At least one development project near the Herndon Metro station is moving forward.
The Town of Herndon is currently reviewing a site plan and architectural designs for a mid-rise residential building at 555 Herndon Parkway, the first of two phases of mixed-use development approved to replace the low-lying, vacant office building on the site.
After getting the town council’s approval for a rezoning in December 2022, the project went to the Herndon Architectural Review Board (ARB) on July 10 for a work session focused on the building’s design and how well it complies with the town’s guidelines for the Herndon Transit-Oriented Core (HTOC) neighborhood.
Though the work session wasn’t recorded, the Herndon Community Development Department says it was an informal but productive discussion.
“The Board offered a positive review with some specific input regarding the management of façade, scale, variation and articulation and the coordination of balconies into the design,” community development staff told FFXnow by email.
In a memo for the board, staff stressed the importance of “breaks” in the building’s facade to reduce its visual mass, suggesting that more work needed to be done on the eastern side. Metal paneling proposed as screening for a parking garage got an initial thumbs up for providing “interest and articulation to an otherwise large blank façade,” based on renderings shared by the developer Fairfield Residential.
However, the garage’s southern wall should have pedestrian-scale elements similar to other parts of the site, staff said, even though it’ll eventually be covered by a potentially 24-floor office building approved as the development’s second phase.
More attention was also needed to the residential building’s southern frontage facing the Dulles Toll Road, which staff suggested was getting less emphasis than the area facing Herndon Parkway.
“The goal for the HTOC is that it will serve as a gateway to Herndon from the Dulles Toll Road and the Metro,” the memo said. “Part of creating and developing this urban gateway to the Town is that all facades/perimeters should be equally emphasized as urban, public facing facades with pedestrian scaled bases.”
Originally submitted to the town by Penzance back in 2017, the development plan for 555 Herndon Parkway underwent a number of iterations. Compatibility with Herndon’s identity was a particular concern, given that this was the first mixed-use project to come forward following the town’s adoption of a HTOC zoning plan in 2012 in anticipation of Metro’s Silver Line extension.
A plan got a green light in 2019, but Penzance later returned in 2021 with a scaled-back proposal that removed one residential building and eliminated about 125,000 square feet of office space.
The latest development plan approved in 2022 features a 400-unit multi-family residential building with 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail and a 200,000-square-foot office building. The residential building could be six to 10 floors tall with a maximum height of 110 feet.
When fully built out, the parking garage will have at least 821 spaces and a private outdoor amenity area on its roof. The plan shows a central plaza on the Herndon Parkway side, where the retail would also be concentrated.
According to Fairfield Residential’s presentation for the ARB, the project’s first phase will deliver the public plaza, which is shown with outdoor seating, public art, a green lawn that could host events, and a covered area for food carts and other activities. Other amenities include a publicly accessible courtyard with a fire pit and grilling stations, and an interim green space with a dog park and bocce and pickleball courts.
The developer has also agreed to construct an 8-foot-wide cycle track and a sidewalk along Herndon Parkway before the town issues the first residential use permit.
Fairfield Residential — which bought the property from Penzance for $18.25 million on Nov. 30, 2023, per Fairfax County records — didn’t return a request for comment by press time.
The project will return to the ARB for a final decision on its design after staff finish reviewing the site plan, according to the community development department.
“We can’t provide an exact timeline because it depends on applicant responsiveness,” Herndon spokesperson Anne Papa said. “The site plan is in the final stages of design and review; we anticipate that the ARB may be reviewing the project formally this fall.”
According to town staff, Herndon now has five mixed-use redevelopment projects that have been approved or are under review in the HTOC, which encompasses the parcels along Herndon Parkway that are directly adjacent to the toll road and the Herndon Metro station.
Among the other projects is the Parkview development at 593 Herndon Parkway. Also approved in 2022, the plan from Lerner Enterprises calls for 1 million square feet of office, residential and retail space across three high-rises, while also providing space for a future promenade from the Metro station’s entrance.
“Combined with these other projects, [555 Herndon Parkway] will transform this part of town into a vibrant urban environment with various land uses, higher densities, publicly accessible open spaces, and multi-modal transportation improvements,” staff said.
