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I think parts of Arlington are kind of sterile, but not all of it is like that. It's positives are that it is affluent and safe. OT Alexandria is better though, except that it's farther away from DC. Arlington is a great deal if you can afford to live there.
Nope - just a statement of fact and investment in this city that belie your efforts to cast anyone who doesn't have a "DC forever!" mentality as uninformed about the city. It's much easier to pretend that an occasional critic of the city lives in Ashburn and hasn't crossed the Potomac for years than to deal with people who are here on a daily basis and see the good, the bad and the ugly.
It doesn't really matter which personal insult you want to make. It won't prevent me from posting about DC when I feel like it.
In this case, I happen to agree with the OP that a lot of the put-downs of Arlington from DC residents who live in neighborhoods that don't have a lot of urban amenities themselves is unnecessary and ironic.
A few observations about Arlington. I have not lived there since 2001 but I still visit the Clarendon, Ballston and Crystal City areas on occasion.
1. Today, Arlington is a more diverse place with regards to race. When I lived in Arlington back in the 1990s, my neighbors were basically white frat boys and sorority girls. If you went to bars and restaurants in Arlington: white frat boys and sorority girls everywhere. Many of them were GW, Georgetown and George Mason students. .
Ugh that's not all of Arlington. Those are just the more trendy spots. Well maybe not Crystal City. I think its a barren office tower waste land with fortress like hi-rises but that's just me. At the same time if you don't live there I see no reason why you'd go to most of the little neighborhoods in Arlington because they're so residential.
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Originally Posted by coldbliss
Back in the day, you had better odds of getting struck by lightning than seeing a black person on a sidewalk in Arlington.
Today: you have more professional black people living and working in Arlington County. Definitely more Asian-Americans in Arlington as well. Although, I think most of the immigrant Central American communities have been gentrified out of existence. Not sure but I think the Latino population has shrunk significantly since I lived in Arlington. .
Actually Arlington's black population as a whole has gone down 1%. Yes the Latino population has shrunk by 11% since the 2000 census. According to the map the black population has increased along parts of the orange line corridor and parts of Pentagon City and Crystal City. Still that's only parts. It went down 8% in Lyon Park north of the Clarendon metro. In the Rosslyn area south of metro it went down as well. So that may have been where you were seeing more black folks but overall the number of black residents in Arlington has decreased despite the addition of yours truly. Also more and more people are commuting to jobs in Arlington. So most of the people you see in Arlington don't actually live in Arlington. So overall Arlington has gotten whiter and despite the disapearence of Little Saigon, there was a 22% increase in Asian population.
2. Jeebus...Arlington got REALLY expensive since 1990s. You could rent a single bedroom apartment for under $700/month circa 1996 in the Clarendon-Ballston corridor. Good luck finding a one-bedroom apartment for under $2,000 today. I don't think the average salary has increased by the same percentage points in 15 years. The real estate price values have priced out middle-income people completely. Real estate developers cleaned out the joint. .
Well that's across the board. Weren't you just complaining about your rent in Silver Spring going up? But yes my gentleman friend remembers the cheaper Clarendon days as well that's about what he paid for an apartment that he says has since been turned into overpriced condos.
Although at the end of the day more and more people have indeed been priced out of Arlington or they choose to live further out becuase they know that they can get more for their money.
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Originally Posted by coldbliss
3. The street parking sucked in 1996. The street parking in Arlington still sucks in 2011! At least Montgomery County, MD builds massive parking public garages in major urban centers like Bethesda, Silver Spring and Rockville. Parking garages are good for restaurants and retail businesses. Hello...get a clue Arlington County Planning and Zoning Board.
They have public garages in Clarendon. They're just not free. They have them in Crystal City, Pentagon City, and Shirlington. The ones in Crystal City are free after 4:00 and on the weekends. Shirlington garages are always free.
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Originally Posted by coldbliss
Today...Arlington has become a pure J-Crew hell full of power-hungry lawyers, PR bunnies and humorless wonks swapping career-climbing tips. Gross. I am glad I left Arlington for greener pastures in Silver Spring.
Let's be careful with blanket statements. That doesn't describe all of Arlington. It certainly doesn't describe me. You're describing Clarendon perhaps but not all of Arlington. Not even all of Clarendon. I wouldn't know where to find those people because they don't describe my friends, my suburban co-workers who are more concerned about diapers and soccer practice than shopping at J-Crew, or my middle-of-the-road contractor/government worker neighbors.
Arlington reminds me of where Virginia Beach is trying to be. Like Norfolk is the real city, and Virginia Beach is this suburb that wants to redevelop itself into a dense suburb. City planners would foam at the mouth if Virginia Beach were as built up as Arlington. There is actually a plan to make that dream a reality in like 50 years. lol, we'll all be dead by then, or too old to enjoy it. At the same time Norfolk is struggling to increase their own density as a lot of projects lack adequate financing to be completed.
It doesn't really matter which personal insult you want to make. It won't prevent me from posting about DC when I feel like it.
In this case, I happen to agree with the OP that a lot of the put-downs of Arlington from DC residents who live in neighborhoods that don't have a lot of urban amenities themselves is unnecessary and ironic.
Now there are two of you from Arlington who feel picked upon. That's unlikely to change.
Well two wrongs don't make a right. I agree that people have a choices about where to live but people have a right to get offended when someone makes ugly or false statements about their area. I haven't really seen anyone really "complaining" about District life. They've just made statements that DC ain't perfect. DC isn't and neither is VA.
As mentioned I weigh the pros and cons of where I live and living in the District constantly.
District pros: Get a job downtown and one can ditch the vehicle.
District cons: Yeah one can ditch the wheels but if one chooses or needs to have a car there's hell along with fees to pay. Parking is a pain and only the most meticulous of drivers can avoid parking tickets.
Disrict pro: Lots of electic and different neighborhoods
District con: Crime crime and more crime. Although I will give DC credit for reducing its crime. Although one could argue that they've just managed to make it PG county's problem versus truly solving the problem.
District con: Expensive expensive expensive
District con: (this is a personal thing) Lack of jobs. Seems like there are more jobs to be had in Virginia particularly around Tysons and Dulles these days than in the District. God I'd love to shorten my commute without having to move to the burbs. Headhunters were falling over themselves trying to get me to interview for jobs in Stafford and Quantico but not so much in the city. Then again how many recent college grads want to work out in Quantico?
District pro: Lots of nightlife
District con: Lots of noise especially in the "cool" neighborhoods.
District con: Lack of shopping. I'm sorry but I like the chain stores. I need to get my shirts at Hollister and my books at Borders. Two of my fav stores aren't in the city limits. Now Georgetown does offer a good bit of stores and at least they're going to build some Walmarts.
Virginia con: Traffic traffic and more traffic.
Virginia pro: Much easier and cheaper to own a car in Virginia. The gas is cheaper and so is the car insurance.
Arlington pro: I'm closer to downtown than some parts of the District.
Arlington con: So expensive
Arlington pro: Its expensive but you usually get a bigger newer home for the price one pays in the District. I'm sorry but I just don't see value in living in an old home. Honestly the houses in Arlington are kinda old for my taste. That's where Fairfax does offer an advantage.
Sorry for the long post I could go on all day. Its a conumdrum for me but for so many its a no-brainer to live in Virginia despite the traffic.
What is it about Virginia and Walmart? That is like required shopping in Hampton Roads I never did understand it. They even have a neighborhood market, which is a WalMart that only sells groceries, nothing else.
Arlington reminds me of where Virginia Beach is trying to be. Like Norfolk is the real city, and Virginia Beach is this suburb that wants to redevelop itself into a dense suburb. City planners would foam at the mouth if Virginia Beach were as built up as Arlington. There is actually a plan to make that dream a reality in like 50 years. lol, we'll all be dead by then, or too old to enjoy it. At the same time Norfolk is struggling to increase their own density as a lot of projects lack adequate financing to be completed.
I think that it can benefit from looking at places like the DC area. Norfolk is the mini-DC with its urban grit and "character" and VA Beach is crispy clean in the Pembroke area. I am pro-Arlington and like the variety it offers this area.
What is it about Virginia and Walmart? That is like required shopping in Hampton Roads I never did understand it. They even have a neighborhood market, which is a WalMart that only sells groceries, nothing else.
???? I hardly ever go to Walmart they're just not conveniently located since there are none Inside the Beltway (ITB) on the Virginia side of things. Although I work near one so if I just had to go. I mentioned Walmart because they're planning to build 4 of them in the District soon. None in Arlington though. Oh well I still live 10 minutes from like 2 Targets. Its just that one of the complaints of some in the District has been the lack of retail. That's starting to change but Virginia still has the city beat in the retail department.
I dont know about the lack of crime and such but the "fake feel" is at least a somewhat fair criticism. I don't think its about having "problems" its about having character. Thats what Arlington seems to lack. On the one hand I loved Arlington and really wanted to move there - nice wide sidewalks, lots of places to eat, drink, go out. Nice newer buildings, reasonably well thought out intersections, beautiful single families, etc. In some ways, it reminded me of Alexandria just a bit more modern.
On the other hand, I hated it because everything just felt so manufactured and, well, fake - like if I pushed hard enough on some buildings the little cardboard set would come tumbling down. I wanted it to have that charm of Alexandria, but it just fell short - there was no discernible character in the architecture or historical value in any location - everything seemed like it had been razed in the last 10 years and built over with concrete and freshly laid sod. Without a non fat latte mocha-frappucino, pink juicy pants and a VW Bug that said 'Girlz Rule' on the bumper, I didn't think we'd fit in.
It reminded me a lot of lincoln park in Chicago say, 10 years ago, newer, trendy, and by and large occupied by young 20 somethings who have suddenly come into some money by working at Booz or one of the other consultancies. Professionals by day, they haven't yet left their undergraduate ways entirely behind them - and Lincoln Park and Arlington let them stretch those years out a little further. Thats not a bad thing per se - Arlington certainly has its benefits - newer buildings, a young vibrant feel, but I couldn't shake the impression that it was trying to be a dupont or an adams morgan when it just wasn't. That said, if I were single and in my mid twenties, it would easily be the top of my list.
Setting aside the manufactured feel, the nail in the coffin for us was simply one of cost: Arlington was nearly as expensive as DC -- and in some cases actually quite a bit more -- and certainly felt inflated overall. We saw a 2 bd single family for $800K.... with no central AC, one bathroom upstairs etc.. The more we looked, the more Arlington felt overpriced for what it was. Personal view is all.
This!
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