After a relatively brisk 25 minutes of speeches followed by the snip of a red ribbon, the new Franconia Governmental Center opened to the public Saturday morning (April 11).
That moment represented the culmination of “two and a half — plus — decades of planning,” said Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk at the dedication ceremony, which attracted hundreds to the facility at 7130 Silver Lake Blvd, located south of Manchester Blvd and east of Beulah Street.
Lusk is the third person to serve as supervisor of the Franconia District (formerly the Lee District) since planning began, following in the footsteps of Dana Kauffman, who was elected in 1996 and retired in 2007, and Jeff McKay, who succeeded Kauffman and served until he was elected to chair the Board of Supervisors in 2020.
The new 90,000-square-foot facility houses six different programs or offices under its roof: a Fairfax County Police Department district station, active adult facility, child care, the supervisor’s office, Kingstowne Regional Library and the Franconia Museum.
“It is the first of its kind, the prototype of future governmental centers across Fairfax County,” Lusk said.
The new center will serve the approximately 137,000 people who live in the district.
“It’s going to make it easier for our residents to access these services under one single roof,” Lusk said.
A multi-level parking facility provides access to the various offices. It received a workout on opening day, as crowds — many there for the new library — kept coming, even as available spaces became scarce.
At the dedication, both Lusk and McKay paid tribute to Kauffman, who was in attendance among a crowd standing shoulder-to-shoulder in the building’s atrium.
The former supervisor “had the vision” to push for acquisition of enough property to house a future center, McKay said.
“What we wanted to do was build a community gathering space,” the Board chair said. “These facilities don’t come together by accident. They come together from a lot of hard work.”
Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said the 129 staff members — including 113 sworn officers — housed in the new police facility are seeing major upgrades from their previous home, which dated to 1973.
“It’ll be a national model,” Davis said.
Staff of the new Kingstowne Regional Library will also have better working conditions. The new library is an upgrade from the previous community library, with about twice the space, Fairfax County Public Library Director Eric Carzon said.
From an enthusiasm standpoint, event planners saved the best for last.
Donald Hakenson, vice president for history of the Franconia Museum, got the audience’s attention with energetic remarks.
“I’m fired up,” Hakenson said. “I love this building. I love what they’ve done.”
The LEED Gold-certified building’s general contractor was Manhattan Construction.
Construction on the $80 million project had been slated to start in the summer of 2022, but found itself delayed for a variety of factors in the existing Covid environment. The projected completion date slipped several times, from 2024 to 2025 and then 2026.
The delays did not dent the celebratory mood of attendees and county leaders on April 11.
“This is a huge day. I don’t want that to get lost,” McKay said.
The county government’s parcel, just south of Manchester Blvd, is ringed by residential and retail development, with Beulah Park, Lane Elementary School and expanding Inova Health facilities nearby.
The previous Franconia Governmental Center, located at 6121 Franconia Road, will be torn down and replaced with 120 units of affordable housing.
