An Urban Village Copes With Too Much Success

Clarendon, Virginia, is a walkable neighborhood of local shops and premium national retailers, older tree-lined neighborhoods and new high-rise condominiums, a few office buildings, a wide selection of restaurants and a Metro stop. With a 20-minute commute to downtown Washington, "it combines homey friendliness with convenient commerce."

"But the neighborhood's character is changing, both driven by and reacting to a shift in its commercial real estate. More affluent, less workaday, more trendy, less mom-and-pop, Clarendon has become such a retail and residential magnet that it may be losing the ambience that made it such an appealing place to live, work and shop."

Terry Holzheimer, director of Arlington County Economic Development, explains: "This isn't a place for hobby businesses anymore. It's gotten more expensive, but the revenue potential is also much higher." He estimates that annual retail sales have increased nearly $200 million in the past five years.