Fairfax County is considering a pilot program to support more murals in its commercial revitalization areas.
The pilot program, called Paint It! Fairfax, was introduced at a Fairfax County Board of Supervisors economic initiatives committee meeting on Tuesday (Sept. 19).
If approved, the program would allocate $400,000 to complete at least two murals in the county’s Commercial Revitalization Districts (CRD) and Commercial Revitalization areas (CRA).
Richmond Highway would receive $85,000, with the rest spread out between the other CRDs and CRAs in Annandale, Bailey’s Crossroads and Seven Corners, Lake Anne, Lincolnia, McLean, Merrifield and Springfield, according to Jenee Padmore, a planner with the Department of Planning and Development’s Office of Community Revitalization.
Murals would remain on the property for at least five years, and artists would agree to repair the mural if it’s defaced or vandalized for a minimum of five years.
The program would begin with site identification and an agreement with the property owner, followed by calls for submission. The artist and committee would then work to finalize a concept to be presented to the community for input, followed by approval from the program director.
A Site and Artist Selection Committee would manage the program.
Elizabeth Hagg, deputy director of the community revitalization office, said that the program was developed at the board’s direction.
“If the board should confirm that this proposal is on target, our intention would be to come back to the board to seek funding through the economic reserve fund,” Hagg told the committee.
Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity encouraged staff to leverage students and community members to create and design the murals.
Overall, the board said they were supportive of the program. Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk, for example, noted that the addition of a mural at The Boro in Tysons is a significant asset. Some developers choose to install murals without specific direction from the county.
“I’m just in awe of it every single time. And I’ve looked at it so many different times,” Lusk said.
Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik encouraged staff to consider adjusting the program timeline so that community input was prioritized earlier in the process.
“My big concern about this is the order,” she said.
The value of an office building just outside the Mosaic District will determine whether Fairfax County has to go to court to boost a Merrifield sewer’s capacity.
The owner of 8315 Lee Highway is the lone remaining holdout in land rights negotiations with the county, which has reached agreements for six of the seven properties that will be affected by the project, land acquisition staff reported to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors last week.
While hopeful that a resolution can be achieved without a court visit, the board voted 8-2 last Tuesday (Sept. 12) to authorize staff to complete the land acquisitions — including by exercising the county’s eminent domain powers if necessary.
“A lot of times, this is the impetus to get to the finish line,” Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay said before the vote. “…This has been a long process, and to make sure we’re continuing to make progress on this, hopefully, we reach an agreement before it has to go to court.”
The sewer capacity upgrade will replace a 12-inch-wide line with a 20-inch PVC pipe wrapped in 30-inch steel casing. The new pipe will extend 563 linear feet between the corner of Route 29 and Eskridge Road and the U.S. Postal Service’s Merrifield facility.
The project will also add three new manholes. The existing sewer line will be abandoned in place.
The Department of Public Works and Environmental Services determined that existing pipes were “at risk” of overflows that could affect nearby buildings and the environment “due to the current average daily flows and the current pipe size,” according to a staff report in the board meeting package.
“The goal of the project is to alleviate this public health risk concern and provide additional capacity to account for the growing population size upstream of the pipes in the Merrifield area,” staff wrote.
DPWES says it hopes to begin construction on the project in January to avoid disrupting post office operations during the busy winter holiday shopping season.
However, the county and CJC Associates LP, which owns the building at 8315 Lee Highway, are still “very far apart” in their assessments of the site’s redevelopment potential and the project’s impact on its value, Land Acquisition Division Director Dennis Cade admitted at last week’s public hearing.
Negotiations for sewer and temporary access and construction easements needed to allow construction and equipment staging on the property have been underway since spring 2022, according to Jocelyn Campbell, a right-of-way agent for the county.
Confirming that his company recently presented a counteroffer to the county, CJC Associates partner Jim Coakley said “outside parties” have estimated that the building could lose about $325,000 in income from leasing during the construction period. Read More
A new concept for Ebbitt House — a suburban remodel of the District’s Old Ebbitt Grill — and changes in Reston Row — a mixed-use neighborhood near the Wiehle-Reston East Metro Station — are officially moving forward.
At a meeting last Tuesday (Sept. 12), the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved changes to the project.
Comstock, the developer behind the project, sought to reallocate 280,000 square feet of unbuilt but previously approved office space from its Reston Station neighborhood to Reston Row, increasing the height and number of residential units in a building in Reston Row. Comstock also removed above-grade parking and a private, elevated sport court.
The revised plan includes a new outdoor private dining area outside Ebbitt House, a spin-off of Old Ebbitt Grill and the leading brand of Clyde’s Restaurant Group.
Jeff Owens, chief financial officer for Clyde’s Restaurant Group, said the use of the Old Ebbitt Grill brand was a big move for the company. Clyde’s of Reston closed in Reston Town Center roughly one year ago.
“We’re really anxious kind of get back to Fairfax County again and we wanted to do in a big way,” Owens said.
Jill Parks, an attorney with Hunton Andrews Kirth, said Comstock also reworked the location of some parks and overall landscaping.
The issue of park space drew concern at a Fairfax County Planning Commission meeting in June. Although the commission ultimately recommended approval of the application, members said they worried it doesn’t meet urban parks standards.
Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn said the county is in the midst of discussions on how best to calculate the amount of park space required in applications.
“We’re literally moving 280,000 square feet of approved [space], 175 units from here to there,” Parks said, describing the simplicity of the proposed changes.
She said Reston Station and Reston Row represent “two of the most significant mixed-use developments in Reston, resulting in the creation of a dynamic, one-of-a-kind transit-oriented neighborhood.”
At the meeting, Reston Association board president John Farrell restated the board’s concerns about Comstock using amenities managed and owned by RA, like Lake Thoreau, for marketing its residential projects. Farrell also urged the developer to join RA — a move that Parks said Comstock was uninterested in.
Parks noted that Comstock provided $650,000 to Reston Association as part of its development proposals.
Fairfax County is exploring ways to preserve dark skies around Turner Farm Park Observatory in Great Falls.
At a Tuesday (Sept. 12) meeting, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors announced public hearings on a proposed regulation that would limit outdoor lighting within a half-mile of the observatory at 925 Springvale Road.
A hearing before the Fairfax County Planning Commission is set for Oct. 18, followed by a Board of Supervisors’ meeting on Nov. 21.
If approved, the amendment would apply to 525 lots near the observatory.
The Fairfax County Police Department “has advised that proper lighting can be a deterrent for criminal activity, but over-lighting is not needed to facilitate a safe environment,” according to a staff report in the board agenda.
Staff say light pollution interferes significantly with the ability to complete astronomical observations at the observatory. For example, a single light bulb located one half-mile from the observatory has the same impact as four bulbs one mile away or almost 200 bulbs in Tysons, which is roughly seven miles away.
According to the draft proposal, motion-activated lights must be 1,500 lumens or less — a drop from the current limit of 4,000 lumens or less. Additionally, all lights need to be fully cut off, which is currently not required.
Still, an exception will remain allowing lights at a door or a garage of up to 1,500 lumens per fixture.
The regulation would also set limits on the number of up lights or spotlights allowed. Currently, any number are allowed as long as they are fully cut off or shielded to confine light. The changes would limit each fixture to 300 lumens.
The draft text was developed after several town halls and an online community survey. The scope of the proposal was changed after discussions with stakeholders.
For example, the current version lets legally existing lights remain until replaced, superseding a previous version that required existing lights to comply within five years of the policy’s implementation.
In a statement to FFXnow, a Great Falls Citizens Association representative said the introduction of the proposal represents a milestone after eight years of works.
“This has special significance for the Turner Farm, where the Fairfax County Park Authority made a major investment in a roll-top astronomy building,” GFCA said in a statement. “If adopted, the proposed amendment will affect the brightness of future outdoor lighting of homes within a one-half mile radius of the county’s observatory.”
GFCA also acknowledged that, while not all residents in the affected area will agree with the county’s plans, county staff made “significant changes in the proposed requirements.”
“GFCA believes that the amendment offers reasonable measures to address concerns while preserving dark skies near the observatory,” the association said.
Fairfax County officials are exploring ways to crack down on the illegal use of fireworks.
At a meeting Tuesday (Sept. 12), the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to consider expanding the enforcement powers of the Fairfax County Police Department related to fireworks.
Currently, FCPD officers don’t have jurisdiction to issue citations for individuals using fireworks illegally — a problem that Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk, who introduced the proposal, says “stifles” the county’s ability to prevent and end unlawful fireworks displays.
The county’s code currently designates the Office of the Fire Marshal as the only enforcement agency for issues related to fireworks, which can only be sold locally from June 1 to July 15 each year.
Around Independence Day, the office lacks bandwidth and staff to respond to calls for service and on-site safety protocol, according to Lusk.
The change was sparked by an increase in the number of fireworks-related incidents tackled by the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department, particularly around the Fourth of July.
According to the board matter, Deputy Fire Chief John Walser has said that this July 4 had “the most significant number of incidents of any [day] in the time I have been in the Fire Marshal’s Office.”
Between July 1 and 4, the police department received 60 calls of service related to fireworks displays in the Franconia District station alone. Just on July 4, county firefighters responded to 12 fires, “almost all of which were certainly related to fireworks,” Lusk said.
Staff will now work on drafting language for an ordinance that will be considered by the board before the end of the first quarter of 2024. A renewed interagency public awareness campaign on fireworks rules and safety is also planned.
Photo via FCFRD/Twitter
Fairfax County has opened the door for mixed-use development at the Pan Am Shopping Center in Merrifield.
The county’s Board of Supervisors unanimously approved an amendment to its comprehensive plan yesterday (Tuesday) that will allow housing and additional retail to supplement the existing strip mall at 3089 Nutley Street SW.
Endorsed last month by the Fairfax County Planning Commission, the amended plan will permit up to 585 multifamily residential units and 140,000 to 187,000 square feet of retail uses on the 25-acre site, paving the way for a redevelopment proposed by property owner Federal Realty.
“It is not Mosaic. It is not a large development,” Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik said of the envisioned changes. “But it is…thinking very thoughtfully about how you make that place that benefits residents who are there, those who will be moving there and those who will continue to work in this area.”
Federal Realty still needs to get separate county approvals for its submitted development plan, which calls for three multifamily apartment buildings supported by ground-floor retail and parking garages. The buildings will be located on the southern side of the lot and range in height from four stories, or 70 feet, to five stories, or 85 feet.
The apartments would replace the building that currently houses MicroCenter and Michael’s, though the developer has indicated that it hopes to relocate those popular tenants.
In addition to incorporating retail space in the residential buildings, the application proposes expanding the existing, Safeway-anchored shopping center by 10,900 square feet, including 400 square feet to accommodate a drive-thru pharmacy window.
The Safeway gas station and a drive-through bank currently filled by Wells Fargo will also be retained, according to the application.
“The Applicant’s objective is to work with the County and the community to evolve the center into a more vibrant mixed-use space that will prevent further decline and ensure the Center can remain a source of convenient retail for the community, and also serve as a place for gathering and general community identity,” McGuireWoods land use lawyer Greg Riegle wrote in a May 5 statement of justification on Federal Realty’s behalf.
To make the shopping center more accessible, Federal Realty has proposed adding a 10-foot-wide shared-use path on the east side of Nutley Street.
The approved plan amendment also recommends an internal “network of parks and plazas” to draw people into the property and break up the expansive parking lot, as well as improvements to Nutley and Route 29, including future road widenings and new pedestrian and bicycle facilities.
Despite those recommendations, some community members remain skeptical of the county and developer’s vision of a less car-dependent Pan Am Shopping Center, fearing that adding housing will only create more traffic and lead to overflow parking in their neighborhoods.
“Nutley is a nightmare for traffic. I don’t care what time of day it is. It’s a nightmare,” a resident representing the neighboring Hampton Court Homeowners Association said at a public hearing before the board’s vote yesterday.
While the proposed redevelopment is projected to generate 803 more vehicle trips per day than what the shopping center sees today, that will still be 4,271 fewer trips than what was previously allowed under the comprehensive plan, according to county transportation staff.
FCDOT senior transportation planner Thomas Burke noted that a district limiting parking on Covington Street to residents could be explored if “there’s truly an issue where people living in Covington are having issues parking on Covington.”
Federal Realty’s rezoning application is slated to go to the planning commission for a public hearing on Feb. 28, 2024.
Fairfax County is considering renaming its community center in Bailey’s Crossroads after a mid-20th-century pillar of the Black community.
At a Board of Supervisors meeting yesterday (Tuesday), its first since July, retiring Mason District Supervisor Penny Gross proposed looking into renaming the decades-old Bailey’s Community Center after Minnie Peyton.
Peyton was the well-known matriarch of Springdale, a historically Black community in Bailey’s Crossroads that originated as a home to freedmen after the Civil War.
Peyton founded several local churches and donated land to the county, specifically for an elementary school for Black students. When the school was completed in 1956, per county tax records, Fairfax County was still segregating Black and white students.
Today, the land once occupied by the school is the site of Bailey’s Community Center and Higher Horizons Head Start Program, an early education facility founded in 1963.
Naming the community center after Peyton would be a fitting acknowledgment of her role in the area’s history, Gross said in a board matter.
The Springdale community in Bailey’s Crossroads had its beginnings as home to freedmen following the Civil War, and has nurtured hundreds, perhaps thousands, of families in the last century-and-a-half. As with many traditional Black communities, the residents erected a church and built a small elementary school to educate their children, but the neighborhood received few local services – no paved roads, no sidewalks, no public drinking water or wastewater infrastructure. There is a growing desire in the community to re-name the community center to honor Minnie Peyton and reflect its historic roots.
While advocating for the change, Gross acknowledged that “more research needs to be done” and requested that the Fairfax County History Commission “verify available documentation” before the switch.
Gross gave the commission a deadline of next summer to report its findings.
The Board of Supervisors approved the request unanimously, though no date or timeline was given on when the community center’s name might actually change.
This isn’t the only county community center to undergo a name change recently. In July, the Board officially approved renaming the Providence Community Center as the Jim Scott Community Center.
Scott was a former supervisor and represented the county in the Virginia House of Delegates for over two decades. He was most known for advocating for the state’s “motor voter” law, which allowed people to register to vote at DMVs, employment centers, and welfare offices. He died in 2017.
A renaming ceremony for the community center in Oakton will be held on Sept. 30.
A three-year-long planning effort has culminated in the adoption of a new comprehensive plan for Reston.
At a meeting yesterday (Tuesday), the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved an overhaul of the Reston Comprehensive Plan, setting into place new guidance on affordable housing, community health, equity and other issues.
Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn kicked off the overhaul of the plan in January 2020. After more than 50 task force meetings with community stakeholders, county staff and county officials pared down a task force’s draft into a revamped plan. Some called it ambitious, while others worried it was too prescriptive.
Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay said the plan safeguards existing neighborhoods, while bolstering transit and positioning Reston as a major economic development center in the county.
“The adoption of the Reston Comprehensive Plan Amendment is a momentous achievement for Reston, ushering in a new era that ensures Reston’s continued success,” McKay said.
Unlike the previous plan, the new plan includes dedicated principles that define Reston as a new town. Those principles include community health, equity, preservation of neighborhoods and affordable housing.
Alcorn thanked Hunter Mill District Planning Commissioner John Carter for his work in producing the final proposal.
“After much deliberation by the Planning Commission and my colleagues on the Board of Supervisors, I am proud to say that Reston has an updated comprehensive plan that is much more than a land use document,” Alcorn wrote in a statement. “It is also a blueprint for the next phase of what Reston has always been – an inclusive community that values our green open spaces and a vibrant economy.”
Alcorn said the plan aims to maintain Reston’s fidelity to founder Robert E. Simon’s original vision while meeting today’s challenges.
“This plan and process proves that even in times of the highest levels of community concern and anxiety about growth and development, this is a consensus community plan. Focusing growth around Metrorail is not only possible, it is the reality in Reston,” Alcorn said.
At yesterday’s meeting, supervisors continued to massage language in the plan.
For example, Mason District Supervisor Penny Gross argued that it was unrealistic for the plan to say the future relocation of Reston Regional Library should not impact service.
“The community will anticipate that its going to be smooth sailing,” Gross said, adding that “disruption” is an in inherent part of the process.
Several pending issues may be ironed out in future updates — including the approval of several applications for zoning changes in Reston.
Alcorn introduced several follow-on motions. Two topics — community health and equity — may be explored in a future update to the county’s overall plans.
Alcorn directed the Fairfax County Park Authority, Reston Community Center, Reston Town Center Association and Reston Association to develop a strategy for the long-term maintenance and upkeep of community facilities in Reston.
He also asked staff to improve safety at Sunrise Valley Drive and Fairfax County Parkway, as well as along Reston Parkway from the Dulles Toll Road to Sunrise Valley Drive.
The planning commission also wants the county to develop and implement design standards for better pedestrian and bicycle access to Metro stations.
The McLean Citizens Association (MCA) has thrown its voice behind some new design guidelines for downtown McLean.
At a meeting next Tuesday, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors will consider endorsing Vol. 2 of the District Design Guidelines for the McLean Community Business Center. The guidelines are non-binding, but could shape what development in McLean looks like for the foreseeable future.
The MCA voted unanimously to support new District Design Guidelines.
“These have been under consideration now for more than a year,” said Robert Perito. “These two volumes are designed to be used together by developers and others when proposing, designing or reviewing projects in McLean.”
Volume two follows some earlier foundational design guidelines, and the new version contains written guidance and visual suggestions for the design of streets, lighting and building frontage. The 134-page document details some of the principles behind building design in downtown McLean and specifications surrounding things like streetscape design.
“This has been a very good project,” said Perito. “It has reached a very successful conclusion.”
One MCA member asked about the incentives for developers to follow the guidelines.
“They are suggestions, not regulations,” Perito said. “The idea is to provide developers with good ideas and hope they’ll follow.”
Perito noted that the Mars Corporation, in redesigning their building, had planned to install a futuristic-looking bus station outside the new building. When case managers showed them the District Design Guidelines, the corporation changed the design to fit in with the town’s standards.
The feeling among the people who have done this… people who want to develop within McLean will follow these,” said Perito.
The McLean Volunteer Fire Department (MVFD) is a step closer to obtaining a brand-new ambulance.
The department got the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors’ unanimous approval on July 25 to borrow up to $250,000 from a private lender to buy fire and rescue equipment.
Federal tax law allows volunteer fire departments to obtain loans for fire and rescue equipment “at a lower tax-exempt interest rate” if the financing is approved by “the elected body of the locality” served by the department, county staff said in the board meeting agenda.
The loan will supplement a $13,000 donation that the MVFD got in June from the Woman’s Club of McLean, a charitable group that organized a Kitchen and Garden Tour this spring as a fundraiser for the department.
The department also raised funds through Christmas ornament sales and other activities to pay for the new ambulance, which will cost a total of $335,000.
MVFD currently has two ambulances. Department officials previously told FFXnow that the new “state-of-the-art” vehicle will have a power load cot system and other upgrades that will make it safer and easier to use for paramedics.
The ambulance is expected to arrive late this summer or early fall, MVFD President Patricia Moynihan said.
After acquiring the ambulance, the department hopes to get a new fire engine. The approximately $500,000 cost will be split between MVFD and the county.
