Satellite image of the interlocking highrises of Crystal City. Jefferson Davis Highway (U.S. Highway 1) can be seen running from north to south left of the image center. The main terminal of National Airport is in the bottom right corner of the image; a few lanes of I-395 are visible in the top left corner, immediately beyond which is the Pentagon. At the bottom is Virginia State Highway 233, the Airport Viaduct. Image from the United States Geological Survey, taken April 26, 2002.

Crystal City is an unincorporated area located in the southeastern corner of Arlington County, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, DC. Crystal City is centered along a stretch of Jefferson Davis Highway (U.S. Highway 1), just south of The Pentagon, just east of Pentagon City, and within walking distance to the west of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Characterized as one of many "urban villages" by Arlington County, Crystal City is almost exclusively populated by high rise apartment buildings, corporate offices, hotels, and numerous shops and restaurants. There is also an extensive network of underground shopping areas and connecting corridors beneath Crystal City. Original image source: USGS satellite image of Constitution Gardens. ... Original image source: USGS satellite image of Constitution Gardens. ... Jefferson Davis Memorial Highway was named for Jefferson Davis (1808-1889). ... United States Highway 1 is a United States highway which parallels the east coast of the United States. ... Color enhanced USGS satellite image of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, taken April 26, 2002. ... Interstate 395 in Virginia is a 13 mile long spur route that begins at a junction with Interstate 95 in Springfield, Virginia and ends in downtown Washington, District of Columbia. ... A pre-9/11 view of The Pentagon, looking east with the Potomac River and Washington Monument in the distance. ... Virginia State Highway 233, or the Airport Viaduct, is a short elevated highway connecting U.S. Highway 1 with Reagan National Airport in Arlington County, Virginia. ... The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is a scientific agency of the United States government. ... Location in the state of Virginia Formed 9 July 1846 Seat Arlington Area  - Total  - Water 67. ... It has been suggested that Suburbia be merged into this article or section. ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... Jefferson Davis Memorial Highway was named for Jefferson Davis (1808-1889). ... United States Highway 1 is a United States highway which parallels the east coast of the United States. ... A pre-9/11 view of The Pentagon, looking east with the Potomac River and Washington Monument in the distance. ... Washington Tower, a signature building of the Pentagon City neighborhood. ... Color enhanced USGS satellite image of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, taken April 26, 2002. ...

Prior to development by the Charles E. Smith Co. (which also built much of downtown Washington), the area was mostly composed of industrial sites, junkyards, and low rent motels. The RF & P railroad tracks were also moved closer to National Airport to accommodate more space for development. A building and development company, currently chaired by Robert H. Smith. ... Categories: Rail stubs | Defunct railroad companies of the United States | Defunct companies | District of Columbia railroads | Virginia railroads ...

Though it was not intended as a planned community, it unfolded that way after construction began on the first condominiums and office buildings in 1963. The name "Crystal City" came from the first building, which was called Crystal House and had an elaborate crystal chandelier in the lobby. Charles E. Smith's first daughter's name was Crystal, as well, so some debate exists as to where the name arose from. Every subsequent building took on the Crystal name (i.e., Crystal Gateway, Crystal Towers), and eventually the whole neighborhood. Crystal City is largely integrated in layout and extensive landscaping, as well as the style and materials of the high rise buildings, most of which have a speckled granite exterior. 1963 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Due to Crystal City's extensive integration with both office buildings and residential high-rise buildings, it is possible for residents to traverse from one end to the other (roughly north-south), performing any shopping or dining along the way, entirely underground, thus making Crystal City a classic underground city. This is of particular importance to residents who rely upon this fact in inclement weather. During the winter months, it can reach temperatures of the low teens (fahrenheit), and snow storms and heavy rains are possible. Additionally all the high-rise apartment buildings are structured such that they have internal hallways with horizontally opposed apartments, forcing neighbors to interact with each other more so than would be in an "open" building. Part of Montreals underground city, a concourse in Bonaventure metro station, showing directional signs leading to buildings accessible through the underground city An underground city is a network of tunnels that connect buildings, usually in the downtown area of a city. ... In many parts of the world, winter is associated with snow. ... Fahrenheit is a temperature scale named after the German physicist Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686–1736), who proposed it in 1724. ...

Crystal City presently has over 6,000 residents, while around 60,000 come to work there every weekday. It was home to the United States Patent and Trademark Office until mid-2005, when that office moved to nearby Alexandria. It is also has offices of the United States Department of Labor, and serves as many satellite offices for The Pentagon which is presently being renovated. The United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO or USPTO) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides patent and trademark protection to inventors and businesses for their inventions and corporate and product identification. ... Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. ... The United States Department of Labor is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics. ... A pre-9/11 view of The Pentagon, looking east with the Potomac River and Washington Monument in the distance. ...

The layout of Crystal City was considered avant-garde back when when it was built, with superblocks bounded by arterial and circulating roads, and with pedestrian traffic and the businesses serving it relocated from the streets to the pedestrian tunnels. However, as of 2005, Crystal City is being redesigned to give it a more traditionally urban feel, with restaurants at street level, and with traffic patterns changed to make streets like Crystal Drive function as city streets, rather than as circulating roads. Additionally, the buildings in Crystal City have shed their original names (e.g. Crystal Square, Crystal Mall, Crystal Gateway) in favor of traditional street addresses, and signage in the Crystal City underground has been updated with the new building names, and directions to surface streets. City Blocks are a part of the fictional universe recounted in the Judge Dredd series that appears in the UK comic book 2000 AD. // Overview Also known as starscrapers or stratoscrapers (compare skyscraper), they are the most common form of mass-housing in Mega-City One, averaging a population of... 2005(MMV) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Crystal City has a station on the Washington Metro Blue and Yellow Lines, and on the Virginia Railway Express commuter train system. Crystal City station. ... Red Line train at Metro Center, hub of the system The Washington Metro is the public transportation system of Washington, D.C., and neighboring suburban communities in Maryland and Virginia, both inside and outside the Capital Beltway. ... The Blue Line of the Washington Metro consists of 27 subway stations from Franconia_Springfield to Largo Town Center. ... The Yellow Line of the Washington Metro consists of twelve subway stations from Mt Vernon Sq/7th St-Convention Center to Huntington. ... The Virginia Railway Express (VRE) is a commuter railroad service that connects the Northern Virginia area with Washington, DC. The VRE operates on two lines, the Fredericksburg line, which starts from Fredericksburg, Virginia and the Manassas line, which starts from Manassas, Virginia, both lines end at Union Station in Washington... A Connex commuter train stands by the platform in Melbourne, Australia Regional rail systems, or commuter rail systems, usually provide a rail service through a central business district area into suburbs or other locations that draw large numbers of people on a daily basis. ...

It is worth noting that Charles E. Smith Residential Realty was purchased in a merger with Archstone, forming the Archstone-Smith Company. Charles E. Smith Commercial Realty, which still owns the commercial buildings in Crystal City, remains separate to this day.

External links

• Arlington's Urban Villages - Crystal City
• Crystal City - Arlington Convention and Visitors Service
• Arlington Economic Development Agency official website