Silver Line will be a boon to N.Va. economy, leaders hope
Silver Line will be a boon to N.Va. economy, leaders hope
http://www.insidenova.com/news/arlington/silver-line-will-be-a-boon-to-n-va-economy/article_66c613f8-1026-11e4-8c01-001a4bcf887a.html
Metrorail’s Silver Line will boost Northern Virginia’s economy, real estate market, vitality and status, local business and political leaders say.
“I think it gives us a little more notoriety,” said Gerald Gordon, president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority. “You can’t be a major urban area without rail to the [international] airport and all the major markets, like Tysons.”
The Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project’s first phase will inaugurate Silver Line service July 26 along 11.4 miles of track between Falls Church and Reston; a second phase, extending the line 11.7 miles to Route 772 in Loudoun County, is slated to begin service in 2018.
The new rail line has prompted a flurry of redevelopment proposals and was the nucleus around which the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors based the new Tysons Corner comprehensive plan, approved four years ago.
By allowing mixed-use developments of unlimited density within a quarter-mile of four new Metrorail stations there, supervisors hope to sextuple Tysons’ population, double its jobs and encourage people to live, work and play in what now is mostly a commercial area.
‘A Massive Change’
Fairfax County officials have approved several major Tysons redevelopment projects, including a 20-story office tower at 7900 Tysons One Place that overlooks Tysons Corner Station. Intelsat and Deloitte occupy the building, which is owned by Macerich.
Intelsat, a commercial-satellite services provider with offices in the glass tower’s 12th through 20th floors, recently relocated from its former offices in Northwest Washington, D.C.
The change has prompted both elation and anxiety from employees, said spokesman Dianne VanBeber.
Intelsat’s former building, located near the Van Ness Station on Metrorail’s Red Line, was overly large and sprawling, she said.
“We needed a new space where we could collaborate more effectively,” VanBeber said.
The old building had few retail and restaurant options nearby, but Tysons has a bewildering array, she said.
“From a lifestyle standpoint, this was such a massive change,” VanBeber said. “Everyone’s in shock a little bit.”
Many employees will use Metrorail to reach the Tysons building, VanBeber said. Until the Silver Line begins service, the company will continue running a shuttle bus to and from the Orange Line’s West Falls Church Station in south McLean, she said.
Some employees live in suburban Maryland along Interstate 270, and their commutes have worsened. Company leaders encourage employees who drive to telecommute and use flex-time scheduling to avoid peak traffic times, VanBeber said.
Bus Routes, Parking Pose Challenges
The Vienna Town Council recently approved installation of a new stretch of sidewalk along Maple Avenue, E., to provide a safer way for pedestrians to reach Tysons.
Vienna officials will monitor traffic-enforcement issues stemming from increased Tysons traffic and whether commuters are parking their cars on Vienna’s streets to take the Silver Line.
Metrorail’s Vienna Station on the Orange Line is located just southwest of the town’s border and Vienna officials long ago restricted parking on nearby streets to discourage commuters from leaving vehicles there, said Vienna Mayor Laurie DiRocco.
Parking also could become contentious in Tysons, which has only one 711-space temporary lot available for commuters at McLean Station.
Planners did not allow for parking around Tysons’ stations because they hoped to force Silver Line users to walk, bike or ride buses to the stations, said Michael Caplin, executive director of the Tysons Partnership.
Shopping-center owners are taking a wait-and-see approach regarding parking issues and may install gate arms to keep commuters’ vehicles from occupying spaces all day, he said.
Some property owners may hang plastic chains across their parking lots’ entrances until 10 a.m., while others have alerted towing companies about the possible need to remove vehicles, Caplin said.
New bus routes also are important ways of ferrying Silver Line passengers to Metrorail stations. Some Northeast Vienna residents, however, have been vexed by the addition of Fairfax Connector Route 432 through their neighborhoods.
“Whenever there’s change, as with Metro coming in, there’s nervousness about it,” DiRocco said. “There’s good and bad.”
Changes Coming for Housing, Businesses
Realtor Casey Margenau of Casey Margenau Fine Homes said the Silver Line generally will be good for the local real estate market, but those hoping to make a killing by flipping properties may have missed the boat.
“I believe that [the Silver Line’s value] is baked into prices already,” he said. “People already anticipate its being open. Houses near Metro already have had their appreciation.”
New housing in Tysons largely will be condominiums, which will appeal to first-time homebuyers and older people looking to downsize, Margenau said.
“Both groups are looking for homes that are walkable,” he said. “They want higher-quality, smaller lots that need a smaller amount of care.”
Developers in Tysons have been “very patient” in bringing housing inventory online and will continue that practice so as not to flood the market, he said.
Casey Samson of Samson Properties said proximity to Silver Line stations might boost prices by 2 to 3 percent, but other factors count for more.
“Buyers are looking for space, features, traffic flow, functionality, upgrades and schools,” he said. “Metro/transportation is about sixth or seventh on the list. The properties with the best schools are always the winners. They are easy to sell at a premium price.”
Commercial real estate also will be affected by the Silver Line, and Intelsat’s move to Tysons bodes well, Gordon said.
The Economic Development Authority’s mission is to fill the Fairfax’s office space, Gordon said. The county’s office vacancy rate is “very high” at around 18 percent, but it’s only 15 or 16 percent in Tysons Corner – because, in part, because the space is new and hasn’t had time to be filled, he said.
Retail offerings also will see changes. Automobile dealerships near Tysons Metrorail stations likely will disappear in favor of higher-density uses, but the fate of small shopping centers along Route 7 is uncertain, he said.
“As the number of residences grows, we will see relevant shopping, such as grocery stores,” Gordon said. “We’ll see a lot more small businesses. Whether they’ll drive out those small malls is something we’ll have to wait and see. The market will create demand for what it needs.”
The first stations on the Silver Line are slated to open to the public on July 26. (Graphic by Elisa Hernandez/Northern Virginia Media Services)
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