The owners of Fair Oaks mall want permission to expand the shopping center by half a million square feet, hoping to bring new business to a mall now bursting at its seams.
Fairfax Company of Virginia filed plans with Fairfax County last week that would allow two new restaurants, a 125,000-square-foot office building and nearly 400,000 square feet of new shops along the outer edge of the 109-acre mall.
But Chris Poleto, the mall’s general manager, said any expansion plans are only conceptual.
Under existing county zoning, the mall can grow by 8,860 square feet.
“We want to look 5 and 10 years down the road,” Poleto told The Examiner on Tuesday. “We’re just seeking the approval with no concrete plan solidified. … There is a lot of desire for tenants to get in and there is not space to accommodate them.”
The 27-year-old mall, planned as a “super regional center,” sits in the western corner of Route 50 and Interstate 66 and is anchored by Lord & Taylor, Sears, Macy’s and JCPenney. Poleto would not disclose the extent to which the facility is pushing its capacity, saying only “we’re very full.”
In Fairfax Company’s Aug. 13 application to Fairfax County, the company argues the site is “well located within an efficient transportation network” with numerous arteries close by. The application also cited “close proximity to residential and commercial office space,” as another reason for approval.
County staff soon will consider the application.
