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Does anyone else think Arlington's Rosslyn-Ballston corridor feels more like an extension of the city than places like DT Silver Spring or Bethesda or Alexandria? Old Town Alexandria feels the most like an urban neighborhood. But, Arlington is closer in and has more of a critical mass of urban amenities than the others.
once you cross a bridge to Arlington, key, roosevelt or whatever, really to me, it feels like Virginia not DC any more, my mood even gets better a bit, but just a tiny bit
The area near the Orange/Silver line in Arlington (Ballston/Virginia Sq/Clarendon/Rosslyn) definitely have more of a city feel to it. The only thing is that it's more full of the younger yuppy crowd.
Location: Midwesterner living in California (previously East Coast)
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In my opinion - Old Town is the most interesting urban cluster not inside the District. It "feels" less cookie cutter generic than Arlington, Bethesda or SS.
With that being said, Arlington is walking distance from Georgetown. Old Town is not. That proximity to another vibrant neighborhood is good.
SS is walking distance to nothing particularly interesting on the DC side. Same for Bethesda.
Interesting question. The density and feel of the R-B corridor is definitely similar to downtown DC and I would Pentagon City/Crystal City is too. The other densely adjacent suburbs you mentioned like Friendship Heights-Bethesda, Downtown Silver Spring and Old Town/Downtown (Carlyle/Hoffman Town Center/Eisenhower Valley) Alexandria feel like an extension of DC to me to varying degrees as well though more in terms of density and immediate proximity to the city boundaries than their feel or character. Meanwhile, more remote and less dense outer areas of the city such as Foxhall/Palisades/Spring Valley in upper Northwest or Capitol View/Deanwood in far Northeast or Penn Branch/Fort Dupont in Southeast feel much more like their nearby suburbs than part of the rest of the city. DC's kind of in an interesting position relative to most other US cities since it can't annex and incorporate nearby suburbs the way most other cities, especially in the Sun Belt, can. I always roll my eyes when I see the population of Jacksonville, San Antonio or Phoenix knowing the sprawling landmass they inhabit. DC could be SEVERAL million if you included Prince George's, Montgomery, Howard, Arlington, Fairfax, Prince William and Loudoun Counties as well the Cities of Alexandria, Falls Church and Fairfax. LOL
From an aesthetic standpoint, Northern Virginia definitely looks and feels more urban and "built" than the Maryland suburbs.
Bethesda and Silver Spring are very urban, but they are each just a patch of urban development surrounded by lots of suburban sprawl. Even though downtown Silver Spring and DC bleed together.. the connection is with DC's far north suburban area.
Northern Virginia is in very close proximity to downtown DC. So the two urban areas kind of blend together. The Maryland areas connect to the less dense and less urban parts of DC.. making them feel less a part of "urban DC".
However, while this might seem like a contradiction.. the Maryland suburbs feel more natural and authentic than VA and have a "vibe" that feels more like DC.
Rosslyn-Ballston is more built up like downtown DC but it's separated by the Potomac so that makes for an obvious break whereas that's not true for Silver Spring and Bethesda, which also feel more organic to me. Not making an argument either way but just an observation.
From an aesthetic standpoint, Northern Virginia definitely looks and feels more urban and "built" than the Maryland suburbs.
Bethesda and Silver Spring are very urban, but they are each just a patch of urban development surrounded by lots of suburban sprawl. Even though downtown Silver Spring and DC bleed together.. the connection is with DC's far north suburban area.
Northern Virginia is in very close proximity to downtown DC. So the two urban areas kind of blend together. The Maryland areas connect to the less dense and less urban parts of DC.. making them feel less a part of "urban DC".
However, while this might seem like a contradiction.. the Maryland suburbs feel more natural and authentic than VA and have a "vibe" that feels more like DC.
The bolded part describes Arlington very well. The R-B corridor is surrounded by suburban sprawl, as is Tysons and other parts of NOVA. I just don't see any difference between there and the three areas in MD.
The bolded part describes Arlington very well. The R-B corridor is surrounded by suburban sprawl, as is Tysons and other parts of NOVA. I just don't see any difference between there and the three areas in MD.
I guess in my mind, R-B is right across the river from Georgetown and metro one stop from Foggy Bottom/DT DC. Whereas, Bethesda/SS are in walking distance to DC proper. But, it is a outer quasi-suburban SFH neighborhoods.
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