With 26 square miles and a population of 230,000, Arlington is the smallest and one of the most densely populated counties in America. Our midsection, along the Metro line, is especially thick, followed by South Arlington, then North Arlington which is essentially held harmless from what has increasingly become a “Canyon County” and our addiction to unbridled development.

We began this march toward many tall and tightly compacted buildings years ago by way of Arlington’s General Land Use Plan, which called for Metro development projects that continue with high intensity today.

This “density intensity” started long before the arrival of Amazon, which will reportedly nullify our office-vacancy rate and further hasten the development by corporations of new buildings who will yearn to be in close proximity to Mr. Bezos and company.

Infrastructure demands, funded by taxpayers, will skyrocket well beyond the difficulty we already are having keeping up — school construction, public transit and roads, police and fire, water and sewer, parks and trees. In short, our quality of life.

While I am not advocating no growth in what was once one of the most desirable places to live in the country, I am calling for slower, “smart” growth based on the needs and wants of our residents, particularly those who are just hanging on, rather than the “by right” dictates of the rich and powerful.

Mark Riley

Arlington