[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6510355,"mediaKeyId","5385790-2d052bf70509ce56a5e4bfca73820ce0","parentId",5385790,"title","Planning staff previews 2025 Factbook: population growth, housing surge and shifting housing mix","audioSeconds",1227,"startMs",5234000,"endMs",6461000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5385790-2d052bf70509ce56a5e4bfca73820ce0&start=5234&end=6461","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5385790-2d052bf70509ce56a5e4bfca73820ce0/thumbnail_5234000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6510355/Fairfax-City/Fairfax-County/Virginia/Planning-staff-previews-2025-Factbook-population-growth-housing-surge-and-shifting-housing-mix","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6510355-61294706d0eda97e05fac54f382122d8/orig.mp4?Expires=1770437990&Signature=R5BGAHFKUW6RSzui8-cnXnYgHX1372kuzB0~xmRNEnMgc0X4fggmxuG0HXPtWeSfLKpbqMxZSylqN-Zoh1MjffwFyYAecDIH8~o2BHnnuCQbE5lIeGSY2BCi94Pk1yldF5dOMc~Pj7qZQG7liSvX-l4lCvCxlx50HEuXYePtPyghBvb03vRJtEs~yRBpLQ8qEXTQfNVA6u2l-PwDvd22AvIRyzwSEQTpaCVBbTXgVkE67sthZmecpjTZvDDHSvGINRnfms9eEC8zzPRBLHX0eTkuYFBO0XPCKcTEn~TGo4EQl8gu3Wsumm-BVX0m6Y0aO8AkrnRMnfN7MPoBmjBFQw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Fairfax City","date","2025-07-14T00:00:00Z","article","Planning Department staff presented the City of Fairfax’s 2025 Factbook during a Monday work session, summarizing updated population, housing and economic figures and several new charts that track recent redevelopment and market trends.

Staff said the city’s 2024 population estimate is 26,340 and noted that the recent surge in new multifamily construction since 2020 has driven that increase. The factbook shows a marked change in housing composition: multifamily units grew from 28% of the city’s housing stock in 2019 to about 36% by the end of 2024. Staff added that several projects approved but not yet built are expected to continue that trend.

The factbook presentation included new and updated housing-price charts. Staff described a conservative method for estimated market values (assessed value plus 10 percent) and presented sales-price data that show many homes are selling for well above assessed value; in 2024 some housing categories had median sales at 115–120% of assessed values and roughly one-fifth of 2024 city sales exceeded assessed value by more than 25 percent. Staff also provided a mid‑year 2025 update showing a modest tempering of year-over-year price appreciation in the first half of 2025 compared with 2024, and noted sales volume was lower in the first six months of 2025 (121 sales January–June 2025 versus 270 total sales in 2024).

Other highlights included demographic charts showing that Fairfax City’s share of residents age 65 and older remains above the regional average but is less pronounced than in prior years, and a series of housing charts that illustrate the city’s recent development surge (the 2020s construction boom accounts for a large share of the city’s current multifamily stock).

Staff also reviewed transportation and environment items summarized in the factbook: traffic volumes on major corridors are generally approaching pre-pandemic levels (data in presentation updated through 2022), Kyuh transit boarding hotspots were identified, and the city’s stream-restoration prioritization highlighted several project areas, with three priority stream-restoration projects identified for further analysis.

Commissioners praised the factbook’s depth and asked staff to circulate source materials and recordings of related briefings (some commissioners requested the stream-restoration presentation materials given its technical detail). Staff said the factbook and archived prior editions are available online at fairfaxva.gov/factbook.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Fairfax City - Planning Commission Regular Meeting/Work Session - Jul 14, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Planning staff presented the City of Fairfax 2025 Factbook at the commission work session, highlighting population growth to an estimated 26,340 in 2024, a recent surge in multifamily construction, rising sale prices and changes in housing-unit composition and student yield ratios.","taxTitle","Fairfax City, Fairfax County, Virginia","taxId",59088,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6510360,"Developer briefs commission on concept for mixed-use redevelopment at Fairfax Square Professional Center",813,2877000,3690000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5385790-2d052bf70509ce56a5e4bfca73820ce0&start=2877&end=3690","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5385790-2d052bf70509ce56a5e4bfca73820ce0/thumbnail_2877000.jpg","/articles/6510360/Fairfax-City/Fairfax-County/Virginia/Developer-briefs-commission-on-concept-for-mixed-use-redevelopment-at-Fairfax-Square-Professional-Center","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6510360-269b3aefeafeafc38b5064e3afe10eee/orig.mp4?Expires=1770437990&Signature=bphzOrqJaNcC3MtNsVfga18E7~5CPzLmFaFOzvmOmQCUkglewDGvX7T3gvE5OUz3KoopBE91AtEtJJ2IagDQX9lEkb09Z8HskX2ddpZcFBd5E2b-hPAHrn1PU~E4QBfTk5tX0sybAM6TQvhsFSmLZfFiUYdbzLkPRI9EQ4mUto0IqqHU7mZJEDtcdpXOsrQWVWfmuAddggEL1JnKD3n-MGsGoJAy90f-K1qfCFBm-TnbLWYjdjNzQRdj1wLvThGk8w04WHJlKQKQUYUiirT9orPF-zfGfcjNDJlIlFRJsuzkgzGKZqEklCJeE3so5LpJrJVgsvZv-ctIX6Zc2InRzA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At a Monday work session the Planning Commission received a pre-application briefing for a proposed mixed-use redevelopment of the Fairfax Square Professional Center property (roughly 9840–9946 Main Street). The property owner presented a concept for phased redevelopment that would retain two existing buildings in early phases, demolish several older structures, add nearly 300 multifamily units and modestly increase commercial square footage across a roughly 10.5-acre site.

Planning staff said the concept would likely require a rezoning to a planned development/mixed-use district, a master development plan, transportation and shared-parking studies, a stormwater/phasing strategy, and a major certificate of appropriateness for architecture and landscaping. Staff encouraged early engineering work to ensure fire apparatus access through tight turning areas and asked the applicant to explore consolidating access points and reducing the amount of surface parking along Main Street to improve the pedestrian environment.

In the applicant’s concept the site’s commercial square footage would rise from roughly 130,000 to about 132,500 square feet while adding approximately 293 residential units (about 28 dwelling units per acre on the 10.47-acre property). Staff noted the concept is separate from, but comparable to, development on adjacent Fairfax Square and estimated the combined redevelopment density across contiguous properties would be roughly 20 units per acre.

Commissioners and staff discussed pedestrian connections to neighboring shopping centers, opportunities to improve the Main Street frontage with street trees, sidewalks and café seating, and the difficulty posed by steep grade changes between the subject site and the adjacent shopping center to the west. Several commissioners encouraged the applicant to study connections to the neighboring center where grade allows, to avoid isolating new residents from existing retail.

Affordable housing was a recurring topic. Staff said the applicant is considering dedicating a building of units that could exceed the city’s minimum ADU/affordable dwelling-unit percentage and would require a formal modification request under the city’s ordinance framework. Commissioners asked the applicant to clarify whether dedicated affordable units would be integrated in-market-rate buildings or separated; staff noted county-administered programs sometimes disfavor physically separate affordable units and that the applicant would need to justify any modification request.

Other planning topics identified by staff for future application materials included: tree preservation and urban canopy; street-tree soil volumes on private streets and Main Street; shared-parking analysis; an overall transportation-impact study; phased utility and stormwater planning; photometric and lighting plans to limit spillover to nearby residences; and an affordable-dwelling-unit phasing plan that would identify when units would come online relative to market-rate construction.

Staff said the property owner and potential developer will decide whether to file a formal application. If they do, staff anticipates a City Council briefing in early September and then the full review process (technical review, work sessions and public hearings) would follow.","A pre-application concept calls for phased demolition and replacement of commercial buildings with new retail and nearly 300 multifamily units on about 10.5 acres; staff and commissioners discussed traffic access, parking layout, tree preservation, affordable-unit options and required studies if the applicant files a formal rezoning.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6510364,"Planning commission endorses zoning text amendments to ease ADU occupancy rules and reduce special-use permits",2560,292000,2852000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5385790-2d052bf70509ce56a5e4bfca73820ce0&start=292&end=2852","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5385790-2d052bf70509ce56a5e4bfca73820ce0/thumbnail_292000.jpg","/articles/6510364/Fairfax-City/Fairfax-County/Virginia/Planning-commission-endorses-zoning-text-amendments-to-ease-ADU-occupancy-rules-and-reduce-special-use-permits","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6510364-e9dbda826e40d5ff13b3ebabab27ee54/orig.mp4?Expires=1770437990&Signature=YXPaVDGNHi-1FqhQcUURF4G9-Ks3KmzMI8MbJc2T8uA9KZKD-8UTrICK2~JUWN9WbBo0mUmuBf96t679nrQ5gmfGiU8jwn4xK0EblNC7ZS5RvAyK8KosOmtqrsMpVK3XaC8uJOmkZO-~~Qtr73BvC2qrVRUFl68e44VHvGCF68IM3FwtfM-xk58kZOKeEzXpX~PilQutaV-Vg7kDuoJ0VpwayiJu6SqvLrVxCDKXHH7QoHXvf5JY0qz~WlJ~tDCXvbJ0Va2hD4VSh-Xdp2035Z4RMtUJE0D3ZYGGKZpBvARuvzc0kGXzCHHwPyvKnp3iljO0T8OG4lWc5b~4G~gJGw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Fairfax City Planning Commission on Monday recommended that the City Council approve a package of zoning text amendments to the City Code (Chapter 110) that change accessory dwelling unit (ADU) occupancy rules, narrow the scope of several special-use permit categories, and make a range of clarifying edits to zoning definitions and procedures.

The amendments would remove the ordinance language that requires either the main house or the accessory dwelling unit to be occupied by someone age 55 or older or by a person with a disability; keep the existing owner-occupancy requirement for ADUs; correct an outdated reference from “family” to “household” in the ADU overcrowding measure; and adjust how occupancy is measured for purposes of determining overcrowding. Planning staff said the ADU occupancy edit is intended as a relatively minor regulatory change that does not alter physical ADU design standards.

Commissioners were also asked to consider three related groups of special-use permit changes: (1) reclassifying smaller indoor recreation uses (small gyms, day spas, small fitness studios) as personal service uses rather than “indoor recreation” when under a 30,000-square-foot threshold; (2) reclassifying smaller medical care uses as medical offices rather than medical care facilities when under a 10,000-square-foot threshold (to avoid subjecting typical urgent-care and similar small clinics to a special-use public hearing); and (3) splitting “animal care facilities” into two separate defined uses so veterinary clinics (lower intensity) would generally be permitted in more commercial and industrial zones while animal boarding/kennels (higher intensity, dog boarding) would remain a special use in the more intensive commercial zones.

Planning staff presented multiple supporting refinements included in the draft: updates to animal-care use standards carried forward from common special-use conditions (sound mitigation, animal waste control, ventilation for multi-tenant buildings), a requirement that outdoor exercise areas for kenneled animals be 300 feet from the nearest residence and be usable between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., and clarifying edits to restaurant and donation-container language. Staff also said the revisions standardize terms and fix cross-references and public notice timelines to match recent state law changes.

During the public-comment portion of the hearing, George Mason University student Evan Ramey of 5722 Crowley Court told commissioners he supported removing the age and disability occupancy restrictions so younger residents and students could rent ADUs. “I personally really love the idea of being able to rent out an ADU… I really hope that you’ll pass this forward to City Council,” Ramey said.

Commissioners asked staff clarifying questions about several pieces of the package. Commissioner Rice questioned the 30,000-square-foot cut-off for indoor recreation, calling it “still pretty big,” and staff explained the threshold aligns with the city’s existing “large-format retail” cutoff and was selected after reviewing local examples. On medical care, one commissioner described the drafting as potentially circular because defined terms such as “medical office” and “medical care facility” are referenced repeatedly; staff said the intent was to preserve special-use review for larger urgent-care or surgical centers while allowing typical small urgent-care or office-type clinics to proceed without a special-use hearing.

After discussion, a commissioner moved and another seconded that the commission recommend approval of the proposed ordinance amendments to Chapter 110 (Zoning). The planning commission voted unanimously to forward the package to the City Council for public hearing on July 22.

The ordinance as drafted preserves the owner-occupancy requirement for ADUs, removes the age/disability occupancy condition, sets the indoor recreation threshold at 30,000 square feet and the medical-care threshold at 10,000 square feet, and separates veterinary clinics from animal boarding in the use table and use interpretations. Staff said other routine fixes and clarifications are included in the packet: simplified restaurant use language, a consistent definition for donation drop-off containers, corrections to tree-permit references, and updates to public-notice timelines to reflect recent state legislation.

City Council will hold its public hearing on the amendments at the July 22 meeting. Planning staff told the commission the ADU work is part of a broader staff review; staff expects a community meeting in the fall to consider detached ADUs and other ADU topics that are outside the limited occupancy change approved tonight.","The Fairfax City Planning Commission unanimously recommended city council approve a package of zoning text amendments aimed at removing age/disability occupancy limits for accessory dwelling units, setting size thresholds that remove some businesses from special-use permit requirements, and separating veterinary and boarding uses.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Planning staff previews 2025 Factbook: population growth, housing surge and shifting housing mix

Developer briefs commission on concept for mixed-use redevelopment at Fairfax Square Professional Center

Planning commission endorses zoning text amendments to ease ADU occupancy rules and reduce special-use permits