Board approves Barcroft land‑use changes, first committed‑affordable building and AHIF loan reallocation
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Summary
The Arlington County Board unanimously approved Feb. 25 updates to the Barcroft site’s land‑use and transportation plans and a use permit for a 110‑unit committed‑affordable building at 4230 Columbia Pike, and reallocated $3,280,754 from the Barcroft acquisition loan to help finance the project.
The Arlington County Board voted unanimously on Feb. 25 to implement the Barcroft master financing and development plan by updating the General Land Use Plan, Master Transportation Plan and Columbia Pike form‑based code, and to approve the first new construction committed‑affordable building and a reallocation of county acquisition loan funds to support its financing.
The board adopted ordinance changes that revise land‑use and transportation maps for the 62‑acre Barcroft Apartments site and amend the Columbia Pike neighborhoods form‑based code to implement the site’s conservation limits, revised street network and locations of parks and open space described in the master financing and development plan (MFDP). The actions move several commercial nodes into the neighborhoods plan and add new street cross‑sections developed with DES and the Fire Department.
Separately, the board approved a neighborhoods form‑based code use permit for the redevelopment of 4230 Columbia Pike: a six‑story, 110‑unit building that will be 100% committed affordable, with an average affordability near 60% of area median income and 10% Type A accessible units. The project includes three levels of below‑grade parking, on‑site courtyard open space, EarthCraft Gold green‑building certification and three requested technical modifications (finished‑floor height relative to sidewalk on a steep Taylor Street frontage, modified street‑tree spacing on that frontage, and administrative adjustments for adjacent existing buildings that will remain during phased development).
The board also approved a reallocation of $3,280,754 of the county’s original $150,000,000 Barcroft Acquisition Fund loan to support the 9% LIHTC portion of the project’s financing. Housing staff said the AHIF reallocation equates to about $70,000 per unit for the 47 units planned in the 9% tax‑credit portion; the remaining 63 units will be part of a later 4% LIHTC phase. Staff described loan terms consistent with the MFDP: a 0.5% AHIF interest rate and a term coterminous with the senior mortgage, with affordability covenants running 99 years less the time elapsed since the original acquisition covenant.
During the planning process, county staff reviewed street cross‑sections with Fire Department and DES staff to ensure aerial fire access and multimodal safety. Public testimony at the meeting raised concerns about several proposed cross‑sections that include wider travel lanes or painted buffers to meet aerial access requirements; commenters urged a public discussion about whether appendix D aerial access requirements in the State Fire Code (as adopted by the county) should be revised to allow narrower, safer neighborhood streets. Board members asked staff and the Fire Department to continue coordination as development phases proceed.
The board’s votes were recorded by roll call following the closed‑session certification: Mr. Continas — Yes; Vice Chair DeFerrante — Yes; Ms. Coffey — Yes; Ms. Cunningham — Yes; Mr. Spain, Sr. — Yes. The ordinance and use permit approvals are conditioned on the attachments and staff recommendations.
