The Commonwealth of Virginia is putting some money behind plans to add a visitor center at the heart of the Washington & Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail.
The two-year state budget adopted by the General Assembly and signed by Gov. Abigail Spanberger in late June includes $1 million for the Town of Vienna to help acquire the land needed for the future hub, a project spearheaded by the W&OD Railroad Regional Park’s owner, NOVA Parks.
“With Fairfax County’s continued growth, we as elected officials must be proactive in defending our natural resources, and the W&OD Trail is such a unique resource for this community,” said state Sen. Saddam Salim (D-37), who introduced the allocation as a budget amendment.
In a press release announcing the appropriation last week (July 8), Salim said he proposed the amendment at the request of the town’s economic development department after hearing “from countless residents who use the trail and want to see it protected.”
“This visitor’s center is an investment which shows our commitment to the trail’s future as well as the future of bike and pedestrian travel throughout our region,” the state senator added.
The appropriation was also backed by Del. Holly Seibold (D-12), who represents Vienna in the House of Delegates.
“I’m proud to partner with Senator Salim to secure this funding for Vienna as part of a broader effort to bring this project to life,” Seibold said in a joint press release. “The Visitors Center will celebrate the trail’s unique history while creating new opportunities for education, recreation, and economic development for years to come.”
The Town of Vienna had requested $8 million from the state to support the W&OD Trail visitor center as part of its legislative agenda for the General Assembly. Adopted after a public hearing on Nov. 11, 2025, the document laid out the town’s priorities for the state legislature’s 2026 session.
The town and NOVA Parks announced in April 2025 that they were partnering on a visitor center to serve the approximately 3 million people who walk, bike and otherwise frequent the W&OD Trail, which spans 45 miles from Arlington into Loudoun County with Vienna in the middle.
Identified as a future “signature” project in NOVA Parks’ 2023-2027 strategic plan, the visitor center received an initial boost from Congress with the late Rep. Gerry Connolly securing $1 million in fiscal year 2024 federal funds. Another $2 million was allocated to Vienna for the project in an appropriations package passed by Congress this past February.
Vienna had sought state funding this year to help it acquire the land targeted for the future visitor center, including an office building at 125 Church Street and a former bank building at 200 Dominion Road NE.
Both the state and federal funding awarded so far will be used to purchase the properties and make improvements to the Dominion Road bank building, which was constructed in 1921 and still houses some retail, Vienna Economic Development Director Nicole Toulouse confirmed.
“We are extremely appreciative of Senator Salim, Delegate Seibold, and the Commonwealth of Virginia’s commitment to this project,” she said in a statement to FFXnow. “This funding will be used by the Town for the purchase of property in Vienna to facilitate NOVA Parks development and construction of a new visitor center for the Washington & Old Dominion Trail.”
According to Toulouse, the Town of Vienna currently anticipates presenting more detailed plans for the visitor center “early this winter which will guide the next steps of our partnership by Spring of 2027.”
Because the project is still in the early planning stages, NOVA Parks hasn’t yet developed a clear estimate of the total cost or the types of services or amenities that will be included in the visitor center, according to Justin Wilson, the regional park authority’s executive director.
“Both entities are doing environmental assessments, doing structural assessments, looking at what is possible on these sites,” Wilson said by phone. “… But we’re hopefully going to be in a place pretty soon where we’ll be able to get out there and talk to the community, both the town and NOVA Parks, about some of the ideas we’ve come up with and then get some feedback.”
In addition to adding a facility where trail users can stop and gather, NOVA Parks is still harboring hopes of expanding the “dual trail” concept it introduced along the W&OD in Falls Church in 2021.
According to Wilson, having separate paths for pedestrians and bicyclists improves safety, particularly in more congested areas of the trail like in Vienna. The recent rise of electric bicycles and faster motorbikes has heightened concerns about conflicts between users traveling at different speeds.
Wilson says that, like the Town of Vienna, NOVA Parks is appreciative of the support that both the state and federal governments have demonstrated for the visitor center project, as evidenced by the funding they’ve provided so far.
“It’s always good to see continued outside support for the initiative,” he said. “It speaks to the benefits to the overall community, so we’re certainly excited to see that.”
