Arlington is getting ready to begin work on three new Metro elevators for the Rosslyn station. (Photo: TBD Staff)

Correction: The original version of this post stated that the Rosslyn Metro elevator work will occur north of Annie's Park. Actually, the work will occur just south of Annie's Park and the Central Place site adjacent to the existing elevator.

Work on the lengthy project to improve the entrance to the Rosslyn Metro station could begin as early as the middle of September, according to Arlington County. The improvements include the installation of three elevators on the block situated between North Moore and Lynn Streets and Wilson Boulevard and 19th Street.

Pedestrians in the area will start noticing fencing and some limitations on sidewalk access in the area directly north of the existing plaza (formally called Annie's Park) that allows foot traffic between Moore and Lynn. The contractor will begin construction staging as soon as the county finalizes certain property agreements with the owner of the land, JBG Properties, and another party, says Arlington transit bureau chief Stephen Del Giudice.

"Those are subject to approval by our board, and we expect that to happen in September, so we should be moving forward with the contract by mid-September, certainly by October 1," Del Giudice says.

The staging is just the beginning of a comprehensive project to improve the station that is expected to take two and a half years. The improvements include the new high-speed elevators as well as an additional station entrance with ticket machines, fare gates and a station operator's kiosk underground on the mezzanine level of the station. An emergency exit stairwell will also be constructed.

View Rosslyn Metro Improvement Area in a larger map

The plans are part of what could become a messy hub of construction around North Moore Street over the next several of years, depending on the schedules of two other adjacent projects. JBG Properties is planning part of the Central Place development for the same block as the new Metro elevators. Public planning for that began in 2005, however, and no set construction start date has been forthcoming.

Del Giudice says that the Metro work alone will not close the small plaza or the existing Metro elevator on the block. He could not speak for the other development though. "Our project will not require that that area be closed, but Central Place, which we don’t know when that would begin, would have more impacts on the block and the area, including the plaza," he says.

Across the street, Monday Properties has ramped up work on 1812 North Moore street after a lag, and pre-construction work is underway, the Washington Business Journal notes. Construction of that high-rise office building — to be located next to the existing Metro station — will almost certainly overlap with the county's Metro station improvement work.