Stock of affordable housing in county on track as 2,000 units added, coming

Fairfax County appears to be making progress on its goal to increase the supply of affordable housing.

Approximately 2,000 units of affordable housing have been either completed or are in development, according to Ben Boxer, Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s public affairs manager.

Since fiscal year 2018, the Board of Supervisors has approved $42.89 million in Housing Blueprint/ Affordable Housing Development Investment Fund loans. That funding has supported nine projects totaling 1,760 units, a combination of new development and the preservation of older developments.

Some of the developments currently under construction include the 150-unit Oakwood Senior Residences on South Van Dorn Street, 240 units in One University near George Mason University, and the 279 units at the Residences at North Hill in Groveton.

Development of and investment in affordable housing in the county accounts for about $25 million in the housing authority’s proposed fiscal year 2023 budget so it can continue working toward the goal of increasing the number of affordable units. The FY 2023 budget, which will take effect on July 1, totals $155 million in funding for housing.

New developments planned for FY 2023 include the 175-unit Dominion Square West project in Tysons, which was recently designated as a revitalization area. It’s being done in partnership with the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing.

Other projects in the pipeline include a rehabilitation and expansion of Little River Glen in the Braddock District and the Fair Ridge at West Ox site near Fair Oaks Mall.

In 2019, the county set a goal of creating a minimum of 5,000 new affordable housing units by 2034, the units would be affordable to households earning 60% or below of the county’s Area Median Income, which was $119,320 per year as of 2017 Census data. 60% would be $71,592 per year.

A public hearing on the proposed budget is scheduled to be held Tuesday, March 31, in Conference Room 11 at the Fairfax County Government Center at 12000 Government Center Parkway in Fairfax at 7 p.m.