Arlington Walking Tour

Tour Directions:

2.7 miles

1. Start at the John Galt Coffee Shop at 709 16th Street. Depending on the weather, perhaps you’ll need a cup of coffee or a glass of iced tea to fortify yourself before you start. Well-refreshed, you’re ready to set out. Begin by walking east to the corner and then turn right. Make your way south along 7th Avenue to 17th Street and turn east (left).

2. Notice the No. 3 Ditch running under 7th Avenue and 17th Street.

3. When you reach 6th Avenue, you will see the new University Flats. In their first incarnation back in the 1930s, these served as a dormitory for male college students. They then became the Villa, and then a private residential treatment center, before morphing into affordable senior housing. Thanks to a recent renovation, they are now student housing again, albeit with a more contemporary ambiance.

4. Walk along 6th Avenue going south. As you cross 18th Street and continue south on 6th Avenue, you will pass the Jackson Sports Complex, UNC’s state-of-the-art athletic facility for baseball and soccer games. Jackson Field once hosted all of the college’s football home games, and baseball fans witnessed many great players when the Bears’ team qualified for the College World Series ten times between 1952 and 1974. Who knows? You might be fortunate enough to watch a couple innings or even a soccer game. At the complex’s entrance, note the plaque dedicated to Charles Jackson, benefactor and great college sports fan. Off in the distance to the east, you can see UNC’s impressive physical plant.

5. At 20th Street, turn west (right) for one block, and then walk south (left) on 7th Avenue. In a couple blocks, you will bump into Bonell Good Samaritan Center, a sprawling facility with twenty buildings on a ten-acre plot of land. It provides long-term care, assisted living and independent living options for seniors. Turn west (right) and carefully cross 8th Avenue at the light.

6. If you are in the mood for a commercial landscape and a three-block walk, make your way south along 8th Avenue until you reach the former JBs. Here you could satisfy your thirst with a root-beer float and, what the heck, why not add a side of deep-fried shrimp? Note that this stretch of 8th Avenue also offers other fast-food restaurants, a bowling alley, and the former Rice’s Honey factory. If you wish to forgo the calories, continue west along 22nd Street and uphill to 9th Avenue.

7. Turn south (left) on 9th Avenue and walk until you cross 23rd Street where you will pass by Arlington Park Apartments. In the middle of these buildings, note the original Arlington Elementary School, left by the developer as a student meeting and study space. On the south end of the building, the rounded and many-windowed section used to be the school library. It is almost identical to the north end of UNC’s Carter Hall. Architect Sidney Frazier designed both the school and Carter Hall.

8. Go back to 24th Street and turn west until you reach 10th Avenue. Make a right turn and walk north. In another block you will pass UNC’s newest addition, The College Commons, and then the University Center built in 1965. It represents the university’s linchpin between old and new campuses. Continue to 20th Street.

9. At 20th Street turn east (right). This corner is often crowded with students going back and forth between UNC’s old Central Campus and its newer West Campus. (Labeled Campus Center Point on map)

10. Walk for two blocks to 8th Avenue, carefully crossing at the light. Proceed east for half a block. Here you can peek down an alley to see apartments built onto homes along the east side of 8th Avenue. After your alley peek, return to 20th Street and continue east (right).

11. At 7th Avenue, turn north (left) and stroll past the sizable houses with their large and inviting front porches and big yards located in the 1800s and 1700s blocks of 7th Avenue. They were once the upscale homes of professors and other professionals, intentionally built large enough to rent rooms to college students. You can look to the west and see UNC’s (A) Kepner, (B) Guggenheim and (C) Crabbe Halls. Just as they loom over 8th Avenue, so the university has tended for many decades to throw a long shadow over the Arlington neighborhood.

One more block to go and you are back on 16th Street at the John Galt Coffee Shop. Order a beverage and strike up a conversation with folks at the shop. Let them know what you think of their unique neighborhood.