The Village at Shirlington opened as Shirlington Shopping Center in 1944, and was the first large shopping center to open in the

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

suburbs and one of the earliest in the United States. It is located along Campbell Avenue (formerly South 28th Street) at the intersection of

Shirley Highway The Henry G. Shirley Memorial Highway, often shortened to Shirley Highway, consists of a portion of Interstates 95 and 395 in the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia. Shirley Highway was the first limited-access freeway in Virginia. Begun in 1941, th ...

and Quaker Lane / Shirlington Road in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county is ...

. The center has been known since the mid-1980s as The Village at Shirlington.

History

The center was originally developed by Joseph Cherner, automobile dealer and banker, on a 23-acre site to provide for the basic shopping needs of the nearby sprawling

Parkfairfax Parkfairfax is a neighborhood in Alexandria, Virginia, United States, located in the northwestern part of the city near the boundary with Arlington County. Nearby thoroughfares are Interstate 395 (Shirley Highway), State Route 402 (Quaker Lane) ...

, developed by the

Metropolitan Life Insurance Company MetLife, Inc. is the holding corporation for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (MLIC), better known as MetLife, and its affiliates. MetLife is among the largest global providers of insurance, annuities, and employee benefit programs, wi ...

, and the

Defense Homes Corporation The Defense Homes Corporation was created on October 23, 1940 to finance housing for war industry workers, and existed through 1942.

development at

Fairlington Fairlington is an unincorporated neighborhood in Arlington County, Virginia, United States, located adjacent to Shirlington in the southernmost part of the county on the boundary with the City of Alexandria. The main thoroughfares are Interstate ...

. He established the Shirlington Corporation in August 1943, and the first store opened in June 1944. The center expanded gradually, with an increasing variety of retail offerings. In 1947, the local women's clothing chain

Jelleff's The Frank R. Jelleff Co., or more commonly Jelleff's was a Washington, D.C.-based retailer that specialized in women's apparel. History Jelleff's was founded March 1910, on F Street, N.W. in downtown Washington, D.C. Its founder, Frank R. Jellef ...

chain opened a store; its fourth branch and first suburban location. It was also known as Shirlington Business Center. By the time of its fifth anniversary, there were 48 stores operating in the shopping center. In addition to Jelleff's, there was an

Acme Acme is Ancient Greek (ακμή; English transliteration: ''akmē'') for "the peak", "zenith" or "prime". It may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Acme'' (album), an album by the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion * Acme and Septimius, a fictional ...

supermarket,

F.W. Woolworth Frank Winfield Woolworth (April 13, 1852 – April 8, 1919) was an American entrepreneur, the founder of F. W. Woolworth Company, and the operator of variety stores known as "Five-and-Dimes" (5- and 10-cent stores or dime stores) which featured ...

, Singer Sewing Center,

Fanny Farmer Fanny Farmer was an American candy manufacturer and retailer. Fanny Farmer was started in Rochester, New York by Frank O'Connor in 1919, and grew to over 400 stores before being bought and consolidated. History O'Connor had previously start ...

candy, Firestone as well as standard local offerings, such as a

Shirley Food Store Shirley may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Shirley'' (novel), an 1849 novel by Charlotte Brontë * ''Shirley'' (1922 film), a British silent film * ''Shirley'' (2020 film), an American film * ''Shirley'' (album), a 1961 album by Shirley Bas ...

. In 1951, the center expanded with 25 additional stores. On September 14, 1959, the

Lansburgh's Lansburgh's was a chain of department stores located in the Washington, D.C. area. The clientele were middle-income consumers. History The first store, at 7th and E Streets, NW, in Washington, D.C.'s downtown shopping district, opened on Octob ...

department store opened its second suburban branch location at Shirlington. The store cost $2.5 million to construct. It would be the center's only anchor department store. It closed in May 1973, and reopened as a

Best Products Best Products Company, Inc., or simply Best, was a chain of American catalog showroom retail stores founded by Sydney and Frances Lewis in 1957 and formerly headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. The company was in existence for four decades befor ...

store. The center declined during the 1970s because of the economic slump and growing competition from close by modern shopping malls, including Springfield Mall. In 1982, the Oliver T. Carr Co. unveiled a $250 million plan to redevelop the then shopping center. Since then, the center has been expanded and renamed The Village at Shirlington. It is now owned and managed by

Federal Realty Investment Trust Federal Realty Investment Trust is a real estate investment trust that invests in shopping centers in the Northeastern United States, the Mid-Atlantic states, California, and South Florida. Investments As of December 31, 2021, the company owne ...

, which purchased it in 1995. In 2005, after years of planning between Federal Realty Investment Trust and Arlington County, construction began on an expansion of The Village at Shirlington, which added 650 apartment and condominium units, doubled the length of the main street, more retail space including a

Harris Teeter Harris Teeter Supermarkets, Inc., also known as Harris Teeter Neighborhood Food & Pharmacy, is an American supermarket chain based in Matthews, North Carolina, a suburb of Charlotte. , the chain operates 261 stores in seven South Atlantic states ...

grocery store, a branch library, and a new home for the Signature Theatre. The goal is "to increase the number of people in Shirlington to create a round-the-clock environment there."Daniela Deane, "Making Shirlington a Magnet; Developers Planning Stores, Theater, Condos to Bring More People to Village in Arlington," ''The Washington Post'', January 29, 2005, p. F1. As of 2012, The Village at Shirlington has a wide variety of eating options. Restaurants include: Aladdin's Eatery, Bonsai Grill, Capitol City Brewing Company, Robeks, The Bungalow, Aroma Indian Restaurant, Busboys & Poets, Caribou Coffee, Guapo's Restaurant, Luna Grill & Diner, Yogi Berry, Carlyle Grand Cafe, Subway, Best Buns Bread Company, Cakelove, Cheestique, Johnny Rockets, PING by Charlie Chiang's, and T.H.A.I in Shirlington. As of 2019, some restaurants have closed and the village has added new ones. The new restaurants include Copperwood Tavern, Palette 22, Dudley's Sports Bar and Grill, Dam Good Burger Moby Dick and Cafe Pizzaiolo. The village also added nail salons, hair salons and an ice cream shop. Capital City Brewing Company has shut down rumored by bankruptcy. Ping by Charlie has permanently shut down, Cakelove also has permanently shut down and Bungalow, Luna Grill & Diner and Aladdin's Eatery and Johnny Rockets have shut down.

References

External links

The Village at Shirlington website (retrieved Sep 4, 2008)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Village At Shirlington 1944 establishments in Virginia Buildings and structures in Arlington County, Virginia Shopping malls in Virginia Shopping malls established in 1944 Shopping malls in the Washington metropolitan area