7100 Arlington Road

Project Details

Project Description

Located in Bethesda overlooking the Capital Crescent Trail, 7001 Arlington Road is a five-story apartment building enveloped by uniquely landscaped courtyards, all set atop an automobile dealership and subsurface garage. The building serves as an important buffer property between urban + suburban Bethesda. The site is flanked by dense commercial properties, so the vision was to create an “urban retreat” for the residents, and provide almost one acre of private open space in the downtown core. RESPONDING TO CHALLENGES The site previously hosted a USPS Annex facility fronting onto Arlington Road, which housed parking on the back half of the lot for dozens of USPS vehicles. This generated a significant amount of noise and disruption for the residential neighborhood across the Capital Crescent Trail toward the back of the property. The new development put a cover over the parking to encapsulates the garage noise and create gardens. Unlike other multi-family developments, the buildings only access point was located on the front of the building fronting onto Arlington Road. URBAN OASIS The rear façade of the building is setback 60’ from the lot line creating a serene “backyard” for the residents with direct access to the Capital Crescent Trail. The balconies overlooking the trail project out to take advantage of the landscaped courtyards and create a more organic composition whereas, the residential balconies on Arlington Road are recessed to create privacy and a traditional urban façade. CREATING COMMUNITY The building plan is a “Z” shape that provides strong frontage on Arlington Road and the Capital Crescent Trail while forming two distinct wedge-shaped courtyards. This shape creates separation from the neighboring commercial uses, frames views, and minimizes difficult “inside corner” units. The north and south courtyards were programmatically developed as meaningful “passive” + “active” community spaces. Outdoor amenities include three nodes with different activities including: a grill and patio area with outdoor television, a fire pit and a bocce court. The smaller more contemplative spaces are located in the northern courtyard.