Sun Gazette Fairfax July 10, 2014

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VOLUME 35 NO. 46

G R E AT FA L L S • M c L E A N • V I E N N A • O A K T O N

JULY 10, 2014

Officials OK McLean’s Long-Awaited Elm Street Project BRIAN TROMPETER Staff Writer

McLean’s revitalization got a boost July 1 when the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the much-anticipated Elm Street development project, the first major redevelopment effort in downtown McLean in years. JBG Cos. will add 400,000 square feet worth of mixed-used development on 4.43 acres at Fleetwood Drive and Elm Street in central McLean. The developer’s goal is the “transformation of an underutilized surface parking lot into a vibrant, mixed-use community,” said Bailey Hopple, Elm Street project manager for JBG Cos. Improvements will include a new Ushaped building with 240 units on six floors, plus parking and 5,033 square feet of retail space on the bottom level. Twelve percent of the dwelling units will be workforce housing. The developer also will add one floor of retail to an existing eight-story, 109,600-squarefoot office building at the site. The project will feature high-quality, classical architecture that will enhance the character and streetscapes of downtown McLean, Hopple said. Four publicly accessible open-space features will dot the site, including an active-recreation area and trail on the parcel’s northern edge and a central green area with a water feature. The project will have more than 35 percent open space, Hopple said. The site’s central plaza will have a “loose parts” play zone with uneven surfaces, sticks and other attractions designed to appeal to children. “There have been a lot of studies that have shown that outdoor play and less-structured play [help] with developing motor skills and curiosity and all those great things,” Hopple said.

Transportation improvements also will feature in the mix. The project will have a bus stop for the Fairfax County Connector’s new Route 721, which will circle around to the McLean Metrorail Station located 2.5 miles west. The project also will include two bus shelters, sidewalk upgrades, bicycle and trail connections, and a proffer to conduct athleticfield upgrades at nearby Franklin Sherman Elementary School. JBG Cos. also doubled to $500,000 its proffer for utility undergrounding in McLean’s

Community Business Center. “Collaboration with county staff and the community has created a project that we believe will bring positive changes and increased energy and vitality to the McLean area,” Hopple said. “We have received and incorporated important feedback which has truly shaped and improved our project throughout this process,” she said. McLean Project for the Arts board member Jack Wilbern said the organization is thrilled by the prospect of having public art-

work installed at the Elm Street site. The project will enhance the quality of life for people in McLean, he said. “Public art can play an important role in improving the design of the environment and helping to express community identity, values and aspirations,” Wilbern said. JBG Cos. officials anticipate they will start construction on the project next March, and that it will be finished by the first quarter of 2017, said spokesman Chad Thompson. Continued on Page 26

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Classical architecture will be a hallmark of the future Elm Street mixed-use development in McLean, which the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved on July 1.

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