Though Marriott is no longer coming, the developer behind Tysons II is keeping its hopes alive for a new hotel on Route 7 (Leesburg Pike).
On behalf of Lerner Enterprises, the law firm Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley & Walsh has requested a three-year extension of the deadline to start construction on a hotel greenlit by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for 7799 Leesburg Pike in Idylwood in 2015.
The proposed 10-story, 155-room hotel was slated to become a Marriott Residence Inn, and Lerner even received approval for a site plan in October 2016, land-use attorney Andrew Painter said in a June 18 letter to the Fairfax County Department of Planning and Zoning.
Since then, however, the COVID-19 pandemic and “other market forces” have led to “a softening of the hotel market,” according to Painter. The project never advanced to construction, and at some point, Marriott dropped out.
“The Applicant seeks additional time to secure financing and an operator for the hotel,” Painter wrote. “However, it is clear that additional time beyond the current timeframe will be required.”
Currently under review by county staff, the requested 36-month extension would follow postponements granted in 2020 and 2022, pushing the deadline for commencing construction to July 1, 2028.
Located southeast of the I-495 and Route 7 interchange adjacent to the Westin Tysons hotel, the 1.62-acre site is currently occupied by two 11-story office towers constructed in 1985, according to Fairfax County property records.
Rather than replacing the office building, Lerner intended for the future hotel to be built on top of a surface parking lot along Ramada Road, county staff indicated in a report on the 2015 special exception application.
When announcing the application’s approval on April 7, 2015, Walsh Colucci described the existing parking lot as “underutilized,” touting the proposed development’s stormwater management, landscaping and transportation benefits.
“Shuttle service to nearby shopping and Metro stations will be provided for guests to help reduce the effect of traffic on the area,” the law firm said. “… New sidewalks and an on-street bike lane will further enhance both the appearance and accessibility of the area for pedestrians and cyclists.”
In the decade since then, however, Lerner sold the office complex in July 2022 to Empire Leasing, a real estate firm that manages office buildings in the D.C. region. At the time of the $49 million sale, the buildings had recently undergone a $4 million renovation but were only 36% leased.
Walsh Colucci didn’t immediately respond to questions about whether the sale has affected the development plans for the property.
Though the hotel project has stalled for now, Walsh Colucci contends in its extension request that it remains suitable for the area.
“There have been no changes in circumstances that would render the existing approval inconsistent with the Zoning Ordinance, the Comprehensive Plan, or the public interest,” Painter wrote.
In the meantime, the Tysons area isn’t exactly starved for hotel options. In addition to the Westin next door, the Tysons Corner Marriott (8028 Leesburg Pike) is still in business on the north side of the I-495/Route 7 interchange after an extensive renovation.
There’s also the Hyatt Regency at Tysons Corner Center, the Ritz-Carlton at Tysons Galleria, Hilton’s DoubleTree, and Marriott’s Courtyard off of Chain Bridge Road. The most recent additions to the area’s hospitality scene — the Watermark Hotel at Capital One Center and Archer Hotel in Scotts Run — arrived in 2021.
The Board of Supervisors approved plans last year for a dual-branded Hilton hotel in the Scotts Run neighborhood. A site plan proposing to install a “prefabricated” soccer field until development begins on the block at Dolley Madison Blvd and Anderson Road was submitted to the county in April and is now under staff review.
