The last piece of JBG's Arlington Gateway project, the Spire condominium project was put on hold more than 3 years ago, providing temporary respite to the comparatively diminutive office building. But county officials still held out hope for some type of development that would provide the Metro entrance as an amenity, until now.
According to Karen Vasquez, Public Relations Manager for Arlington Economic Development, her office spoke with JBG last week about the project and discovered that redevelopment plans were still very much on hold. In the meantime, says Vasquez, "[JBG is] now working on re-leasing it," adding that the site "will likely remain an office building in its current form for the next 5 - 10 years."
Located above the Ballston-Marymount University Metro station, the condominium project was supposed to include an $11 million contribution towards the $50 million Metro entrance construction project as part of JBG's community benefit package. The new Metro entrance would have been the westernmost entrance in the Rosslyn-Ballston Corridor, making Metro more accessible to neighborhoods west of Ballston, particularly Bluemont.
But alas, barring any drastic change of events, Vasquez says the "western entrance will not be constructed in the near term, at least as part of this project." Leaving one to wonder if WMATA and the county might have other sites in mind.
But alas, barring any drastic change of events, Vasquez says the "western entrance will not be constructed in the near term, at least as part of this project." Leaving one to wonder if WMATA and the county might have other sites in mind.