Arlingtonians could see changes on Columbia Pike as early as this fall when the developer of Penrose Square hopes to demolish an existing Giant grocery store.
Penrose Square is part of a long-term revitalization project envisioned for Columbia Pike in 2002.
Since then, the county has created a growth plan to turn the aging commercial strip into a pedestrian-friendly street, lined with shops, restaurants and plazas.
No building can stand more than six stories high, with the upper floors housing offices and apartments.
Located on Columbia Pike between Cleveland and Adams streets, Penrose Square will include 299 apartments, a new Giant grocery store, 36,000 square feet of additional retail space and 713 parking spaces.
The developer, Great Falls-based Carbon Thompson Development, has yet to apply for any demolition or building permits.
It can take as long as six months to a year to approve all the building permits for a project as large as Penrose Square, county planner Richard Tucker said.
Demolition permits don’t take as long, Carbon Thompson Executive Vice President Jim Mertz said.
He hopes demolition work can start in the fall, and his team is working on the plans necessary for permits.
“We’re working full steam ahead on construction drawings,” Mertz said.
He expects construction to last about 20 months.
Carbon Thompson agreed to provide half the land for one of three public squares the county has planned along Columbia Pike.
The county will build the plazas after community discussion. Those meetings will be scheduled after the county receives a final architectural plan, Tucker said.
The county approved plans for Penrose Squarein October 2006 along with an adjacent project: Replacing the old Safeway grocery store on Columbia Pike between Adams and Wayne streets with a development of 188 apartments, more than 32,000 square feet of retail space and more than 14,000 square feet of offices.
Its developer, Georgelas Group, LLC, has begun the permitting process, Tucker said.
