Page 49 - ArchDC_Summer 2020

Ballston Quarter. The project is anchored by an existing Macy’s
department store—the former Hecht’s—on one end and a new
23-story, 406-unit residential tower over street-level retail at the
other end. Cooper Carry served as architects of record for the
western portion of the mall renovation.
Reinvigorating such a large and multifaceted complex
required a unique and catalytic planning process that was
executed by collaborative teams. It also relied on a public-private
partnership to finance portions of the public infrastructure and
improvements within the site. The result is a largely open-air,
mixed-use development that is hardly recognizable by those
who remember the closed-off mall that once sat at the nexus of
North Glebe Road and Wilson Boulevard, one of Arlington’s
busiest intersections.
“The visioning for the site started with an intensive
two-day workshop with some forty active participants,”
said CallisonRTKL vice president Marc Fairbrother, AIA,
NCARB, who led the project team. The participants included
representatives from the client (Forest City—now part of
Brookfield Properties), the design team, demographers,
branding consultants, and others with special expertise. From
this workshop emerged the concept of “de-malling the mall,”
which entailed removing large portions of the enclosed and
sequestered interior circulation and atrium, adding a pedestrian
mews, and carving out a public plaza.
The project was ultimately divided into two pieces:
CallisonRTKL’s DC office was responsible for the residential
tower and its retail podium, while the firm’s Dallas office took
on the design of the remaining retail center with Cooper Carry
as architects of record. Several other architecture firms—
Gensler, HapstakDemetriou+, and STUDIOS Architecture—
designed various interior spaces throughout the project.
At the outset, CallisonRTKL understood that it was crucial
to recognize and appreciate the history of the shopping center
and to reflect that identity in the redesign. It was also important
New residential tower.

Open-air retail “mews.” Seating in public plaza.

UNCOMMON GROUND 47