Efforts to improve pedestrian safety amid a planned redevelopment project could bring a reduction to the number of lanes on Wilson Blvd just west of Arlington.
In the Seven Corners area, west of the Arlington/Fairfax county line, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation has floated the idea of reducing westbound Wilson Blvd from two lanes to one.
The eastbound corridor would still have two lanes under the proposal, which would require approval from the Virginia Department of Transportation and a funding source. This was discussed at a March 11 redevelopment hearing.
Wilson Blvd currently runs one lane in each direction from Ballston to Patrick Henry Drive, just east of the Arlington-Fairfax boundary, where it opens to two lanes.
The plan proposed by Fairfax staff would retain two lanes in each direction in the immediate area of the Seven Corners roundabout, but make the eastbound lane one direction from just east of that area into Arlington. The goal would be to improve pedestrian safety in an area where Arlington, Fairfax and Falls Church converge and pedestrian infrastructure is minimal, Fairfax transportation staff said.
Currently, pedestrian safety is “definitely a dicey proposition,” Fairfax County Planning Commission member Mary Cortina said at the hearing.
At that meeting, Planning Commission members recommended approval of a Comprehensive Plan amendment to allow for additional development at Cavalier Club apartments, located at the corner of Wilson Blvd and McKinley Road.
The site is bisected by the Arlington-Fairfax boundary, but the redevelopment plan only relates to the 5.64 acres under Fairfax’s jurisdiction.
The property owner — Cavalier Club LLC — plans to retain the existing 12-story apartment building constructed in the mid-1960s while adding an eight-story building with 250 new units plus 5,000 square feet of retail.
The measure now moves to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for consideration, currently set for May 5.
“This area is ripe for redevelopment, and this site … is a good project to jump-start the effort,” said Fairfax Planning Commission member Alis Wang. The property is in her district.
The proposal headed to supervisors would give the property owner slightly more development opportunity than it is seeking, as it calls for up to 300 units and 20,000 square feet of retail.
The plan for 250 units and about one-quarter the amount of allowable retail best matches the site, said Sara Mariska, a land-use attorney representing the property owner.
“We have been working since 2022 to think about how to bring about this redevelopment,” she told Planning Commission members.
The property owner is slated to bring a rezoning request to the Planning Commission and supervisors by summer, when many of the design details will be fleshed out. Wang said she expected many issues to be addressed then.
“We need more housing,” she said. “We also have to anticipate and have a plan for dealing with the inevitable side effects: more traffic, more students in schools and environmental impacts.”
The lone speaker at the March 11 public hearing was a current Cavalier Club resident, who voiced concern about potential impacts on traffic, sunlight and rents for those living there.
Several community meetings have been held with residents, and there will be more, attorney Mariska said.
“A lot of residents have been there for a long time,” she said. “We want to preserve and protect and retain [them].”
The new building would include affordable-housing and workforce-housing units, although an exact number has not been detailed. County policy calls for 10% of additional new housing in the Seven Corners area to be available to those earning between 50% and 80% of area median income.
A new parking garage would replace much of the existing surface parking on the parcel.
Plans for townhouses on the Arlington side of the parcel are in the works but have not been submitted to Arlington officials, Fairfax planning staff said. The Arlington side of the parcel currently includes surface parking and open space.
The Cavalier Club parcel is also close to Fairfax County’s boundary with the city of Falls Church. The Eden Center shopping complex is located not far to the west of the apartments.
An online survey conducted by the Fairfax government in 2025 drew a mix of support and opposition to the development proposal, with opponents outnumbering supporters. In the survey, concerns were raised about increasing traffic and the likelihood that the new apartments would be too expensive for those already living in the Seven Corners area.
“There are many, many neighborhoods for wealthy folks or they could live in Arlington, which used to also be a nice working-class neighborhood until ruined by these luxury apartments,” one respondent said.
The existing apartment building, managed by Southern Management, contains a mix of units ranging from efficiencies to three-bedroom apartments.
