What’s Missing From The R-B Corridor
Although the R-B Corridor has grown tremendously in recent years, before it can achieve its live-work-play ambitions, it needs some cultural, culinary and entertainment venues to fulfill the “play” component.
Many of the previously office-dominated subareas now have admirable, highly-amenitized, tall residential buildings with views rivaling those anywhere in the greater Washington area. This rapid multifamily growth has outstripped its green and recreational spaces, and architectural oddities like Rosslyn’s elevated walkways must be replaced with more walkable, navigable, attractive ones.
The R-B corridor lacks the density of boutiques, celebrity-chef signature restaurants and cultural institutions found in D.C. Although Rosslyn, Courthouse, Clarendon Ballston meet residents' day-to-day needs, they are not yet destinations.
Rosslyn in particular has lost some of its attractions over the years, with the Newseum relocating to Pennsylvania Avenue and its space's replacement, the county-funded Artisphere, closed after five years of financial woes. A 45K SF Spaces co-working space will replace it.
