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National Landing dreams of (5G) connection

The Future. JBG Smith, one of the top developers in National Landing, Virginia, is partnering with AT&T to revitalize the area with 5G technology. With a slew of innovative projects happening in the area, JBG Smith may be hoping that it can turn National Landing into a place of constant connectivity, transforming it into the Silicon Valley of the eastern U.S.

Smart streets
With Amazon set to break ground on its second HQ in National Landing, Virginia, developers are crafting an overhaul to the entire area in order to build the first “smart city at scale.”

• JBG Smith, the area’s leading developer, is partnering with AT&T to create a ground-up 5G infrastructure in a four-mile zone that covers business, retail, and residential spaces.
• The experiment is meant to set the foundation for innovations in urban living using sensors, AI, and Internet of Things tech.
• AT&T will build out some infrastructure in the first half of next year.

Ambition Avenue
JBG Smith hopes that the partnership with AT&T and the addition of the new Amazon HQ will invite a wave of forward-thinking companies (and their workers) into the area. And those aren’t the only innovations set to break ground in the area: nearby Virginia Tech is building a 65-acre innovation campus in the city, while the National Landing Business Improvement District has plans for a $4 billion transit renovation project.

All of this should help mint the National Landing as “the most connected city in the country.” Hopefully it doesn’t suffer the same fate as other smart-city projects, such as ones in Columbus, Ohio and Toronto, Canada, that couldn’t realize their dreams.

Proposals include streets that support self-driving cars, lighting that can monitor air quality, support for lossless hybrid working, and robotics that help healthcare companies track their clients’ medication.