Though it hasn’t served a drink since Lyndon B. Johnson was in the White House, the historic Dranesville Tavern appears to have retained its appeal as a lodging destination.
Where other sites in its Resident Curator Program might attract a single offer, the Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA) received three proposals from community members looking to restore the 19th-century property in Herndon in exchange for a rent-free stay.
Released ahead of a public comment period set to begin on Feb. 24, the applications each suggest very different uses for Dranesville Tavern, but they all emphasize the importance of preserving its historical value while opening it up to the public, as required by the park authority’s program.
Naima Dar, a real estate agent in Chantilly who also owns a home day care business, has proposed turning the former inn into a Montessori or day care center, using the revenue to fund repair, maintenance and preservation needs. The surrounding wooded landscape could serve as an “educational tool” to enhance families’ appreciation for nature.
“The daycare inherently aligns with the park’s mission through this preservation of the property’s natural and cultural heritage, as well as the healthy environment it will create for the children of the daycare to learn, explore, and grow,” Dar said in her application. “Surrounding neighborhoods will also benefit from the convenience of a local Montessori/daycare center.”
In addition to regularly drawing the families who enroll in the day care, the property would host annual open houses “for the community to learn about the property’s history and significance,” the application says.
Another applicant — local couple Erika Ostergaard and Billy Howell — say they would turn the tavern’s upper floor into their private residence, while offering small-scale, public events and displays on the main floor, basement and outside grounds.
An associate English professor at George Mason University, Howell has woodworking and home maintenance skills that would be complemented by Ostergaard’s experience with project management, grant writing and event planning, their application says. They are both on the leadership team of Fox City Lit, a literary group based in Fairfax City.
The couple said the public activities at Dranesville Tavern would initially be more limited when the more intensive rehabilitation work is underway, before expanding once the building is restored to “its full glory.”
Suggested projects and events range from rain gardens and pollinator habitats to a micro-tavern or recording studio in the basement, haunted ghost tours, a lecture series, and “bespoke” Clue Nights.
“In residing there, our goal is to make Dranesville Tavern a bridge between past and present,” Ostergaard wrote. “We would honor the Tavern’s past as a waystation for stories and exchange, while securing its future as a living part of Fairfax County’s cultural landscape.”
The third application from Angelina Ribeiro Jones, a lead design and development planner for the Town of Herndon, and Kevin Adam Wohlgemuth, a senior associate for the consulting firm Building Conservation Associates, proposes turning the tavern into their primary residence and a workshop space focused on preservation techniques.
“We hope that these workshops will expose residents to the tavern’s history through investigation of materials and the craft evident in its historic fabric,” their application says. “We also intend for participants to use skills they acquire during these workshops to maintain their own properties.”
After completing the rehabilitation, the pair would also establish an annual residency for visual artists at the tavern. During their one or two-month stay, the artist would receive free housing and “a small stipend,” while creating at least one work “related to Dranesville Tavern, the surrounding landscape, or the regional history of Fairfax County.”
Ribeiro Jones and Wohlgemuth also commit to holding annual open houses and sharing regular updates on their restoration work as videos on YouTube.
Built in 1823, Dranesville Tavern’s location at the intersection of Georgetown Pike and Leesburg Pike made it a logical stop for regional travelers. Over the years, different owners expanded on the original two-story log buildings, but the inn remained open to the public until 1946 and to boarders until 1968, according to the FCPA.
The park authority bought the property in the 1970s and moved it 135 feet to its current site at 11919 Leesburg Pike to save it from Route 7’s expansion. The former inn is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places and Fairfax County’s inventory of historic sites.
The FCPA will accept public input on the submitted resident curator proposals through March 25 at 5 p.m. Applicant presentations will be delivered at an in-person public meeting on March 17 at 7 p.m. at the McLean Community Center (1234 Ingleside Avenue).
A park authority team convened to evaluate the applications will hold work sessions on Feb. 24 at 10:30 a.m. and on March 31 at 10 a.m., but those meetings won’t include public comments.
Dranesville Tavern is one of two former taverns added to the Resident Curator Program last year. The other site — the Fairfax Arms (10712 Old Colchester Road) in Lorton — remains open for applications.
The park authority is still reviewing a possible lease for the Lahey Lost Valley House, a former plantation in the Wolf Trap area.
