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From: D BuckTo: Adam Watson; Jay Corbalis; Robert Mandle;
Richard Viola; Dennis Leach; Jacob Smith;
[email protected];
Robert Gibson; Mark SchnauferCc: Gillian Burgess; Chris Slatt;
Eric Goldstein; Pam VanHineSubject: 1900 Crystal Drive public
commentDate: Sunday, September 29, 2019 12:13:56 AMAttachments:
18th Revised Sketch.png
Hello,
I am writing in regard to the upcoming SPRC regarding the 1900
Crystal Drive property,bounded by Crystal Drive, Bell Street, 18th
Street, and 20th Street. Like several other recentdevelopments in
my neighborhood, this submission (and the presentation before the
LRPC)does not conform to or address the Bicycle Element of the
County's Master TransportationPlan, adopted by the Board on April
23, 2019.
The Bicycle Element has a goal, and places an emphasis
throughout, on creating placesthroughout the County where "all ages
and abilities" feel comfortable and safe riding. Hereis a good
explanation of what is meant by "all ages and abilities." Bicycling
planning practicehas evolved to where it is possible to provide
guidance on what type of facility (a regular bikelane, a protected
bike lane, or something else) will make a street comfortable for
all ages &abilities to ride, given the number of cars/lanes and
speed.
The Bicycle Element then provides a map on page 35, that depicts
all of the existing andproposed 'bikeways.' A number of streets are
shown with 'bikelanes,' with no differentiation onthe type of
bikelane that is appropriate to the context of the street, in order
to make itcomfortable for all ages and abilities. However, the
Bicycle Element then provides guidancetaken from a national
transportation organization in Appendix C (pg 46) that lays out
what'srequired on what type of street. Crystal Drive, Bell Street,
and 18th Street all fall into thiscategory.
The Bicycle Element then goes further, and designates a more
select network of PrimaryBicycle Corridors, that can be thought of
similarly to arterials in the street network (pg 33-34).Both Bell
Street and Crystal Drive fall into this category. They have the
potential to connectusers over longer distances, and... "An
objective of this plan is to provide routes within thePrimary
Bicycling Corridors, either on the primary street or on nearby
parallel routes, that allbicyclists can use and experience a low
level of stress from motorized traffic." It goes on tostate that, "
Achieving better bicycling facilities within those corridors will
be difficult.Strategies to do so may include: ....reserving land
for new on- or offstreet facilities wheneverredevelopment
occurs.... County staff should be proactive in identifying
opportunities to fundand implement bikeway improvements in the
corridors."
Accordingly, I would like to the provide the following comments
with regard to the BicycleElement and this development:
18th Street S: A previous SPRC for 1770 Crystal Drive approved a
public space plan thatincluded unprotected bike lanes, including an
inadvisable "trap lane" eastbound intersectionapproach, and a
nonsensical widening of the intersection on the westbound approach
to Bell St(attached is a sample from those plans). The number of
lanes, large-vehicle traffic, and steepelevation change of 18th
Street S mean that unprotected bike lanes are not suitable
here.Additionally, the intense activity that both new developments
will bring, along with the
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second Metro entrance, ensure that these unprotected bike lanes
will be constantly blocked bydropoff traffic, like they currently
are a block west. This street meet the thresholds
warrantingprotected bike lanes in the contextual guidance, cited in
Appendix C of the Bike Element.
I sketched (not to scale) protected facilities that conform to
the curblines set by that previousSPRC process for 1770 Crystal Dr
(attached). It protects riders from illegal pickup/dropoff,retains
the parking included in those previous plans, eliminates the 'trap
lane,' protects ridersand shortens crossing distances for
pedestrians at intersections, and requires only anoperations change
at 18th and Bell that will not significantly delay traffic
I also noted that the County lists a project page for 18th
Street S, that inexplicably promisestwo lanes in each direction for
this block. Two through lanes in the midblock are notwarranted by
current or future traffic volumes, and set up the aforementioned
"trap lane"conflict with the eastbound bike lane approach to
Crystal Drive.
I look forward to a discussion through the SPRC process of
exactly how this critical block ofpublic space, leading directly to
the Mt Vernon Trail, and the final block on a protected bikelane
corridor, will protect vulnerable road users.
Crystal Drive: Unprotected conventional bike lanes on Crystal
Drivehave proven, over the years, to fall short of the goals of the
Bike Element. At least for thisfrontage from 18th to 20th,
protection from moving traffic and loading/unloading activitymust
be provided for southbound travel on this Primary BIcycle Corridor.
The draft planspropose to retain the current bike lanes unchanged.
With the increase in curbside demand andactivity from this
development, this is effectively a downgrade of this lane, and will
furtherendanger bicycle riders.
Bell Street: The Clark Street demolition and 15th Street S
intersection realignment projectclaims that a new off-street trail
will travel between 12th and 20th Streets. However, conceptplans
only show a trail between 12th and 18th. As a Priority Bicycle
Corridor, will this projectfully consider and account for inclusion
of bicycle facilities in the Bell/Clark area thatcontinue this
facility to 20th Street?
Thank you, and I look forward to your thoughts and further
discussion through the process.
Virus-free. www.avg.com
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October 28, 2019 Stephen Hughes Chair, Site Plan Review
Committee Arlington County Planning Commission 2100 Clarendon
Blvd., Suite 700 Arlington, VA 22201
RE: 1900 Crystal Drive, Site Plan #50 and #421
Dear Mr. Hughes:
On behalf of the Crystal Park Unit Owners Association, we would
like to provide you with our concerns and requests regarding the
1900 Crystal Drive Project, Site Plan Numbers 56 and 421.
We greatly appreciate the efforts taken thus far by JBG Smith to
share with us the planning efforts related to the demolition and
construction. As the approval process advances, we are sharing in
writing our concerns so that they can be part of the discussions
and so that the County may reinforce (and act on) several areas
about the proposed project. Our requests relate to questions about
the 1) design of the South Tower, 2) transportation and other
congestion, 3) construction impacts, and 4) adequacy and location
of parks/green space.
1. Building Design and Placement
The architecture of the South Tower, directly across from our
building at 1805 Crystal Drive deserves additional consideration.
The South Tower is is not set back from Crystal Dr. like the North
Tower and will present a flat, unrelieved surface. We understand
that JBG Smith may be providing additional renderings to clarify
the appearance of the South Tower from the perspective of our
building. We would like to see these to ensure that the façade does
not overwhelm pedestrians and retail users walking along Crystal
Drive or the residents of our much lower building.
The North Tower has been designed with greater sensitivity and a
better scale. Instead of containing a preponderance of office
buildings as envisioned in the long-range plan, this block is being
built as largely residential. Given this change, it is imperative
that the architecture of the buildings reflect that change, and
that the scale of the façades be suitable for a walkable urban
neighborhood. In response to this change, we would like to see the
design include step-backs that are typical of the other buildings
that are placed in Crystal City. We have raised this question of
the developer and look forward to receiving clarity about the plan
for this façade.
A significant priority and concern are the shadows that will be
cast on our building and grounds. We recognize that the currently
proposed building heights were anticipated by the long-range plan,
but the shadow study provided by the applicant is partial, only
shows the shadow effects on part of our building and grounds, and
not does not span a long enough time period to realistically
understand the impact. We have requested additional renderings that
include more afternoon hours and all of our building and grounds
from the developer and look forward to receiving these studies
before the November review meeting.
-
To the Site Plan Review Committee for 1900 Crystal Drive,
continued page 2 of 4
2. Transportation (Pedestrian and Vehicle Access)
The plan does contain good design elements, specifically the new
alley with access to garages and for loading. We recognize the
value of creating a passenger loading zone that is not located on a
public street. Nevertheless, there will be both pedestrian and
vehicular congestion with the proposed plan without adjustments by
the County and the developer. It is critical to maintain the
pedestrian priority in this zone. We want to be involved in the
discussions about the proposed solutions.
a) Vehicular: The proposed vehicular access from Crystal Drive
should be a concern for all parties. For instance, it is essential
the new alley access be provided conditionally on keeping it
one-way, right turn only, and designed to discourage left turns and
drivers from cutting through to the garage - such as with a speed
table, rough paving materials, or some other approach beyond
signage.
We are also concerned about the congestion that will be created
by the vehicles brought into the area by residents, guests, and
service providers of the nearly 800 new units. We are especially
concerned about the impacts of weekend use. This time period is not
generally included in the traffic report and, since the concept has
changed from primarily business to residential use, this is a key
gap. For this project, the details of the Transportation Demand
Management Plan are important to us, and we will be watching
closely as the site plan review progresses. We support the
unbundling of parking for the two new residential towers.
Currently, there are studies for each project underway, but
there are more than six projects in the pipeline for the next five
years on Crystal Drive. We request a single, comprehensive study be
completed to alleviate the potential for unintended consequences
that are costly, if not impossible to rectify.
For this project, we question allowing parking on the west side
of Crystal Drive during the week and on Saturday. We believe this
area in front of both Towers should be designated
no-parking/immediate unloading. While the proposal includes the
pedestrian priority zone and an area of drop offs, we remain very
concerned that, for instance, Uber/Lyft drivers will just stop on
Crystal Drive. Crystal Drive south only has one lane. Furthermore,
even if vehicles turn into the pedestrian priority zone, they will
have to slow down, and back-ups are likely.
b) Pedestrian/Bicycle/Scooters: At build-out, there will be two
26- to 27-story residential buildings (1,500 residents), a driveway
access to the buildings and garage (1,000+ residents), a major
park, metro station, bus station, and VRE station with traffic all
converging at a single intersection. The multi-modal congestion
resulting from the intensity of these uses will need to be
carefully managed in terms of bike and pedestrian infrastructure,
sidewalk width, and signals.
While the County has expressed that multi-modal is the desired
result, the corner and sidewalks are not designed to handle this
amount of foot and other modes of traffic (scooters, etc.). In
particular, the County needs an immediate and detailed plan for the
Northeast corner of 18th street. Waiting for the planners for the
metro and/or VRE project to address this issue will not be timely
nor effective. We see the need for a major sidewalk improvement
project on both sides of Crystal Drive, including a strong focus on
what will be the highly congested corner at intersection with 18th
street, and also on 20th street. We request that improvement on the
1800-2000 blocks of Crystal Drive (both sides) be included in this
project for 1900 Crystal Drive.
Over the years, the Crystal City Business Improvement District
has worked to bring events into Crystal City – including very large
events such as the Marine Marathon and the 5K sunset runs.
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To the Site Plan Review Committee for 1900 Crystal Drive,
continued page 3 of 4
The additional congestion and associated restrictions on
resident movement already strain the current layout and
infrastructure. If the County expects to continue supporting these
amenities, careful consideration will need to be given to all of
the points listed above.
3. Construction
We are very worried about the temporary impacts of construction.
These impacts include noise, dust and vibrations that affect our
building, as well as construction equipment access to the site, and
temporary impediments to pedestrians and vehicles on the sidewalk
and roadway of Crystal Drive. Our requests include that:
a) A construction management plan that limits the hours of
construction operation, especially operation of equipment that
produces noise and vibration, and that provides a safe pedestrian
way at all times along Crystal Drive. This plan should also address
construction access to the site and ensure that Crystal Drive is
not shut down to commuters during peak hours.
b) Vibration devices be installed and monitored on the east side
of Crystal Drive adjacent to our building.
c) No cement trucks or other heavy equipment be allowed on
Crystal Drive. We have already experienced complete blockages of
the single northbound lane of Crystal Drive during construction of
the 1550 Crystal Drive project.
d) To be included as an active participant in the formulation of
the construction management plan.
4. Parks
We request Arlington County take action to ensure development
and review of a comprehensive park plan along Crystal Drive that
includes green space and dog parks (inclusive of all of the
buildings). When construction is completed on 1900 Crystal Dr. and
other developments on 23rd street; the number of residents,
visitors, deliveries will be substantially greater. Yet, it is not
clear when Central Park will be completed. We know that the VRE
concept will cut into Water Park, Central Park will not be as big
as it included in the sector plan, and we will be losing Green
space on the 2200 block.
Compounding the problem of diminished green space in our
residential area; we have not seen any plans for many dogs – likely
hundreds – that will come as the new residential buildings are
added to Crystal City. The sector plan does not even include the
word “dog”. We hope that this plan would include consideration for
dog walking, but the only “green space” in the immediate area to
1900 seems to be on our property, where we do not allow dogs.
Appreciation
These concerns should not be taken to suggest lack of enthusiasm
on our part for the project and the vision for our neighborhood it
reflects. In particular, we think the expanded Central Park/open
space included in the plan will be an excellent addition to the
amenities our community enjoys. We trust that the final plan will
address our concerns as investors in Crystal City and as neighbors
and will also include a commitment and timetable for demolition of
the remaining building and the park’s completion.
Thank you for your attention.
Board of Directors, Crystal Park Unit Owners Association
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To the Site Plan Review Committee for 1900 Crystal Drive,
continued page 4 of 4
Holly Dockery, President Tonya Giannoni, Vice President Jack
Francis, Secretary Michael Wiseman, Treasurer Thomas Del
Popolo-Fore, Member-at-Large
CC: Jay Kelly, JBG Smith Robert Duffy, Director, Arlington
County Department of Community Planning, Housing,
and Development Adam Watson, Project Manager, Arlington County
Department of Community Planning,
Housing, and Development
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DCA- 1851 South Bell Street Proposal Height Analysis
(TERPS- Runway 33 LPV Missed Approach Surface)
Maximum height to
incur no impact is
approximately 323’
Above Mean Sea
Level (AMSL).
Ground elevation in
this area varies from
37’ to 40’ AMSL.
Proposed building
height of 336’ AMSL
will impact TERPS
Surface
1851 South Bell Street
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DCA- 1851 South Bell Street Height Analysis (Critical Air
Navigation Surfaces)
1851 South Bell Street Maximum Elevation –
336’ AMSL
CPUOA SPRC Comments, 1900 Crystal Drive Project 28 October
20191900 Crystal Drive public commentMWAA-AW 1851
S.Bell_package
