County Board extends Rosslyn Gateway site plan; debate continues over pedestrian bridge at Gateway Park

The Arlington County Board on June 18 unanimously approved a three‑year extension of the Rosslyn Gateway phased development site plan (PDSP) and related right‑of‑way vacations and encroachment renewals, preserving the applicant’s entitlement through June 30, 2028.

Staff and the applicant said the extension is needed to allow time for a new site plan amendment that would revise the development program for the site at Fort Myer Drive and Langston Boulevard. County planning staff told the board the original PDSP was approved in February 2012 and that the requested extension would not change previously approved conditions.

County planners urged against rebuilding a large, grade‑separated pedestrian bridge over eastbound Langston Boulevard, saying such a structure would require long ramps to meet ADA standards, would reduce street‑level retail viability and tree canopy, and would create a visual and physical barrier along the park edge. Adam Watson, a planning division presenter, said county policy dating to the 1990s and reinforced in the Rosslyn sector plan favors removing or…