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The Arlington City Council voted Tuesday, Feb. 22 to approve a $160.4 million Capital Budget for this fiscal year, which includes funding to build the voter-approved Active Adult Center.

The annual Capital Budget cycle is part of the City’s multi-year plan to maintain and build out Arlington’s infrastructure, which includes streets, water and sanitary sewer, parks and the preservation of green space, recreational facilities and city facilities. The Capital Budget cycle repeats each year with a bond election every three to five years. Arlington’s last bond election was in 2018.

In addition to the Active Adult Center, capital improvement projects in the Capital Budget include improvements to numerous streets, sidewalks, traffic signals and intersections across the city, as well as for select parks and trails. The City will also begin work on projects such as the design to rebuild Fire Station No. 8 in north Arlington, construction of a new, larger police evidence storage facility and making improvements to the Arlington Municipal Airport. Planned water utilities and storm water projects include water and sanitary sewer main replacements, improvements to the Pierce-Burch Water Treatment Plant and strategic efforts to reduce neighborhood flooding.

Many of the capital improvement projects in this year’s Capital Budget were approved by voters in the 2018 Bond Program. The Active Adult Center, which will be located near the Pierce Burch Water Treatment Plant and is expected to be constructed by late 2024, was approved by voters in in special bond election in 2017.

These projects align with the Arlington City Council’s priorities to Champion Great Neighborhoods, Put Technology to Work, Enhance Regional Mobility, Invest in our Economy, and Support Youth and Families.

Projects include:

• River Legacy Park Trail Replacement – Construction

• Debbie Lane (city limits to SH 360) – Construction

• Mansfield Webb Road (Silo Road to Collins Street) – Design

• Mitchell Street (Collins Street to Perrin Street) - Design

• Fire Station No. 8 Rebuild – Design

• Richard Simpson Park improvements – Construction

• $1.4 million for the annual sidewalk program

• $10.3 million for the annual residential street rebuild program

• $3 million for intersection improvements at nine locations

• $1.25 million for signal and ITS program

• $1 million for park land acquisition (last project in 2014 Bond Program)

• $19.9 million in stormwater-related improvements, including localized drainage projects, stormwater infrastructure maintenance, flood mitigation buyouts and drainage improvements for California Lane, Harvest Hills Lane and Briar Meadow Drive, Bonneville Drive and Greenbrook Drive, Kippers Courts and Jason Drive and Randol Mill Road. These projects are funded through stormwater fees and revenue bonds.

 • $47.3 million in water utilities improvements, including $20.8 million for Pierce-Burch Water Treatment Plant, water and sanitary sewer main replacements, and continued expansion of the City’s remote read water meter network infrastructure. These projects are funded through water utilities revenues and revenue bonds.

Residents can learn more about active infrastructure improvements and bond-funded projects planned across The American Dream City by visiting the Bond Tracker webpage.

Arlington Mayor Jim Ross highlighted the City’s current successes and his vision for the future at Esports Stadium Arlington + Expo Center during his inaugural State of the City address on Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021.

Ross discussed a variety of topics, including education, major economic development projects, transportation, public safety and technology initiatives, new amenities that enrich our community, and other milestone moments recently celebrated in The American Dream City.

The ticketed, in-person event was hosted by the Greater Arlington Chamber of Commerce and was broadcast on the City of Arlington’s Facebook page.

The entire State of the City address will air multiple times on the City's government cable channel, MyArlingtonTV, at AT-T U-verse Channel 99 and Spectrum Channel 16.

Construction is set to begin this fall on a more modern, more efficient Fire Station No. 1 in Downtown Arlington.

The Arlington City Council recently approved a construction contract for up to $9.2 million with Steele & Freeman, which has built two other fire stations within the city. Arlington voters approved funding to rebuild the City’s oldest fire station as part of the 2014 Bond Program.

The two-story, 17,667-square-foot station will replace the existing Fire Station No. 1, which originally opened in 1954 and has gone through various remodels over the decades. Fire Department response times are not expected to be affected during demolition of the existing building and construction of the new station, which is set to open in 2023, Assistant Fire Chief Jonathan Ingols said. Fire Station No. 1 crews will temporarily work from nearby fire stations No. 3 and No. 4.

Click here to learn more about the Arlington Fire Department.

The future facility is designed to provide a better work and living space for Arlington’s firefighters. Features will include five larger, drive-thru apparatus bays that can hold more equipment, training areas and indoor and outdoor kennels for the Fire Department’s K9 Unit, a full kitchen and a dining room, and various offices.

The station will also include a public space for community events and meetings as well as a museum area where residents can learn about the Arlington Fire Department’s history and accomplishments and see historical items up close, such as an antique fire engine.

“It’s going to have a community center where citizens can come and see some of the history of the Fire Department and be more active with us, Ingols said. “All in all, we are trying to put a building together that is going to be more efficient and better for the citizens and the firefighters who work here.”

Living quarters for the station’s three shift crews, who each spend 24 hours working from the Downtown station, will also be an improvement. Firefighters on shift will no longer have to share an open dormitory space. The second story of the new station will offer 12 private dorm rooms and separate men’s and women’s bathrooms with showers.

The new station’s design also includes several energy-saving features, including Low-E windows with a solar ban coating, a mechanical system with variable refrigerant volume, low-flow plumbing fixtures, and native landscaping that requires minimal irrigation systems.

Want to learn more about the projectsapproved by Arlington voters in the City’s bond elections? Check out the Bond Tracker webpage for maps, project timelines, articles, and more.