Community Facilities Study

A 23-member citizen committee, supported by a 250-member Resident Forum, worked with County and Public Schools staff to evaluate Arlington’s changing facility and resource needs. A final report was presented at a joint work session of the County and School Boards in November 2015. The report summarizes the committee’s findings, key community challenges and proposes a list of recommendations to address the challenges.

Read Final Report     Read Companion Report(PDF, 27MB)

Challenges & Recommendations

One of the most important questions the committee was asked to answer was, what community challenges are there that, if unaddressed, could threaten Arlington’s overall sustainability? The group identified five pressing community challenges:

  • A scarcity of land for public facilities
  • Changing demographics
  • A threatened commercial tax base
  • Strategic facility planning and priority setting
  • Revamping the community dialogue

Process improvements are the committee’s preferred method to address the key challenges.

Key Recommendations At-a-Glance     Complete List of Recommendations (Page 20)

Process, Scope & Timeline

In January 2015, the Arlington County Board and the Arlington School Board launched a broad-based, year-long community facilities planning effort.

The two Boards appointed a 23-member Study Committee to build a consensus framework regarding the community’s future funding and facility needs. The framework is meant to inform County and School Board decision-making related to meeting the community’s requirements for additional school, fire station, vehicle storage sites and other facility needs in the context of Arlington’s and the region’s projected economic and demographic growth.

 

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