December 2025 Arlington County Board Wrap-up

Published on December 22, 2025

The Arlington County Board considered and acted on 46 agenda items at its December 2025 Regular and Recessed County Board Meetings. These include the following: 

Saturday, December 13, 2025 – Regular County Board Meeting  

Items 40A-C – Riverhouse Neighborhood Development Project
The Board approved several items related to the Riverhouse Neighborhood Development Project, with amendments striking two conditions and adding a new condition (detailed further below) related to 15th Street South.    

Item 40A included a rezoning, Phased Development Site Plan (PDSP), and several associated items to allow existing and infill development in accordance with the Pentagon City Sector Plan on the RiverHouse site (1111 Army Navy Drive, 1400 S. Joyce St., and 1600 S. Joyce St.) totaling up to 4,466 new residential units and up to 19,923 sq. ft. of non-residential gross floor area. The PDSP included four (4) final site plans that will comprise the initial phases of development. Four (4) future buildings were also proposed in the PDSP that would each be subject to future final site plan approval by the County Board prior to construction.   

Items 40B & 40C were ordinances to vacate portions of various street, sanitary sewer, and storm sewer easements on 1400 S. Joyce St., 1600 S. Joyce St., and 1111 Army Navy Drive to relocate utility lanes and provide space for new construction associated with Land Bays N-1 and S of the project. The owner/applicant is required to dedicate new sanitary and storm sewer easements for any relocated pipes.  

This project advances numerous key County goals and objectives which include the highlighted items below:   

• Preserving and expanding housing: the subject final site plans will create approximately 743 new dwelling units across a range of housing types, including both rental multifamily and ownership townhouse units; preserve 1,676 existing multifamily units, of which 42 are operating Committed Affordable units (CAFs) and approximately 85% (1,421) are Market Rate Affordable Housing units (MARKs); and future phases will allow for up to an additional 2,047 dwelling units on-site.   
  
  
• New affordable housing: the subject final site plans will provide approximately 15,000 square feet equaling approximately 12 on-site CAFs in the near term. In addition, future phases would provide at least 10% of net new dwelling units above the base density level for the RiverHouse property (72 du/ac) as on-site CAFs in support of the Pentagon City Sector Plan and Affordable Housing Master Plan.  
  
  
• New and expanded public spaces (parks): Over the total period of construction, the applicant will dedicate portions of the property to public use and public parks. Plans include creating additional public space on the site by at least 2.5 acres.  
  
  
• Multimodal Infrastructure: The project will expand walking and bicycling networks around the subject property. For example, the applicant intends to construct a new two-way cycle track along South Joyce Street, and to provide a multi-use trail along the edge of the expanded Virginia Highlands Park. 
  
  
• Vegetation and Tree Canopy: At full build-out, the PDSP will exceed the tree canopy and total planted area coverage targets for the RiverHouse site (20% and 30%, respectively), with 35% tree canopy and 45% total vegetation coverage proposed.  
  
  
• New retail: the subject final site plan for Building N1 will include new ground-floor retail space anticipated to be tenanted by the Virginia Hospital Center (VHC Health) as an urgent care facility. The future final site plan for Building N2 would include up to an additional 4,000 sq. ft. of retail GFA at the ground level along the South Joyce Street frontage.   

To adopt the applicant’s alternative “Hybrid Design” and revise the Green Ribbon proposed on 15th Street South, Board member Maureen Coffey made a motion to make the following changes:  

Strike Condition #19.B.8).a.vi. 

15th Street South –The developer agrees to narrow 15th Street South, to approximately 23-feet wide. The developer agrees to construct new crosswalks and associated handicap ramps (on both sides of the street) crossing 15th Street South on the east side of the intersection of 15th Road South and South Lynn Street.  

Strike Condition #19.B.9).a.  

15th Street South (On the east side between South Lynn Street and end of primary Green Ribbon): 

• Minimum streetscape width measured from the back of curb: 8-feet 
• Minimum clear sidewalk width: 8-feet 

Add New Condition #55

Notwithstanding the requirements of Conditions #19, #21, and #54, the developer agrees to revise the design of the Green Ribbon (Primary Route) and the 15th Street South Spur in the post-4.1 Plan, Final Civil Engineering Plan, and Final Landscape Plan in accordance with the design approved by the County Board at its meeting on December 13, 2025, and as shown on the exhibit titled “B. Hybrid Design” prepared by Bohler DC. 

This motion was seconded by Board member Julius D. “JD” Spain, Sr., and passed unanimously.  

Items 41 – Towing Ordinance Amendments re Initial Towing Fee and Placard Requirement for Tow Trucks
The Board also adopted amendments to the County's trespass towing ordinance, Chapter 14.3 of the Arlington County Code. These amendments:  

• Increase the hook up and initial towing fee in the ordinance to $160; and  
• Require a tow truck, used to perform a tow, to visibly display a tow rate placard, on the rear window driver's side, that provides a comprehensive list of fees for towing, recovery, and services.  

The decision to raise the hook and initial towing fee was based on the County Board’s consideration of the fair market value of the towing fee, including: (1) the information on the fair market value in the staff presentation; (2) the SCC report dated November 30, 2024; (3) the Trespass Towing Advisory Board’s recommendation; (4) that Arlington County is approximately 26 square miles and tow operators do not have to travel as far as those in many other localities with higher fees;  and (5) the presence of six permitted tow operators in Arlington County, creating a competitive towing market that puts downward pressure on towing fees.  

Item 42 – RTA for Amendments to Zoning Ordinance and County Code re Signage
The Board also approved future public hearings by both the Planning Commission and the County Board on proposed amendments to the Arlington County Zoning Ordinance (Articles 13 and 18) and the Arlington County Code (Chapter 17). These amendments propose to modify select sign regulations for additional allowances and flexibility with certain sign types and to support neighborhood branding and placemaking efforts.   

These proposed amendments represent the second phase of strategic updates to sign regulations under the Commercial Market Resiliency Initiative (CMRI), which seeks to modernize Arlington’s regulatory framework to respond to economic shifts and support placemaking. 

Tuesday, December 16, 2025 – Recessed County Board Meeting  

Item 9 – Use Permit Review of Tyndale Christian School
The Board approved the renewal of the use permit for a private school (Tyndale Christian School) for up to 40 students, with a County Board review in seven (7) months. The school is located at 712 and 716 N. Barton St.  

Item 43 – FY2027 Budget Guidance
The Board also issued budget guidance publicly to the County Manager ahead of the preparation of the FY2027 budget. The Board directed that the FY2027 budget provide options for the Board’s consideration that included, but are not limited to:  

• Reductions and Efficiencies;  
• Revenue Increases;  
• Restructuring social safety net programs; 
• Recommendations for the fiscally sustainable use of one-time funding in the stabilization fund and other contingency funds over a multi-year period;  
• Funding WMATA at levels consistent with potential solutions included in the Council of Government/DMVMoves adopted resolution; and  
• Preparing analysis that will lead to adoption of Memoranda of Understanding between the County Board and other Arlington Constitutional Officials.  

Read the full budget guidance here.  

Item 44 – Collective Bargaining Agreements with IAFF and ACOP
The Board adopted resolutions to make a good faith commitment to appropriate funding to meet the obligations under the tentative collective bargaining agreements with both the Arlington Coalition of Police and the Arlington Professional Firefighters and Paramedics, International Association of Fire Fighters Local 2800. Any such resolution remains subject to actual appropriation. The tentative agreements are for a three-year timeframe, beginning in FY 2027, except that wages and compensation will be reopened for negotiations in FY 2028 and FY 2029.   

Item 45 – Rezoning and Use Permit re Self-Service Storage Facility
The Board approved a set of applications for a rezoning and a Unified Commercial/Mixed Use Development use permit to facilitate construction of a self-service storage facility with ground floor retail, located at 3138 10th St. North.  

This approval allows the demolition of the existing 4-story office building and surface parking area to construct a 5-story self-service storage facility. To facilitate the redevelopment, a change in the zoning designation, for a portion of the site from "C-3" General Commercial District to "C-TH" Commercial Townhouse District, was adopted. Located within the Clarendon Revitalization District, the proposal advances the goals of the Clarendon Sector Plan, which encourages lower-scale development within transitional edge areas that support diverse retail opportunities and contributes to attractive and walkable streetscapes.   

Wednesday, December 17, 2025 – Carryover County Board Meeting  

Item 46 – Deferral of the Form of Government Charter and Advisory Panel
The Arlington County Board continued its discussion from the November 2025 Board meeting on whether to approve a charter to establish an advisory panel that will examine Arlington’s Form of Government. The original recommendation for this item was to defer consideration until the July 2026 Board meeting.   

After listening to public testimony, Board member Julius D. “JD” Spain, Sr. made an alternative motion to instead commit the Board to a series of initial efforts between the December 2025 Board meeting and the July 2026 Board meeting. This motion was seconded by Board member Susan Cunningham and was unanimously adopted.  

An associated document and a timeline detailing these next steps, entitled “Examination of Arlington’s County Board Structure and Performance”, is available here. Initial efforts include, but are not limited to: 

• A legal review of the County’s current form of government under Virginia Law and government structures used in other counties and cities;  
• Engaging with non-partisan external research partner(s) to analyze the history of the current Arlington Government structure;  
• Identifying, no later than March 15, the financial resources and procurement process to support this external research;  
• Engaging with the Arlington School Board and the Arlington Electoral Board on this process;  
• Reporting back at the July 2026 Board meeting on findings to date and next steps; and 
• Designating Board members Spain, Sr. and Cunningham as County Board liaisons to the process.  

Registering to Speak at Future Public Hearings
Registration to speak on an item with a scheduled public hearing opens approximately a week before the meeting, and members of the public can either register online or call in at 703-228-3130. Those wanting to participate in these hearings can do so in person, virtually, or by phone and will receive instructions on these options once they have completed their registration. Members of the public wanting to speak on a Consent Agenda item may do so by notifying the County Board Office before 10 AM at Regular Meetings to request the item be pulled from the agenda. Members of the public may then register to speak on pulled agenda items at the upcoming Tuesday Recessed meeting. Agendas will note which consent agenda items are subject to public hearing requirements and which require Board member consent to be removed.  

Members of the public are also strongly encouraged to subscribe to the County Board's News and Updates service to be alerted when meeting agendas are posted. Board meeting and agenda information can be accessed on the County Board's webpage. Visit 2025 County Board Meeting and Procedures on the County website to Learn More.