Transportation snarls have sent a vast expansion of the Tysons Corner Center back to the drawing board.
The Fairfax County Planning Commission, which reviews land-use proposals and recommends policy to the Board of Supervisors, forestalled a vote last week on rezoning about 80 acres of land on Route 123 in the heart of Tysons. A positive vote would have been a major step in green-lighting developer Macerich’s plan to bring 1,350 new homes, 200,000 square feet of retail and a 300-room hotel, as well as an array of public amenities and open space, to the already enormous mall over 10 to 15 years.
Such a delay is not abnormal for development projects, especially for those of such daunting scope. The current snags are related to transportation planning in the traffic-choked urban hub slated to be reshaped by Metrorail in the coming years.
“Not everybody who lives there is going to ride the Metro all the time, so we need to have other options,” said Planning Commissioner Kenneth Lawrence, who represents the district containing the property.
The McLean Citizens Association, which spoke at the public hearing that stretched beyond midnight on Thursday, argues that a number of transportation improvements planned throughout Tysons must be in place before the mall expansion is approved. A decision on the proposal should also be held off until a concrete vision of the future of Tysons Corner created, according to John Foust, an officer with the group.
Other residents have spoken in favor of the plan, calling it an ideal use of the property and a positive step in reshaping Tysons into a walkable rail-oriented community.
A Planning Commission vote was deferred until Nov. 2, Lawrence said.
“I don’t think it came as a surprise,” said Rebecca Stenholm, a spokeswoman for the project. “We certainly would have loved to have a decision [Thursday] night.”
