A massive overhaul of the Tysons Corner Center approved Monday evening will hinge on concrete progress of a Metrorail extension through the urban community.
While developer Macerich does have a contingency plan for the unlikely demise of rail to Dulles, the firm has agreed to link each of the four phases of construction with certain milestones for the 23-mile line, which is slated to run directly through Tysons.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved the massive rezoning with two of its 10 members dissenting, which essentially green-lights the 3.5 million-square-foot revamp. Macerich plans to add offices, apartments, shops and a hotel to what is already one of the region’s largest malls.
Overall, the project will take 10 to 15 years to complete, Macerich predicts. The first phase will begin when the federal government agrees to fund the Metrorail extension, which is hoped to take place late this year, according to Melanie Balfour Heywood, senior vice president of development for Macerich. She said the second phase can begin once construction starts on the rail, which, at the earliest, could happen shortly after the federal funding agreement.
The later two phases are timed for when the rail line goes into operation.
The link between the two projects underscores the overall push by Fairfax County officials to tie development to transit, which they believe will draw down new traffic created by a building project.
Dranesville District Supervisor Joan DuBois, one of the dissenting voices on the board, said too much new traffic would still come into neighboring McLean, which sits in her district.
“I don’t think the application was a bad one,” she said. “What I’m hearing from the majority of my citizens is that they’re really concerned with the pace of growth in Tysons and around Tysons. And I don’t think at this point in time they’re willing to accept it.”
