A developer is looking to replace more than a dozen single-family houses in Woodlawn with new townhouses.
Applicant K. Hovnanian at Mount Vernon Gateway submitted the proposal to Fairfax County on Oct. 28 for 66 single family attached townhomes and 78 stacked townhomes on the 7.5-acre property at 8115 Janna Lee Avenue.
The project would require the demolition of 14 houses currently located on land bounded to the north by Buckman Road and to the south by Richmond Highway (Route 1). It will implement the final piece of a larger development plan approved for the area back in 2005.
“More than 20 years after the original Mount Vernon Gateway approval, the Proposal will complete the Plan’s vision for this urban neighborhood,” the application says.
K. Hovnanian at Mount Vernon Gateway is a subsidiary of New Jersey-based homebuilder K. Hovnanian Homes.
“The townhomes will be high-quality with four-sided architecture,” the application notes. “The Proposal will provide 210 garage parking spaces and 78 driveway parking spaces for residents, as well as 75 guest parking spaces throughout the Subject Property.”
Eighteen of the planned homes will be designated affordable dwelling units in accordance with Fairfax County’s requirements.
The phased development includes a proposal to build a large central park, common open space areas, a dog park, playgrounds, a swimming pool and areas with outdoor seating. There are also private streets with five-foot-wide sidewalks.
“All parks in the Proposal will be open to the public and within a public access easement,” land use attorney Allison Reyonds wrote in a statement on behalf of the applicant. “Inclusive of the urban parks, the Proposal contains 2.44 acres of open space.”
The developer also proposes to improve Janna Lee Avenue with an on-street parking lane and a 6-foot-wide multi-use trail. Buckman Road would also be improved with a “buffered bike lane, a six-foot wide multi-use trail, a retaining wall, and a five-foot wide sidewalk,” according to the application.
K. Hovnanian at Mount Vernon Gateway is requesting that the proposal be docketed with the Fairfax County Planning Commission. The developer is represented by land use firm Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley and Walsh.
