Apartment building proposed at Annandale’s Eastgate Shopping Centre

(Updated at 4:05 p.m.) Annandale’s Eastgate Shopping Centre, home to The Block food hall, is slated for a partial redevelopment.

Insight Property Group is seeking Fairfax County’s permission to transform a part of the existing center on John Marr Drive into a mixed-use apartment building with retail and amenities in an effort to “transition the site into a more vibrant, mixed-use, and community-centered asset,” according to the application.

To move forward with the proposal, the county would have to rezone the shopping center from commercial uses to a use that allows residential and mixed-use projects.

“This diversified and more balanced mix of uses will ensure the Eastgate Shopping Center continues to contribute positively to and be a resource for the community,” the application says.

The proposal could transform the largely automobile-centric form of the center, which was built in 1973 and is anchored by K Market International. Although the center has seen new tenants — like The Block — the applicant says significant retail challenges remain.

Insight wants to rezone roughly three acres on the northern portion of the property for the residential component of the site. The building would be six stories tall and include up to 280 residential units. A little over 11,200 square feet of ground-level retail uses are planned.

The developer says the team is excited to put forward a plan that will “serve as an impetus for additional revitalization in the core of Annandale,” according to the application.

“The proposed development has also been designed to facilitate future redevelopment of the remainder of the shopping center,” the application says. “A new street grid, pedestrian corridors, and urban park spaces are being located for potential expansion in the future and to ultimately serve as a central open space amenity with the future build out of the remainder of the Eastgate Shopping Center.”

The proposal is in the early phases of the county’s multi-step approval process. It has not yet been accepted for review.