Fairfax County is officially reviving long-gestating plans to redevelop the Crescent Apartments near Lake Anne in Reston.
At Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn’s request, the Board of Supervisors authorized staff today (Tuesday) to begin the process of conveying the 16.49-acre property at 1527 Cameron Crescent Drive to the Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority (FCRHA).
The board will hold a public hearing before voting on the land transfer. If the move is approved, the FCRHA will then solicit proposals from private developers for affordable and market-rate housing to replace the existing buildings.
“The anticipated redevelopment of the Crescent property will be complementary to the revitalization and economic development needs of the historic heart of Reston,” Alcorn said in his board matter. “In short, it is now time to move toward realizing the future of the Crescent.”
Built in the mid-1960s, per county property records, the Crescent Apartments currently consist of 181 garden-style rental units just northeast of Lake Anne Plaza. The county purchased the property in 2006 for $49.5 million with the goal of preserving it as affordable housing, according to Alcorn.
Restricting occupancy to households earning at most 60% of the area median income, the county made its first attempt to find a private partner to replace the apartment complex in 2012, envisioning approximately 750 rent-subsidized units that could be further expanded if the property consolidated with other parcels, the Washington Post reported at the time.
The county selected a proposal from Lake Anne Development Partners, a division of the D.C.-based company Republic Land Development, in 2013, and in March 2015, the Board of Supervisors approved a revitalization plan for the Lake Anne area that called for 1,037 apartments and townhouses, 78,000 square feet of office space and 58,000 square feet of retail space, including a grocery store.
Focused on the Crescent property with no planned alterations to the interior of Lake Anne Plaza, which is Reston’s original village center and a designated historic district, the 1.7-million-square-foot project would’ve also delivered a 1.1-acre central park, an outdoor amphitheater, public art work and a realignment of Village Road.
However, the county and developer pulled the plug on the redevelopment in December 2015, with LADP stating that it was unable to assemble all the land needed to make the project work.
With the aging village center facing a growing need for repairs, and an update to the county’s Reston comprehensive plan in the works, Alcorn proposed in 2022 that the county revisit its economic vision and master plan for Lake Anne.
Led by the consulting firm Streetsense, the Lake Anne Economic Visioning Study produced an initial draft concept that reaffirmed the county’s push for expanded affordable housing on the Crescent property, along with new cultural venues such as an amphitheater, redesigned parking and a grocery market or bodega.
Wrapped up with a final community meeting on Nov. 21, 2024, the study concluded that Lake Anne should be positioned as a “local destination with a regional draw.” It recommended a mix of apartments, townhomes and condominiums aimed at varied incomes to meet a projected demand for approximately 878 residential units by 2034, though it noted there are already some townhouses in the pipeline.
In a change from its draft concept, Streetsense suggested locating a cultural anchor with an expanded Reston Community Center facility next to the Crescent property along Village Road after a cultural assessment identified challenges with using the Washington Plaza Baptist Church site as originally proposed.
In addition to moving to schedule a public hearing on the FCRHA transfer, Alcorn’s board matter today directed staff with the Fairfax County Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) to conduct outreach with:
(1) the existing residents of the Crescent Property to inform them about the redevelopment and receive their feedback about the community’s needs relative to the replacement of their existing affordable homes; and (2) the broader community and County to understand additional opportunities and challenges that should be considered in the context of a redevelopment.
The directive was approved without objection by the full board.
“I am happy to support this much needed effort to provide the residents at the almost 60-year old Crescent Apartments with improved affordable housing,” Alcorn said in a statement to FFXnow. “The redevelopment of this property will also help advance the Comprehensive Plan’s goals for Lake Anne, including preserving and providing affordable housing and supporting the area’s economic revitalization. Today’s action is a first step towards achieving these goals.”
Image via Google Maps
