Editing Arlington County, Virginia (section)

==Geography==
{{see also|List of neighborhoods in Arlington County, Virginia}}
[[File:ArlingtonTODimage3.jpg|thumb|Aerial view of the growth pattern in Arlington County. High density, [[mixed-use development]] is concentrated within 1/4 to 1/2 mile from the county's [[Orange Line (Washington Metro)|Metrorail]] stations, such as in [[Rosslyn, Virginia|Rosslyn]], [[Court House, Arlington, Virginia|Courthouse]], and [[Clarendon, Virginia|Clarendon]] (shown in red from upper left to lower right).]]
{{Location map+ | USA Virginia Alexandria region
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  {{Location map~ | USA Virginia Alexandria region
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  {{Location map~ | USA Virginia Alexandria region
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  {{Location map~ | USA Virginia Alexandria region
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Arlington County is located in [[Northern Virginia]] and is surrounded by [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]] and [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]] to the west, the city of [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]] to the southeast, and the national capital of [[Washington, D.C.]] to the northeast across the [[Potomac River]], which forms the county's northern border. [[Minor's Hill]] and [[Upton's Hill]] represent the county's western borders.

According to the [[United States Census Bureau|U.S. Census Bureau]], the county has a total area of {{convert|26.1|sqmi|1}}, {{convert|26.0|sqmi|1}} of which is land and {{convert|0.1|sqmi|1}} (0.4%) of which is water.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=April 23, 2011|date=February 12, 2011|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}}</ref>  It is the smallest county by area in Virginia and is the [[County statistics of the United States|smallest]] self-governing county in the United States.<ref name="Smallest_County">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Content/NavigationMenu/About_Counties/County_Government/A_Brief_Overview_of_County_Government.htm |title=National Association of Counties |access-date=September 1, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080708090111/http://www.naco.org/Content/NavigationMenu/About_Counties/County_Government/A_Brief_Overview_of_County_Government.htm |archive-date=July 8, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> About {{convert|4.6|sqmi|1}} (17.6%) of the county is federal property. The county courthouse and most government offices are located in the [[Courthouse, Virginia|Courthouse]] neighborhood.

Since the late 20th century, the county government has pursued a [[Urban planning|development strategy]] of concentrating much of its new development near transit facilities, such as [[Washington Metro|Metrorail]] stations and the high-volume bus lines of [[Virginia State Route 244|Columbia Pike]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.arlingtonva.us/Departments/CPHD/planning/CPHDPlanningSmartGrowth.aspx |title=Smart Growth&nbsp;: Planning Division&nbsp;: Arlington, Virginia |publisher=Arlingtonva.us |date=March 7, 2011 |access-date=November 4, 2011}}</ref>  Within the transit areas, the government has a policy of encouraging [[mixed-use development|mixed-use]] and [[Walkability|pedestrian-]] and [[transit-oriented development]].<ref name="arlingtonva.us">{{cite web |url=http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/CPHD/planning/powerpoint/rbpresentation/rbpresentation_060107.pdf |title=Department of Community Planning, Housing and Development - Departments & Offices |publisher=Arlingtonva.us |access-date=April 28, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110924171835/http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/CPHD/planning/powerpoint/rbpresentation/rbpresentation_060107.pdf |archive-date=September 24, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Some of these "[[urban village]]" communities include:
<!---some of these seem more like neighborhoods than "urban villages". See below--->
{{Div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[Aurora Highlands Historic District|Aurora Highlands]]
* [[Ballston, Virginia|Ballston]]
* Barcroft
* [[Bluemont, Arlington, Virginia|Bluemont]]
* Broyhill Heights
* Claremont
* [[Clarendon, Virginia|Clarendon]]
* [[Court House, Virginia|Courthouse]]
* [[Crystal City, Virginia|Crystal City]]
* [[Glencarlyn, Virginia|Glencarlyn]]
* Greenbrier
* [[High View Park]] (formerly Halls Hill)
* [[Lyon Village, Virginia|Lyon Village]]
* Palisades
* [[Pentagon City]]
* [[Penrose Historic District|Penrose]]
* Radnor - Fort Myer Heights
* [[Rosslyn, Virginia|Rosslyn]]
* [[Shirlington, Virginia|Shirlington]]
* [[Virginia Square, Virginia|Virginia Square]]
* Waycroft-Woodlawn (formerly Woodlawn Park)
* [[Westover, Arlington, Virginia|Westover]]
* Williamsburg Circle
{{div col end}}

In 2002, Arlington received the [[United States Environmental Protection Agency|EPA]]'s National Award for Smart Growth Achievement for "Overall Excellence in [[Smart Growth]]."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/arlington.htm |title=Arlington County, Virginia – National Award for Smart Growth Achievement – 2002 Winners Presentation |publisher=Epa.gov |date=June 28, 2006 |access-date=November 4, 2011}}</ref> In 2005, the County implemented an affordable housing ordinance that requires most developers to contribute significant affordable housing resources, either in units or through a cash contribution, in order to obtain the highest allowable amounts of increased building density in new development projects, most of which are planned near Metrorail station areas.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/CPHD/housing/development/CPHDHousingDevOrdinance.aspx |title=Housing Development – Affordable Housing Ordinance&nbsp;: Housing Division&nbsp;: Arlington, Virginia |publisher=Arlingtonva.us |date=August 4, 2011 |access-date=November 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110315032048/http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/CPHD/housing/development/CPHDHousingDevOrdinance.aspx |archive-date=March 15, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

A number of the county's residential neighborhoods and larger garden-style apartment complexes are listed in the [[National Register of Historic Places]] and/or designated under the County government's zoning ordinance as [[Historic districts in the United States#Local-level|local historic preservation district]]s.<ref>[http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/CPHD/ons/CPHDOnsHistoricPreservation.aspx Arlington County Government Historic Preservation Program] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080118175157/http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/CPHD/ons/CPHDOnsHistoricPreservation.aspx |date=January 18, 2008 }} Official Arlington County Government Website. Retrieved on February 5, 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/CPHD/planning/zoning/pdfs/Ordinance_Section31a.pdf Arlington County Zoning Ordinance: Section 31.A. Historic Preservation Districts] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080226230400/http://www.arlingtonva.us/Departments/CPHD/planning/zoning/pdfs/Ordinance_Section31a.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.arlingtonva.us/Departments/CPHD/planning/zoning/pdfs/Ordinance_Section31a.pdf |archive-date=October 9, 2022 |url-status=live |date=February 26, 2008 }} Official Arlington County Government Website. Retrieved on February 5, 2008.</ref>
These include Arlington Village, Arlington Forest, Ashton Heights, Buckingham, Cherrydale, Claremont, Colonial Village, [[Fairlington, Arlington, Virginia|Fairlington]], Lyon Park, Lyon Village, Maywood, [[Nauck, Virginia|Nauck]], Penrose, Waverly Hills and Westover.<ref>[http://www.arlingtonva.us/Departments/CPHD/ons/hp/CPHDOnsHpDistricts.aspx List of Arlington County Government Designated Local Historic Districts] Official Arlington County Government Website. Retrieved on February 5, 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.arlingtonva.us/Departments/CPHD/ons/hp/CPHDOnsHpHpNrsites.aspx List of Arlington County Sites in the National Register of Historic Places]  Official Arlington County Government Website. Retrieved on February 5, 2008.</ref> Many of Arlington County's neighborhoods participate in the Arlington County government's Neighborhood Conservation Program (NCP).<ref>[http://www.arlingtonva.us/Departments/CPHD/ons/CPHDOnsConservation.aspx Neighborhood Conservation Program] Official Arlington County Government Website. Retrieved on February 5, 2008.</ref> Each of these neighborhoods has a Neighborhood Conservation Plan that describes the neighborhood's characteristics, history and recommendations for capital improvement projects that the County government funds through the NCP.<ref>[http://www.arlingtonva.us/Departments/CPHD/ons/conservation/CPHDOnsConservationPlans.aspx Neighborhood Conservation Plans] Official Arlington County Government Website. Retrieved on February 5, 2008.</ref>

Arlington is often spoken of as divided between North Arlington and South Arlington, which designate the sections of the county that lie north and south of [[Arlington Boulevard]]. Places in Arlington are often identified by their location in one or the other. Much consideration is given to socioeconomic and demographic differences between these two portions of the county and the respective amounts of attention they receive in the way of public services.<ref>{{Cite web|date=April 27, 2015|title=Are There Two Arlingtons?|url=https://www.arlingtonmagazine.com/are-there-two-arlingtons/|access-date=February 11, 2022|website=Arlington Magazine|language=en-US}}</ref>

Arlington ranks fourth in the nation, immediately after [[Washington, D.C.]], for park access and quality in the 2018 ParkScore ranking of the top 100 park systems across the United States, according to the ranking methodologies of [[Trust for Public Land]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.parkscore.tpl.org/rankings.php|title=ParkScore|website=www.parkscore.tpl.org|language=en-US|access-date=May 23, 2018|archive-date=May 24, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180524003623/http://www.parkscore.tpl.org/rankings.php|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Climate===
The climate in the county is characterized by hot, humid summers, mild to moderately cold winters, and pleasant spring and fall seasons. Arlington County averages 41.82 inches of precipitation that is fairly evenly spread out during the year. Snowfall averages 13.7 inches per year. The snowiest months are January and February, although snow also falls in December and March; scarce snow may fall in November or April. The county usually has 60 nights with lows below freezing and 40 days with highs in the 90s. Hundred degree temperatures readings are rare, even more so negative temperature readings in Fahrenheit, last occurring August 13, 2016, and January 19, 1994, respectively.<ref>{{Cite news|title=120-year-old record low broken in D.C., one of many today and in the past week|language=en-US|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2015/02/20/120-year-old-record-low-broken-in-d-c-one-of-many-today-and-in-the-past-week/|access-date=January 9, 2022|issn=0190-8286}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Climate |url=https://www.weather.gov/wrh/Climate?wfo=lwx |publisher=National Weather Service Baltimore/Washington Weather Forecast Office}}</ref>  According to the [[Köppen Climate Classification]] system, Arlington County has a slightly colder version of the  [[humid subtropical climate]], abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.<ref>{{cite web|title=Climate Summary for Arlington County, Virginia|url=http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather-summary.php3?s=150427&cityname=Arlington%2C+Virginia%2C+United+States+of+America&units=|access-date=October 3, 2014|work=Weatherbase}}</ref>
{{Washington, D.C. weatherbox}}