Improvement Funds Granted in Arlington

Residents Sought Money for Upgrades

The Arlington County Board approved $3.3 million in funding last week for resident-requested improvements to nine neighborhoods. The projects will provide sidewalks, curbs, gutters, streetlights and other features.

The neighborhoods affected are Cherrydale, Leeway, Radnor/Fort Myer Heights, Aurora Highlands, Barcroft, Columbia Heights, Dominion Hills, Arlington Ridge and Old Dominion.

"I think the most important part of neighborhood conservation is that neighborhoods in Arlington create plans, and all this planning work is done by volunteers," said Christine Nixon, chief of the county's Neighborhood Services Division and coordinator of the Neighborhood Conservation Program. "This is not a county-driven process."

With county staff members working with residents, the board "isn't really taking a leap of faith" when it approves projects, she said. About two dozen county employees contribute to the neighborhood conservation program.

"The neighborhood conservation program is very much a neighborhood-driven program," said David Haring, 52, of Yorktown, chairman of the all-volunteer Neighborhood Conservation Advisory Committee. "It works. It's a process that ensures that needs are met in individual neighborhoods, and it's proven over the years to get the job done."

The $3.3 million recommended for all nine projects come from a bond voters approved in November. Four local bond issues totaling $170.2 million were passed in referendums, among them the $10.8 million community infrastructure bond. It included $9 million for neighborhood conservation.

The board approved $382,147 for sidewalk, curb, gutter, streetlight and tree projects in Leeway. Rob Swennes, Leeway's neighborhood conservation representative, said it was a culmination of a 10-year project.

"I'm very pleased," said Swennes, 63, a lawyer. "With a project like this, and I think it's true with almost any neighborhood conservation project, it's a long time."

The second-smallest funding amount is $35,539 for streetlights in the Old Dominion neighborhood. They will be on Old Dominion Drive from 22nd to 26th streets N. Money is allocated for installation of copper cable, steel conduits, poles, fixtures and sod.

Aurora Highlands is getting a new play area at Virginia Highlands Park, next to the basketball and volleyball courts, that will spray water, which will be drained and reused. Bruce Cameron, neighborhood conservation representative for Aurora Highlands, said there's still a ways to go in the process.

"It's not like you get the idea, vote on it, and it happens tomorrow," said Cameron, 46, manager of finance for a federal agency.

He said that it could be anywhere from 18 months to three years before the project is complete but that it's a "long-term plan" for this park. The goal was to create something where children "could play on a summer day," said Cameron.

"We know it's a long process," he said. "We're very excited, and it'll be a while before there's an actual, tangible result, but at least the board commitment is there."