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A look at economic development, planning, zoning, and residential and commercial projects happening in Northern Virginia.
ARLINGTON COUNTY
The Board authorized a comprehensive agreement to Design and Build the Crystal City Metrorail Station East Project.
Ballston Holiday Inn – Item 56 A-C
The Board approved amendments related to the Ballston Holiday Site Plan (SP #57), that allow the redevelopment of the existing hotel and office properties on this site to build three multifamily residential buildings with 450 units.
Arva Motel – Item 57
The Board approved a general land use plan amendment, a rezoning, and a new site plan (SP #469) to redevelop the existing Days Inn Motel (known as The Arva) at 2201 Arlington Boulevard. This redevelopment will be an eight-story mixed-use building of 251 residential units and approximately 3,000 sq. ft. of retail or equivalent use.
Consolidated Plan and Regional Fair Housing Plan – Item 29
County Board approved the FY 2022-2026 Amended Consolidated Plan for Arlington County and the Regional Fair Housing Plan for Arlington County. The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) collaborated closely with eight local jurisdictions to help them meet fair housing requirements through the development of the Regional Fair Housing Plan (also known as the Regional Housing Equity Plan), marking the first time in 25 years that local jurisdictions have joined together to create a joint plan for metropolitan Washington
ACZO Amendments regarding Buildings used for Elder Care, Permitted Uses and Maximum Commerical Densities - Item 51
This item will be heard publicly by the Planning Commission on September 11 and the County Board on September 23, 2023.
GLUP Amendments to Change from Government and Community Facilities to Medium Density Mixed-Use and Amend Public Facility Map and Table to Identify Telecommunication Facilities County-wide - Item 52
If approved, this item would amend the General Land Use Plan from "Government and Community Facilities" to "Medium Density Mixed-Use" for an area located at 1025 N. Irving St. and amend the General Land Use Plan Public Facility Map and Table to identify telecommunication facilities, located County-wide Public hearings associated with amending the GLUP Public Facility Map and Table will be heard no earlier than September 11 by the Planning Commission and no earlier than September 23, 2023, by the County Board.
The SPRC reviews all site plans and major site plan amendment requests. SPRC Members consider and try to resolve site plan issues before proposals go to public hearings. The Site Plan Review Process is a forum for the public to review and comment on plans. On July 27 the Committee will consider the YMCA Project. The applicant proposes to redevelop the site located at 3400 13th Street N., in the Ballston-Virginia Square neighborhood, and construct a new standalone YMCA facility and a seven-story multifamily residential building.
The purpose of the planning study is to develop a comprehensive vision and policy framework for the future of the Langston Boulevard Study Area through County Board's adoption of a County Plan. The planning team is pleased to share the Draft Langston Boulevard Area Plan. Based on community and commission input to date, the draft plan provides a vision, goals, policies, and implementation strategies to guide long-term public and private investment on the Langston Boulevard corridor.
The Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing, in partnership with EYA, broke ground on Riggs Crossing Senior Residences, a 93-unit affordable senior housing development in Washington, D.C., Thursday.
Arlington County is considering changes to its zoning ordinance to encourage the construction of more senior care facilities. The proposed changes include increasing the maximum building heights for elder care facilities in Pentagon City and allowing the construction of elder care facilities along the Columbia Pike corridor, per a county report.
Construction will be starting by the end of August on a large affordable housing project in the Arlandria neighborhood. Sansé and Naja, two buildings that will rise at the intersection of Mount Vernon Avenue and West Glebe Road, will be completed in 2026. Housing Alexandria will develop 474 units of affordable housing above 36,000 sq. ft. of commercial space and an underground parking garage for 379 cars.
The City of Alexandria defines ADUs as secondary, independent living units that typically have a separate kitchen, sleeping area and bathroom. ADUs can be attached to an existing structure or internal, meaning they are an addition to or located within a home, or they can be a completely detached building located on the same property as a primary residence. Since Alexandria passed its ADU policy in January 2021, 43 ADUs have been approved in the city. Of those ADUs, 31 are detached structures and 12 are internal.
Plans to convert a West End auto dealership into an affordable apartment complex are expected to be finished by late 2025, nonprofit Community Housing Partners tells ALXnow.
Fairfax County Planning Commission July Wrap-Up:
Pan Am Shopping Center Mixed-use development to include a broader mix of uses. The initial public hearing was held on Wednesday, June 28, 2023; an additional public hearing is scheduled for Thursday, July 27, 2023, at 7:30 p.m. Anyone who testified in the previous hearing is on record and need not testify again at this new hearing.
SEM Fairfax Land Associates, LLC The applicant proposes to rezone an 8.87-acre site from the R-E to the PDH-1 District (Planned Development Housing, One Dwelling Unit/Acre). The property is identified as Tax Map 18-1((1)) 2 in the Hunter Mill District. The applicant proposes to develop up to 8 single-family detached dwelling units at a density of 0.90 dwelling units per acre (du/ac). The existing 18th-century log house and cemetery will be retained and preserved. The site is located on the west side of Lake Fairfax Drive, approximately 1,250 feet south of Baron Cameron Avenue. A public hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, July 26, 2023.
Parking Reimagined Zoning Ordinance Amendment Re: Article 6 Parking and Loading and Related Changes Countywide. A public hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, July 26, 2023. The Parking Reimagined staff report is available for public review and feedback ahead of public hearings for the Planning Commission on 7/26 and the Board of Supervisors on 9/26. The staff report outlines the proposed changes to Article 6 of the Fairfax County Zoning Ordinance.
Reston Comprehensive Plan Study Following a second public hearing on July 19, the Fairfax County Planning Commission recommended adoption by the Board of Supervisors of the Reston Comprehensive Plan Amendment, as amended by the Planning Commission. The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to hold a public hearing and have a decision on Sept. 12.
Since August 2021, members of the Fairfax County Department of Planning and Development took on an ambitious project to address excess parking in the county, as well as improve walkability. The project is called Parking Reimagined and according to the county’s promotional website, “The goal of this effort is modernization of parking and loading requirements, creating greater flexibility in the provision of parking for current and future land uses.”
For almost two years, leaders in Fairfax County have been working to reassess a zoning ordinance that regulates off-street parking and loading. They’re now proposing to change it by reducing the number of parking spaces at new developments. The Parking Reimagined plan hopes to cut back on excessive unused parking lots by making neighborhoods more walkable and bikeable. Andres Jimenez of the Fairfax County Planning Commission stressed said the proposal supports the bigger plan to help the environment.
Fairfax County officials broke ground Thursday morning on The Lodge at Autumn Willow, an independent living community that will add 150 units to the county's affordable housing stock.
Growth in Fairfax County is focused on Tysons, the Dulles Suburban Center and other mixed-use areas. In addition, growth in multifamily housing units outpaced growth in single-family housing between 2010 and 2023, and office space continues to lead the way in non-residential development potential, county staff said in a presentation at the Fairfax County Planning Commission’s policy plan committee meeting on July 13.
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved a proposal to consider redeveloping the Dulles Greene Cricket Ground for affordable housing. Located at 13500 Dulles Greene Drive in the Dranesville District, the 9.63-acre parcel of county-owned land is currently being used on a temporary basis as an athletic field by the county's cricket community.
The Fairfax County Department of Housing and Community Development will work with county partners for the next year to develop a process for the redevelopment of the Crescent property, according to Tom Fleetwood, the department’s director. The news comes as work on a visioning study to determine the future of Lake Anne continues. Consultant Street Sense is formalizing a vision for the village center area after working with residents and other stakeholders.
Fairfax County is currently the second largest suburban office market in the nation, with an inventory of 120 million square feet. However, the current office vacancy rate sits at 16.7% — topping the county’s previous 10-year high, according to Stephen Tarditi, director of market intelligence at the Fairfax County Economic Development.
A week after approving the requested modifications in plans for the mixed-use development of WMATA’s land at its West Falls Church Metro station, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors this Tuesday granted unanimous approval of plans for the spectacular development of the Virginia Tech's 7.53-acre site sandwiched between the WMATA site and the 10 acres adjacent the new Meridian High School now under full bore construction in the City of Falls Church.
Ox Hill Companies is moving forward with City Centre West, a seven-story development in Fairfax, Va., that will feature condominiums, office and medical office space. The Fairfax City Council approved the application for development Tuesday after a five-year design process. Located on 1.78 acres at 10501 Main Street in Old Town Fairfax, the 210,029-square-foot mixed-use development will feature 79 condominiums and penthouses, 28,200 square feet of office space, plus an additional 8,500 square feet for medical offices. The building will also feature a drive-through bank, ground-floor retail, restaurants and a park named Corner Public Plaza Park.
Transition zones, often called T-zones, are areas between commercial districts and single-family home areas and represent less than 3 percent of land within the City of Falls Church. According to the city, T-zone updates would increase townhouse and multifamily housing options, provide more neighborhood-serving retail, and encourage reinvestments in properties from larger builders while considering stormwater impacts and transitioning to single-family neighborhoods.
Vienna's town government is taking a major step forward in updating its zoning code as part of a years-long process. On Monday, Vienna Town Council scheduled two public hearings on the zoning code update. The public hearings are scheduled for 8 p.m. on Monday, July 10 and 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 12 at Vienna Town Hall, 127 Center Street S, Vienna, VA.
July 25 Loudoun County Planning Commission Wrap-up
Tillett’s View – Forwarded to a future Work Session. To rezone approximately 49.6 acres in order to develop up to 407 residential units, including up to 156 single-family attached (SFA) units, 103 single-family detached (SFD) units, and 148 multifamily stacked (MFS) units at an overall density of 8.2 dwelling units per acre.
Desai Residential – Passed and forwarded to the Board of Supervisors on a 6-3 vote. To consider a Zoning Map Amendment (ZMAP) to rezone approximately 10.06 acres to the Single Family Residential-8 (R-8) zoning district. The application proposes 44 single-family detached (SFD) dwelling units inclusive of Affordable Dwelling Units (ADUs) at a density of 4.6 dwelling units per acre (du/ac).
Cedar Terrace At South Riding - Forwarded to a future Work Session. To convert a 29.54-acre portion of the 55.94-acre subject property from commercial, light industrial, and residential uses to townhouse/multifamily uses in order to develop up to 393 dwelling units consisting of 211 single-family attached (SFA) units, 130 multifamily stacked (MFA) units, and 52 multifamily attached (MFA) dwelling units at a density of 13.30 dwelling units per acre.
County supervisors on Tuesday unanimously voted to create a Community Development Authority for Rivana at Innovation Station, allowing the developers of the huge planned mix-used development to finance the costs of building its infrastructure with special taxes assessed on the property.
Loudoun supervisors will soon begin their work on rewriting the county’s zoning ordinance to match its new comprehensive plan, but their work on that ordinance and other planning projects will reach into the next board’s term. The county Planning Commission handed up a draft new zoning ordinance with advice to launch a series of other changes to the ordinance and comprehensive plan as separate projects. And the county Department of Planning Zoning already has major projects directed by this board, whose term ends in December, scheduled through at least spring 2025.
For the first time in two decades, Loudoun County is overhauling its zoning map that guides what can be built in the county and where. The updated zoning policy, guided by the comprehensive plan the county passed in 2019, will override the 2003 guidelines used to determine what type of development is allowed on a site. The Board of Supervisors is set to hear public comments Wednesday on the draft passed by the county Planning Commission earlier this month before they complete their own revisions and move to adoption.
Members of the Purcellville Town Council on Tuesday signaled a willingness to consider an annexation request as part of a proposal to develop a 7-acre hospitality center along Rt. 287 just north of town.
At a meeting on Tuesday, the council heard from Aaron McCleary, Casey Chapman and Sam Chapman, partners in the CaseCo construction company, regarding their plans to build a hotel, a farm-to-fork restaurant, a gas station, and a multi-purpose welcome center on land bordered by Berlin Turnpike, Rt. 7, and St. Francis Court.
The Prince William County Planning Commission on July 12 unanimously recommended approval of a rezoning in the Dale City area to accommodate a four-story, mixed-use office building with retail space planned for the ground level. The property, located at 3939 Prince William Parkway near the intersection of Hoffman and Hillendale drives, was recommended for rezoning from agricultural and office low-rise to office mid-rise.
Data center development in Prince William County has long been a political lightning rod, drawing out fiery exchanges between opponents and supporters at packed Board of County Supervisors meetings. Now, the issue shows signs of complicating politics among local Democrats ahead of the crucial November general election. … Support for data center development was seen as a primary factor in the upset defeat of board chair Ann Wheeler by Deshundra Jefferson in the Democratic primary in June. Jefferson broke with the board’s Democrats on the issue, proposing instead stricter scrutiny on data center projects and higher taxes on the industry. (Wheeler doesn’t believe her defeat can be reduced exclusively to the data center issue, and she has also called for the party to unify behind Jefferson.)
The Prince William Board of County Supervisors on Tuesday broke with a recommendation from the county’s historical commission along partisan lines and declined to initiate a process that could place farms near the planned PW Digital Gateway project on the county’s register of historic sites. Placing the properties on the county register would have likely created complications for the contentious Digital Gateway development, which proposes 27.6 million square feet of data centers on 2,139 acres along Pageland Lane near Gainesville.
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