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2013 Preservation Arlington. All rights reserved. www.preservationarlington.org

Preservation ArlingtonProtecting and Promoting Arlington's Unique Character

For Immediate Release May 20, 2013

FULL Details atwww.preservationarlington.orgCONTACT: Tom Dickinson, 703-841-4992

Tish Weichmann, 202-297-7650

Eric Dobson, 703-528-5657

Arlingtons National Register NeighborhoodsTop the List of Historic Places at Risk:

Preservation Arlington Releases 2013 Endangered Historic Places Report

1. National Register Neighborhoods. The proximity of Arlington's historic neighborhoods to urban amenities hascaused property values to skyrocket and consumers seeking larger homes for their purchasing dollar. The social and

architectural fabric of these older neighborhoods is being threatened by over-sized and incompatible in-filldevelopment and this could jeopardize the highly coveted National Register Designation of older residential

neighborhoods such as Lyon Village, Cherrydale, Ashton Heights and Penrose. Recent statistics attest to the

alarming rate of loss: In 2012 there were 168 demolition permits issued for structures in Arlington; 122 of them

were for single family homes -- a house every three days.

Preservation Arlington challenges homeowners in Arlington's National Register Neighborhoods to consider saving

their neighborhoods by becoming a Local Historic District with specialized design, mass and height guidelines such

that new development and major additions to structures would come under review. Communities could establish

their own set of guidelines, providing an opportunity to ensure new development fits into the character of the

community but still allows reinvestment to occur.

2. The Arlington House Woods, which is threatened by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Millennium Project to expandthe number of burial sites at Arlington National Cemetery in an area immediately adjacent to the Arlington House.

One ofArlingtons oldest forests and one of a dwindling number of such forests remaining in the national capital

region, the site is visible from the Fort Myer National Historic Landmark Historic District, the National Register of

Historic Places-listed Arlington House, and the National Register of Historic Places-eligible Arlington National

Cemetery historic district. The removal of trees here could account for up to a 12% loss of Arlingtons tree canopy.

3. The Millennium Project also threatens 1,357 feet of the 1879 Seneca Quarry Red Sandstone Cemetery BoundaryWall which once encircled the entire Cemetery.

4. One of the only remaining pieces of track of the Washington & Old Dominion Railway is an elevated siding on thewestern edge of the County located partially on private property and partially on land owned by the NorthernVirginia Regional Park Authority. A redevelopment plan has been submitted for the private property and it is hoped

that restoration of the siding and creation of an interpretive center can be included in that agreement.

5. Low-rise commercial architecture of the 1930s-1950s. Designs catered to pedestrians and retail space at the streetlevel and offices above. Highly stylized signage often marked these businesses, as well as decorative cladding and

expansive glazing to differentiate these structures. These buildings, with great character and sense of place, once

filled the bustling retail corridors of Arlington, are now being torn down with only a handful being integrated into

the new development sites.

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2013 Preservation Arlington. All rights reserved. www.preservationarlington.org

6. Wilson School (1910 plus additions) and Wilson School playgrounds. The Fort Meyer Heights School (aka theWoodrow Wilson School), is an early Arlington school originally built in 1910. Designed by prominent Richmond

architect Charles Morrison Robinson, it survives as the oldest extant school building in Arlington County that is still

owned and maintained by Arlington Public Schools and is the last remaining example of early 20th

-century

institutional architecture in the Rosslyn and Fort Meyer Heights neighborhood. While it has been substantially

altered it can be returned to its former glory as an important civic building.

7. The Blue Goose, now Marymount University Ballston Campus. Designed by John M. Walton, a leading architectof the time, this building represents an excellent example of mid-century architecture that is quickly disappearing. I

is one of those buildings which engender strong feelings but it also represents a period of time in architectural

design that is just beginning to be fully appreciated.

8. Garden Apartments: Fillmore Gardens and other affordable housing on Columbia Pike; plus Queens Court and KeyBoulevard Apartments in Rosslyn. Since 2003 when Arlingtons outstanding collection of historic garden apartment

complexes was recognized by the National Register of Historic Places, the county has lost a significant number of

these distinctive housing complexes. Historically and today, these apartments have provided affordable, quality

homes for Arlingtonians. A number of smaller complexes are also imminently threatened with redevelopment.

Full detail on the sites being listed and proposals for action can be found on the Preservation Arlingtonwebsiteand in

the attached document.

Preservation Arlington is a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting and improving the quality of

Arlington's distinct architectural heritage. Through education and advocacy, Preservation Arlington bringstogether people and organizations to influence the future of Arlingtons historic buildings, landscapes and

communities. Preservation Arlington was originally founded in 1989 as the Arlington Heritage Alliance.

www.preservationarlington.org

Preservation ArlingtonP.O. Box 100489, Arlington, Virginia 22210-1418

http://www.preservationarlington.org/http://www.preservationarlington.org/http://www.preservationarlington.org/http://www.preservationarlington.org/http://www.preservationarlington.org/http://www.preservationarlington.org/http://www.preservationarlington.org/