July 2026 Arlington County Board Wrap-Up
The Arlington County Board considered and acted on dozens of agenda items at its July 2026 Regular and Recessed County Board Meetings. These include the following:
Saturday, June 18, 2026 – Regular County Board Meeting
Items 36A&B – 1401 Wilson Blvd. & 1400 Key Blvd
The Arlington County Board approved a site plan amendment (Item 36A) and an ordinance to vacate portions of related easements for public street and utility purposes (Item 36B) to facilitate the construction of a mixed-used development at 1401 Wilson Boulevard and 1400 Key Boulevard.
These approvals allow the construction of two residential towers containing 831 new residential units, 29,908 sq ft of gross floor area for retail, and 602 total parking spaces for residents, visitors, and customers. Once complete, this project will advance several key County goals and objectives, by:
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Repositions Obsolete Office: Replacing two (2) obsolete office buildings with 831 units of new housing in a transit-rich location near the Rosslyn Metro Station;
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New retail: Supporting street activation and improved economic activity with new ground floor retail opportunities;
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Urban design: Contributing high-quality architecture and attractive street level conditions to Rosslyn’s urban environment, while preserving view corridors and sensitive transitions to the surrounding neighborhood;
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Public space: Constructing and providing long-term maintenance of a critical segment of the 18th Street Corridor that incorporates biophilic design principles;
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Streets and streetscapes: Providing street and streetscape improvements, installing new protected bike lanes on North Nash Street, Wilson Boulevard, and Key Boulevard, and removing the existing slip lane on North Nash Street;
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Affordable housing: Providing a $6M contribution to the Affordable Housing Investment Fund (AHIF) in addition to the base affordable housing contribution (choice of $3,763,385 or approximately 17 on-site units, 25 off-site nearby units, or 33 off-site units);
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Sustainable design: Achieving LEED Gold certification and 20% energy performance improvement; and
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Nearby public space and transportation improvements: Providing a $2M contribution to off-site public space improvements and a $2M contribution to off-site transportation improvements.
Item 37A&B – Brookfield Site Adaptive Reuse Project, 601 & 701 12th St. S.
The Board approved a phased development site plan amendment and an adaptive reuse site plan amendment (Item 37A) for the properties located at 601 (the east building) and 701 (the west building) 12th Street South to residential use, with new retail and residential building additions. The Board also approved a related request (Item 37B) for an encroachment of various portions of underground garage, as well as for portions of two new electric transformer vaults, all within existing easements for public street and utility purposes.
These approvals allow the conversion of two, 12-story office buildings at 601 and 701 12 St. S. for residential use, with up to 607 residential dwelling units. This project also includes constructing 29,990 square feet of retail, up to 3,579 square feet of office space, and reuses existing shared below-grade garages that total 830 parking spaces (uses including: 120 reserved for residents, 120 for retail, 20 for visitors, and 468 as “flexible” spaces).
Once complete, this project will advance several key County goals and objectives, including:
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Reducing office vacancy: Reducing the office vacancy rate by 14.3% in Pentagon City and 1% County wide by removing a total of 563,108 sq. ft. of vacant office GFA from the market;
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Green Development: Reusing the existing buildings and underground garage;
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Expanding housing supply: Converting vacant office space into 607 new dwelling units, with a mix of unit sizes, immediately adjacent to the Pentagon City Metro Station;
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New public plazas: Creating newly designed public plazas with landscaping and seating at the southwest corner (adjacent to the on-site Metro underpass and tunnel), center, and southeast corner of the site totaling 0.72 acres (excluding portions of the Green Ribbon);
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Green Ribbon pathway: Constructing, maintaining, and providing a public access easement for the Primary Route of the Green Ribbon pathway connecting the southwest site corner at South Hayes Street and 12th Street South to the northeast corner at South Fern Street;
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Multimodal infrastructure: Constructing a separated, southbound bicycle facility along the property’s South Fern Street frontage;
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Vegetation and tree canopy: Exceeding the Sector Plan tree canopy and total planted area coverage targets for the site (20% and 25%, respectively), with 23.5% tree canopy and 49.8% total vegetation coverage proposed;
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New retail: Constructing a total of 29,990 sq. ft. of new ground floor retail along 12th Street South;
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Improved streetscapes and urban design: Improving the public sidewalks around the perimeter of the site, expanding the number of street trees, and generally creating a more urban environment than exists today.
Item 38 – Prohibition on Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers and Gas-Powered Leaf Vacuums
The Board also approved a noise ordinance amendment to Chapter 15 of Arlington County Code prohibiting the operation of gas-powered leaf blowers and gas-powered leaf vacuums, effective January 1, 2029.
The following amendments were adopted:
- Amending Section 15-3 (Definitions) to create distinct legal definitions for "Gas-powered leaf blower" and "Gas-powered leaf vacuum";
- Amending Section 15-6 (Prohibited Acts) to make it unlawful to operate or permit the operation of gas-powered leaf blowers and gas-powered leaf vacuums at any time; and
- Establishing a near 30-month phase-out period, making the ordinance effective on January 1, 2029, to give residents and businesses time to transition to electric alternatives.
The prohibition of gas-powered leaf blowers and gas-powered leaf vacuums is informed by a robust public engage process that included nearly 4,000 participants, and advances Arlington County's goals to reduce noise pollution and promote sustainable practices. Gas-powered leaf blowers produce high-decibel, low-frequency sound that travels long distances and penetrates structures, impacting the overall quality of life in the Arlington community. These machines emit significant greenhouse gases and smog-forming pollutants for their size.
In addition to this adopted prohibition, staff will launch a comprehensive education campaign on sustainable leaf management aimed at easing the transition to electric leaf blower and leaf vacuum alternatives.
Tuesday, July 21, 2026 – Recessed County Board Meeting
Item 39 – Adoption of the FY27-36 Capital Improvement Plan
The County Board adopted the FY2026-FY2036 Capital Improvement Plan, which totaled $4.9 billion. The CIP is the County’s 10-year plan for building, maintaining, upgrading, or replacing County facilities and infrastructure. It is prepared every two years, with any adopted general obligation bond referenda presented to voters in November of even-numbered years.
On May 19, 2026, the County Manager presented his Proposed Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) to the Arlington County Board, which was informed by more than 1,800 community members who weighed in on their top priorities. Through a series of work sessions and public feedback, the following investments were approved:
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$80.1M for the Arlington Neighborhoods Program;
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$264.7M for Information Technology and Public Safety maintenance and upgrades;
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$265.1M for Stormwater Management capacity improvements, stream and water quality projects, and maintenance capital;
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$286.1M for Parks and Recreation projects;
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$442.6M for Metro obligations;
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$449.4M for Government and Public Facilities capital maintenance and upgrades;
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$971.7M to the Utilities Fund, for water-sewer maintenance, water distribution, and the Water Pollution Control Plant; and
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$1.5B for Transportation projects, including maintenance, improvements, and Arlington Transit.
The Board also issued guidance to the County Manager, outlining instructions on certain amendments that were incorporated into the adopted CIP.
Read the full press release on the Adopted FY2027-2036 CIP here.
Item 40 – Resolutions and questions for the 2026 Bond Referenda
The Board also approved more than $184 million of new bond referenda, including $163.5 million for County projects, $20.7 million for Utilities fund projects, and $80 million for Arlington Public Schools.
These referenda will be placed on the November 2026 ballot. If approved by Arlington voters, will allow the County to issue general obligation bonds to pay for many of the improvements planned in the CIP over the next few years.
The following are the five referenda questions:
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Metro & Transportation: Shall Arlington County contract a debt and issue its general obligation bonds in the maximum principal amount of $69,745,000 to finance, together with other available funds, the cost of various capital projects for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) and other transit, pedestrian, road or transportation projects?
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Parks & Recreation: Shall Arlington County contract a debt and issue its general obligation bonds in the maximum principal amount of $34,945,000 to finance, together with other available funds, the cost of various capital projects for local parks & recreation?
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Community Infrastructure: Shall Arlington County contract a debt and issue its general obligation bonds in the maximum principal amount of $58,825,000,000 to finance, together with other available funds, the cost of various capital projects, including but not limited to facilities maintenance capital, facilities design and construction, information technology, the Arlington Neighborhoods Program, and other County infrastructure?
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Utilities: Shall Arlington County contract a debt and issue its general obligation bonds in the maximum amount of $20,745,000 to finance, together with other available funds, the cost of designing, expanding, improving, and renovating Arlington County’s Water Pollution Control Plant and the water and sewer systems serving the County?
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Arlington Public Schools: Shall Arlington County contract a debt and issue its general obligation bonds in the maximum principal amount of $80,000,000 to finance, together with other available funds, the cost of various capital projects for Arlington Public Schools?
View the board report and approved resolutions for the bond referenda here (Board Report 40, attachments).
Item 41 – RTA on GLUP Amendment re Air and Space Force Association Site
The Board also approved a request to advertise future public hearings for the Planning Commission and the Board to consider an amendment to the General Land Use Plan (GLUP) for an area located at the 1501 Langston Boulevard (aka the Air and Space Force Association Site).
This proposed amendment will more clearly communicate the GLUP designation of "Low" Office-Apartment-Hotel, “Medium” Residential, and “Public” to all “Low” Office-Apartment-Hotel for this site on the GLUP Map and correct a mapping error for the portions of the site currently shown as "Medium" Residential and "Public." This clarification is necessary, as the County has received a proposed site plan amendment (SPLA25-00018 / SP #361) and use permit (UPER25-00038) associated with 1501 Langston Boulevard. This proposal, if adopted in the future, would facilitate the development of an 8-story residential building, with 88 units and 1,266 square feet of space on the ground floor for a museum.
A request to authorize advertisement for this GLUP amendment is a necessary procedural step that will initiate the public hearing process for the Planning Commission and County Board. If authorized, those public hearings would be advertised and scheduled concurrent with hearings for the proposed 1501 Langston Boulevard site plan amendment and use permit application.
Item 10 – Tyndale Christian School Use Permit Review
The Board also voted to renew the use permit for the number of students up to 80 enrolled at Tyndale Christian School. This required the discontinuing of the previous use permit allowing up to 40 students.
This approval came after the Board approved this increase, at the request of the applicant, in January 2025 with a scheduled Board review in July 2026. During the school year, staff identified no operational issues or adverse impacts to the surrounding community associated with the increased capacity.
No further review by the County Board is scheduled on this use permit. The next administrative review by staff will be conducted in three (3) years (July 2029).
Registering to Speak at Future Public Hearings
Registration to speak on an item with a scheduled public hearing opens approximately a week before the meeting, and members of the public can either register online or call in at 703-228-3130.
Those wanting to participate in these hearings can do so in person, virtually, or by phone and will receive instructions on these options once they have completed their registration. Members of the public wanting to speak on a Consent Agenda item may do so by notifying the County Board Office before 10 AM at Regular Meetings to request the item be pulled from the agenda. Members of the public may then register to speak on pulled agenda items at the upcoming Tuesday Recessed Meeting. Agendas will note which consent agenda items are subject to public hearing requirements and which require Board member consent to be removed.
Members of the public are also strongly encouraged to subscribe to the County Board's News and Updates service to be alerted when meeting agendas are posted. Board meeting and agenda information can be accessed on the County Board's webpage. Visit 2026 County Board Meeting and Procedures on the County website to learn more.
Media Contact
David Barrera
Communications & Constituent Services Manager
Arlington County Board Office
dbarrera@arlingtonva.us
703-228-3121
View this release in our newsroom
