Georgetown-Rosslyn Gondola Met With Opposition From Arlington County
Arlington County Board chair Jay Fisette at the announcement of Nestlé's move to Rosslyn
A proposal for a gondola connecting Rosslyn and Georgetown has been met with opposition from one side of the river.
The Arlington County Board released a letter this weekend saying it does not support any additional funding of the proposal, which a November study estimated would cost between $80M and $90M.
"Given our identified and pressing transportation needs, along with some ongoing concerns about the long-term value of the gondola," Arlington County Board chair Jay Fisette said in the letter, "the Board is not in favor of any further funding of the gondola project."
The feasibility study cost $250k and was paid for by the DC Department of Transportation; Arlington County; the Georgetown and Rosslyn BIDs; and developers, including The JBG Cos and Gould Properties. The study concluded the project was feasible, but would cost close to $100M to build and another $3.25M annually to operate.
Officials on the DC side of the river still support the project. Georgetown BID CEO Joe Sternlieb, who first proposed the idea, told UrbanTurf he is going to continue meeting with DC stakeholders and take further steps to move the project forward and will revisit the idea with Arlington County in the future.
