A big change for MetroWest… fewer homes.

UPDATE 9/2011: Pulte Homes has finally set up their sales office for MetroWest off of Lee Highway (Route 29) where they are building front load and rear load garage townhomes starting in the low $525,000 range. Many are already sold as of today (9/26). This is an excellent walk-to-Vienna-Metro location!

Land Development next to Vienna Metro Station

Original Post: That means taking down trees, and then grade the land… so there wasn’t any visible sewer or road work from my vantage point at the Vienna Metro. I will try and keep this post updated when I know more. Thanks!

(Original Post)

Town of Vienna officials, Vienna and Fairfax youth sports organizations, and residents have expressed their concerns for years over the impact that MetroWest, a mixed-use development project, will have on the lifestyle of the surrounding communities due to the high number of new residents seeking services such as playing-time on athletic fields.

MetroWest will be located on 55 acres located just south of the Vienna – Fairfax – GMU Metro Rail Station. This project is part of a Smart Growth or Green initiative with a more urban design concept to promote use of public transit with a stated goal of reducing the number of car “trips” per day.

But just recently, on July 13th, 2009, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved a plan to allow the developers to substitute 700,000 square feet of residential space with an equal amount of office space.

And the big adjustment…

What caught my eye was the sharp reduction in housing units. According to the developer’s web site (circa 2004), there were 2,248 residential units planned and approved, but this change has reduced that number to 1,174 residential housing units. Since the plan was created in the midpoint of the decade there has been a major correction in the housing market.