Fairfax County leaders have given the go-ahead for a new shared-use path and planting strip along Shreve Road at the Falls Church border.
On Tuesday (May 7), the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a resolution authorizing the Fairfax County Department of Transportation to begin the project’s design, land acquisition, and construction that will extend from the Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail to Route 7 in Idylwood.
According to a county staff report, the $6.9 million project will include a crosswalk near the intersection of Shreve Road and Gordon Road, benches near the entrance to the W&OD Trail, and stormwater management and drainage.
“While it’s a small connection, I know it will benefit my community, the Dranesville community, the Falls Church City community, and all those who use the W&OD Trail,” Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik said during the board’s May 7 meeting.
Additionally, Palchik highlighted the necessity of the project, which was developed in conjunction with Falls Church City after a pedestrian was fatally struck by a truck at the intersection of Shreve Road and Hickory Street in 2019.
“The engineering piece of pedestrian safety is often the most expensive, but also the most effective,” she said.
The project is part of a broader initiative to enhance connectivity to Falls Church City’s West End, Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School, the Meridian High School campus and the West Falls Church Metro station, per the report.
According to the report, the City of Falls Church plans to reimburse the county for construction costs using $6.9 million in funds awarded by the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority. The city authorized the arrangement, which makes the county responsible for design and construction, in February.
Construction is slated to start in the fall of 2026 and finish in the spring of 2027.
Image via Google Maps
Starr Hill Brewery’s expansion to the ground level of Capital One Center in Tysons is now complete.
The company announced on Tuesday (May 7) that its Starr Hill Brewpub is officially open at 7730 Capital One Tower Road, allowing it to offer additional food, drinks and live music beyond what’s available at Starr Hill Biergarten in The Perch on the roof of Capital One Hall.
“We are so excited to finally be able to share this space with you all. Not to mention our new food and cocktail menus!” Starr Hill said in an Instagram reel.
Capital One Center previously indicated that Starr Hill Brewpub would open in late April, prior to its spring Perchfest celebration on May 3 and 4. While it missed the April time frame, the new pub did open for Perchfest, when it hosted two late-night concerts, Starr Hill Tysons Biergarten General Manager Brian Griffin confirmed to FFXnow.
At approximately 7,572 square feet, the brewpub can seat over 225 people and features two different bars with over 20 beers on tap, an outdoor patio and a 2,000-square-foot mezzanine.
The menu offers a variety of burgers and sandwiches, soups and salads, chicken wings and other appetizers, and desserts, including a strawberry shortcake and brownie sundae. The entrees are jambalaya pasta, fish and chips, a Mediterranean orzo bowl, and a surf and turf dish that consists of a flank steak, jumbo lump crabcake and mac and cheese.
The drink menu mostly focuses on beer, but two draft cocktails — an espresso martini and an aperol spritz — are also available.
Starr Hill Brewpub is currently open from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. on Tuesday through Saturday and closed on Sundays and Mondays.
“We are slowly opening our ground floor retail space to the public,” Griffin said. “More information will be available in the near future as we look to ramp up our hours and offerings.”
Status of Ox & Rye unclear
With its expansion, Starr Hill adds to a growing assortment of dining options at Capital One Center, which welcomed Stellina Pizzeria on April 30 and the Tex-Mex restaurant Ometeo in December. Sisters Thai is also still slated to open sometime in 2024, per the development’s website.
However, one previously announced restaurant may no longer be on the way. Ox & Rye — a new concept from Arlington’s Wooden Nickel Bar Company that was expected to specialize in “local cuts of beef” and “new American” dishes — has been removed from Capital One Center’s website.
The restaurant’s website remains active, stating that it would be coming to 7770 Capital One Tower Road in winter 2023, but an anonymous tipster reported to FFXnow on April 25 that “coming soon” banners on the storefront were recently taken down.
“It seems like the property owners have taken the wrap off the space at Capital One Center earlier this week, replacing it with a generic Captial [sic] One Center version,” the tipster said. “Did the deal fall through? A real shame, if so…It seemed like a wonderful concept!”
When contacted by FFXnow, Mackenzie Ryan, who had been hired as Ox & Rye’s director, said she was “not at liberty” to comment. She said she’d shared the inquiry with the restaurant’s owner, but hadn’t gotten a response yet.
A Capital One Center spokesperson didn’t comment on whether Ox & Rye is still in the works, stating only that the development would share updates when they’re ready.
This wouldn’t be the first time that Capital One Center has seen an incoming eatery fall through. Last summer, chef Pepe Moncayo confirmed that he had paused plans for a Spanish restaurant called Santi due to “escalating” materials and construction costs.
New research shows that thousands of Fairfax County and the cities of Fairfax and Falls Church deeds from the early-to-mid 20th century had language barring people of certain races, nationalities, or religions from buying property.
Researchers contend that these practices, known as restrictive covenants, play a major role in the segregation of neighborhoods throughout the county and across Northern Virginia, the effects of which are still evident today.
“The demographic makeup of our region is very different today in comparison to the period that we are analyzing, in part because of major inroads made by civil rights and immigration policies after World War II,” said Krystyn Moon, a University of Mary Washington historian and one of the lead researchers. “That being said, the residue of the practice of using racially restrictive covenants remains with us today, and inequities persist.”
Moon and researchers from Arlington’s Marymount University created a website with interactive maps to showcase properties with discriminatory deed language that referenced specific racial, ethnic and religious groups.
The website notes that the most commonly used exclusionary phrase was “any person not of the Caucasian race,” which applied to both residential and business properties.
Unlike redlining, a practice where banks and insurance companies systematically deny services to residents in certain areas based on their racial or ethnic composition, restrictive covenants are explicit legal agreements prohibiting the ownership, lease, or use of property based on race.
To help people visually trace the impact of these policies, the researchers used public land records from 1900 to 1968 to construct the maps. Areas shaded in orange mark locations where racial covenants have been confirmed, starkly illustrating the geographical extent of segregation.
The project’s goal, as stated on the website, is to highlight that segregated neighborhoods in Northern Virginia were not simply a result of individual choices but were predominantly influenced by systemic, racially discriminatory practices that restricted where African Americans and others could live.
Racial and other discriminatory covenants are no longer enforceable because of the 1968 Fair Housing Act. But researchers say the language is still part of localities’ public land records, unbeknownst to many home and business owners.
“Quite a few homeowners have emailed us to share their experiences upon discovering racial covenants on their property,” said lead researcher Janine DeWitt, a sociology professor at Marymount University. “They are often surprised to learn how common these restrictive racial covenants were in our region.”
Although nearly all homes with restrictive covenants in Falls Church and Fairfax City have been identified, Moon told FFXnow her team is gathering additional data for Fairfax County, which they plan to upload to the site in the coming weeks.
“We’re working mostly chronologically,” she said. “We actually have 5,000 parcels that we’re going to hopefully drop in the next week onto the map for Fairfax County.”
Currently, the map displays parcels in Fairfax with restrictive covenants dating from 1920 to 1939. The upcoming updates will include data from 1940 to 1946, followed by parcels from 1946 into the 1950s.
After identifying all local land agreements with racial covenants, researchers plan to “shift their attention to creating maps that integrate the African American, or ‘non-Caucasian’ resident experience.”
Moon explained that African Americans made significant progress in securing land post-Civil War until the introduction of restrictive covenants in 1915. Using a combination of data and anecdotal evidence, she and her colleagues intend to highlight how they continued to persevere despite these setbacks.
“It’s a story that really needs to be told [but] hasn’t been told,” Moon said. “…We should have told this story eons ago.”
Deal Reached on State Budget — “Budget negotiators in the Virginia General Assembly have reached a bipartisan deal, ending a lengthy standoff over the spending plan and avoiding a highly unusual state government shutdown. Lawmakers will be back in Richmond on Monday to vote on the deal during a special legislative session.” [WTOP]
Pedestrian Safety Measure Approved — “The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on May 7…updated the county code to match the state code requiring drivers to stop — not just yield — for pedestrians at unsignalized intersections. It also prohibits drivers from overtaking vehicles stopped for pedestrians. Violators can be charged up to $500.” [Annandale Today]
Metro Retires Oldest Trains — “If you ride the Metro, you may be familiar with the carpeted trains. These are the Metro’s oldest cars, which were introduced in 1983. On Friday, the 2000-series trains will retire. The trains were built to last approximately 40 years, according to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.” [NBC4]
Tysons Contractor Creating AI Supercomputer — “A key supplier to the Pentagon and U.S. intelligence agencies is building a $20 million supercomputer with buzzy chipmaker Nvidia to speed deployment of artificial intelligence capabilities across the U.S. federal government, the MITRE think tank said Tuesday.” [Washington Post]
New Apartment Building Coming to West Falls — Falls Church City’s West Falls neighborhood will include an eight-story, 400-unit apartment building called The Alder, developer Hoffman & Associates announced yesterday. The building will have 26,000 square feet of amenity space, including a fitness center, pet spa and courtyards with a swimming pool and TV lounge. [Falls Church News-Press]
County to Seek Grant for Preserving Mobile Homes — “Fairfax County’s Department of Housing and Community Development is seeking public feedback on a draft application it’s submitting for a brand-new competitive grant program for the preservation and revitalization of manufactured housing units and manufactured housing communities.” [On the MoVe]
Athletic Courts Refresh Begins at Fairfax Station Park — “The Fairfax County Park Authority is expecting to begin revitalization work at the Popes Head Park basketball and tennis courts on Friday, May 10. The project will include the replacement of old asphalt surfacing, fencing, goals, net posts and footers. New sealcoat, color coat and playing lines will also be applied to the courts.” [FCPA]
It’s Friday — Expect showers and thunderstorms with a high near 61. Precipitation chance is 70%, with rainfall between a tenth and a quarter inch, potentially higher in thunderstorms. For Friday night, it will be mostly cloudy with a low around 49 and a 60% chance of rain. [NWS]
A redevelopment of McLean Professional Park as condominiums will move forward with Fairfax County’s approval.
The Board of Supervisors gave a unanimous thumbs up on Tuesday (May 7) to property owner T&M McLean Ventures’ proposal to replace half of the office park’s 12 commercial townhouses with 104 for-sale residential units in a single, five-story building.
Occupying about 2.8 acres of the 4.4-acre site at 1477 Chain Bridge Road, the planned 235,000-square-foot condo building will be served by a 192-space underground parking garage and a private courtyard for residents with a multi-use lawn, firepits and grilling and seating areas.
The development plan features a 12,970-square-foot park space along Chain Bridge Road that will be open to the general public. T&M McLean has also committed to undergrounding utilities and constructing a 12-foot-wide shared-use path on Chain Bridge Road.
“The applicant has designed a very attractive building that’s going to add to the mix of uses in downtown McLean,” Walsh Colucci Lubeley & Walsh land use attorney Lynne Strobel said during the board’s public hearing on Tuesday, where she represented the developer.
Though a resident expressed concern about traffic and crowded schools at the Fairfax County Planning Commission’s hearing in March, T&M McLean’s proposal got only endorsements when it went before the Board of Supervisors.
Greater McLean Chamber of Commerce President Paul Kohlenberger testified that the business advocacy group supports adding housing in downtown McLean, arguing that new residents will help sustain local businesses long-term while protecting existing residential neighborhoods from “additional development pressure.”
The McLean Planning Committee (MPC) similarly made a case that the condos will further efforts to revitalize the downtown area, including by creating a more pleasant environment for pedestrians with the addition of the public park.
“We are due to see some positive development in this area, particularly of residences,” MPC Vice President Winnie Pizzano said. “We reviewed the project, and there was no opposition. As a resident, I look forward to improved streetscapes as well as the park area and the progression towards a more vibrant downtown McLean.”
Dranesville District Supervisor Jimmy Bierman concurred that residential development will be “absolutely critical to revitalizing the area,” describing the proposed building as a good fit for its surroundings.
He was particularly impressed by the property owner’s plan to outfit at least 20% of the garage parking spaces with electric vehicle charging stations.
“There are lots of things I love about this application, including the green space, including the park along Chain Bridge Road, including the undergrounding of utilities in front of the building, things that make it more walkable, more inviting,” Bierman said. “I like to say I’m looking forward to a time when McLean is a place to go to, not just to go through, and having more people living there and being part of that community is very helpful.”
Megan Hargan’s 2017 murder of her mother and sister will take center stage in a new podcast series from the team behind the true-crime TV show “48 Hours.”
Produced by CBS News and Paramount Audio, the miniseries “Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings” will release the first of six planned episodes on the double murder case next Wednesday (May 8).
In the series, host and “48 Hours” correspondent Peter Van Sant uses interviews, tape of 911 calls, police transcripts and interviews of surviving family members, and other evidence to examine Hargan’s motives and how Fairfax County police detectives solved the case, according to a press release.
“This was a story that haunted the 48 Hours team — an unimaginable scenario where a daughter kills her own mother and sister,” Paramount Vice President of Podcast Editorial Megan Marcus said. “So many of us feel we know families like the Hargans, seemingly happy from the outside, which makes this particular tragedy all the more unreal. For that reason, we tried to understand the motivation and approach the victims and survivors with empathy.”
Hargan was sentenced to two life terms in prison on Jan. 26 for fatally shooting Pamela Hargan, her mother, and sister Helen Hargan at their McLean house on July 14, 2017. Police initially said Helen had killed Pamela before turning a gun on herself, but investigators later determined that Megan Hargan had staged the scene to look like a murder-suicide.
During two trials, prosecutors argued that Megan Hargan had killed her mother and sister out of resentment, because her mother was helping her sister buy a house, while declining to give her financial assistance for a house in West Virginia.
Hargan was initially convicted of first-degree murder and use of a firearm in a felony in March 2022, but the decision was vacated over juror misconduct claims. A second conviction for both the murder and firearm charges was delivered on Sept. 22.
“Blood Is Thicker” is one of several podcasts made by the “48 Hours” team, whose past audio work includes correspondent Erin Moriarty’s “My Life of Crime” series. Launched in 1988, the TV show “48 Hours” investigates crime and justice news stories and is now airing its 36th season.
The first episode of “Blood Is Thicker” is available now without ads to “48 Hours+” subscribers on Apple Podcasts and Wondry+. New episodes will be posted Wednesdays on Apple Podcasts, Wondry+, Spotify and other podcast platforms.
Cookie Baked in Space to Be Displayed in Chantilly — “The first food ever baked in space is now on display at the National Air and Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia — and it’s a chocolate chip cookie…The dough was provided by McLean-based Hilton, the same cookie dough used to baked the warm chocolate chip cookies given at check-in to guests at its DoubleTree hotels.” [WTOP]
Longtime Hybla Valley Vacuum Store to Close — Sun Sew Vac will close on June 29 after nearly five decades of business. First opened in Mount Vernon Plaza in 1975 before moving to 7770 Richmond Highway in 2013, the vacuum and sewing machine store experienced a boom during the pandemic, but owner Robert Hines Jr. has now opted to retire. [On the MoVe]
Don’t Bother Baby Deer, Police Say — “Each spring, numerous fawns are frequently found causing residents to seek help from wildlife professionals to treat or raise these young animals. In most cases, fawns are healthy and need no human intervention.” Fawn rehabilitation is prohibited in Fairfax County after Chronic Wasting Disease was detected in a deer during the 2022-2023 hunting season. [FCPD]
Annandale Woman Concerned by Vape Shops — Thurraya Kent is “concerned about how many vape shops are in Fairfax County…Ms. Kent’s son died of a fentanyl overdose in January 2023. Her son Malcolm was 17 years old. Ms. Kent is not saying any of the Annandale vape shops had anything to do with her son’s death. But she’s still concerned about what these shops are selling.” [WJLA]
Community Hub in the Works for Culmore — “A new project in Culmore is connecting residents to healthcare, education, afterschool programs, and much more in their own neighborhood. The Culmore and Bailey’s Crossroads Place-Based Initiative (PBI) is creating a hub for community-serving programs at Culmore United Methodist Church.” [Annandale Today]
FCPD Seeks Grant to Assist With Recruiting — The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution on Tuesday (May 7) allowing the police department to accept a state grant for a new Criminal Justice Training Academy program that “will facilitate the transfer of former out-of-state, federal and military law-enforcement personnel who are seeking to relocate to Fairfax County.” [Gazette Leader]
Herndon Opens Registration for Summer Classes — “Hey Town of Herndon residents! Get ready for an epic summer! Registration is officially open for our summer classes and programs. From fitness to family fun, we’ve got it all. Don’t miss out on exciting events! Secure your spot now!” [Herndon Parks and Recreation/Twitter]
It’s Thursday — Expect scattered showers and thunderstorms, with mostly cloudy skies and a high near 76. Precipitation chances are 70%. Chances of showers and thunderstorms decrease to 50% before 2am, with a low temperature around 58 at night. [NWS]
The time has come for Vienna residents to take a stand on the town’s parks and recreation facilities, events and programming.
The Town of Vienna will host an “interactive” community meeting next week to solicit public input on its new parks master plan. Dubbed “Our Plan to Play,” the document will establish a vision for the town’s parks and rec system, identifying existing gaps and amenities that could be added in the future.
Organized by town staff and the consulting firm Kimley-Horn, which was hired last fall to help develop the master plan, the meeting will be held on Thursday, May 16 from 6-8 p.m. at the Vienna Community Center (120 Cherry Street SE).
“Participants should come prepared to share their ideas and provide their perspectives through various independent and small-group planning exercises,” Vienna Parks and Recreation Director Leslie Herman said in a press release. “Our goal is to understand how residents currently use the Town’s parks and recreation offerings, what works well, what needs improvement, and what priorities they want to see in the future.”
The master plan development process kicked off in December with an evaluation of Vienna’s existing facilities and services, according to the project website. It moved into the public engagement phase in late March, when the town mailed out a survey to randomly selected residents.
An online survey available to all community members is expected to launch later this spring. The town says a link will be posted to the master plan webpage and its social media channels. It will also be mentioned in the June issue of the town’s monthly Vienna Voice newsletter.
The plan’s recommendations will include possible uses of available town-owned properties, such as the former site of the Faith Baptist Church, which was demolished in April, and the Robinson family property at 124 Courthouse Road SW.
The master plan is being developed in conjunction with a feasibility study on the Annex, the town’s name for the former Faith Baptist Church site at 301 Center Street South. The results of a study to determine the operating costs of different short and long-term uses are scheduled to be presented to the town council on Monday (May 13).
The town estimates that the entire master planning process will take 12 to 16 months, with the town council potentially approving the plan next March.
The winners of the 2024 ArtsFairfax Awards are in.
ArtsFairfax, a nonprofit that serves as Fairfax County’s arts agency, announced this week that it will honor Reston dancer Shu-Chen Cuff, philanthropist Anne R. Kline and two local charities at its annual awards ceremony, which will be held for a fourth straight year at Capital One Hall (7750 Capital One Tower Road) in Tysons.
Scheduled for Oct. 25, the awards recognize “extraordinary contributions” by individuals and groups to the local arts community, while serving as a fundraiser for ArtsFairfax, which provides grants and other resources to artists and arts and culture-related nonprofits.
“The arts in Fairfax are so varied and vibrant that there is truly something for everyone,” said Stuart Holt, who took over as ArtsFairfax’s president and CEO in March. “This year’s ArtsFairfax Awards honorees…all come from different places in the world, reminding us that when we invest in the arts we bring our whole selves to the task. I’m inspired by how each and every one of us can improve the Fairfax community through local arts and culture.”
Jinx Hazel Award
The Jinx Hazel Award will go to the Peterson Family Foundation, the charitable arm of Fairfax-based developer Peterson Companies. Started by company founder Milt Peterson and his wife, Carolyn, in 1997, the foundation has made significant donations to Inova Health System’s Life with Cancer initiative, whose support services include art therapy classes, and George Mason University’s arts and public health colleges.
According to ArtsFairfax, the foundation’s contributions to GMU have included investments in the College of Visual and Performing Arts’ opera, performing arts and music programs as well as the Mason Community Arts Academy, which provides classes, workshops and summer classes to area residents and students.
The foundation also supports the university’s Great Performances at Mason series, which brings classical music, dance, theater and opera shows to its Fairfax campus.
The Jinx Hazel Award is considered ArtsFairfax’s top award, recognizing a person or group “whose vision and commitment has helped shape the cultural life of Fairfax County.” Last year’s recipient was the Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton.
Philanthropy Award
Kline will receive this year’s Philanthropy Award, which recognizes donors for their longtime monetary support for the arts. A former banker who now heads the Pohanka Automotive Group’s Pohanka Family Office in Rockville, Maryland, she has served on the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts board since 2015.
Her philanthropic contributions to Wolf Trap include an endowment fund to support staff, artists and programming for Wolf Trap Opera (WTO). She has also funded a career development program and young artist training company for the WTO, and she led a digital fundraiser event for the organization during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Because of Ms. Kline’s leadership, WTO was poised and ready to offer the first performance in the 50th anniversary season at the Filene Center,” ArtsFairfax said in a press release. “Ms. Kline’s exemplary support, service, and leadership on behalf of the Wolf Trap Foundation was recently recognized with a 2024 National Opera Trustee Recognition Award.”
Achievement Award
Intended for an individual artist who’s made “a lasting contribution” to their discipline or community, the 2024 ArtsFairfax Achievement Award will honor Shu-Chen Cuff, a native Taiwanese dancer who trained in ballet, modern dance and Chinese folk dance and opera.
A University of Florida graduate, Cuff danced with the Miami Ballet, Nevada Ballet Theater, and the Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company before founding the Gin Dance Company (GDC) in 2011. Based in Reston Town Center (1818 Library Street, Suite 500), the company focuses on contemporary dance performances that blend Asian and western influences.
Cuff retired as a professional dancer after 27 years with a final performance at Capital One Hall last November, but she still works as GDC’s artistic director and choreographer. She’s also a faculty member at GMU, the BalletNova Center for Dance in Bailey’s Crossroads, the Washington Ballet School in D.C., the Metropolitan School of the Arts in Kingstowne and Skye Ballet Center in Herndon.
“Congratulations to Shu-Chen, for her incredible contributions and commitment as a performer, choreographer, teacher, and mentor!” GDC said in a newsletter announcing the award for its founder. “We are beyond grateful to ArtsFairfax for this very special recognition and their unwavering dedication to the arts!”
Innovation Award
This year’s recipient of the ArtsFairfax Innovation Award, which honors individuals and groups for “nontraditional or inventive approaches” to engaging in the arts, is We Rock Cancer.
Based in McLean (1390 Chain Bridge Road, Suite 900), the nonprofit was founded by Air Force veteran Tim Reed after he was diagnosed with skin cancer in 2018. It provides free cancer screenings at live music events, a service that has expanded to other settings like health fairs and cultural festivals with the acquisition of a portable stage in 2020.
According to ArtsFairfax, We Rock Cancer hopes to expand its outreach over the next three years to kids, young adults and workers in construction, landscaping and other professions that come with regular sun exposure.
“By sharing their innovative offering with the community, We Rock Cancer addresses healthcare access and equity to attain annual skin checks, conduct self-examinations, and obtain skin cancer prevention resources while celebrating live, local music,” ArtsFairfax said.
Another hotel may soon check into Tysons’ Scotts Run neighborhood.
Developer Cityline Partners secured the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors’ approval yesterday (Tuesday) to construct a dual-branded Hilton hotel on part of a block originally slated to become an 18-story office building.
The vote was unanimous but not entirely enthusiastic, as Chairman Jeff McKay and Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik acknowledged that the developer failed to win over county planning staff, who objected to the proposed location of a trash and loading service access point.
“While not perfect, don’t let that be the enemy of the good on this one,” Palchik said before the vote. “I think this is a very good application coming forward with commercial viability, which is definitely a challenge right now in Tysons and in urban spaces.”
Citing a changed environment for office space since the overall Scotts Run South development plan got approved in 2013, Cityline Partners has opted to break up a 1.73-acre portion known as the Westgate Block into two components: a 17-story, 263-room hotel on the east side and an office or residential building on the west side.
The newly approved hotel will be located at the Dolley Madison Blvd (Route 123) and Anderson Road intersection, just a couple of blocks away from Archer Hotel, which opened in September 2021. Built atop a five-story parking podium, the building will devote four floors to Home2Suites, an extended-stay concept, and seven floors to the boutique Canopy by Hilton.
The project will reduce the traffic expected at the site by shifting from office to hotel, while still contributing to the county’s commercial tax base, Lynne Strobel, the developer’s representative, said at the public hearing. It will also encourage pedestrian activity with 4,846 square feet of ground-floor retail and complete Platform Avenue, which is envisioned as Scotts Run’s main street.
“The construction of Heming recently established the western end of Platform Avenue, which is the main street that is through Scotts Run South, and this hotel will establish the east end,” Strobel told the board. “We believe it will serve as a catalyst for the continued development of this important property.”
However, county staff argue that the addition of a service entrance for trash and loading activities on Platform Avenue contradicts the vision of the street as primarily pedestrian-oriented with ideally no vehicular access points.
The approved concept plan for Scotts Run shows a vehicle entrance from Platform Avenue for one block, but in that case, the only other options are Route 123 and Colshire Drive, neither of which can accommodate a driveway, according to county planner Mary Ann Tsai.
The county’s comprehensive plan and Tysons design guidelines recommend providing vehicular access “where it’s least likely to conflict with pedestrians and ground-floor activity,” county planner Sunny Yang said.
Staff said they proposed alternatives, including redesigning the hotel’s main entrance from Anderson Road to also serve as a service entrance or making the Platform Avenue entry temporary until the block is fully developed and the vehicle access points can be consolidated.
The plan identifies a location where a panel could be knocked out so vehicles can travel between the future buildings, instead of having separate garages and entries, but Hilton has indicated it doesn’t want vehicles to travel through the garage.
“We recognize an opportunity that vehicles could travel through the garage,” Tsai said. “It’s really what was designed…one garage under the entire block, and that’s why there was access only from Anderson and Dartford Drive, but in reality, it’s just not going to happen, and like Sunny said, there’s no commitment [from the developer].”
Strobel said the developer considered all of staff’s suggestions but didn’t find them viable, noting that they worried a shared visitor drop-off and service entrance off of Anderson Road would confuse drivers and create safety issues.
The developer agreed to restrict operating hours for the trash and delivery entrance to before 7 a.m. and after 9 p.m., when pedestrians are less likely to be walking on the roadway. The doors will also be designed to blend in with the building.
“The design, bringing the materials down to the ground plane, you won’t notice it as you’re walking by,” Strobel said. “We also kept the [street] pavers very uniform in front of this. There won’t be any visual cues, if you will, that there’s trash and loading in the area.”
McKay questioned how the loading hours will be enforced, urging the developer to install automated doors instead of relying on an employee to monitor the entrance.
“I do feel like the applicant has done a very good job of addressing a difficult situation,” he said. “I’m actually already looking forward to the implementation stage and worrying about how we’re going to maintain these restrictions from a code enforcement standpoint.”
In a Feb. 29 report, county staff also took issue with the lack of proposed park space for the Westgate Block, but Strobel told the board — and a Fairfax County Park Authority representative confirmed — that those concerns were resolved after the developer agreed to provide funding for a trail connection from Westgate Park (7508 Magarity Road) to a future sidewalk in the Highland District.
Despite the unresolved conflict between staff and the developer, Palchik expressed hope that the future hotel will add to the community emerging in Tysons East.
“I totally respect the position of staff on this. I don’t think staff is wrong. I think they’re right. I just think this is a tough, tough way to come up with a solution,” McKay said. “…We’ll have other bites at the apple as other pieces come forward, but I do appreciate everyone’s work on this as a healthy compromise at this stage of development.”
