reflection, we will have to make our own,” Cristol said in her opening speech as chair. “Given the uncertainty of our commercial revenues, let me be clear: These commitments almost certainly mean less funding available for implementing new priorities or programs, but after two pandemic years, it is time to put our money where our ‘Thank you essential workers!’ window signs are.”

She celebrated the county’s high vaccination rates as a sign that Arlington will get through the pandemic, and the newest wave of cases fueled by the Omicron variant, together.

“[E]ven in this peak, our hospitalizations numbers remain in the very low single digits, and if we keep getting vaccinated, getting boosted, masking and demonstrating responsibility to one another, we will get through this — not as fast as we had all hoped, nor with the finality with which we all long for — but we will,” she said.

Dorsey likewise expressed his confidence Arlington will come out on the other side of the pandemic as a stronger county.

“I am not going to predict when we get to our new normal or even what our new normal will be, but I am certain and quite confident that if we rely on the resilience that has been honed during the pandemic and remain focused on achieving our goals for sustainability, housing our community and achieving racial equity, we will emerge on the other side both better and stronger,” he said.

Cristol will pick up her chief priority — child care — where she left off when she was last the Board’s leader in 2018.

“This pandemic has exposed what we’ve always known to be true: Our country is a hard place to raise children,” she said. “Arlington alone can’t fix all the obstacles facing families, but we can continue to make progress on our own vision, which is that all Arlington County families have access to high quality, affordable childcare.”

This year, she said, the county will focus on increasing the number of child care providers and eligible families who participate in Virginia’s child care subsidy program and providing child care during non-traditional hours.

2022 will be a big year for working toward Arlington’s energy goals for 2025, 2035 and 2050, Dorsey said. Arlington aims to be carbon-neutral by 2050.

“I propose we prioritize taking every practical opportunity through our budget work this year to de-intensify carbon use in our government operations, and as we look to develop our capital improvements plan, we should plan to utilize sustainable products and systems — even if they are not quite practical today. Let’s envision and dare to dream for when it might be,” he said.

And on the eve of the one-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 insurrection, Board members Libby Garvey and Takis Karantonis were thinking about the state of the nation’s democracy. Garvey said she will encourage civil discourse as much as she can in 2022.

“There are lots of angry people in this country and they have guns,” Garvey said. “We here are relatively sheltered, but some of those who attacked the [U.S. Capitol building] stayed in Arlington and many drove through Arlington on their way to the Capitol. The danger to our democracy is not a local issue but it is a local threat. I am not sure what we should do about it, but I do know that we and the entire region need to stay close and keep our public safety systems strong and nimble.”

NEW: County Board meeting rescheduled due to snow

By ARLnow.com

The County Board meeting scheduled for tonight is being delayed by one day.

The Board’s annual new year organizational meeting serves mostly as the appointment of a new chair and vice chair, and an opportunity for members to give speeches about their goals for the year ahead.

The meeting has been rescheduled “due to inclement weather.” It’s now set to be held Tuesday night, along with a scheduled meeting with the Arlington Civic Federation.

“The Organizational Meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 4, 2022 at 6:00pm, followed by the Meeting with the Arlington Civic Federation,” the county announced Monday morning.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
A December sunset along Columbia Pike, at the Arlington Cinema Drafthouse (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

First County Board Meeting of 2022 — “Arlington County Board members will hold their annual organizational meeting on Monday, Jan. 3 at 6 p.m… At the meeting, board members will elect a chair for the coming year (almost assuredly Katie Cristol) and will lay out their own personal priorities for the coming year. A number of procedural votes will be held, but the real business of governance will not take place until the board’s formal January meeting later in the month.” [Sun Gazette]

Bridge Project Near Fairlington Complete — “The rehabilitation of the King Street (Route 7) bridge over I-395 and pedestrian improvements along a half-mile of King Street are complete, Virginia Department of Transportation officials said on Dec. 22, improving pedestrian mobility and safety, giving drivers a smoother ride and extending the overall life of the bridge. The $13 million project was financed with federal and state funding.” [Sun Gazette]

It’s Monday — A chance of rain and snow flurries before 9 a.m. today, then rain likely through the afternoon. Otherwise cloudy, with a high near 44. Sunrise at 7:26 a.m. and sunset at 4:53 p.m. Tomorrow there’s a chance of rain after 1 p.m., but otherwise it will be cloudy with a low of 41 and a high of 52. [Weather.gov]

What we know about the county’s $150 million loan to preserve affordable housing on the Pike

By Jo DeVoe
The Barcroft Apartments, a 1,334-unit, market-affordable apartment complex along Columbia Pike (via Google Maps)

Arlington County is loaning $150 million to a D.C.-based real estate company buying the Barcroft Apartments along Columbia Pike.

This move — approved Tuesday — is an unusual one, but Arlington County says it did what was necessary in a short amount of time to support the sale to Jair Lynch Real Estate Partners. The company has agreed to keep the property — Arlington’s largest market-rate affordable apartment complex — as committed affordable housing for 99 years.

This includes 612 two-bedroom and 47 three-bedroom committed affordable units, with larger affordable units in short supply in Arlington.

Amazon is also chipping in $160 million to pay for the acquisition of the property at 1130 S. George Mason Drive.

Here’s what else we know about the project.

It’s a big deal.

The last time the county secured a line of credit for a large affordable housing project was in 2007, when it acquired Buckingham Village 3, an apartment building in the Buckingham neighborhood near Ballston.

“Line of credit financing is typically sought when there is an immediate need and when long-term bonds would not be appropriate or possible to issue in the required timeframe,” Erika Moore, a spokeswoman for the Department of Community Planning, Housing and Development, tells ARLnow. “It is a strategy the County uses sparingly and only for short-term types of obligations.”

In addition, Arlington has policies on the books ensuring government operations don’t rely too heavily on this financing. According to that policy, only 20% of the county’s debt can be made up of credit lines and variable-rate debt.

The apartments need some work. 

“Based on preliminary due diligence, staff anticipates units at Barcroft Apartments will need substantial rehabilitation and/or redevelopment,” a county report says. “It is initially planned that phasing for the rehabilitation/redevelopment of the site will be completed over the next ten years, and the majority of the affordable housing units that are renovated or redeveloped may utilize Low Income Housing Tax Credits.”

Jair Lynch told the County Board during its recessed meeting Tuesday that a majority of units will be renovated and “a selection” of vacant units will be demolished and reconstructed.

The company envisions adding free WiFi in common areas, a clubroom, a co-working space, fitness spaces, outdoor grills, improved bike storage and a package room with Amazon lockers.

A forthcoming “Master Financing and Development Plan” will have more details on the timeline for redevelopment, what immediate repairs are needed and how they’ll be paid for.

Moore deferred to Jair Lynch as to what work is needed. Jair Lynch tells ARLnow it can’t say anything beyond what was shared Tuesday.

“Regarding your inquiry, due to the confidential nature of this ongoing transaction, we are unable to provide additional information beyond what has been shared publicly by Arlington County Government at this time,” a spokeswoman said. “We’ll be happy to share more information regarding our involvement on this matter after the sale has been finalized.”

Jair Lynch will likely add some market-rate residential units to the expansive, 60-acre property, the county says.

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County to temporarily relocate some ART bus operations to Va. Square property

By Jo DeVoe
1/6

(Updated 2:15 p.m.) The county has crystallized plans for temporarily storing and dispatching Arlington Transit (ART) buses near Washington-Liberty High School while a new bus facility in Green Valley is built.

Nearly 30 ART buses will come and go from the site, on the 1400 block of N. Quincy Street, where the county currently parks some fire and police vehicles, as well as a portion of the Arlington Public Schools vehicle fleet. The site also has warehouse storage for Covid-related supplies and serves as the drop-off center for E-CARE recycling events.

In 2015, the county agreed to pay $30 million to acquire the six-acre property, which is across from W-L to the west, I-66 to the north and houses to the south and east.

Meanwhile, construction on the Shirlington Road facility in Green Valley — intended to address the need for more space to park and maintain Arlington’s growing fleet of ART buses — is expected to start in the summer of 2022, Department of Environmental Services Director Greg Emanuel told the County Board during its recessed meeting yesterday (Tuesday). The county bought that site, along the 2600 block of Shirlington Road, for $24 million in 2018.

Ahead of construction, DES says it has to move 41 buses, including 12 to a bus site on S. Eads Street, which opened in 2017 near Crystal City. The other 29 are going to the N. Quincy Street site because it’s the only available and affordable site zoned for vehicle storage, Emanuel says.

Buses will be parked at and dispatched from the N. Quincy Street site on weekdays, with a majority of movement happening between 5 a.m. and midnight, he said. Weekend operations will be run out of the Crystal City facility.

Although the facility neighbors the high school, DES says traffic related to school pickup and drop-off should not pose a problem.

“We don’t anticipate conflict with W-L traffic across the street because the peaks are outside the normal peaks here,” Emanuel said.

Expected activity for the temporary bus facility on N. Quincy Street (via Arlington County)

Still, the news is not exactly welcome among some neighbors, who told the County Board and county staff their concerns about noise during quiet hours, as well as how this decision was communicated. Residents previously opposed the relocation of APS bus parking to the Virginia Square site, also known as the Buck site.

Board members indicated support for the temporarily relocation but said they were sensitive to residents’ concerns.

A noise study conducted earlier this year concluded that the new bus activity will increase noise levels upwards of three decibels, with overall noise “still in the comfortable range,” Emanuel says. Currently, a row of trees lines the southern edge of the property, but additional noise mitigation measures are a possibility down the road.

Arlington County Board Vice-Chair Katie Cristol said the county needs to make long-range plans for building attractive, landscaped noise buffers, as the site will continue to support other “back-of-house functions” for northern parts of Arlington.

Amazon and Arlington County to finance purchase of Columbia Pike apartment complex

By Jo DeVoe
The Barcroft Apartments, a 1,334-unit, market-affordable apartment complex along Columbia Pike (via Google Maps)

Arlington County and Amazon intend to loan hundreds of millions of dollars to an unnamed affordable housing provider to purchase a Columbia Pike apartment complex.

The Barcroft Apartments, at 1130 S. George Mason Drive, is the largest market-rate-affordable apartment community in Arlington, and county officials say they have to act quickly to ensure it stays affordable for current residents.

The sale is set to be finalized before the end of the month. On Tuesday, Arlington County Board members are slated to review the proposed 35-year, $150 million loan agreement. The unnamed buyer and Amazon representatives will be present.

If Board members approve the agreement, the Barcroft Apartments will remain affordable to residents earning up to 60% of the area median income — or $77,400 for a family of four — for 99 years.

“This is really a once-in-a-generation opportunity for our community to preserve the largest neighborhood of affordable housing units in the county for the next century,” said County Manager Mark Schwartz during Saturday’s County Board meeting. “We’re excited to be a part of this effort at Barcroft and to be working to ensure that the current residents will be able to stay in their homes and have safe and affordable housing for the foreseeable future.”

More than 1,330 units, built between 1939 and 1953, make up the 60-acre Barcroft Apartments complex, Schwartz said. These units have remained affordable to families earning up to 60% of the area median income without local, state or federal affordability or income requirements.

The buyer has said it does not plan to turn out current residents after the sale. It will also pledge to not raise rents for current residents for at least a year, Schwartz said. After that, rent will increase by no more than 3% per year up to 60% of area median income levels.

The new owners “are interested in making additional investments in the property, adding amenities, making property upgrades and taking other steps to improve residents’ overall living environment at Barcroft,” he said.

“This is the single biggest step we can take to preserve affordability in Arlington — certainly over the last five years and perhaps over the next decade,” County Board Chair Matt de Ferranti said.

It is also a swift move for county government, says Vice-Chair Katie Cristol.

“This is unconventional for the county to act as quickly, and for the Board to act as quickly, as we have, but the future of so many of our valued neighbors in those 1,300-plus units are very much at stake and require quick action,” she said.

The news will be well-received among residents, who have been renting month-to-month “without knowing what’s happening next” while this process has unfolded, says County Board member Takis Karantonis.

“They should also know that they’re part of any visioning of Barcroft going ahead,” he said. “This is not happening without them — this is just the beginning of involving them.”

Amazon’s contribution comes after it purchased and donated land to Arlington to develop additional affordable housing in several parts of the county. The tech company previously launched a $2 billion Housing Equity Fund to create and preserve affordable housing in its three primary footholds — the Seattle area, Nashville and Arlington — amid concerns that its presence will displace low-income residents.

Arlington County took a similar, smaller-scale step about 14 years ago, when it struck a deal with a housing developer to preserve affordable housing in the Buckingham neighborhood, near Ballston.

The county purchased one complex — built at the same time as the Barcroft Apartments — for $32 million, preserving 140 units as affordable to those earning 60% or less of the area’s median income. It also ensured that two complexes kept below-market-rate apartments after being redeveloped.

Plan for Pentagon City growth after Amazon’s arrival heads to County Board

By Jo DeVoe
1/5

A draft document poised to one day shape development in Pentagon City could be up for Arlington County Board consideration in February.

The document, known as the Pentagon City Sector Plan, culminates a year-plus study of the 116-acre area and the county policies governing its growth. It would replace a 45-year-old document that reached the end of its life in the shadow of Amazon’s under-construction second headquarters.

This Saturday, the Arlington County Board is slated to set a public hearing for Feb. 22, 2022 to hear comments on and consider adopting the plan. It envisions Pentagon City as a greener, more urban and less car-centric neighborhood and outlines what new county facilities will be needed to support a growing population.

“The new Pentagon City Sector Plan contains a new vision for a dynamic downtown and neighborhood where everyone is welcome and able to live regardless of race, income, age, and immigration status,” per a county report.

“Emphasis on strengthening the entire 22202 (zip code) community through diverse housing options, multi-modal transportation improvements, and embracing biophilic design are intended to guide future development and policymaking in Pentagon City,” it continues.

In February, the County Board will also consider a number of amendments to zoning ordinances and land use and transportation plans that county staff say are needed to implement the sector plan.

Pentagon City Planning Study Area (via Arlington County)

Amazon’s 2018 decision to build in Arlington not only prompted the planning effort, it also provoked concerns among residents about how the county will manage future growth and any potential strain on county facilities.

Those concerns — especially about stalled plans to add nearly 1,000 units to the RiverHouse Apartments on the neighborhood’s western side —  have remained throughout the planning process and resurfaced this fall.

“Ongoing community concerns relate to the character and quantity of envisioned open space and guidance with respect to future public facility needs in and density levels at the RiverHouse site,” per the county report.

The plan lists other proposed projects in the pipeline through 2041, if developers come through. These include: the Transportation Security Administration headquarters, infill development at Fashion Centre at Pentagon City mall, an additional Regency Care rehabilitation center building, infill development at Westpost (formerly Pentagon Row), and the Drug Enforcement Agency site.

Mentioned as having “long-term potential” for redevelopment are the entire Fashion Centre site and the Costco site across from the mall.

In response to the concerns of residents, county staff added information about how they will address potential strains on county facilities, including potentially adding a fire station and an elementary school, the county report said.

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County Board to consider speed cameras near schools

By Jo DeVoe

Arlington County could start cracking down on speeding near schools and highway work zones with newly-allowed speed cameras.

This weekend, the Arlington County Board is scheduled to set a public hearing for its Jan. 22 meeting on the question of whether to install speed cameras.

Currently, Arlington County only has cameras that capture red-light violations, but in 2020 the Virginia General Assembly allowed localities to install radar-based speed detectors around school crossing zones and highway work zones. Now, the county is poised to consider adding 10 movable cameras to these zones.

Cameras will improve street safety and make enforcement more equitable while reducing public interactions with police officers, according to a county staff report.

“Automated speed enforcement will significantly advance Arlington County’s transportation safety and equity initiatives as stated through the Vision Zero Action Plan and Police Practices Group Recommendations and leads to considerable reductions in speeding, crashes resulting in injuries, and total crashes — thereby making roadways safer for all users,” the report said.

“Automated speed enforcement also reduces unnecessary interactions between residents and police and further advances confidence in equitable outcomes by reducing or eliminating the possibility of race-and ethnicity-based disparities in traffic enforcement,” the report continues.

State code requires that localities post signs informing drivers of speed cameras and sets the threshold for enforcement at more than 10 mph over the speed limit. Fines cannot exceed $100, and speeding violations do not add points on a driver’s license nor are they considered for insurance purposes, per the state code.

Arlington is proposing a $50 fine for violations. It would match the current $50 fine for red-light violations captured by red-light cameras and fulfill a recommendation from the county’s Police Practices Group, according to the county report.

The group initially recommended calculating fines based on the speeding driver’s income and fixed expenses, the county report said. Since state law doesn’t currently allow such a sliding scale, the group suggested a lower fine and 30-day grace period after cameras are installed.

Before installing the cameras, Arlington County will focus conduct “a robust educational plan,” per the report.

“This plan will include significant outreach across the County to ensure a broad range of residents with different experiences and backgrounds receive information on placement and implementation,” it said.

An unscientific ARLnow poll this summer found that respondents are divided on traffic enforcement: about one-third of respondents wanted to see more speed cameras, while 45% wanted more red light cameras and just over half did not want more enforcement from either type of camera..

Arlington will hire transportation safety consultants to develop guidelines for placing cameras in school zones, using a $60,000 grant from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments. Camera placement can change in response to data on speeding, citations, crashes and transportation volumes.

The police department estimates installing and maintaining 10 cameras, and hiring a full-time employee to manage the speed camera program, will cost about $600,000 a year, the report said. Arlington County expects fines to offset the ongoing costs of the program.

Last year, the County Board asked the state to expand the use of speed cameras beyond school and highway work zones.

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