City Centre West Project Approved By Fairfax City Council

FAIRFAX CITY, VA — Fairfax City Town Council approved an application Tuesday night by the Ox Hill Companies to build City Centre West, a 210,029-square-foot, mixed-use development on Main Street in Old Town Fairfax.

The City Centre West development will install 79 condominiums and penthouse units in a seven-story building located on a 1.78-acre parcel at 10501 Main St.

The project will also include 8,500 square feet of medical offices and 28,200 square feet of commercial office space. The building will also house a drive-through bank, ground-floor retail and restaurants. The developer has also pledged to install a 0.31-acre pocket park named Corner Public Plaza Park.

The site is currently occupied by a former drive-through bank at 10501 Main St.; the vacant OudResto & Hall restaurant at 10515 Main St.; and an office building at 10523 Main Street.

The council voted to approve the applicant's request to rezone the property from commercial general and commercial retail to commercial urban in the Old Town Fairfax Transition Overlay District.

Councilmembers also approved Ox Hill's request for a special use permit to allow a financial institution with a drive-through facility, as well several special exceptions.

During Tuesday night's public hearing, Ox Hill's representative Robert Brant, a land-use attorney with Walsh Colucci, told the council that the developer had updated its application based on feedback it received from earlier city council work sessions.

One of the updates included bringing in designer Thomas Juul-Hansen to reimagine the look of the building to more reflect the surrounding architecture.

Related: Plans To Build Concert Hall, Hotel In Old Town Filed With Fairfax City

"City Centre West represents an opportunity to bring urban sophistication to the suburban setting of downtown Fairfax,” said Chris Smith, managing principal of Ox Hill. “We are thrilled to work with him and are confident our partnership will result in a residential mixed-use development that is stunning and highly functional.”

In addition, Brant told the city council that both Truist bank and Infinite Technologies had committed to becoming tenants of the new development.

"Relocating Truist bank to this property is going to retain approximately 100 jobs and approximately $500,000 on annual bank franchise tax in the city," Brant said. "Truist wants to stay here. They want to be in the city. They are very excited about the opportunity to relocate to this building."

Relocating Truist would also benefit The Ox Fairfax-Block A application that Ox Hill recently filed with the city. That application seeks the city's approval for a mixed-use development to construct a 4,137-person capacity concert hall, a 170-room hotel, and 28,200 square feet of conference space along Chain Bridge Road and University Drive. To make that development happen, Truist would need to vacate its offices at 4o20 University Drive.

"City Centre West stands on its own merits," Brant said. "But more importantly, it opens the door for Ox Hill's broader vision for Old Town Fairfax."

The city council voted 5-1 to approve City Centre West's special requests and the overall project, with Councilmember Jeff Greenfield voting in opposition on each vote. Greenfield's motion to defer approval for Ox Hill's application on later date failed on a 5-1 vote.

"We may quibble with the design. We may quibble with the bits and pieces of this, but I think in the long run this will bring a huge addition to the city both economically and in terms of what we want to see in that area, as identified by our area plan," said Councilmember Tom Ross, in support of the project.

Ox Hill anticipates breaking ground on City Centre West in March 2024, with an eye of completing construction in spring 2026.