A key piece of the Franconia Triangle redevelopment effort is moving into the rezoning phase.
CIA-Beulah Street LLC, an affiliate of Capital Investment Advisors, filed paperwork on May 20 to rezone a 6.6-acre site at the intersection of Beulah Street and Grovedale Drive for residential uses.
The proposal would repurpose an existing office building at 6400 Beulah Street for 30 multi-family units, while constructing 63 townhouses on other parcels. In total, 93 units would be added on a site that currently contains a three-story office building and a single-family home.
The development plan calls for eight affordable dwelling units and three workforce dwelling units as part of the mix, as well as 250 parking spaces and multiple bicycle racks. About 40% of the parcel would remain open space.
“The Subject Property’s location makes it ideal … for residential development, offering future residents convenient access to a variety of services of amenities,” a statement of justification says, noting the site’s proximity to Franconia Elementary School, the Franconia Volunteer Fire Department and commercial businesses.
CIA-Beulah Street is seeking to rezone the site to the county’s planned-development housing (PDH) district, which encourages “innovative and creative design” for land developed with residential and secondary uses. The parcels are currently governed by a mix of residential and commercial zones.
As part of the project, the developer says it will provide a number of publicly accessible recreational amenities, including a playground, turf areas, a dog park, picnic tables and grilling and seating areas. Space would be set aside for a pedestrian connection linking the property to the neighboring Franconia Governmental Center site “in anticipation of its redevelopment.”
Residents would have vehicular access to both Beulah Street and Grovedale Drive.
The site occupies the southern portion of Franconia Triangle, a 22.75-acre parcel bounded by Beulah, Grovedale and Franconia Road.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved a comprehensive plan amendment on May 13 to allow residential development and additional retail space in the Franconia Triangle, setting the stage for redevelopment of some areas within it.
The plan amendment brought concerns from residents, but they were almost exclusively focused on a proposal to redevelop the 3.26-acre Franconia Government Center site at 6121 Franconia Road with affordable housing.
A rezoning application for that project from Franconia Development Partners was submitted to the county in March but hasn’t yet been formally accepted for review.
