Planning Commission reviews revised Quinn mixed‑use senior living plan; sanitary sewer, parking and streetscape remain outstanding

Falls Church City Planning Commission members spent more than two hours on Feb. 5 reviewing revisions to the Quinn family’s proposed 10‑story mixed‑use redevelopment at South Washington Street, a project that would add senior living, medical office and retail space and a new publicly accessible plaza.

The applicant and staff described refinements to the building’s massing and materials, a reconfigured plaza and retail frontage on South Maple Avenue, additional balconies and a relocated loading area and lobby. Laura Arsenault, the city case planner, summarized staff’s outstanding review items, and Andrew Painter, zoning counsel for the applicant, said the team had “refined the architecture” in response to the commission’s November comments.

Why it matters: The project is one of the largest redevelopment proposals in the city center and includes 233 units of human care and continuing care, about 282,000 square feet of building area, roughly 307 parking spaces in a partially underground garage, and commitments for medical office, retail, restaurant space, and a permanent space for the Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation. Commissioners said the plan’s final details — especially sewer capacity, the parking‑management approach and pedestrian safety at Maple Avenue crossings — will determine whether the project fits the city center’s small‑area plan and can move to a final vote.

What staff and the applicant told the commission - Arsenault told the commission the application proposes a ten‑story senior living and mixed‑use building on a combined…