Developers went 1-for-2 with County Board members on Saturday as one major redevelopment plan won approval and another went back to the drawing board.
Courthouse project wins 5-0 approval
It wasn’t everything they wanted, but County Board members got enough to unanimously approve the redevelopment of a key parcel in Clarendon.
As a result of the Saturday decision, the existing five-story office building at 2500 Wilson Blvd can be replaced with a 14-story mixed-use project with about 316 residential units and 14,000 square feet of retail space.
The building would rise just over 156 feet, a reduction from the 16 stories originally proposed, but higher than the 12-story baseline that county leaders initially sought.
Acknowledging “reasonable concerns” raised by some in the community, Board member Matt de Ferranti said the proposal was, on balance, too good to pass up.
“This is an outstanding project,” he said.
His colleague Julius “JD” Spain Sr. spoke along the same lines. Spain acknowledged the project was less than perfect, but said it was good enough.
“There are a lot of people looking at us who are banking on us to make these hard calls,” he said.
In the final analysis, “we need more housing,” Spain said — a view shared by other Board members.
At a public hearing preceding the vote, civic activists raised concerns about various facets of the proposal.
Bernie Berne said the developer, TMG 2500 Wilson Boulevard LLC, was not providing sufficient environmental or biophilic elements on the parcel. June O’Connell said the developer hadn’t provided enough amenities to warrant the additional two floors above the 12-story baseline.
While O’Connell thought the project was too tall at 14 stories, housing activist Jane Green would have like to see it rise higher.
“I wish it was 16 stories,” Green said during testimony.
“We have to take advantage of every opportunity to get more housing,” Green said.
Dima Hakura, representing the Clarendon-Courthouse Civic Association, agreed with some of the concerns raised during the review process.
Hakura said her organization viewed the plan for loft-style housing on the ground level at Wilson Blvd with particular alarm.
“We want to see Wilson Blvd activated by either retail [spaces] or square footage for public services,” she said.
Despite that and other concerns, the civic association was satisfied with the overall development plan, Hakura said.
The parcel sits on something of a development no-man’s land between more heavily developed parts of Clarendon and Courthouse.
The development “is a great opportunity to link Clarendon with Courthouse, two neighborhoods which have stood alone for too long,” said Adam Theo, who testified at the public hearing.
The existing office building at 2500 Wilson Blvd is home to a daycare center, which will be displaced by construction. County officials expressed hope that the facility would find space nearby on a temporary basis, perhaps returning to the new building when it is done.
Inn of Rosslyn project pushed back
In the other major redevelopment proposal on the Sept. 13 agenda, Board members voted to defer Monument Realty’s plan for the former Inn of Rosslyn hotel site at 1601 N. Fairfax Drive.
The developer had proposed an eight-story multifamily building with up to 141 units on the 0.5-acre lot, but both county staff and several advisory commissions said the plan did not meet the Fort Myer Heights North Plan or countywide Comprehensive Plan.
The proposal will be tweaked and return to the review process in coming months, Planning Commission members said at the meeting.
