{"nrhp_refnum":"03000628","name":"Al's Motors","other_names":["000-7381"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"3910 Wilson Blvd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Arlington","county":"Arlington County","state":"VA","lat":38.879349724000065,"lon":-77.10727655599999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2003-07-05","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story masonry automobile showroom and service garage at 3910 Wilson Boulevard in Ballston, Arlington County, Virginia, built in 1948 to designs by architect J. Raymond Mims. It was renovated in 2001-2002 as a health club.","why_significant":"The building is an excellent, high-style example of Streamline Moderne architecture, with rounded glass curtain walls, an aluminum cornice, glass block and racing-stripe string courses. Its elevations are treated differently to match the showroom, offices and garage uses and the corner site. It was also the home of the oldest Chrysler-Plymouth dealership in Northern Virginia, and it retains enough integrity to show its original use.","narrative":"Built in 1948 at the corner of Wilson Boulevard and North Pollard Street in Ballston, this two-story masonry building was designed as a car showroom and service garage for Al and Bertha Wasserman's Chrysler-Plymouth dealership. Architect J. Raymond Mims gave it a Streamline Moderne look meant to catch the eye of passing drivers: rounded corners, a metal-and-glass curtain wall, an overhanging aluminum cornice, glass block around the entrance, and red string courses echoing racing stripes. The street-facing sides are finished in descending levels of ornament, from the showy Wilson Boulevard front to plainer red brick and industrial windows on the garage side, matching the showroom, office and service functions. A barrel-vaulted roof covers the garage. The dealership was the oldest Chrysler-Plymouth outlet in Northern Virginia when it closed in 2001. The building was then converted to a health club, with a rear addition replaced. It was listed for its architectural design, since it keeps enough original character to show its mid-century automobile purpose.","period_of_significance":"1948","architect_builder":"Mims, J. Raymond; built by Roystone, Grimm, and Sammons","architectural_style":"Modern Movement/Moderne (Streamline Moderne)","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Renovated in 2001-2002 and now used as a health club; a 1968 rear addition was replaced in 2001.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:02.557324-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/80/6795/41679580/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/03000628.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03000628/33e55fdced-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03000628/33e55fdced-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"KudzuVine","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gold%27s_Gym,_3910_Wilson_Blvd_(Arlington,_Virginia).JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">KudzuVine</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gold%27s_Gym,_3910_Wilson_Blvd_(Arlington,_Virginia).JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41679580","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al%27s_Motors","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14711957"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/arlington-county/als-motors-03000628/"}