A very early article on the effort to get a facility built on the Arlington side of the river, with quotes from the visionary for the effort: Charlie Butt, Jr., coaches of Washington-Lee’s (now Washington-Liberty) rowing program for 42 years. The details of the project have changed over the years, but the vision has not: a facility on the Arlington side of the river that gives access to county residents to the Potomac River.
You can read the article here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1992/01/28/mooring-a-new-boathouse-can-be-upstream-struggle/