July 25 — 31, 2019
Fa lls Chur c h, V i r g i ni a • ww w. fc np. c om • Fr ee
Fou n d e d 1991 • V ol. XXIX No. 23
Falls Church • Tysons Corner • Merrifield • McLean • North Arlington • Bailey’s Crossroads
Inside This Week Real Estate Special Explores Micro Units
Inside this week’s News-Press Summer Real Estate special edition, we explore the rise of micro units, the upcoming economical living spaces planned for the City’s Little City Commons development. See Real Estate, page 13
Vote Today at BestOfFC.com! For details, see page 2
Little City Commons Developers Go Into ‘Nuts & Bolts’ Stage of Planning Architectural &
Engineering Details Hammered Out
by Nicholas F. Benton
Falls Church News-Press
New Signal Now at F.C. Intersection
The temporary traffic signal blocking the sidewalk at the corner of Hillwood Ave. and Annandale Rd. for more than a year is gone and another interim, yet far less disruptive, solution is now in place. See News Briefs, page 8
2nd Major F.C. Restaurant Shutters
The same day longtime F.C. brew pub Mad Fox shuttered after nine years in business, another Little City restaurant closed its doors for the last time on Sunday. See News Briefs, page 8
Press Pass with Piff the Magic Dragon Piff the Magic Dragon, the crotchety magician, is coming to Falls Church with a two-day stint at the State Theatre this weekend. See page 25
Index
Editorial................6 Letters..................6 News & Notes.10, 11 Comment.... 12,21 Business News.23 Calendar..... 26,27
Classified Ads... 28 Comics, Sudoku & Crossword........ 29 Crime Report.... 30 Critter Corner.... 30
MARYLAND’S MONTGOMERY COUNTY Council approved a zoning change to allow accessory dwelling units, like the one above located in Washington, D.C., aimed at encouraging the development of a more affordable housing stock in the area. (Photo: Payton Chung / Flickr)
‘Accessory Dwelling Units’ OKd By Montgomery County Council by Nicholas F. Benton
Falls Church News-Press
Will the Falls Church city leadership demonstrate the same moral fortitude that some of its neighbors are now exhibiting in addressing the housing crisis that is gripping the nation and this region? The action by the Montgomery County Council, just up the Beltway from Falls Church in Maryland, to adopt zoning changes to ease the ability of county residents to construct “accessory dwelling units” on existing residential property Tuesday was a bold step in that direction.
The Montgomery council wound up voting unanimously for the zoning changes despite months of protests and petitions from over 1,000 mostly single family homeowners in the county who howled that the changes would ruin their neighborhoods. The bottom line is that the changes are aimed at encouraging the development of a more affordable housing stock than what is trending throughout the region, and across the U.S. as a whole. Falls Church Vice Mayor Marybeth Connelly told the News-Press at a Falls Church Chamber of Commerce event Tuesday that she was follow-
ing the Montgomery County development closely as the City Council here has begun its own discussions on how to alleviate the lack of affordable housing in Falls Church and some have stated publicly their plans to introduce measures into the coming year’s operating budget when that process begins later this year. With similar zoning modifications already made in Washington, D.C. and Arlington, the Montgomery County move is expected to accelerate the advance of pro-affordable hous-
Continued on Page 4
The Falls Church City Council’s unanimous approval earlier this month of the “special exception entitlement” for development of 9.8 acres at the City’s west end, now known as the “Little City Commons,” has kicked off the most intensive, creative phase of the development team’s work to date, aimed at winning approval of the special exception site plan by the City Council in January with complete and detailed architectural and engineering designs. Meanwhile, at the annual forecasting luncheon hosted by the regional NAIOP organization of commercial real estate developers, held at the greater Falls Church Fairview Marriott last week, optimism oozed about prospects for growth and prosperity in the Northern Virginia region, with the prospective development of Amazon’s second headquarters and the major higher education commitments being made in conjunction with it. The extension of the Silver Line and the expected economic stability of the region, including in costs of living compared to other major centers, face only uncertain headwinds associated with the costs of construction and the war for brainpower, the conference’s 200 attendees were told. Falls Church City was represented by Councilman Ross Litkenhous. Two conferences aimed at evaluating the prospects for the imme-
Continued on Page 5