Unresolved issues ranging from traffic and pedestrian safety to parks, schools and overall density led the Fairfax County Planning Commission to defer action on Wednesday (Feb. 26) on a key step toward the redevelopment of the former AT&T site in Oakton.
The 33-acre parcel at the intersection of Chain Bridge Road (Route 123) and Jermantown Road is one of several contiguous plots of land expected to be redeveloped in coming years as part of the 110-acre Flint Hill Suburban Center planning district.
Coming on the heels of final approvals for two other projects on Jermantown Road, the planning commission’s public hearing this week focused on amending the Fairfax County Comprehensive Plan to make way for the AT&T site’s redevelopment.
Prospective developer EYA nominated the site at 3033 Chain Bridge Road for a plan amendment in 2022 and submitted a rezoning application in 2023 that will be considered later this year. The proposal calls for the circa-1981 office building to be razed and replaced by 854 housing units and 110,850 square feet of space for retail and service uses.
Providence District Planning Commissioner Jeremy Hancock said the comprehensive plan amendment drafted by county staff will provide “guardrails” — including a cap on density and other limitations — to guide later action on the rezoning to permit construction.
Given the complexity of the proposal and the mixed reaction it has received, the planning commission signaled early in the evening they wouldn’t be voting a vote that night.
“We have some more work to do,” Hancock said after about four hours of discussion.
By that time, the clock had struck midnight, and the audience in the room had thinned considerably. But even when the room was packed hours earlier, Hancock had signaled that the commission wasn’t ready to make a recommendation and forward it to the Board of Supervisors.
A potential vote is now slated for March 12. The extension of the planning commission’s discussion could bump back a public hearing before the Board of Supervisors, which is currently scheduled for March 18.
If approved, EYA’s proposal bring a mix of apartments, townhouses and condominiums to the site. The planned housing has been whittled down from the 1,500 units proposed by the original concept.
Non-residential spaces would be limited to retailers, a supermarket and perhaps day-care and educational facilities serving the immediate surrounding area and take up no more than 9% of total developed space.
“This is not a replication of Mosaic, it’s not Reston Town Center,” said Mark Looney, a land-use attorney representing the applicant.
The comprehensive plan revision would increase the development allowed on the site to a floor-area ratio (FAR) of 1.0, up from 0.4. FAR measures the total interior square footage of buildings divided by the square-footage of the lot. The larger the resulting figure, the more dense a project is.
In his presentation, Looney acknowledged “some challenges” need to be worked through, but replacing the end-of-life commercial building provides a chance to bring housing, parks and other amenities to the Oakton area just north of Fairfax City and I-66.
“This is a really unique opportunity,” he said of a project that anticipates final buildout around 2031.
Transportation issues loom large
Transportation concerns were “the big elephant in the room” at the public hearing, Looney said.
Several commission members agreed. Sully District’s Evelyn Spain said she was looking for a package of transportation improvements that’s “more concise, more effective, more efficient” than what’s now in the proposal.
One of the biggest points of contention as the project has evolved is how to manage the project’s impact on congestion along Chain Bridge and Jermantown roads, particularly at their intersection.
The developer has proposed eliminating left-turn lanes on Jermantown Road onto Chain Bridge Road to improve traffic flow. Drivers traveling north on Jermantown who currently turn left onto southwest-bound Chain Bridge would instead be directed to continue on Jermantown, turn left onto Rosehaven Street, left on Rose Forest Drive and then right on Chain Bridge Road.
County staff said that alternative was “more promising” than trying to add more travel and turn lanes, but not everyone was buying in.
The proposed workaround route is “not really addressing human behavior or human nature,” Braddock District Commissioner Mary Cortina said, arguing that drivers are more likely to use surrounding neighborhood streets, causing problems for residents.
More detailed traffic studies would be conducted prior to consideration of the rezoning request. County staff said the comprehensive plan won’t set the developer’s proposal — or any other option — for that key intersection in stone.
“If this moves forward, we would have to figure that piece out,” Hancock said.
Concerns also cropped up about the impact of new housing on Oakton Elementary, Thoreau Middle and Oakton High schools. Except for Thoreau, the schools are approaching capacity, although Fairfax County Public Schools projections only span the next five years, and enrollment has recently taken a downturn.
The amount of park and community gathering space provided on the site, which abuts the 3.6-acre Borge Street Park, was also questioned.
Public Speakers Deliver Mixed Verdict
More than 40 community members testified at the hearing, with both supporters and critics being well-represented.
“This is an investment in the future of the area — an amazing opportunity to create a gathering space for the Oakton community,” said Laura Pickford, a physician who has lived near Oakton High School for decades.
She lauded the addition of retail and service businesses to serve the new development and immediate area.
Joel Fifield, a resident of the nearby Arrowood community, praised the new housing options and other parts of the project.
“Mixed-use development is going to be very beneficial,” he predicted.
But Cindy McCarthy, who has lived on Jermantown Road near the planned redevelopment for 40 years, sought a more detailed plan from the developer, Virginia Department of Transportation and Fairfax County Department of Transportation to improve pedestrian safety.
“There has been ample time to show good faith, but we haven’t seen it,” she said.
McCarthy said she walks her dog daily through the corridor, and “the fear of being hit is now ever-present in my mind.”
Natalie Harrison, who lives about a mile from the subject area, was supportive of the project generally but also raised concerns about pedestrian safety.
“Prioritize pedestrians,” she pleaded.
Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik recently confirmed to FFXnow that she will propose a study of the Chain Bridge Road corridor if the comprehensive plan amendment is approved by the Board of Supervisors.
In addition to joining the calls for attention to pedestrian safety, Oakton resident Linda Byrne said the existing sewer network can’t support the project as now planned. She advocated for maintaining the existing 0.4 FAR.
Pete Montanino, president of the Grays Oakton Civic Association, acknowledged that the project has support from a number of housing and other advocacy organizations — including the Coalition for Smart Growth, Fairfax Families for Safe Streets and Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance — but said their views should not be given precedence over those who live around the site.
“Those groups don’t live next to the development and will not be affected by the traffic, so they have no skin in the game,” he said. “Why does their voice matter more than the Oakton residents?”
Montanino intimated that some believed approval was a done deal, alleging enthusiasm for it from Providence Supervisor Dalia Palchik.
Montanino and his neighbors, by contrast, have major concerns, he said.
“We were told our voices mattered,” Montanino said, but he now felt that “because our viewpoint does not align with the Providence supervisor, we have been ignored.”
Vocal reactions from the audience to some of the early speakers drew an admonition from Planning Commission Chairman Phillip Niedzielski-Eichner.
“We’re going to be civil and respectful — ensure that everyone has a voice,” he said.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Niedzielski-Eichner said that while participants were “a little aggressive on the applause at times,” he appreciated how people conducted themselves. He praised “the spirit in which you brought your interest to our hearing.”
“We were listening avidly and learned a lot,” Niedzielski-Eichner said.
Action on Ox Road proposal also deferred
Also at the Feb. 26 meeting, the planning commission deferred action until March 12 on a comprehensive plan amendment for parcels in the 9200 and 9300 blocks of Ox Road, near Hooes Road, in Lorton.
A developer has asked to increase density on the site to construct residential housing at 2 to 3 dwelling units per acre. The current limit is 0.2 to 0.5 units.
The commission held a public hearing on the Ox Road application in January and had expected to vote on a recommendation at its meeting this past Wednesday. But the commission member whose district contains the affected parcels was absent, prompting a second deferral.
