Arlington's Rossdome of Art

Arlington planners have less than a year left on their self-imposed deadline to transform the former Newseum into Rosslyn's cultural center, and want you to come up with a name for it.

Transformation of the former Newseum site is scheduled for completion by the catchy date of 10/10/2010 (easier still to remember if the deadline is missed), by which time the 53,000-square-foot "showcase for the arts" will include an exhibition gallery, a "black box" theater for the Washington Shakespeare Company, IMAX screen, ballroom for cultural dances and lessons, and restaurant and retail space. Arlington is seeking LEED Silver certification for the project. The space has been unoccupied since 2002, when the Newseum moved to Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC (hard to imagine George Stephanopoulos broadcasting with the Rosslyn streetscape as a background).

The building, an ill-fitting dome on top of post-modernist prefab - fed of course by overhead walkways - was originally conceived by Ralph Appelbaum Associates. Arlington has entrusted The Lukmire Partnership with the renovation that will retain most of its original exterior but feature a fully-renovated interior space. But first, of course, the building needs a name, and the county is seeking public input on the new moniker. Interested parties are encouraged to vote online for the best new name - but freethinkers need not bother, the county has limited the vote to 3 choices.

Arlington has a 20-year lease on the property at 1101 Wilson Boulevard from Monday Properties, which owns the corner, and has plans on the boards for the nearby 1812 North Moore Street project, a 35-story tower that vie for the title of the region's tallest building.

Arlington, Virginia real estate development news