General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsFrom the VA House of Delegates representative re Crystal City and Amazon
The original topic at the UUCA of Arlington was to be state legislative updates.
Instead, Alfonso Lopez (D-49th) led with the de-embargoed announcement about Crystal City getting an Amazon site.
The proposed initial site is at 1400 S. Eads Street, currently occupied by old brick warehouses.
((I went by there after the meeting. The site was surrounded by white fencing that was festooned with fake bikes and statements of "What If...))
He said this would solve Crystal City's ((post-911)) office vacancy issues, currently about 23%.
The sweetener was said to be $500 million. Someone asked if this was what Arlington County would pay? The answer was that most of this was coming from the state, and would only be paid in 2022 if there was adequate progress towards the goal of 25,000 new jobs. The goal was to have that many good-paying jobs in ten years.
He said it was estimated that the state would receive about $ 2 billion in recordation fees over the next 15 years.
He said he was concerned about those, specially in historically-black neighborhoods, who bought their houses for $12,000 in the 50s and 60s who even now pay $5,000 a year in taxes. He said he wanted to find a way for Arlington's teachers and firefighters to be able to live near their work. He proposed that if the state was running a surplus above a certain level, a part of the extra surplus be dedicated by law toward funding the Virginia Affordable Housing Trust Fund, instead of having to beg to get the $9-11 million approved each year in the General Assembly.
((This was mostly a bunch of older folks, and I had to leave early, so I don't know if anyone brought up the issues of potential impacts on the already-crowded Arlington County school system.))
nitpicker
(7,153 posts)Following Amazons Big Announcement, JBG Smith Sketches Out Plans for New National Landing
Alex Koma Today at 11:40am
Amazons arrival in Crystal City and Pentagon City seems set to completely transform developments already planned for the area.
The companys big announcement today (Tuesday) that it would split its planned second headquarters between Arlington and New York City represents a major windfall for JBG Smith, the largest property owner across the newly dubbed National Landing an area including Crystal City, Pentagon City and Potomac Yard. The developer had long sought to fill thousands of square feet of vacant office space in the neighborhoods, much of which will now presumably be occupied by Amazons 25,000 workers attached to the project.
But renderings posted online suggest that JBG will also tweak developments already in progress to suit the tech giants needs. The new NationalLanding.com offers a virtual tour of the area, and promises that the developer intends to accelerate the planning, entitlement, and development of several projects to meet Amazons arrival in the area the company expects to occupy anywhere from 4 million to 8 million square feet in office space over the life of the new headquarters.
JBG Smith writes on the site that it currently controls 6.2 million square feet of existing office space in the area, with another 7.4 million of additional development opportunities in National Landing, excluding Amazons proposed land purchase. In all, the company is planning the following moves in the area, from a press release:
Lease approximately 500,000 square feet of existing office space at 241 18th Street S., 1800 S. Bell Street, and 1770 Crystal Drive.
Purchase Pen Place and Met 6, 7, 8 land in JBG SMITHs Future Development Pipeline with Estimated Potential Development Density of up to 4.1 million square feet. JBG SMITH has the right to time the expected closings of the land parcel sales to facilitate 1,031 exchange opportunities.
Engage JBG SMITH as its development partner, property manager, and retail leasing agent.
Commence predevelopment and planning of the first office building in 2018, with construction expected to begin in 2019.
The new renderings include a multimodal transit hub located near the pedestrian bridge linking Crystal City to Reagan National Airport, which Amazon has volunteered to help build as part of the project. Its unclear where exactly the hub will be located.
The renderings also center around a second entrance for the Crystal City Metro station, an amenity long sought by the county but once seemed out of reach due to funding constraints. JBG Smith is currently working on a redevelopment of the area dubbed Central District, and those plans included a controversial proposal to build retail space over the new Metro entrance. New sketches suggest that the developer may push ahead with those plans, now that the construction of the second entrance is assured.
(snip)
Blue_true
(31,261 posts)new sites. Good wins for Virginia and New York City.
nitpicker
(7,153 posts)Is popping the champagne as I speak.
It's not just the military officer moving market or the legislative-change moving market anymore.