To reflect its stature as the new centerpiece of the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, George Mason University’s Arlington Campus is being renamed Mason Square, an urban destination of learning, collaboration, and economic development.
Also being announced is Fuse at Mason Square, the name of the new technology-forward building that is the heart of Mason’s commitment to growing Northern Virginia’s next-generation workforce. A groundbreaking ceremony for Fuse at Mason Square will take place Wednesday, April 6.
“As the largest producer of computing graduates in Virginia, George Mason University is building a new model for education’s role in economic development,” said Mason President Gregory Washington. “Mason Square brings scholars, students, industry and the region together at a destination—unlike any other—that takes ideas and research to market faster, and drives policy and technology solutions forward for decades to come.”
Fuse at Mason Square is a first-of-its-kind facility bringing together the public and private sectors in a collaborative alliance to solve grand challenges. Fuse will house faculty and students working with the Institute for Digital Innovation (IDIA) and their partners, and graduate programs from Mason’s new School of Computing. Designed to support digital innovation, active learning, cutting-edge research, business entrepreneurs, and tech incubators alongside education and policymakers, the new space offers nearly 350,000 square feet designed for the needs of the next generation of Northern Virginia’s technology workforce.
Developed in partnership with Mason Innovation Partners, led by Edgemoor Infrastructure & Real Estate, Fuse at Mason Square will be a LEED Platinum, smart, net-zero-ready building with Fitwel 2-star and RELi resiliency certifications. It will feature a green roof for energy-efficient heating and cooling, an agile floor design to enable responsive team or project growth, and specialized labs for robotics, virtual reality (VR), simulation, security, and data visualization.
Fuse at Mason Square also features community seating in a double-height atrium, a 750-seat theater-style multipurpose room, retail, a public plaza, and a below-grade parking garage. Estimated completion for the building is summer 2025.
“Fuse at Mason Square blends Mason’s best-in-class programs and the Institute for Digital Innovation with the expansion of connected industry partnerships and research endeavors on the Arlington Campus,” said Jamie Martin, vice president at Edgemoor Infrastructure & Real Estate. “Fuse will ignite Mason Square as a destination for tech talent development and industry-directed research and will become the center of digital innovation in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the greater Washington, D.C., region.”
Mason Square, in Arlington’s Virginia Square neighborhood, will support a multidisciplinary ecosystem to enable rapid incubation and scale of new ideas and inventions. In addition to the new building, Mason Square includes the integrated capacities of the Antonin Scalia Law School, the Schar School of Policy and Government, the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, programs in Arts Management and the School of Business, Mason Enterprise, and Continuing and Professional Education, as well as state-of-the-art meeting and conference facilities. This onsite combination of education, research, business incubation and urban amenities is a new model to serve the digital economy.
“We look forward to this new building and program, Fuse at Mason Square, attracting start-ups, investors and community organizations to Arlington in order to work alongside Mason innovators,” said Katie Cristol, Arlington County Board chair. “This proximity will spark innovation and new partnerships, and the research, programs and talent that will thrive here will be a cutting-edge asset for the regional economy for decades to come.”
The Arlington expansion at Mason Square supports the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Tech Talent Investment Program (TTIP), a 20-year program designed to produce 25,000 additional graduates in computer science, computer engineering and software engineering.