Rosslyn

Rosslyn Food Hall Frenzy: Three To Open in A Two-Block Radius

By Kalina Newman

By the summer of 2020, a two-block radius in Rosslyn will be home to three food halls: Common Ground, Happy Endings Eatery, and an unnamed concept at the soon-to-be redeveloped Rosslyn City Center.

Common Ground and Happy Endings will both be a part of the Central Place complex at 1800 N. Lynn Street. Common Ground will be on the second floor of the residential building, while Happy Endings will be on a lower level near Nando’s and Bethesda Bagels. Happy Endings is hoping to open in late November, Eater reported this week.

A short walk away will be the third food hall at 1700 N. Moore Street.

It’s often said three makes a trend, and it’s no secret that greater D.C. has been flooded in recent years with food halls — a term which essentially refers to an upgraded food court primarily featuring local chefs and vendors. Arlington’s first food hall, Ballston Quarter, opened earlier this year and continues to add vendors.

Common Ground

Social Restaurant Group, the company behind Common Ground, is pushing back the food hall’s opening date for the third time to the spring or summer of 2020.

Originally, SRG co-founder Mike Bramson said he hoped it would open by the end of 2018, then told ARLnow they were pushing it to the “end of spring 2019.” Now, we’re told, construction will “officially break ground this fall.”

According to Bramson, Common Ground will feature ten food vendors and have one full-service bar. He confirmed “celebrity chef involvement,” and said that Rebel Taco, a taco food truck routinely at Clarendon’s The Lot beer garden, will be one of the ten vendors.

It will be located on the building’s second floor, “above the McDonald’s overlooking the plaza.”

Happy Endings Eatery

The two-level, 5,000 square-foot food hall with the double-entendre name is expected to open by the end of November, Eater reported.

Happy Endings Eatery is a project of Happy Endings Hospitality, the team behind Chasin’ Tails in East Falls Church and Lei’d Hawaiian Poke in Tysons Corner.

According to Eater, the entirety of Happy Endings Eatery will focus on Vietnamese food, with food stalls sporting names like Roll Play and Pho Play. Also offered: bubble tea, Vietnamese coffee, banh mi sandwiches, vermicelli bowls and more.

Rosslyn City Center food hall

A PR rep for Rosslyn City Center’s developer said there were no updates on the new food hall, which is still on track to open in the summer of 2020.

Oz Rey, an Austin, Texas-based “culinary experience company” is the team behind the incoming food hall, which is part of the $35 million renovation of the building above the Rosslyn Metro station.

While the food hall remains unnamed, it will feature twelve “artisanal food stalls and two lounges that extend onto an outdoor terrace overlooking the streetscape,” per a press release.

Once completed, the building will be renamed Rosslyn City Center, and will also include a 30,000 square foot Gold’s Gym.

Photo courtesy of American Real Estate Partners, Google Maps 

Six of the Top 10 Priciest Zip Codes for Va. Renters Are in Arlington

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County is home to six of the top 10 priciest zip codes for renters in Virginia in 2019, according to a new study.

The data from website RENTCafe lists Rosslyn’s 22209 area code as the priciest in the state, with an average monthly rent of $2,718, rising 4% year-over-year.

That’s followed by McLean’s 22102 zip code and Arlington’s 22201 zip code, which includes Clarendon and Courthouse. The average rent in 22201 was $2,420 per month, rising 5.4% year over year.

The Pentagon City and Crystal City area — the much-discussed 22202 zip code, home to Amazon’s future HQ2 — was No. 4 at a monthly average rent of $2,407. But the rate of rent increases there — 3.6% — was significantly outpaced by the No. 5 22203 zip code, which includes Ballston and rose 8% year-over-year to an average monthly rent of $2,403.

Rounding out the bottom half of the top 10 were the Reston Town Center area, residential North Arlington’s 22207 zip code, Old Town Alexandria, Falls Church, and Arlington’s 22206 zip code, which includes Shirlington and Fairlington.

H-B Woodlawn Students Foster Friendship With Office Dwellers Next Door Through Sticky Notes

By Kalina Newman
1/5

H-B Woodlawn students adjusting to life in their new school building, The Heights, have built a unique friendship with the office next door with a friendly message system crafted from Post-It Notes.

The sticky note dialogue began after workers in the building at 1600 Wilson Blvd put up a sign in their windows over the summer complaining about construction noise.

When the H-B Woodlawn students moved in for the new school year, a group of sophomore students decided to respond by sticking up a message that said “Hi.” Since then, it’s grown into a daily exchange with messages saying everything from, “How You Doin” to the office responding, “Want to Intern?”

Mary Plunkett, a student who started the messages with a group of her friends, reached out to ARLnow to share the exchange, noting it’s been a way to foster a sense of community as they adjust to the new building.

“The first day of sticky notes, we wrote ‘Hi’ this past Monday afternoon,” Plunkett said. “We hoped for a response, but we weren’t sure of it. We were ecstatic when we showed up to school on Tuesday and two different offices wrote back!”

One of the offices at 1600 Wilson, Wakefield Research, separately shared with ARLnow that the “research analysts and managers in the office are all happier people” because of the exchange.

“We spend our days on research projects for the world’s biggest and most demanding companies, so it’s refreshing to connect on a personal level with young people,” said Paul Bragan, senior partner at Wakefield Research.

“The students sending Post-It messages today will be colleagues and clients tomorrow. What started as a fun exchange by our creative team has really grown into a neighborhood movement. Welcome to the block, H-B Woodlawn!”

This year, H-B and Shriver Program students moved from their former home at 4100 Vacation Lane — what is now Dorothy Hamm Middle School — across town to the newly-constructed Heights building in Rosslyn.

“Moving into this new building was definitely a big adjustment at first, but I think we are gradually getting used to our new space,” said sophomore student Georgia Thomas. “I think the sticky notes are a great way to build new connections in our new environment, and I love how involved 1600 Wilson Blvd has gotten.”

Since the initial sticky note windows are almost at capacity with messages, Plunkett says they’ve moved into other parts of the building.

“It’s so encouraging to see happy messages from our neighbors saying things like ‘make it a great day!’ or ‘we <3 you too’ or even something as simple as ‘good morning’ when we get to school, it really sets a good tone for the whole day,” she said.

A similar sticky note conversation blossomed among office workers in central Rosslyn last year.

Sfoglina Opening in Rosslyn This Weekend

By ARLnow.com
1/4

A new Italian restaurant from noted local restaurateur Fabio Trabocchi is planning to officially open its doors in Rosslyn on Saturday.

Sfoglina, at 1100 Wilson Blvd, will open in a 4,500 square foot space that includes 130 indoor seats, a “Mozzarella Bar,” and a “glass enclosed pasta room, where guests can watch the fresh pastas being handmade daily.”

It’s the largest of what will be three Sfoglina Pasta House locations; the other two are in D.C.

“The art of handmade pasta is something I cherish from my childhood in Le Marche, Italy,” Trabocchi said in a press release, below. “We opened the first Sfoglina as an homage to the pasta traditions that are passed down from generation to generation, and the reception has been more than we ever could have hoped for. We’re excited to bring our pastas, and our hospitality traditions, to our guests in Virginia.”

Sfoglina “will be open for continuous service Monday to Friday from 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. with lunch favorites available until 2:30 p.m., and Saturdays from 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.,” according to the press release. It will be closed Sundays.

Through Saturday, Oct. 19, Sfoglina Rosslyn will be offering a 10% discount on food “while it continues staff training.”

The full press release is below.

Fabio Trabocchi is thrilled to announce the opening of the newest location of his handmade pasta house – Sfoglina – at 1100 Wilson Blvd, in the Rosslyn neighborhood of Arlington, Virginia.  The new restaurant is the largest Sfoglina to date, with approximately 4,500 sf, 130 seats indoors – including Bar Dining seats – and a 160 sf glass enclosed pasta room, where guests can watch the fresh pastas being handmade daily.

“The art of handmade pasta is something I cherish from my childhood in Le Marche, Italy,” says Fabio Trabocchi.  “We opened the first Sfoglina as an homage to the pasta traditions that are passed down from generation to generation, and the reception has been more than we ever could have hoped for.  We’re excited to bring our pastas, and our hospitality traditions, to our guests in Virginia.”

Led by Executive Chef Erin Clarke, Sfoglina Rosslyn will feature dishes that have become favorites on the Sfoglina Van Ness and Sfoglina Downtown menus, while providing several selections unique to this location. Clarke, who has worked with Trabocchi for over a dozen years, most recently at Sfoglina Van Ness, will be offering guests classics like the Ravioli San Leo with Goat Cheese, Arugula, and Fresh Herbs; Linguine with Lobster, Roasted Tomatoes, and Chilies; Potato Gnocchi with Porcini Crema, Mushrooms, and Parmigiana Reggiano; and Mancini Paccheri Carbonara Style with Pancetta, Escarole, and a Sunny Side Up Egg.  Guests will also have a choice of plenty of “Not Pasta” items like Nonna Palmina Meatballs; 72-Hour Beef Short Ribs with Salsa Verde; Grilled Amish Chicken Breast with Lemon and Sliced Garlic; and Branzino with Taggiasche Olives and Tomatoes.

Sfoglina Rosslyn will debut a fresh Mozzarella Bar, featuring guests’ choice of cheeses – from cow’s milk fior di latte to stracciatella and burrata to buffalo milk bocconcini – with selections of accompaniments, including marinated and cured fish and salumi, and grilled and pickled vegetables. The location will also inaugurate piadina flatbread sandwiches during lunch – a specialty of the Marche and Emilia Romagna regions of Italy –  including a classic version made with prosciutto, mozzarella, arugula, and roasted tomatoes, and a vegan version made with grilled eggplant, zucchini, and fennel, roasted tomatoes, and arugula.

The Rosslyn location of Sfoglina has a jewel-box pasta room where the restaurant’s namesake sfogline (Italian for pasta makers) will make fresh pasta every day.  As she has at the other Sfoglina locations, world-champion sfoglina Simonetta Capotondo will be onsite at the Rosslyn restaurant making pasta and supervising and training the staff of pastamakers, while still offering guests weekend pasta classes at Sfoglina Van Ness. Among the handmade varieties of pasta that Capotondo makes are tagliatelle, pappardelle, tortellini, ravioli, agnolotti, cavatelli, trofie, gemelli, malfatti, quadrucci, scialatielli, orecchiette, corzetti, lorighittas, curlurgiones, gnocchi, and dozens of others.

(more…)

County Board Approves Holiday Inn Redevelopment, With Conditions

By Airey
1/10

The Rosslyn Holiday Inn is one step closer to becoming a two-tower mixed-use development, albeit with some changes ahead.

The Arlington County Board unanimously voted to move the development project at 1900 N. Fort Myer Drive ahead during its meeting Tuesday night, including a proposal to sell a parcel of public land near Lee Highway to developer Dittmar. However, Board members required the developer take several actions related to the parking, traffic, and architectural elements of the plan following complaints from residents.

“This redevelopment of a highly visible site in Rosslyn is an important step toward achieving the community’s vision of a more vibrant and walkable urban village,” said Arlington County Board Chair Christian Dorsey in a press release.

Dittmar first submitted site plans last year, aiming to build a 25-story tower facing N. Nash Street with 500 housing units and a second, 38-story tower facing N. Fort Myer Drive, with a 344-room, higher-end hotel. The pair of towers would be conjoined by a 10-floor building with conference and retail space, as well as a three-level parking garage.

The Board’s latest changes require the developer to:

  • Accommodate buses in the parking plan
  • Develop an option for better vehicle turning on the N. Nash Street side of the lot
  • Share design options for the side of the complex that will face N. Nash Street
  • Share design options for the pedestrian passageway

Dozens of residents took to the podium during last night’s meeting to express concern over parking and traffic congestion from the development. One N. Nash Street resident said the project was “a disaster waiting to happen” if the Board didn’t follow the amendments the Board agreed upon, adding that the original plan would make walking, driving or living on his street “pure hell.”

As part of the development, Dittmar has pledged to fund $4.5 million for several transportation improvements.

Additionally, in exchange for the greater density the developer requested for the plan, Dittmar is offering to make part of its conference center public, contribute $5 million for open space in the neighborhood, and provide $4.5 million to the county’s affordable housing fund — money officials say will have a “Rosslyn-first” preference. Dittmar will also seek to earn a LEED Gold green energy certification for the building.

Dittmar is the same company that originally built the existing Holiday Inn in 1972.

A representative of the company cited a letter of support received from Nestle, which recently relocated to Rosslyn and is now expanding its local presence, arguing that “allowing new top-tier, world-class facilities for conferences at the location of the exiting Holiday Inn would make Rosslyn an even more attractive space both for business and leisure.”

County Board to Consider Selling Public Land to Rosslyn Holiday Inn Redevelopment

By Airey
1/10

The redevelopment of the Rosslyn Holiday Inn into two tall towers could take a big step forward tonight.

At its Tuesday evening meeting, the Arlington County Board is poised to sell a section of land on the north side of the lot to developer Dittmar, helping to transform the property into a massive housing-hotel-conference-retail complex.

Plans submitted in July indicate the hotel company intends to replace the existing hotel at 1900 N. Fort Myer Drive with two towers. One tower will be 25 stories and face N. Nash Street, featuring around 500 housing units. The other tower will be 38 stories, face N. Fort Myer Drive, and contain a new, 344-room, higher-end hotel.

The two towers would be joined at the base by a 10-story building with 47,450 square feet of conference and 14,000 square feet of retail space, as well as a three-story underground parking garage.

The Board is now considering whether to sell a parcel of public land that lies just south of Lee Highway from N. Nash Street to N. Fort Myer Drive to the developer. Selling the land — currently a patch of grass next to a surface parking lot — would allow Dittmar to move the building closer to Lee Highway, according to a staff report to the Board.

Board members are scheduled to vote on the sale during their meeting today, Tuesday, September 24.

If the Board approves the sale, the developer will eventually pay the county around $1.18 million for the land. But first, the county will have to pay the state $1.18 million for the right to sell it for development instead of its intended open space purpose, per the staff report.

The strip of land itself was obtained by the state during construction of I-66, but when crews didn’t end up needing the space, the state ceded the land back to Arlington for free in 1984, with the condition it be used for “park, beautification and open space purposes.” Staff note in the report that using it for development purposes instead has drawn some criticism over the “loss of open space.”

As part of the project, Ditmar has proposed building an east-west pedestrian pathway through the property connecting Fort Myer Drive to N. Nash Street and featuring public plazas with access to the development’s retail space — a recommendation from the 2015 Rosslyn Sector Plan.

Elsewhere in Rosslyn, developers are also working on redeveloping the Art Institute Building (1820 N. Fort Myer Drive), as well as the Key Bridge Marriot (1401 Lee Highway.) Eventually, the old office buildings at 1401 Wilson Blvd and 1400 Key Blvd are also expected to be replaced.

Images via Arlington County, Google Maps

Arlington Building Owners Are Often Struggling to Fill Vacant Retail Space

By Airey

Owners of mixed-use buildings in Arlington are struggling to find tenants for ground floor retail space, and instead have been seeking permission to fill the space with other uses.

The Arlington County Board will consider three such requests — from office buildings in Rosslyn and Ballston and Le Meridien Hotel in Rosslyn — at its meeting on Saturday.

“It is definitely a trend,” said Michael Smith, director of real estate at Bethesda-based retail strategy firm Streetsense. “We are at a point in time where we have a lot of retail space and a decreasing number of prospective tenants to fill those spaces.”

The owner of the Ballston Pointe building at 4300 Wilson Blvd (which once housed Ted’s Montana) is asking permission to convert its 2,132 square-foot ground floor space into a gym for residents and office space.

Likewise, Le Meridien seeks to convert its 900 square-foot retail space into offices, and the 1776 Wilson Blvd building in Rosslyn (home of Quinn’s and formerly of Kona) wants to cast a wider net for “retail equivalent” tenants like education organizations to fill its 22,829 square feet of unused retail space.

County staff wrote in a report to the Board that the Meridien vacancy is “due to a combination of design and location factors the site has not been a successful retail space” and in another report, that 1776 Wilson “cited difficulty retaining leases with tenants that meet the definition of retail.”

“Municipalities are trying to encourage ground floor retail environments to create sense of place, but the reality of it is that there is only so much of it going around,” said Streetsense’s Smith.

He cited millennials’ penchant for prioritizing experiences over things as one reason retail has been declining over the last decade — leaving fewer prospective tenants. Another problem with filling ground-floor retail space is that not all spaces nor streets are ideal areas to attract shoppers.

That contrasts with an aggressive, former Arlington County policy dubbed “retail everywhere,” which was replaced in 2015 with a more “curated” approach.

Restaurateurs have long bemoaned certain portions of the county, like the western side of Glebe Road in Ballston, as places businesses struggle. The old adage of “location, location, location” applies in Arlington, but sometimes it’s hard for businesses to figure out what will work in which places.

Smith said buildings in Arlington’s neighborhoods like Rosslyn, which is hillier and sleepier at night compared to places like Clarendon, typically have a harder time finding and keeping retailers. However, he noted the Rosslyn Business Improvement District’s community events and artwork are steps toward making the area more attractive to people and businesses.

“While we would all want our streets lined with beautiful boutiques or cafes, that’s just not the reality,” he said.

The County Board has issued approvals for retail space to be turned into alternatives like medical offices for years. Members have also OKed converting office space back to retail space, though that process is sometimes fraught.

An auction by East Falls Church bookstore One More Page recently generated discussion on whether the county also had an obligation to help ground floor retailers weather rising rents.

Smith said that government-led programs or economic incentives only make sense “if the numbers pan out and its win-win for everyone.”

“The best thing you can do is turn the faucet off, and put retail where it belongs,” he said.

October Cider Fest, Pie-Eating Contest Coming to Rosslyn

By Airey

Autumn-lovers rejoice: a hard cider fest is coming to Rosslyn next month.

Multiple cider breweries are expected to set up stations in Gateway Park (1300 Lee Highway) on Thursday, October 17 so attendees can wander and sip at will. Festival goers will also be able to prove their mettle in a pie-eating contest later that afternoon.

Pie eating champions will compete for “a basket of Rosslyn goodies,” and will have one minute to eat a whole pie, according to the event description on the Rosslyn Business Improvement District’s website.

“We’re sure you’ve done your share of wine and beer tastings, but do you know how to taste cider and distinguish between varieties?” event organizers wrote. “Well, now’s your chance to learn more about this delicious alcoholic beverage that’s favored by many who don’t like beer.”

The festival will start at 4 p.m. and end at 8 p.m. that day. Attendees are encouraged to purchase tickets online — which cost $15 and cover the cost of sampling eight different brews — before they sell out.

Other Arlington festivals have offered mulled and regular ciders in years past, but this marks the second time Rosslyn squeezed a cider-only festival into the mix.

Image courtesy of Rosslyn BID

Rosslyn’s Fire Station 10 Will Include A 26-Foot Fire Nozzle Sculpture

By Kalina Newman

A 26-foot-tall sculpture of a fire nozzle is coming to the new location of Fire Station 10 as a tribute to Arlington firefighters.

The artwork is the result of a partnership between Arlington Public Art and Penzance, the developer behind the upcoming massive development in western Rosslyn dubbed “The Highlands.”

Set to open in 2021, The Highlands will be the future site of the new Fire Station 10. Currently, the station is temporarily located at 1791 N. Quinn Street.

“This is our first opportunity to integrate public art into a fire station, which is a recommendation in Arlington County’s Public Art Master Plan,” said Angela Adams, Director of Arlington Public Art, in a press release. “Partnering with Penzance has allowed us to honor the history of Fire Station 10 through an enriching piece of public art for all to enjoy for years to come.”

Baltimore artists David and Eli Hess were commissioned for the artwork, which was funded by Penzance as a part of The Highlands development process.

The sculpture, described by officials as “larger-than-life,” will be fabricated from the same bronze used in actual firefighting nozzles. More from the press release:

The nozzle of the piece will act as a giant sconce or torch mounted to the side of the building. At night, a light inside the nozzle will illuminate the spray of water above. The water will be made from stainless steel pipe, twisting and bending in a quasi-spiral formation. The entire sculpture will be 26-feet-tall, attached 8 feet above the ground, extending to the top of the station’s façade. The stainless steel and bronze of the sculpture contrast the dark brick of the station, and the stainless water spray will shine at night against the rich red glow of the brick behind.

The Highlands, on the 1500 block of Wilson Blvd, will include three towers, up to 27 stories, with 104 condos, 780 apartments and 40,000 square feet of retail space.

Images courtesy of Penzance

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Arlington 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony — “The County’s wreath-laying ceremony will begin at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 11, at the Bozman Government Center. A moment of silence will be held at 9:37 a.m., the moment when the plane struck the Pentagon and 184 lives were lost.” [Arlington County, Press Release]

Stabbing in Boulevard Manor — “ACPD responded to a domestic violence incident in which a woman was reported stabbed in a home in the Boulevard Manor neighborhood around 11:30 a.m. [Tuesday]. She’s expected to be okay. Police are not releasing additional details, to protect the victim’s identity, per spokeswoman.” [Twitter]

ACPD Considering Ring Doorbell Partnership — “The Arlington County Police Department appears likely to become the fourth Greater Washington law enforcement agency to sign a partnership with Ring Inc., a doorbell-camera company owned by Amazon.com Inc., despite internal concerns over privacy and racial profiling.” [Washington Business Journal]

Marymount Jumps in Rankings — “Great news — Marymount has jumped more than 20 spots in the rankings for top Regional Universities in the South, according to the 2020 Best Colleges Rankings from @usnews!” [Marymount University, Twitter]

Arlington Visitor Spending Keeps Rising — “Arlington visitors spent a record $3.4 billion in 2018, a 4.3 percent increase over 2017, according to the U.S. Travel Association. Arlington has led Virginia counties in visitor spending since 2009. Tourism generated nearly $94 million in local tax receipts, benefiting County programs and services, as well as state tax receipts of nearly $127 million.” [Arlington County]

Rosslyn Neighbor Drama Does Federal — “A former analyst for the FBI admitted Tuesday to copying the private emails of a conservative conspiracy theorist and sharing them with his superiors while his wife offered them to the press… Tolson, who has left the FBI, agreed to forfeit two phones and two computers and avoid contact with Burkman, his neighbor in Arlington. He was released on bond until sentencing on Dec. 20.” [Washington Post]

Hoskins Wants ‘Innovation Campus’ in Fairfax — “As one of the lead negotiators involved in bringing Amazon.com Inc. to Arlington County, Victor Hoskins also helped Alexandria land Virginia Tech’s new ‘Innovation Campus’ — and now that he’s changed jobs, he wants to help Fairfax County do the same.” [Washington Business Journal]

Gong Cha to Bubble Up in Rosslyn Across from New School

By Vernon Miles

A new bubble tea joint is coming to Rosslyn.

Permits have been filed for a Gong Cha Tea Shop at 1650 Wilson Blvd, across from the new Arlington Public Schools facility The Heights.

There is a Gong Cha international franchise with locations throughout D.C. and Maryland with a Fairfax location in Annandale (4230 Annandale Road) that opened earlier this year.

The chain offers bubble tea — a tea-based drink with pearls of tapioca balls — at a variety of sweetnesses. It also offers egg waffle dishes with ice cream.

There was no evidence of construction activity at 1650 Wilson Blvd and Gong Cha could not be reached to learn when the shop will be opening.

Hat tip to Chris Slatt

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