Fairfax County’s economic power and plans for growth are threatening to hurt long-term growth plans in other regions.
“We want sole possession. [We want to] continue the trend so that in a few years Washington, D.C., is truly our suburb,” said Gerald Gordon, president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority, Tuesday in an interview with The Examiner.
Gordon made the comment in response to a new report from the U.S. Department of Labor that found Fairfax has far outpaced the District and its suburbs in job growth, largely due to the fact that the county has gained professional and business service jobs related to federal contracting over the last 15 years, while D.C. lost many of its federal jobs to outsourcing.
Report author Gerald Perrins also told The Examiner that efforts by Alexandria and Arlington to attract business, specifically along the Metro corridor, were not working because Fairfax was dominating the region.
“The counties are much more comparable than they are different,” countered Terry Holzheimer, director of Arlington County Economic Development. “The District is clearly the city center and always will be. … The idea of trying to elevate yourself by tearing down others is not a legitimate analysis.”
Holzheimer said comparing counties in the region is “apples to oranges” and all the jurisdictions have been aggressive in attracting new business — and that Arlington has attracted a comparable amount of jobs with a relatively smaller marketingbudget.
The fight for new business will be a particularly tense one in the coming years as the sluggish housing market continues to hurt housing assessments and, therefore, tax revenues in the region.
For example, while officials with the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership said their city is not in competition with Fairfax, it will be critical to push for more commercial development.
“Commercial development tends to provide a positive tax flow for many years, whereas residential doesn’t,” said Stephanie Landrum, acting executive director for AEDP. “Most of the people who end up in Alexandria are attracted by the location, and that’s something we’ll always have over Fairfax.”
While it’s clear that the stage has been set for the region’s suburbs to fight it out over business recruitment, Gordon said the report speaks for itself.
“In no way did we criticize other jurisdictions,” he said. But “the winner here, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, is Fairfax County.”
