Combined Properties Wins Zoning for Fairfax Apartments
Multi-Housing News
June 5, 2014
Fairfax, Va.—The City of Fairfax, Va., has approved a rezoning application for a project called Fairfax Circle Plaza. The project, which is by Combined Properties, would completely redevelop the current strip retail center on the site and replace it with a mixed-use development with a significant multifamily component.
According to Combined Properties, the development will include as many as 400 new apartments along with 88,000 square feet of neighborhood-serving retail, anchored by a grocery store. The 8.9-acre site is located at the intersection of two major regional roads, US 50 (Fairfax Boulevard) and US 29 (Lee Highway), at the western edge of the city of Fairfax in Fairfax County. The location is also near (0.65 miles) the Vienna Metro station.
KTGY senior designer Ben Kasdan, whose firm is designing the property, says the development itself will be divided into city blocks that “define a progression of pedestrian experiences ranging from public plaza spaces and promenades to private residential courtyards.” The design recalls the aesthetic of several historical community markets through its use of materials, window patterns and distinctive signage elements, he adds.
Metro DC has been a robust apartment market for some years, though supply finally seems to be approaching demand. Transwestern estimates that during 2014 and ’15, about 26,400 units will be delivered marketwide. As of the end of the first quarter of 2014, the development pipeline for apartments in the market is as high as it’s ever been, more than 40,000 units. In the long run, however, Transwestern predicts that the market’s prospects are bright.
Fairfax, Va., is a town of about 22,000 southwest of Washington, D.C. Combined Properties, which is based in the District, currently has a portfolio of 40 properties totaling about 5 million square feet. The company has an additional $1 billion in development pipeline in the Washington, D.C., and southern California metro markets.
