Rosslyn Area in Arlington (Fairfax, Orange: apartments, to rent, condos)

[Leerinsmom]

Does anyone know about this area. Is it a nice area, affordable for graduate students? Does it have a metro line into DC? I am looking for a townhouse to rent around 1600 a month. Are there restaurants, good shopping, a city market?

[saganista]

Yes, everyone knows about Rosslyn. In a sense, it's like St. Paul to Minneapolis, the smaller city across the river, but while small, it's a city alright. It's on the VA side of Key Bridge directly across the Potomac from Georgetown, and it has a very busy Metro station on the Blue and Orange Lines, as well as a major bus hub. The actual downtown part is a little sterile in many people's mind, but as you go up the hill just a few blocks toward Courthouse, things get better quickly, amd that's the start of the so-called Ballston Corridor, a high-density yuppie heaven that stretches out past Courthouse, Clarendon, and Virginia Square to the Ballston Metro station. Lots of action, lots of amenities of all sorts, lots of young people with some money, so pretty expensive, but $1600 should get you in the door. There are almost no townhouses in the area, though...pretty much looking at condos. There are other areas near the Corridor where townhouses and other less high-density housing is available, so it depends on what you're really looking for. Also depends on where you're going to be a grad student. If at Georgetown, then Rosslyn and the surrounding areas would be a good choice. If it's at GW, Rosslyn would still make a lot of sense. Anyplace else and there might be better options...

[jb124]

(cross-post from the Roseland thread)

Rosslyn is a very urban area (for NoVA), does have a Metro line (two actually pass through Rosslyn) and is the last stop before you get into DC. There are plenty of office buildings, mid/high-rise apartments and condos, and a few townhomes. I doubt you'll find a townhouse in Rosslyn (unless it's one of the small 1940's ones) for $1600. You're unlikely to find a 2 BR apartment for that much for that matter.

There are a few restaurants in Rosslyn proper, but they tend to cater to the office population and are mainly fast food or generic sit-down types. A little further west along the main drag in north Arlington (Clarendon Blvd, Wilson BLvd, and Fairfax DR at the west end form the backbone of north Arlington) you'll find a great variety of restaurants, bars, shops, etc., some of which have excellent 'personality.' Ballston (4 stops west) has an actual shopping mall, but if I lived in Rosslyn, I'd take the blue line south to Pentagon City (3 stops south, but further distance) because that mall has a much higher caliber of shops than Ballston. There is a small mall in Clarendon too.

I used to see a few grad students (I assume from Gtown or GWU) when I worked in Rosslyn, camping out at the Starbucks or Cosi with their books and laptops, so I assume a few live in the apartments in the area.

They have a farmer's market in Rosslyn every Thursday from like March through October. The other mini-cities of north Arlington (Courthouse, Clarendon, and Ballston, which are to the west of Rosslyn) all have markets on various days of the week as well. I think the one in Courthouse is the closest to a varied market (not just foods), but I haven't actually been to all of them yet.

The area is pretty safe. The part immediately around the metro has a few regular homeless people, but they're not confrontational or anything. I probably wouldn't walk across the bridge to DC or south to Iwo Jima alone at night if I were female, but heading back west towards Courthouse you'd most likely be ok. The Courthouse/Clarendon area has a decent nightlife so it's pretty safe to walk around there at night (Ballston too). Crime in north Arlington tends to be petty with few truly violent crimes.

I live in Ballston and worked in Rosslyn for 3 years, so let me know if you have any other questions.

[Leerinsmom]

Hi,

I've heard the Ballston area of Arlington mentioned quite often as a nice area to live. Can anyone give details? Why type of housing is there? Is it a tight area or is there green space? Does it look like a suburb or urban area? How is the shopping, are there a bunch of chain stores or family stores? Is it a fairly affordable area in comparison to others? How is the public transportation? I assume that it is safe.

Thanks to everyone, this forum is really helpful.

[mlv311]

Everything between Rosslyn and Ballston (including Court House, Clarendon, Fairfax Square) is pretty urban. Most housing is in large, high-rise buildings, but you can find townhomes and single-family homes on side streets. They are all accessible by public transportation (subway and bus). There are plenty of shops, restaurants, bars, etc. As far as affordability, anything close to the metro station (on Wilson Blvd) will be more expensive than if you are on a bus route.

[jb124]

I live in Ballston. It is an 'urban' area with lots of extra-wide sidewalks and many of the main roads have bike lanes. There are many hi-rise office buildings and condos. Although once you get off the main drag (Fairfax Dr) it becomes much more suburban, with cute older houses and newer townhomes available.

Ballston is the western edge of 'urbanized' Arlington, and has convenient access to I-66. It has a medium-sized shopping mall with mediocre shops in my opinion (they have a Macy's, Sport & Health, and theaters, but no Gap or Limited type shops, for example). There's not much in the way of shopping outside of the mall, but you do find the usual array of support services (dry cleaning, mini-marts, video rental, banks, etc). There are plenty of restaurants with various ethnic flavors available. We have a Giant Food (medium scale grocery store) and a Harris Teeter (high-end grocery) in central Ballston, with a Safeway (medium) and Whole Foods (medium to high end) within a short ride. There are some family-owned shops (the recreational outfitters place Washington BLVD is a local favorite, for example), but many retail and restaurant outlets available are chains or chain-clones. There are limitless shopping options if you're willing to drive 20 minutes to the various local malls (Tyson Corner I & II and Pentagon City are excellent malls).

Public transportation is excellent, with Ballston having its own Metrorail station and Metrobus hub. It is very safe from my experience (I've used both bus and rail in Ballston). All of North Arlington is very safe, from what my public defender friends tell me.

Ballston is a very expensive area to live in, but no more so than the other 'hip' areas to live in the DC area.

[mlv311]

Originally Posted by mlv311

Everything between Rosslyn and Ballston (including Court House, Clarendon, Fairfax Square) is pretty urban.

I just noticed my mistake on the last metro station listed. I meant to say Virginia Square.