Image from the Crystal City sector plan (PDF).

Crystal City is changing whether Arlingtonians like it or not. Yesterday, the county’s Planning Commission reviewed proposed plans to seize the opportunities and bring much-needed changes to Crystal City.

The plan area’s building stock and infrastructure is aging and needs renovation and modernization. On top of this, the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission’s recommendations will result in more than 13,000 jobs being relocated out of Crystal City by September of next year. This will leave an estimated 3.2 million square feet of office space empty.

This reality presents both problems and opportunities for Arlington County. Losing so many jobs could dry up one of the county’s economic engines, leaving a deteriorating neighborhood with no incentive or ability to revitalize.

Alternatively, the county could enhance the economic vitality of the area and transform Crystal City into a complete and vibrant urban community.

Crystal City, as it currently exists, is not well integrated into the surrounding community. Highway 1 cuts the bulk of Crystal City off from most its neighbors, creating what Jane Jacobs calls a “border vacuum.” Crystal City offers relatively few attractions for those that live near, further lessening the incentives to ever go there.

The neighborhood was designed and developed at a time when superblocks and underground malls were all the rage. Such developments have not weathered the test of time well. Experience has shown us that people prefer cities offering diversity in both design and amenities. As a result, monolithic developments of the variety represented by Crystal City have been shown to be economically unsustainable over the long term.

There are also some very good aspects to Crystal City. Nonetheless, Crystal City could be better. It could be better integrated into the surrounding community, offer a greater choice of activities and amenities, a more walkable environment, and more easily accessible public and green spaces.

The Crystal City sector plan is a step towards many of these changes.

The plan doesn’t do anything on its own. It functions as a planning tool to manage future development and redevelopment over the next 50 years. The plan itself doesn’t approve the construction or destruction of any buildings. It doesn’t cut down any trees or remove any parks. Although implementation of the sector plan requires certain zoning changes, each major project will be analyzed by its own merits in the normal course at the block level.

What it does do is to provide a guiding vision for the future of Crystal City and the surrounding areas. That vision includes the following:

  • An updated, comprehensive transit plan that would relieve traffic and better connect Crystal City to neighboring communities while recreating Highway 1 as an urban boulevard.
  • Establishing a recognizable block structure by reducing the number of superblocks and adding connecting neighborhood streets, providing a more cohesive and integrated neighborhood with greater access to storefront retail and entertainment options.
  • Adding new, dedicated parks and public spaces (including a substantial new central park) in excess of any losses realized by redevelopment (much of Crystal City’s current “green” or “public” space exists in traffic medians or on private land where it is not protected from future development.).
  • Increased maximum building heights over much of Crystal City, facilitating greater density and ultimately creating an incentive for property owners to engage in full scale redevelopment rather than simply rehabbing the interiors of existing buildings.

In the absence of this guiding vision, the region will still see growth, construction, redevelopment, increases in traffic and additional usage of transit. But the sector plan is designed to ensure Crystal City grows in a managed, structured, and coherent fashion.

The plan will support, to the greatest extent possible, diversity of use, a more traditional street grid, integration into the surrounding community, and greater amenities. It includes proposals to help relieve some of the traffic and transit congestion that is inevitable based upon growth in the region.

Moreover, adding density creates the opportunity for additional amenities that would benefit Crystal City and existing neighborhoods, such as new schools, recreational opportunities, public health facilities, and affordable housing.

Last year, the Crystal City Vision Plan (the basis for the proposed sector plan) won a Charter Award from the Congress on New Urbanism. For more information on the Crystal City redevelopment process, check out the dedicated website.

Unfortunately, despite the plaudits, and despite an incredibly transparent process that engaged extensively with community members and stakeholders, there is a great deal of opposition to the proposals from some quarters.

Some are don’t think the county will follow through with the infrastructure requirements of a 50-year plan, or don’t think it can effectively provide carrots for good development instead of just sticks to prevent bad development. These are legitimate concerns, particularly for Crystal City residents who would be extremely troubled to find the redevelopment plan abandoned in 10 years with projects left incomplete and goals unachieved.

Similarly, others worry about giving out substantial increases in density before adding public services like schools and medical care, in particular. Still others are afraid to adopt a plan that will likely eliminate certain existing open spaces based on the promise of future (even superior) public open spaces. And as usual, some are concerned about building heights, traffic, and public safety.

While many of these concerns are valid, there are those that seem unlikely to ever support a plan to increase density one iota, restructure a single street, or redevelop a single parcel of land. They use innuendo and suggestion to argue that the County (inexplicably) wants to enrich developers on the backs of the local residents.

These critics are unwilling to recognize the serious negative effects on the horizon as a result of the BRAC process, which will move thousands of jobs out of Crystal City. Moreover, they refuse to acknowledge the benefits of making Crystal City a high-quality public realm with a robust diversity of uses and neighborhood activity 18 hours a day.