The western reaches of Fairfax County saw the majority of the area’s new office construction last year, according to a recent real estate report from the county’s Economic Development Authority.
The report said 15 office projects began in the county during the last half of the year, almost doubling the number of buildings under construction by the end of 2006.
Of that new construction, 79 percent was in western Fairfax.
Real estate observers say the trend is being driven by comparatively cheap and abundant land, as well as proximity both to Dulles International Airport and a major U.S. intelligence agency — the National Reconnaissance Office — in Chantilly.
“It’s a cheaper alternative to build out in Reston, Herndon or even Chantilly in order to attract tenants looking for a cheaper rental rate,” said Elizabeth Norton, Mid-Atlantic research director for Delta Associates, an Alexandria-based real estate advisory firm.
She said office rents in Chantilly were about $24 per square foot by the end of 2006, compared with approximately $28 in Tysons Corner and almost $33 in the Rosslyn-Ballston area of Arlington County.
Steady development has left Fairfax County with a limited supply of vacant land, mostly in the south and southwest portions of the county.
At the same time, the Northern Virginia work force is commuting longer distances from D.C., even as far as West Virginia, Dulles Regional Chamber of Commerce President Eileen Curtis said.
“And so it is a good move, in terms of [businesses] moving their operations closer to their work force residences,” she said. “But it’s still a long drive.”
Chantilly saw the highest level of office construction with 2.3 million square feet, according to the EDA report. Dulles was second at 1.4 million square feet, and Reston was third at 1.2 million square feet.
