An 18-story former hotel in Arlington’s Rosslyn neighborhood will be demolished via controlled implosion Sunday morning. The Rosslyn Holiday Inn at 1900 Fort Myer Drive opened in 1972 and is one of the oldest buildings visible in the Rosslyn skyline. The demolition will make way for the Key, a new mixed-use development consisting of two towers that will include apartment homes, hotel rooms, a conference center, and other amenities.
The hotel ceased operations earlier this year, after developer Dittmar Company’s plans to replace the aging building were approved by Arlington County officials. The planned hotel and residential towers will be 38-stories and 25-stories tall respectively, connected by a 10-story building that will house ground-floor retail, parking, and the conference center. The new five-star hotel will feature a rooftop event space with panoramic views of Georgetown and the National Mall. As part of the redevelopment, nearby Gateway Park will also be improved to better integrate with the rest of Rosslyn. The old concrete pedestrian bridge over westbound Lee Highway will also be removed permanently.
Implosion of the hotel will take place around 8:00 AM on Sunday. Officials are discouraging in-person attendance for safety reasons; nearby streets and highways (including I-66) will be temporarily closed during the event and remain off-limits until the dust has settled, which may take up to an hour.
Another building that has been a mainstay of the north-facing skyline might be demolished soon. The old 12-story RCA Building, dating back to 1969, is awaiting approval from Arlington County to be redeveloped into a 26-story residential tower. After the redevelopment of the Key Bridge Marriott hotel, this would leave 1911 Fort Meyer Drive, which was recently renovated, as the only remaining building of the original 70’s-era Rosslyn skyline.