Arlington Public Schools in November will access 92 parking spaces a block south of the Arlington Career Center complex to limit parking congestion as the new Career Center building takes shape.
School Board members on April 11 are slated to ratify an agreement with their County Board counterparts, giving the school system use of a 0.98-acre parcel at 3108 Columbia Pike so construction workers can park there.
Using that land will serve several purposes, said Cathy Lin, who heads facilities operations for the school system.
“There’s very limited on-site parking at the Career Center right now, [and] we do not want to impact the neighborhood,” Lin told School Board members on March 21.
Under the agreement, the school system will not pay rent for the parking spaces, but will cover the cost of outdoor lighting and agree to maintain landscaping and the overall condition of the property.
The lease will continue in place until construction of the new Career Center facilities is completed.
The 3108 Columbia Pike property for decades was home to a SunTrust bank branch, offices as and the Black Heritage Museum of Arlington. The County Board purchased the site in 2022 for $7.55 million, more than twice its assessed valuation, to hold for future public uses in the Columbia Pike corridor.
