The Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority (FCRHA) is continuing an aggressive push to expand its affordable housing supply with the recent acquisition of land near the Innovation Center Metro station.
The agency announced Tuesday (Oct. 13) that it has purchased two parcels at 3625 and 3627 King Johns Way in the McNair area south of Herndon for nearly $23 million.
The approximately 2-acre site’s proximity to transit, offices and Dulles International Airport, along with its location in a growing mixed-use community that includes market-rate housing, retail, and Brightview Senior Living, could make it a prime opportunity to add income-restricted units, according to FCRHA and Fairfax County leaders.
“Fairfax County’s CEOs indicate the rising cost of housing is a challenge in their efforts to recruit and retain a workforce,” Deputy County Executive for Community Development Jennifer Miller said in a statement. “… Efforts to expand affordability in the Dulles Corridor will deliver positive impact for our local economy overall, especially given the anticipated major expansion of Dulles Airport itself.”
An FCRHA spokesperson confirmed that a private partner for a potential development hasn’t been identified yet, but the authority estimates that the property “could yield about 400 units.”
Any development will likely take “several years” to emerge, FCRHA said in a press release.
The $22.8 million acquisition was completed on Aug. 28, according to county property records. The vacant land was previously owned by a limited-liability corporation established by Allen & Rocks, a commercial and multifamily residential developer based in Tysons.
Under the name Nugget Joint Venture LC, Allen & Rocks had partnered with an affiliate of Crimson Development in 2013 on plans for 1.6 million square feet of mixed-use development south of the Innovation Center Metro station, including apartments with retail, office buildings and a hotel.
The overall development plan was approved by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in December 2013, but Brightview Senior Living — which was greenlit with a revision in 2019 — is the only block that has come to fruition.
The purchase occurred off-market and utilized federal funding available to FCRHA due to its designation since 2013 as a “Moving to Work” agency by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, per the press release.
According to FCRHA, it was one of the first housing authorities in the country to earn the designation, which gives it more flexibility to develop affordable housing programs outside of the federal government’s public housing and Housing Choice Voucher rules.
More on the acquisition from FCRHA and county officials:
“The real estate adage – ‘it’s about location’ – applies to affordable housing. With close access to the metro and Dulles Airport, jobs, and amenities, this prime location will give more Fairfax County families an opportunity to flourish,” said Lenore Stanton, Chair, FCRHA. “Our Moving to Work flexibilities enabled us to move quickly on a marketplace opportunity to expand affordable housing in the Dulles Corridor.”
“The Dulles Corridor is an economic engine in Fairfax County. This initiative will deliver housing affordable to a broad spectrum of people, from those who work at Dulles Airport to those who support the various tech companies in the area,” said Dranesville District Supervisor Jimmy Bierman, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
The King Johns Way property will join a growing slate of affordable housing projects planned by the FCRHA.
North of the Innovation Center Metro station, the housing authority has partnered with the nonprofit True Ground on plans to build two apartment buildings at 13500 Dulles Greene Drive, which is currently vacant except for a cricket field. The 435 proposed units would be reserved for residents earning 30% to 60% of the area median income, which is currently $166,100 for a household of four.
A rezoning application to allow the development is currently scheduled to go before the Fairfax County Planning Commission for a public hearing on Jan. 27, 2027.
In addition, the FCRHA acquired land in Tysons near the Greensboro Metro station that could be developed with two “all-affordable” residential high-rises totaling 525 units under a proposal submitted by developer Lincoln Avenue Communities earlier this month.
County staff are also reviewing plans for a 160-unit apartment building at 5831 Columbia Pike in Bailey’s Crossroads, and discussions are underway to add affordable housing on the Chantilly and Centreville library sites in conjunction with planned renovations of both facilities.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors set a goal in 2022 of increasing the county’s affordable housing stock by 10,000 net new units before 2034 — a target that county staff say remains within reach, but its achievement is not a given.
