Virtual Reality Experience Sandbox VR Opening At The Boro In Tysons

TYSONS, VA — A new virtual reality experience allowing participants to enter virtual worlds will open at the Boro development in Tysons this summer.

Sandbox VR, a full-body virtual reality entertainment experience, will open at 1656 Silver Hill Drive, Tysons. The full-body virtual reality experience uses motion-tracking technology to capture a person's body movements. Combined with a haptic system, participants are immersed into a virtual reality game.

"At The Boro, we strive to create an interactive, socially engaged neighborhood cultivated by experiential retailers like Sandbox VR," said Charlie Schwieger, vice president of asset management at The Meridian Group, the Boro's developer. "With a concept that promotes community and team building through technological innovation, Sandbox VR makes a unique, exciting addition to The Boro’s growing portfolio of eclectic restaurants, shops and attractions."

The Sandbox VR location at the Boro will have four "holodecks," or private rooms for virtual reality gameplay for groups up to six. Players receive a VR headset, a haptic vest, a backpack and motion sensors on their wrists and ankles to use in the virtual reality experience.

Sandbox VR will be the latest tenant joining the mixed-use development, which has residential and retail uses anchored by a Whole Foods Market. The Boro is centered around Leesburg Pike, Westpark Drive and Greensboro Drive and has two apartment buildings, Rise and Bolden, and a condominium building, Verse.

In May, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved a phase 2 expansion at the Boro, which will add 160,000 square feet of retail to its current 255,000 square feet of retail. The approved final development plan includes about 610,000 square feet of development in three buildings and open air green space. There are 543 planned market rate and workforce residential units planned with amenities such as club rooms, fitness centers and outdoor spaces.

The phase 2 expansion is under construction and will have "substantial completion" in 2025, according to The Meridian Group.

For more information about Sandbox VR, visit www.sandboxvr.com.