mcsluggo Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 The Audacious Plan to Turn a Sprawling DC Suburb Into a Big City Tysons Corner is home to the most ambitious re-urbanization project on Earth. By Luke Mullins | March 29, 2015 Walk into the Ascent and you’ll find all the spiffy features you could ask for in a 21st-century apartment tower. There’s a pet-grooming salon and a bicycle-repair station, as well as a wi-fi-enabled lobby where you can check the flat-screen TV for potential delays at the Metro stop a three-minute walk away. The 24-hour concierge will sign for your grocery deliveries and store them in the walk-in fridge. Every apartment has dark hardwood floors and floor-to-ceiling windows. On the 26th floor, you can lift weights in the fitness center, shoot billiards in the lounge, or relax on the roof deck. There’s a fire pit to huddle around in the winter, a swimming pool for summer, and an earth-friendly feature that won’t leave you feeling guilty about your carbon footprint: A rain garden prevents the first inch of precipitation from polluting nearby streams. Plus, because the apartment building is the tallest for miles, panoramic views stretch from Washington National Cathedral to the Blue Ridge Mountains. Ready to move in? There’s one more thing you need to know: The Ascent is in Tysons Corner, a 4.3-square-mile tangle of parking lots and office parks that’s long been considered one of the least habitable parts of Washington. ...... <<more at link>> http://www.washingtonian.com/blogs/openhouse/development/the-audacious-plan-to-turn-a-sprawling-dc-suburb-into-a-big-city.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcsluggo Posted March 30, 2015 Author Share Posted March 30, 2015 so... can Tysons be rescued? or is it destined to remain an armpit of the greater washington area? there are ALOT of changes going on there now, lots of things being built, shifted, moved altered.... but it is hard to get a sense that any "livable" space will emerge from all the tumult. can they do it?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ixcuincle Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 How is it an armpit now? When the construction finishes it'll be even better. Listen I worked there for a while and it's great. The only problem is traffic. It's raining? Stay off 495. You'll be in traffic for 2 hours . Also are we including Merrifield because there's Cinstruction right off gallows on new places. this is the first I've heard of Tysons being trash. It isnt. Check Merrifield and check down route 123. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatteredFanSyndrome Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Ummm, the only problem is traffic? When the traffic is at the level TC has, that's a huge, glaring problem. Not that I frequent Tysons, but it doesn't seem like a very liveable place either. It seems more like a place hundreds of thousands of employees flock to for work and then sit for hours in traffic to get home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan T. Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Yeah, I don't see it as a "craphole," though it may be the most pedestrian un-friendly piece of real estate in the world. That's the challenge being faced. Planners are trying to turn it into a pedestrian friendly urban environment. Metro opening is the first step. It'll be interesting to watch, because Tyson's has a lot to offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boss_Hogg Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I went back to Tysons for the first time in many years. I'm floored at how much it has changed, that new apartment building is absolutely amazing. It reminds me of something out of Cloud City on the Empire Strikes back. It's literally town inside a small sky scraper. The traffic and gridlock hasn't change however, still the the worst. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Destino Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 People that think Tyson's Corner is horrible have some pretty ridiculous standards. Also Arlington traffic is worse IMO. I've worked in both places and in Arlington it's better to work late than try to leave at 5:00 or 5:30. Tyson's is bad but it's not as bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcsluggo Posted March 30, 2015 Author Share Posted March 30, 2015 I live 2 miles from Tysons (as the crow flies)... and occasionally go to Tysons Corner (the mall) (how can i help it, i have daughters aged 9, 11 and 13-- i was there yesterday, getting shoes). But I stay away from Tysons (the city/neighborhood) as much as i possibly can. The place IS a dump. there is alot of stuff there, but absolutely zero "there" there. i LIKE walking around/biking around downtown, or Arlington. But, the overwhelming feeling when you go to Tysons (no matter where you are going in Tysons: an office or a mall, or whatever) is "how the hell can i get in, and get the hell back out with as little damage as possible..." I don't know how there can be any debate that the place sucks donkey testicles, by any conceivable measure. I can honestly say that It didn't even OCCUR to me that anyone would disagree with the premise that Tysons sucks as it is NOW... i only thought there would be disagreement about whether it would suck in the future? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slateman Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Not seeing a craphole. Generally, crapholes don't gave stores that sell 5k Gucci bags. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
No Excuses Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 It is easily the most unfriendly place I've ever been to for pedestrians. My girlfriend works in that area and asked me to meet at her work place one day. Getting from the metro to her office building was a game of frogger. I occasionally end up there as it is the best mall in the NoVA area. But aside from that, even with the metro, there is no way in hell that area is friendly for people not in a car. The yuppie Arlington strip is quite pedestrian friendly in contrast and places are more easily accessible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chew Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 so TC wants to become downtown Silver Spring? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan T. Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 BTW, love this 1935 image of Tysons Corner at the intersection of Route 7 and Route 123 from the article: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcsluggo Posted March 30, 2015 Author Share Posted March 30, 2015 BTW, love this 1935 image of Tysons Corner at the intersection of Route 7 and Route 123 from the article: <picture of Tysons> The roads were paved by 1960... but it still basically looked like that until they broke ground for the mall (which opened in 1968). In the late 70s I would bike over there, and there was almost nothing on the wst side of 123 (where Tysons II is now, and all of the corporate headquarter/office parks). It was just a giant woods, with dirt paths and ramps for riding dirtbikes. (called "the pits"). it was way cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ixcuincle Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Ah yes Tysons where I once saw the infamous 5 second green light Word of advice do not take Gallows / International Drive during rush hour It'll literally take 10 minutes just to reach the light. And you know how DC drivers are. Light turns green, and these bammas are stopped for 10 seconds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinInsite Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Ah Tysons, where you have to drive everywhere and there's a ****ing light every 5 feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOF44 Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Tysons a dump?? No way, other than the traffic it's fine. You want to see a dump, let me take you to some places in Baltimore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ixcuincle Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Agreed the standards on what are a dump or armpit seem to have changed. It's very commercial and modern (I like that Deloitte building that popped up) A dump is a worn down place or somewhere like that, not Tysons. But there is a lot of traffic there, a ridiculous amount. I used to be afflicted badly by it, and used to spend time plotting my way out on Google Maps because 495 was essentially a dark red line. I found a shortcut but it's nearly impossible to avoid the jam (because there's only one ****ing way out of NoVa across the American Legion Bridge) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RFKFedEx Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 A dump, definitely not. It's one of the most prosperou$ places on Earth. I like where they're going with the future. Density zoning is key. I so wish Metro had gone underground. Imo, the above ground, concrete stations and tracks are visually intimidating for pedestrians. Having Metro underground lends itself to walkers and traditional city block construction, i.e. Arlington and Bethesda. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ixcuincle Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I went to Tysons the other day for the Disney Store 28th anniversary celebration and as I was driving home from West Falls Church I saw they were building a new office building out of glass there. The LMI building is glass too. And as mentioned before Deloitte building (also the Intelsat one). So it can't be a dump when there's so much modernization going on over there. The modern bulidings going up there are just amazing. I didn't know Ted Lerner was that heavily involved in making Tysons relevant Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elessar78 Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Craphole is poor word choice, but the traffic is awful which makes the area a non-starter for me to go to when I lived in NoVa and now when I'm back. I think I lost the Xmas spirit trying to shop at tyson's corner back in the day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjah Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 But... I thought we were told that an above-ground Metro alignment would be the instant death knell for all things good and worthy at Tysons forever and ever and ever. So it turns out that was just a lie? Heaven forfend! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan T. Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 But... I thought we were told that an above-ground Metro alignment would be the instant death knell for all things good and worthy at Tysons forever and ever and ever. So it turns out that was just a lie? Heaven forfend! The article makes the point that the above-ground stations pose challenges - literally roadblocks - toward the goal of making the area a contiguous, walkable urban center by creating artificial barriers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momma There Goes That Man Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 I don't live in the NoVa/DC area so I don't frequent it much now that grandparents in the area passed away years ago, but I'd pay a ridiculous premium to have anything close to that type of apartment here in Lynchburg. It honestly makes me want to move to Tyson's Corner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjah Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 The article makes the point that the above-ground stations pose challenges - literally roadblocks - toward the goal of making the area a contiguous, walkable urban center by creating artificial barriers. I'm sure it will make things worse... akin to leaving a modest pile of logs sitting in the woods amidst an already-raging forest fire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinsHokieFan Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Working in tysons in 2011 was awful. I work on the gallows side now behind the Olive Garden and it's not so bad. Easy to get home from there via Gallows or going around back to get to 495 and taking the express lanes home. I even walk across route 7 to the mall at lunch time. The problem really is 7 and 123 being pseudo highways. Had the metro been put under ground with pedestrian walkways underneath it would have been a major improvement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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