VA Tech Property To Be Conveyed For West Falls Church Development

FALLS CHURCH, VA — Land currently leased to Virginia Tech near the West Falls Church Metro station will be conveyed to a developer for a redevelopment project.

On Monday, Falls Church City Council approved an ordinance to sell the properties to Rushmark Properties, which plans to turn it into the corporate headquarters for HITT Contracting, the Virginia Tech National Center for Smart Construction, 440 residential apartments with ground floor retail, and a new West Falls Station Boulevard.

Virginia Tech's 7.41-acre Northern Virginia Center site in Falls Church is located within Fairfax County adjacent to the new Meridian High School and the future 10-acre West Falls development opening in fall 2024 on the site of the old high school. Part of Virginia Tech's site is owned by the City of Falls Church and leased since 1995, and another parcel is owned by Virginia Tech.

Monday's City Council approval will end Virginia Tech's lease of the city's parcel, as well as transfer the parcel it owns to the city. The city government will then sell the parcels to Rushmark for the redevelopment.

Under the agreement, the city would pay $16.57 million to Virginia Tech and receive $25 million from Rushmark Properties, which gives the city net proceeds of $8.43 million.

The closing of the purchase is dependent on the development plans gaining approval through Fairfax County's land use process. The project timeline calls for land use applications to be submitted to Fairfax County in January 2023, followed by land use approval and closing in June 2024. If that timeline holds up, the estimated construction start date would be in March 2025. West Falls Boulevard would open in March 2026.

Leaders discussed the value of the development's West Falls Boulevard connecting the city's adajacent West Falls development to the West Falls Church Metro.

"Regarding the road, a huge part of our development plans for our own 10-acre site include the fact that that road goes on to the West Falls Church Metro Station. It was named that on purpose," said Councilmember Marybeth Connelly at Monday's meeting. "So I'm glad that those additional requirements are in there to ensure that that road does get built."

City Attorney Carol McCoskrie noted the tax revenue benefit of people from the corporate headquarters visiting the city's nearby West Falls development.

"The [Virginia Tech National Center for Smart Construction] is going to be an interesting A substantial amount of people who would be shopping and coming to use the facilities on our property where the high school used to be would benefit us," said McCoskrie.

Councilmember David Snyder said the financial benefit to the city "begin and end" with the land sale to Rushmark, since all future tax revenue from the property will go to Fairfax County.

When asked by Snyder, City Manager Wyatt Shields said he recommended moving forward with the sale for several reasons.

"One, I think our [real estate] advisor has told us that this is a fair price, and then two, I think the uses are complementary to what the city has been trying to accomplish on the 10-acre side immediately adjacent," Shields said. "And third, while the road is feasible if Virginia Tech were to retain its operations there, it would be more difficult, and it wouldn't work quite as well, and it wouldn't also be surrounded by the mix of vibrant uses that would make it complementary to our development.

The ordinance was approved 6-0 with Snyder abstaining. Before City Council's vote, Snyder expressed disappointment the proposal could not guarantee affordable dwelling units or "missing middle" condominiums be part of the development.