Falls Church City Council

Falls Church mixed-use development pitch runs into city council backlash

Published March 22, 2024 at 9:30AM

A proposal would turn the parking lot at S Maple Ave. and W Annandale Road into a mixed-use development (via Cascade Realty and Stewart Investment Partners/Falls Church City)

A bid to convert a parking lot in Falls Church into a mixed-use development may be in jeopardy after local officials raised concerns about housing affordability, walkability, sustainability and a lack of green space.

“I’ve gone through pretty much all the policy arguments the council has made for granting special exceptions, and this project doesn’t meet any of them,” Falls Church City Council member David Snyder said during a work session earlier this month. “So, I think frankly it’s a waste of resources until the proposer comes back with a development that truly is special and meets our special exception ordinance from a technical standpoint and policy standpoint.”

News

Eden Center reinvestment plans get final approval after two years of dedicated community organizing

By Vivian Hoang

Published June 28, 2023 at 3:00PM | Updated June 29, 2023 at 1:05AM

Eden Center, the bustling Vietnamese strip mall at the center of debates around East End revitalization plans, features a clock tower that pays direct homage to downtown Saigon (photo by Amy Vu)

The City of Falls Church has officially decided to reinvest in a 10-block commercial area that encompasses the largest Vietnamese shopping center on the East Coast.

On Monday, June 26, Falls Church City Council unanimously voted to approve the East End Small Area Plan, which proposes reinvestment into a series of commercial properties — including the historic Eden Center (6751-6799 Wilson Blvd) — between Wilson Blvd, East Broad Street and Hillwood Avenue.

Countywide

The troubled saga of Founders Row’s movie theater

By Vernon Miles

Published September 14, 2022 at 11:45AM

Founders Row concept rendering (image via City of Falls Church)

The theater at the Founders Row mixed-use project could be scaled down from earlier plans, but the tradeoff is that Falls Church could be getting a new arcade and bowling alley.

At a meeting of the Falls Church City Council on Monday, the Council reviewed requested changes for Founders Row. The development was approved for 59,493 square feet of ground floor retail, 4,946 square feet of office space, 394 apartments and a 32,079 square foot, 2-story movie theater. That theater, though, has become something of a sticking point.

Countywide

Fairfax church partners with Habitat for Humanity and others on planned townhome project

By David Taube

Published May 20, 2022 at 12:45PM

A road extends to the entrance of Fairfax Presbyterian Church (staff photo by David Taube)

The Fairfax Presbyterian Church wants to repurpose 1.6 acres of its parking lot for 10 townhomes for lower-income people.

It’s holding another open house tomorrow (Saturday) at 10 a.m. in its fellowship hall with a question-and-answer session about the proposed project, which requires Fairfax City Council to rezone the area.