Another office-to-residential redevelopment is coming to Fairfax County.
At its meeting last week (Aug. 25), the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a rezoning for Arlington-based Felice Development Group to replace an office building near the Innovation Center Metro station with 98 townhouses.
Felice wants to rezone the five-story Coppermine Commons III office building at 13851 Sunrise Valley Drive in the McNair area south of Herndon from industrial use to planned housing. The redevelopment would include 40 conventional townhouses and 58 stacked townhouses.
Twelve of the townhouses will be available as affordable housing for people making 60% or less of the area’s median income. As of this June, Fairfax County’s AMI was $166,100 for a household of four people, as calculated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Because the units meet the county’s affordable housing goals, Felice is allowed a higher density for the property. The zoning district’s normal density is 20 units per acre, and the plan is for 21.39 per acre.
Supervisor James Bierman, whose Dranesville District includes the property, said the development will be a welcome addition to the county’s housing supply.
“We talk a lot about housing and we talk a lot about affordable housing, but the truth is we just need more housing,” he said. “We need more housing in Fairfax County.”
The existing building was constructed in 2001 and is separated from two other office buildings by a parking garage. Felice Development bought 4.7 acres containing the building from Cannon Hill Capital Partners for $12.5 million in 2024.
David Gill, an attorney with Wire Gill LLP representing the developer, said the office building is “basically completely vacant.”
“This represents a real opportunity to create meaningful housing opportunities,” he said.
Roughly 35% of the property will be open space, including a 0.3-acre park. The park will feature seating, a playground and a bocce court and be open to the public. The housing will be served by 282 parking spaces.
The developer will also contribute $687,976 to Fairfax County Public Schools to offset the costs of 46 new students expected from the complex.
The Fairfax County Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval of Felice’s rezoning application in July after a delay to address concerns about sidewalk gaps and other transportation-related issues.
