affordable housing | FFXnow

Crescent Apartments overhaul to prioritize affordable housing, new community center

Published December 10, 2025 at 3:45PM

Crescent Apartments in Reston (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority (FCRHA) is starting to test the waters on an initial concept for its plan to replace and expand on Reston’s Crescent Apartments.

Now more than a decade in the making after a previous push to revitalize the Lake Anne area stalled, the redevelopment will prioritize preserving the property’s status as a valuable affordable housing site, while also better integrating it with the surrounding community, according to FCRHA Associate Development Director Thor Nelson.

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Advocates seek more protections for manufactured home residents in Fairfax

By Scott McCaffrey

Published December 10, 2025 at 1:45PM

The Harmony Place mobile homes front office in Hybla Valley (via Google Maps)

Residents of Fairfax County’s manufactured home communities pressed county leaders yesterday (Tuesday) to do more to protect the properties from redevelopment and those who live there from displacement.

“We don’t want to be moved out of the county — we’d like to stay in our homes,” said Denia Moya, a resident of the Harmony Place Mobile Home Park (8018 Richmond Highway) in Hybla Valley.

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Fairfax City Council rejects proposal to redevelop shopping center near Old Town

By Scott McCaffrey

Published November 10, 2025 at 9:15AM

Rendering of apartments proposed for Courthouse Plaza Shopping Center (via Combined Properties/City of Fairfax)

Plans to redevelop a portion of the Courthouse Plaza Shopping Center near Old Town Fairfax into housing were rejected by Fairfax City Council members late last month, leaving the aging site’s future in limbo once again.

The 4-2 vote on Oct. 28 came three months after council members opted on July 22 to delay a final decision in hopes a revamped proposal by developer Combined Properties would address concerns raised by critics throughout the development process.

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Fairfax County leaders to fight any state bills diluting local authority to regulate housing

By Scott McCaffrey

Published October 10, 2025 at 1:45PM

One University affordable housing development in Fairfax (staff photo by James Jarvis)

Fairfax County leaders appear ready to battle any efforts in the 2026 General Assembly session to strip powers of local government to regulate creation of new housing.

“We want affordable housing,” Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay said, but the county’s lobbying efforts in Richmond would be focused on “making sure the General Assembly doesn’t have a one-size-fits-all” approach that erases local decision-making powers.

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Fairfax County supervisors seek to reduce red tape around affordable housing

By Scott McCaffrey

Published September 16, 2025 at 9:15AM

Fairfax County officials in 2025 broke ground on an affordable housing project at 2990 Telestar Court in Merrifield (staff photo by Jared Serre)

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors directed staff last Tuesday (Sept. 9) to take a six-month-long deep dive into current housing policies, hoping to eliminate bureaucratic hurdles hampering the creation of more affordable units across the community.

“This is absolutely an essential part of our economic strategy,” said Board Chairman Jeff McKay, who proposed the action. “It comes up in every conversation with the public.”

Countywide

Fairfax County adopts new guidelines to support displaced affordable housing tenants

By Scott McCaffrey

Published September 12, 2025 at 3:45PM

One University affordable housing development in Fairfax (staff photo by James Jarvis)

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday (Sept. 9) adopted a package of new guidelines for relocating tenants when affordable apartments are slated for redevelopment, acquisition or condominium conversion.

“The overarching goal is to assist displaced tenants in moving to safe and affordable replacement housing convenient to their employment or school, while facilitating tenants’ return to preserved affordable units to the greatest extent possible,” county staff said in the report’s overview.

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One University development team lauded for persevering to provide affordable housing

By Scott McCaffrey

Published September 2, 2025 at 10:00AM

One University affordable housing development in Fairfax (staff photo by James Jarvis)

The One University housing complex in Fairfax weathered widespread community opposition, rising costs and a worldwide pandemic during its decade of progression from concept to reality.

But affordable housing supporters are confident that the development near George Mason University’s campus just outside Fairfax City was, in the end, worth the trials and tribulations.

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Franklin Farm church finds developer for proposed affordable housing project

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 22, 2025 at 1:45PM

The Community of Faith United Methodist Church's property in Franklin Farm (photo by Abi Foerster)

A church that wants to build affordable housing on its campus in the Herndon area will soon step up its efforts to win over skeptical neighbors.

The Community of Faith United Methodist Church announced on Wednesday (Aug. 20) that it has partnered with the affordable housing developer Pennrose on the project, which could bring around 90 apartments to its 8.9-acre property at 13224 Franklin Farm Road.

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Proposal to redevelop Fairfax Square office park mostly wins praise from city’s planning body

By Scott McCaffrey

Published July 17, 2025 at 1:45PM

Conceptual design for portion of Fairfax Square project (Van Metre via City of Fairfax)

Members of the City of Fairfax Planning Commission reacted generally favorably to a conceptual plan that would massively redevelop a key stretch of Main Street (Route 236).

“I like the concept, I like the responsiveness,” commission chair James Feather said Monday night (June 14) after a briefing on the proposal by Van Metre Companies plan to redevelop the Fairfax Square Professional Center, an office and retail park at 9840-9946 Main Street.

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Some of Reston’s earliest rental housing takes another step on road to redevelopment

By Scott McCaffrey

Published July 17, 2025 at 10:00AM

Crescent Apartments in Reston (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Plans to redevelop the Crescent Apartments, which trace their lineage nearly back to Reston’s founding, took a key procedural step forward on Tuesday (July 16).

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted 9-0 to transfer the 16.5-acre site to the Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority, enabling the agency to work on finding a private partner for the redevelopment project.