After a weather-related delay in February, the new half-mile Vesper Trail connecting Vienna and the Spring Hill Metro station is now open.
The new trail runs through the Old Courthouse Spring Branch Stream Valley Park, sometimes called “Tysons’ Last Forest.”
The trail is part of a series of necessary transportation improvements identified in the Tysons Metrorail Station Access Management Study. The trail is federally funded.
At the grand opening this morning (Tuesday), Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova and Hunter Mill Supervisor Cathy Hudgins spoke at the grand opening and emphasized the new trail’s crucial role in connecting Vienna residents to Tysons transit and retail.
New Vesper Trail makes it easier for residents to walk and bike to Spring Hill Metro and other shops in Tysons! @ffxconnector pic.twitter.com/gcjOLBHJg1
— Sharon Bulova (@SharonBulova) April 16, 2019
Photo via Twitter
There’s already been a substantial amount of digging and preliminary work at the Monarch, a 20-story condominium tower northeast of Tysons Galleria, but last week the project officially broke ground.
The tower at 7887 Jones Branch Drive is now under construction with an opening scheduled for late 2020.
The site is planned to have 94 residences with a dozen floor plans, from 880 to 3,4000 square feet, meaning the building will have a range of two to six units per floor. Designs show that all residents will have floor-to-ceiling windows and outdoor balconies.
Prices range from $600,000 to just over $3 million.
The project is part of the Arbor Row development, a 19-acre stretch of mixed-use buildings along Westpark Drive. The first building of the project, the residential Nouvelle, was completed in 2015 and the next phase, senior living facility The Mather, is going to the Fairfax County Planning Commission next week.
“Arbor Row is the new Tysons’ most livable neighborhood,” Albert H. Small Jr., founder of developer Renaissance, said in a press release. “There already are pedestrian pathways that lead to enticing restaurants and shops, and more green space than you will find anywhere else in Tysons. With both Wegmans and Whole Foods opening soon in the immediate area, Arbor Row will offer extensive options to support a healthy lifestyle.”
While the project is planned to be walkable in the long-run, locals should be aware that construction activity has temporarily closed the sidewalk along Westpark Drive.
Editor’s note: Over the next several weeks, Tysons Reporter is profiling the eight districts of Tysons. This is the fifth article in that series.
Tysons these days has a bit of a reputation as a cultural wasteland. Even today, that’s not quite true, and if the plans for Tysons West come to fruition it won’t be true at all.
The Tysons Comprehensive Plan envisions this area, which is centered on the Spring Hill Metro station, as one of Tysons’ four downtown districts, an “arts and entertainment center.” The plan calls for a high-density diversity of uses, “tree-lined streets”, and “a series of urban park spaces.” Over 18 million square feet of development, including what could be Tysons’ tallest tower, is in the works, and much of it (though not yet the tower) has been approved.
From Car Dealerships to Towers
Today, Tysons West is the least developed of Tysons’ four downtown areas. Much of the land is still covered by car dealerships. But the arrival of a more urban form of transportation — the Silver Line — has sparked intense plans for redevelopment.
These plans, although by a range of different developers, share many elements that characterize projects across Tysons. They’re dense, mixed-use, and are built with an eye for pedestrian accessibility, meaning that residents should be able to fulfill daily and weekly needs without motorized transportation. They’re outward-facing, with most attention and retail activity on the sidewalks of public streets rather than inside buildings or isolated courtyards. And they connect to one another, through a new grid of streets, helping residents of one development enjoy the amenities of another.
Many of these projects also promise to bring sports fields, for example in Dominion Square East, or provide funding for fields nearby.
There’s so much new development slated for this area that I can’t even list it all, but naming a few key projects should give a sense of the scope of the plans.
Dominion Square East, Dominion Square West, and Sunburst will all lie directly west of the Spring Hill Metro, within a five-minute walk. Combined, they will bring us at least 13 new buildings, as many as 3,100 residential units (20% of them to be designated for lower-income residents), over 200,000 square feet of commercial space, and several office towers. The Vesper Trail, which opened recently, passes through this area to connect to the Metro.
The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.
We’ve scoured the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!
Tuesday (April 16)
- Vesper Trail Ribbon Cutting — 10 a.m. at Higdon Drive — The new Vesper Trail connecting Old Courthouse Road in Vienna to the Spring Hill Metro station in Tysons after earlier delays.
- Sugar Mountain: Neil Young Tribute Band — 7:30 p.m. at Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave E) — The Neil Young Tribute Band Sugar Mountain is scheduled to play at Jammin Java tomorrow. Tickets are $20.
Wednesday (April 17)
- Maibock Tapping Party — 6-8 p.m. at Gordon Biersch Brewery (7861 Tysons Corner Center) — The Tysons Corner Center’s Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant is tapping party to raise funds for the Dunn Loring Volunteer Fire Department. The event is planned to include tastings, appetizers, live music and more. A quarter will be donated to the department for every pint served, and 15 percent of all restaurant sales during the party.
Thursday (April 18)
- Monty Python’s Life of Brian Screening — 7-9 p.m. at the Angelika Film Center (2911 District Ave.) — The Angelika Film Center in the Mosaic District will host a screening of the controversial satire The Life of Brian. Tickets are $15.
Friday (April 19)
- Earth Day Party — 5-9 p.m. at the Tysons Biergarten (8346 Leesburg Pike) — The Tysons Biergarten is hosting a live music and drinking party to celebrate Earth day, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Rainforest Trust. Bring a printed flyer for the event or a screenshot of the event page and show it to the bartender.
Saturday (April 20)
- Spring Fest — 10 a.m.-12 p.m. at the McLean Community Center (1234 Ingleside Ave) — The McLean Community Center is hosting a spring festival with a mix of live entertainment and self-guided arts and crafts. The program aims at children ages 3-8. Registration in advance for $5 is required.
Sunday (April 21)
- Early Mornings in the Garden — 6-10 a.m. at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens (9750 Meadowlark Gardens Ct.) — Photographers, birdwatchers, and other interested parties are invited to a special early morning walk through the gardens. The gardens typically open at 10 a.m., but early visitors will have a chance to see some of the birds in their most active times. Standard garden admission — $3 to $6 — applies.
- Easter Brunch — 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at Mad Fox Brewing Company (444 W Broad Street) — The Mad Fox Brewing Company is opening early for a brunch buffet aimed at accommodating entire families. Adults tickets are $28 and kid tickets are $12.
Photo via Facebook
If Tysons is going to become a destination, it’s going to need an Eiffel Tower — and slower, more pedestrian-friendly streets.
On the “Connect with County Leaders” podcast run by the Fairfax County Government, Deputy County Executive Rachel Flynn talked about the increasing importance of establishing a “destination” feeling with urban design to draw in a younger crowd.
“Millennials are deciding where they want to live before they get the job, then they move there and get the job,” Flynn said. “That’s the sign of a robust economy. So what can Fairfax do to say ‘we attracted that person?’ We don’t have an Eiffel Tower or a Chrysler building, but I think Tysons is the start of that.”
On its quest to become America’s next great city, Flynn said the area will have to be notable for something — presumably other than the historic Toilet Bowl building. Flynn referenced the example of San Francisco, noting that icons like the Golden Gate Bridge come to mind before any other details about the city.
But the other side of the coin to draw businesses and residents to Tysons, Flynn said, will be making the streets more walkable.
“We’re hearing that people want to walk more,” Flynn said. “They don’t want to be as car-dependent.”
But sometimes, Flynn noted, good pedestrian design can come at the cost of car-focused improvements, like more turn lanes. While Fairfax County has traditionally been built on its highways, Flynn said Tysons is going to need to continue switching to a more urban style street grid — specifically referencing Old Town Alexandria as a model for pedestrian-friendly design.
“Every time you add an extra right turn lane, someone is paying for that,” Flynn said. “Someone has to maintain that… and you just made a wider intersection for a pedestrian or cyclist, so maybe they don’t cross that street… Pedestrians know where they’re wanted, and that’s where they want to stay. So we need to slow down traffic and get more people out of their cars.”
For Tysons, Flynn said people should expect narrower lanes and slower traffic than they’d find in other parts of the county. Slower traffic, Flynn said, will not only add to pedestrian friendliness but will make retailers more likely to set up shop nearby.
“People are really drawn to a sense of place, that’s why Mosaic has been such a big hit and Tysons is becoming that way,” Flynn said. “People want to be at a place that feels good you have lots of choices of what to do.”
Photo via Fairfax County Government
Three years after construction started, the 32-story luxury-apartment tower Lumen in the heart of Tysons is now leasing and soon to open.
The building is still undergoing the final phases of construction, with hard hat touring of the location starting later in April. The first move-ins are planned to start this summer.
Lumen Apartments is located northeast of the Leesburg Pike-Chain Bridge Road junction, and since it topped-out last July it has dominated the Chain Bridge Road skyline. The Lumen is part of a series of new mixed-use projects planned near the Greensboro Metro station, which notably include The Boro project just to the north.
The Lumen project contains 398 units on 25 floors, from studios to two-bedroom apartments. The 15th floor of the building has a fitness center and yoga area.
Rental rates at the Lumen are not currently available, but a representative of the apartment complex told Tysons Reporter the information would be forthcoming over the next 30 days.
Editor’s note: Over the next several weeks, Tysons Reporter is profiling the eight districts of Tysons. This is the fourth article in that series.
For those seeking a calmer but still urban lifestyle within a short walk of parks and of the emerging downtown Tysons, the East Side might be your best bet — and that will only become more true as the Tysons Comprehensive Plan is implemented.
The East Side extends along the eastern fringe of Tysons, from Route 7 in the south to the Dulles Access Road in the north, bounded by Magarity Road in the east and Tysons East to its west. Today, it’s mostly composed of garden-style apartment developments like Tysons Landings and the Dolley Madison Apartments.
Over the next few decades, it will remain primarily residential, forming a smooth gradient of transition from downtown Tysons to single-family Pimmit Hills. It will not witness rapid increases in density like Tysons East, but rather it will gradually take on a more urban character. That means neighborhood retail, like corner stores and local restaurants, and it means a more cohesive and walkable network of streets.
The district might include some offices, which planners hope to configure into a “live-work” combination — imagine the 21st-century equivalent of a craftsman living upstairs from his shop.
Park Connections
This district is closely tied to Tysons East, and in a way it is the residential backyard to that district’s vibrant center. Right now, the two are separated by a forest, the Scotts Run Stream Valley Park, that can make it difficult to get from one to the other.
This year, though, Fairfax County will be taking the first steps to change that park from a barrier to a gateway, building pedestrian and bicycle paths to connect the East Side to Tysons East through one of Tysons’ greatest natural treasures.
Getting Around
Most of the East Side is only a short walk away from the McLean Metro station, and that walk will become significantly easier – and more pleasant — with the opening of the Scotts Run Trail. The 3T bus on Magarity Road offers reliable and comfortable service to downtown Tysons and to the center of Falls Church.
However, right now it is remarkably difficult to walk from anywhere on the East Side to downtown Tysons. That will soon change, though, with the construction of a new pedestrian and bicycle bridge over the Beltway. The bridge will link the East Side directly with Tysons Corner Center and contribute to a more complete network of access throughout the area.
The Comprehensive Plan calls for a circulator system of public transit to span the entirety of Tysons, and although its precise location is still in question, the Plan indicates that it will likely be placed along Old Meadow Road.
Gradual Development
In stark contrast to nearby Tysons East, which is slated for near-total redevelopment in the next few years, the East Side will see change come more gently — or, at least, in the farther future.
The only project currently on file is a new hotel, and even that is located in the extreme southern part of the East Side — its only office-focused corner. Just because change is coming more slowly, though, does not mean it will never come.
Anyone in Tysons missing the old O’Malley’s Pub at the DoubleTree Hilton in Tysons might be pleased to go back and find a new bar in its place.
The new “Tysons Social Tavern” at 1960 Chain Bridge Road opened last Friday (April 5). So far, manager Joanna White said the business has mostly been driven by hotel guests, but as the bar and restaurant gets its footing it will start reaching out to the community at large.
White said that while O’Malley’s Pub was popular, when the rest of the DoubleTree was renovated to become a more full-service hotel they were left with a pub that still very much had a late-20th-century vibe.
“We wanted to keep the tavern feel but update it,” White said.
The restaurant offers a range of bar staples, from sandwiches like Reubens and Philly cheesesteaks to meals-to-share, like wings or pizzas. So far, White said the local favorite has been the tavern’s rockfish.
The bar also offers an array of local craft beers, like several selections from Alexandria’s Port City Brewery.
While local nightlife and bar options can still be scarce, Tysons Social Tavern is part of a growing trend of more locally-oriented watering holes to cater to the residential and working communities around Tysons, as opposed to chain restaurants mostly serving mall-goers.
On May 1, White said Tysons Social Tavern is planning to start its Grubhub service to deliver food around the region, which she said will hopefully help boost its profile in the local community.
With the Nouvelle residential building open and The Monarch under construction, Cityline Partners LLC is hoping for Fairfax County’s permission to move forward with the next step of the Arbor Row project near Tysons Galleria.
The overarching plan is to transform the back end of Tysons Galleria along Westpark Drive into a suite of mixed-use buildings. Block E is the Nouvelle, and Block D is the under-construction Monarch hotel.
On April 24, Block C of the project will go to the Planning Commission to try and amend the change the two approved office buildings planned at the site into a two-tower senior living complex called The Mather.
The towers are proposed to be 18 and 27 stories tall with a podium connecting the towers on the lower levels. The site would contain 300 independent living units, 78 assisted living units, and 18,000 square feet of retail and restaurants on the lower floors.
“The quasi-public use of the Mather community will complement the mix of residential, office and retail uses within and surrounding Arbor Row,” the project developers said in the application. “In addition, this Mather community will bring an attractive senior living use to Tysons, addressing a need that currently is not being met.”
Following the Planning Commission hearing, the project is scheduled to go to the Board of Supervisors on May 7. If approved, tentative opening for The Mather is planned for 2022.
Editor’s note: Over the next several weeks, Tysons Reporter is profiling the eight districts of Tysons. This is the third article in that series.
Almost three hundred years ago, when Thomas Fairfax was still alive, the county’s first courthouse was built where the “Toilet Bowl Building” now stands. The courthouse is long gone, but it has given its name to the second of Tysons’ eight districts.
“Old Courthouse” is now home to mid-rise offices, but is destined to become a mixed-use residential quarter as the Comprehensive Plan is implemented.
Ironically enough, the Old Courthouse district doesn’t actually include the land where the courthouse itself once stood. Rather, the district runs along Old Courthouse Road and Gallows Road and is bounded by Route 123 to the northwest, Route 7 to the northeast, the Beltway to the east, and the single-family neighborhoods to its south and southwest.
Old Courthouse is today home to a collection of low- and mid-rise office buildings and a few strip-mall-style retail and dining options. Tomorrow, it could be home to many more people.
The Tysons Comprehensive Plan envisions this area as “a neighborhood that supports an active 24-hour environment where people go to restaurants or shopping after work.” and where “residential development will become a dominant use in most subdistricts, which will create the sense of community throughout this district.”
In a sense, this will be the residential counterpart of the Tysons Central 123 shopping area just north of it.
Getting Around
As a mixed-use residential area, planners intend for families living in Old Courthouse to be able to satisfy most of their day-to-day needs with a short walk. Pedestrian infrastructure, like more pleasant sidewalks and safer crossings, will help make that vision a reality.
Perhaps the most major change in the blueprints for Old Courthouse is the extension of Boone Boulevard. Ultimately, this street could triple in length, extending all the way from Kidwell Drive in the south, crossing Route 123 in the north, and leading into the civic center planned for the western part of Tysons Central 7. That extension — along with other proposed new streets perpendicular to it — would create a denser grid of streets, making it easier for both pedestrians and vehicles to move around.
Public transportation will be key to the district’s future. Almost all of Old Courthouse is within a mile walk of the Greensboro Metro station, and some is much closer. The extended Boone Boulevard has been identified as a prime candidate for a circulator line connecting the different neighborhoods of Tysons.
Old Courthouse also stands to benefit greatly from the potential park on top of the Route 123-Route 7 intersection, which would make it much easier for people to get to the Metro station as well as provide some much-needed green space.
Redevelopment Projects
Although the vision of the Comprehensive Plan extends for decades, a handful of development projects in the coming years offer us a peek into the future of Old Courthouse.
For the most part, developers will be permitted to construct offices and shops in addition to residences throughout Old Courthouse. However, Fairfax County hopes to incentivize additional housing by letting developers build taller buildings if those buildings are residential — with the requirement that these taller apartment or condo buildings have a light impact on traffic.
In 2015, Fairfax County approved plans for a development including 385 apartments and 129,000 square feet of commercial space to be located in the northern part of Old Courthouse on Rt. 7. This plan, called International Place, would bring a much more urban form, with wide sidewalks and street cafe seating. However, the developer who was to be responsible for the project has since declared bankruptcy, leaving the undeveloped-but-approved project on the market.
A hospital could also be coming to the eastern part of the district as the medical system seeks to be able to serve the increasing number of residents across Tysons.
