In case you missed it, Arlington County’s Rosslyn-Ballston corridor made the NY Times on Thursday. The article, entitled “An Oasis of Stability Amid a Downturn”, provides how well Arlington County is weathering the current real estate market as compared to other locations of the country. The article cites Arlington’s 8.6% office vacancy rate against the national average of 18.3% (and the second lowest retail vacancy rate out of the 23 major markets surveyed), and attributes these relatively low vacancy rates to the corridor’s well-planned, transit-oriented mix of uses and proximity to the nation’s capitol, public transit/Metro system, and the County’s ability to attract and retain a number of federal agencies and universities in the County.

It is true that the major key to Arlington’s success has been its proximity to the federal government, and that it is a natural location for expansion of density outside of the District of Columbia (Arlington actually being originally planned as part of DC), but it is great to read about the truly excellent foresight the County has exercised over the years to ensure this potential was not lost and directed to other localities in the region. Arlington really is a unique market that deserves special attention, particularly during economic downturns. In fact, Arlington experienced similar resilience during the Great Depression.

I am very happy to see Arlington get the recognition it deserves. One quote hit the nail on the head: “‘[t]here’s a lot of tremendous economic fundamentals in place’ in the corridor…”

And to top it all off, Virginia was just named the “Best State for Business” by Forbes.com. for the fourth year in a row.