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The final piece needed to fully redevelop the West Falls Church Transit Station Area has fallen into place.

After a public hearing on Tuesday (July 25), the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved developer Rushmark Properties and HITT Contracting’s proposal to transform Virginia Tech’s Northern Virginia Center in Idylwood into a mixed-use hub designed to promote sustainability.

With the aid of architectural renderings, a representative for the development team known collectively as Converge West Falls bestowed a futuristic aura on the plan to replace the university’s existing four-story academic building at 7054 Haycock Road with an updated office building and apartments.

“This all looks otherworldly almost,” Mason District Supervisor Penny Gross observed before expressing “some qualms” with the location of a kids’ play area next to four-lane-wide Falls Church Drive.

The play area will be in a 7,908-square-foot Pocket Play Park — one of three publicly accessible open spaces proposed for the 7.5-acre Converge development, according to the rezoning application.

The developers also plan to build a 7,419-square-foot Sustainability Pocket Park with a boardwalk and other features on a stormwater management pond and a 42,668-square-foot Innovation Civic Plaza in the median of West Falls Station Blvd, a new private street that will be extended west from the recently approved Metro station redevelopment to the West Falls project now under construction in Falls Church City.

Those parks will be complemented by walkways, public art, pollinator gardens, landscaping and seating throughout the property, along with QR codes that will enable visitors to learn more about the site’s construction, said Walsh Colucci lawyer Andrew Painter, the development team’s representative.

The civic plaza is intended to serve as “the nucleus” of the development with an event lawn and an electronic, LED “Cloud Pavilion” whose canopy can be programmed to change color, shape, size and design based on the environmental factors, such as the angle of the sun.

“We believe this is going to be an immersive experience that will be a distinctive public art moment for the entire West Falls Church transportation area,” Painter said of the open-air pavilion.

According to Painter, the developers also wanted to create a “defining architectural statement” with the planned, 270-square-foot office building, which will house a new corporate headquarters for HITT and a Coalition for Smart Construction run by Virginia Tech’s College of Architecture.

Topping out at 120 feet tall, the building will have a 100,000-square-foot solar panel array on its roof that’s expected to generate between 1,100 and 1,400 megawatts of electricity — enough to power the whole facility. It will aim for net-zero carbon emissions.

“Furniture within this building will be generated with a 3D printer,” Painter said. “The façade of the building will be prefabricated to reduce the carbon footprint…Every step of the way, we’ll be incorporating those types of sustainability elements in the building.”

Apartment building height a sticking point for some residents

Community criticisms of the project, however, focused on the 13-story, 440-unit residential building — specifically its height, which will reach 145 feet along West Falls Station Blvd and taper down to 85 feet at the corner of Falls Church Drive and Haycock Road.

While most of the Falls Church Drive frontage will be 85 feet tall or less, the building’s northwest corner could reach a maximum height of 135 feet, per the development plan.

Fearing they’ll be literally overshadowed, residents of The Village condominiums argued at the public hearing that the proposed height violates the West Falls Church TSA’s comprehensive plan, which limits “portions of the buildings…directly across from” their complex to 85 feet high.

“The comprehensive plan accommodates a height limitation…of 85 feet all along Falls Church Drive and 145 feet for the rest of the building to mitigate the visual and aesthetic impact to the Village community and reduce the shadows cast by [the residential building] that will impact those condos directly across from the tower,” The Village Homeowners Association President Holly Wade said.

However, county staff disageed that the controversial portion of corner is “directly across” from The Village, since it’ll be 250 feet away from the nearest condo units and include a 30-foot-tall podium with up to 18,000 square feet of retail.

Noting that the Fairfax County Planning Commission fully supported the application when it met on July 12, Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust concurred with staff and expressed confidence that the planned setback and varying building heights will mitigate the risk of negative impacts on The Village.

“I know people feel very strongly,” he said. “I’m sorry I can’t agree with them. I’m sorry I couldn’t solve the problem, but I will say this, I think this is an absolutely first-class project and needs to be approved.”

Some community members and even one man who identified himself as a longtime Restonian expressed support for the project, asserting that the added housing and more pedestrian-friendly design will address the county’s affordability challenges and reduce residents’ dependence on cars.

“The vast majority of my neighbors that I talk to regularly are extremely excited about the developments coming here,” said YIMBYs of Northern Virginia member Aaron Wilkowitz, who lives within a half-mile of the Metro station. “We want new restaurants, we want new neighbors. We don’t want to look at an old parking lot and a few mid-sized office buildings. We want more density and we’re very excited about it.”

Mary Beth Avedesian has been named senior vice president of development for Hoffman & Associates and will manage the developer's West Falls project in Falls Church.

Hoffman & Associates specializes in mixed-use and residential communities, with an over $6 billion portfolio that includes The Wharf in Washington, D.C.

Avedesian has over three decades of experience, with a focus on the Northern Virginia market, according to a news release. She will manage West Falls, the largest development project in Falls Church’s history, which will feature 1.2 million square feet of development across nearly 10 acres.

Upon completion, the neighborhood will serve as a gateway to the city of Falls Church, with access to transit, outdoor gathering space, public art, apartments, condominiums, senior living, retail, a hotel, a medical office building and cultural space. West Falls is the first component of a larger 40-acre community-focused development of the area between Leesburg Pike and the West Falls Church Metrorail Station.

“Following the recent delivery of the final phase of The Wharf this past fall and our strategic expansion across the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast, Hoffman & Associates is continuing to grow our leadership team,” said Maria Thompson, the firm's chief operating officer. “Mary Beth Avedesian brings extensive development experience in the greater Washington region, and we are excited for her to bring her experience and deep industry knowledge to Hoffman & Associates.”

Avedesian will also oversee 4600 Fairfax Drive, the multifamily development in the center of the Ballston neighborhood in Arlington. This project will feature nearly 500 residences, including apartments and triplex-style residences. Construction is anticipated to begin in late 2024.

Avedesian joins Hoffman & Associates from B.F. Saul Co., where she was senior vice president of acquisitions and development. Her notable projects at B.F. Saul included Tysons Park Place I in McLean, The Waycroft in Arlington and Hilton Homewood Suites Hotel in Rosslyn.

“It is an honor to join this talented team whose projects have received both regional and national acclaim," she said.

Avedesian serves on the board and executive committee of the Northern Virginia Chapter of NAIOP, an industry association which she chaired from 2020 to 2022. She is also a graduate of the ULI Leadership Class of 2012 and has served as a guest lecturer teaching real estate at George Mason University. She holds a bachelor of science in engineering applied sciences from Michigan State University and a master's of business administration from Harvard Business School.

After the senior living developer for the West Falls development backed out, an extension for that part of the project was granted.

FALLS CHURCH, VA — With the developer of the senior living portion of a new Falls Church development backing out, that part of the project will be delayed.

On Monday, Falls Church City Council approved an extension to the senior living construction at West Falls, the mixed-use development being constructed around Route 7 and Haycock Road.

Under an agreement with the city, the West Falls developer had a deadline of June 13, 2023, to transfer the senior living site to a senior living developer. But because Trammell Crow has stepped away from the senior living part of the project, the developer requested an extension.

The extension move the substantial completion deadline for senior living construction from the current May 13, 2029 to July 15, 2031. The final deadline for construction also moves from May 13, 2030 to July 15, 2032.

Under the approved plan for the senior living, it will have up to 217 units, including 22 memory care studio units, 55 assisted living units, 140 independent living units and ground floor retail.

The senior living is now being targeted as a phase 1b for the project. Phase 1a involves buildings currently under construction: a condo building, hotel, two parking garages, and apartment building.

"Hopefully after we hear the name of the [senior living] operator this September, you guys will move in due course and actually start construction well before July 15, 2029," Vice Mayor Letty Hardi told the developer at Monday's meeting. "And obviously substantial completion, hopefully 2031 is really an outside date."

The approximately 217 units of senior living will be part of the West Falls project. Other components include 400 apartments, about 247 condominiums, a hotel, medical offices, retail, new streets, parking garages and a public green space.

According to Mary Beth Avedesian, a senior vice president for Hoffman & Associates managing the project, the medical office building is expected to be completed around the end of 2023, and parking garage that's close to the secondary school campus will be finished this summer. The hotel is targeted to be "substantially complete" by the end of 2023. The condominium and apartment buildings could be complete around fall 2024.

There is no word yet on a grocery tenant for the development, as the developer is seeking a new tenant, according to Avedesian.

A separate, connecting development is being planned next to the West Falls development on the West Falls Church Metro property in Fairfax County. That development still needs to secure final approvals in Fairfax County before construction could begin.

As part of the extension, the developer agreed to install a temporary flashing pedestrian signal at Mustang Alley & Haycock Street before the new school year begins, bring the new senior living developer and operator to City Council by Sept. 30, pay $5,000 in city legal fees and provide a decorative cover of the parking garage facing Haycock Road on or before phase 1a of the project is "substantially complete" around January 2025.

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Several restaurants and an early education program are slated for the first phase of the West Falls development in 2024.

Patch Staff

FALLS CHURCH, VA — Retail plans are taking shape at the West Falls development under construction in the west end of Falls Church City.

Three restaurants — SEOULSPICE, BurgerFi and Masons Famous Lobster Rolls and early education center Tierra Encantada will join the West Falls development by fall 2024, according to developer Hoffman & Associates. The first phase of the development is expected in late 2024.

"As we approach substantial topping out at West Falls, the largest development in the history of Falls Church, we are pleased to announce the first line-up of retailers coming to the neighborhood," said Shawn Seaman, president of Hoffman & Associates. "With over 18,000 square feet of open space for community use along with modern residences and exciting retail concepts, West Falls will serve as a dynamic destination and vibrant community in the heart of West Falls Church."

The third restaurant will be Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls at 235 West Falls Station Blvd. Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls, is the largest lobster roll brand in the U.S., uses high-quality lobster sustainably sourced from Maine.

The other retail addition will help fulfill a need for early childhood and preschool in the region. Tierra Encantada will open its second Northern Virginia location at 7131 Magnolia Street, offering early education and preschool program focusing on cognitive development and a play-based learning model. The program also emphasizes diversity with a fully Spanish curriculum and provides organic made-from-scratch meals.

The West Falls development, which is expected to open its first phase in late 2024, will be a mixed-use development on the former George Mason High School land after the new Meridian High School was built. The development will include 400 apartments, 126 condominiums, 215 units of senior living, a Hilton hotel, medical offices for the Wellness Center, retail, a grocery store, and a central outdoor space called the Commons. Seasonal events and programming will be hosted at the development when it's open.

The nearly 10-acre development is the first piece in a larger 40-acre development around the West Falls Church Metro station. The other portions, recently approved by Fairfax County, are on Virginia Tech and West Falls Church Metro land.

The West Falls Church Metro site will be the largest piece of the development with 25 acres. That development will replace 800 underutilized surface parking spots at the Metro station with up to 90 townhouses, 810 apartments, an office building, retail, green space and a transit plaza with kiss-and-ride and bus stops. The existing parking garage at the station will remain.

The Virginia Tech redevelopment on 7.5 acres is planned to get up to 440 multifamily residential units, office space and Virginia Tech institutional use.

The development will be connected through a new grid of streets, as well as new bike lanes and shared-use paths connecting Route 7 and the Metro station. The Metro station's transit center will also get an upgrade with a new bus loop and four bus stations, new kiss-and-ride area, and new bike racks and lockers.

The West Falls Church Metro part of the development could break ground as soon as 2024 and Virginia Tech as soon as 2025, pending site plan and building permit approvals from Fairfax County.

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The senior living component of Falls Church City’s mixed-use West Falls development has hit a snag, even as construction continues on other pieces of the future gateway to the city.

WF Developer, the development team led by Hoffman & Associates, informed city leaders in April that Trammel Crow had withdrawn from its contract to build the project’s 217-unit senior housing facility, according to a staff report.

Negotiations are underway with a new developer, but a 13-month extension is needed on the June 13 deadline to transfer the site’s ground lease, Hoffman Senior Vice President of Development Mary Beth Avedesian told the Falls Church City Council on June 12.

The council approved an extension that pushed the closing deadline back to July 15, 2024 and the deadline for substantial completion of construction from May 13, 2029 to July 15, 2031.

“Frankly, when you’re past 2025, it’s almost like fake dates,” Vice Mayor Letty Hardi said, expressing hope that the senior living building will be finished “well before” the new deadline. “…I would hate this to start running into the phase 2 commitments.”

In exchange for the extension, WF Developer agreed to several new commitments, according to Deputy City Manager Cindy Mester, including:

The temporary pedestrian signal is expected to be replaced by a permanent one by the end of this calendar year, according to city staff.

Approved on Oct. 24, the site plan for the senior living facility envisioned a 15-story, 267,700-square-foot building with 140 independent living units, 55 assisted living units, 22 memory care studio units and 7,700 square feet of ground-floor retail uses.

Located on the nearly 10-acre former George Mason High School site, the West Falls development will also deliver approximately 647 apartment and condominium units, a 146-room hotel, 326,100 square feet of office space, about 14,000 square feet of civic space, and 142,100 square feet of retail, including a potential 40,000-square-foot grocer that has yet to be identified.

The project broke ground in May 2022 and will transform the area around the West Falls Church Metro station in conjunction with a planned redevelopment of the station’s parking lot and an expansion of Virginia Tech’s neighboring Northern Virginia Center campus.

The first phase — which includes two parking garages, a medical office building by Trammel Crow, the hotel, a multifamily condo building, and an apartment building with the grocery store — is on track to be substantially complete in January 2025, according to Avedesian.

The first structure expected is a parking garage to serve the medical office building. Avedesian said the garage should be finished this summer.

“I think they’re expecting to be done towards the end of this year,” she said of the office building. “They’re negotiating directly with tenants, and I understand they have a deed on some very good tenants, medical tenants that will take a good portion of that building.”

The senior living facility was originally included in the first phase of the development but is now being considered “phase 1B,” Avedesian said. Phase 2 will bring additional retail and office space, as well as a second condo building.

City Manager Wyatt Shields said phase 2 could start in 2029, but Hoffman’s agreement with the city allows it to pay for up to three one-year extensions, meaning construction could begin as late as 2032.