For more than 15 years, the timeframe for implementing certain local governmental approvals for residential and commercial development – including special exceptions, special use permits, conditional use permits, use permits, and Arlington 4.1 site plans – has been statutorily extended by the General Assembly.

Initially introduced in 2009 in response to the subprime mortgage housing crisis (under Va. Code Ann. § 15.2-2209.1) and adjusted in 2020 to address the COVID-19 pandemic (under Va. Code Ann. § 15.2-2209.1:1), the legislature’s semi-annual actions have effectively extended the period of validity for the above-listed local government approvals through July 1, 2025.

The legislature during this year’s General Assembly session did not, however, provide a further extension. This means that unless otherwise provided for by the locality, the period of validity for certain outstanding zoning approvals (meaning construction has not yet commenced or the use has not yet been lawfully established) may automatically terminate by operation of the law on July 1, 2025.

Of note, timeline extension requests for outstanding Fairfax County projects should be submitted to the Department of Planning and Development prior to June 30, 2025. Requests for outstanding projects in Arlington County will be heard by the County Board at the Board’s June 14, 2025 meeting.  Requests for the City of Alexandria may not be based upon the state code provisions.

Applicants/developers with outstanding projects are advised to contact one of our land use attorneys or planners to assist in understanding the status of your approval(s) and process for obtaining such an extension.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors (the “Board”) continues to advance Plan Forward, a multi-year initiative to comprehensively update the Countywide Policy Plan, which serves as the foundation for land use, development, and long-term planning decisions. Although the Policy Plan has been amended periodically, it has not undergone a comprehensive review since 1990. Recognizing the need for an extensive update, the Board authorized a Comprehensive Plan amendment on December 6, 2022, directing planning staff to modernize the Policy Plan and align it with the Countywide Strategic Plan, One Fairfax Policy, and other key initiatives. 

Goals of Plan Forward: 

• Review, update, and streamline existing Policy Plan elements. 

• Introduce new policies where necessary. 

• Ensure alignment with the County’s broader goals. 

Current Status of Plan Forward 

The County is now well into the public engagement phase of the process. Over the past year, planning staff have held multiple stakeholder meetings and solicited public input to refine key elements of the plan. The focus remains on Land Use, Environment, and Transportation policies, with ongoing discussions about incorporating policies related to Equity and Community Health. Public engagement will continue throughout the year, offering additional opportunities for stakeholder input. Clients should be aware that these changes may influence future land use policies, zoning regulations, and development standards across Fairfax County. 

How to Stay Involved: 

Plan Forward is actively undergoing review and refinement, making stakeholder participation essential. Consider the following ways to participate: 

• Provide input via survey: Plan Forward Survey (HERE) 

• Attend small-group meetings on specific policy topics 

• Submit feedback or questions to planning staff at PlanForwardFFX@PublicInput.com 

Why This Matters: 

Plan Forward represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape policies that will guide future development and redevelopment in Fairfax County. Clients should stay engaged to ensure their interests are considered in the updated Comprehensive Plan. 

This article was written by Zachary M. Fountain, a Planner with the Land Use & Zoning practice group in the Arlington office.  Please contact Lynne Strobel, Zachary Fountain or any of our attorneys or planners in our Arlington practice group for further information. 

 

On January 15, 2025, the Leesburg Town Council approved major updates to the Crescent District Master Plan (the “Plan”) maintaining the overall vision of the Plan while incorporating adjustments meant to account for the market realities of the post-COVID era and current neighborhood interests and needs.   

Updates focus on open space, walkability, and revitalizing mixed use development. 

The updated Plan centers on two pedestrian-oriented “activity centers” connected by a revitalized commercial corridor that promotes walkability and open space.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crescent District Organizational Framework (Crescent District Master Plan, January 14, 2025, pg. 69) 

Citing a struggling retail environment post-pandemic, lack of housing throughout the County, and feedback from stakeholders and neighbors highlighting the desire for increased walkability, the Plan adopts a medium density approach incorporating a balance of residential developments and commercial and retail services centered around open space features.  

The Plan implements this vision by designating five place types.  

The Activity Center Place Type incorporates a mixed-use plan including multi-family residential, employment and office space, retail, and grocery and medical facilities. Grounding these features is intentional open space to facilitate walkability and increased social connections throughout the Centers.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crescent District Place Types (Crescent District Master Plan, January 14, 2025, pg. 74) 

The Commercial Corridor Place Types incorporate commercial activity of the Activity Centers, supporting uses including office and employment, retail, and school and community facilities, while transitioning to the Mixed-Residential Place Type, where residential multifamily developments take priority, bordered by natural barriers like streams and the W&OD Trail. Parks & Open Space are integrated throughout, connecting the Crescent District with green space and access to the W&OD.  

Town Zoning Ordinance now out-of-step with Master Plan? 

The updated Master Plan also shrinks the overall size of the area subject to the Master Plan.  Consequently, the area zoned to the Crescent Design District under the Town of Leesburg Zoning Ordinance (the “Zoning Ordinance”) now exceeds the Master Plan area. Several areas of the zoning map now exist independently of the Plan map: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Town Zoning Map, Crescent Design District shown in diagonal hatching. 

The Zoning Ordinance established the Crescent Design District in 2013 with the goal of implementing the vision of the Master Plan, which could result in a proposal to amend the text of the Zoning Ordinance in the coming months to reconcile the Master Plan and the Zoning Ordinance. 

Please contact the Loudoun Office of Walsh Colucci if you have any questions about properties located in the Crescent District.

This article was written by Anna Ritter, an Associate with the Land Use & Zoning practice group out of the Loudoun Office.

 

At Walsh Colucci, the Eminent Domain Practice Group is dedicated to safeguarding the rights of property owners and businesses impacted by public projects throughout Virginia. Our team combines extensive experience with a client-focused approach to ensure those facing condemnation receive the protection and compensation they deserve. 

Expert Advocacy at Every Stage 

We assist clients at all stages of the eminent domain process, ensuring their rights are protected and their interests are effectively represented: 

• Design Phase: Our team reviews project plans to identify potential impacts and negotiates plan changes when appropriate, minimizing disruption to clients’ properties and businesses. 

• Appraisal Phase: We engage with the condemning authority’s appraisers to ensure our clients’ concerns about project impacts are properly evaluated and factored into compensation offers. 

• Negotiation Phase: Our attorneys review the condemning authority’s offer, provide clear advice on its fairness, and assist clients in preparing counteroffers that reflect the true value of their property. 

• Litigation Phase: When a fair resolution cannot be reached through negotiation, we vigorously advocate for our clients in court, ensuring their Constitutional right to just compensation is fulfilled through a settlement or court award. 

A Comprehensive Approach 

When you retain Walsh Colucci, you gain access to a multidisciplinary team with expertise not only in condemnation cases but also in zoning, transactional, tax, and estate planning matters. This holistic approach ensures that all aspects of your case — from lost profits to tax implications — are handled with precision and care.  

Proven Experience Across Complex Cases 

Our team has successfully represented a diverse range of clients, from Fortune 500 companies to families whose homes are threatened by eminent domain. Our extensive experience includes litigating regulatory taking cases, inverse condemnation actions, and disputes involving power transmission lines before the Virginia State Corporation Commission and natural gas transmission lines before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. This broad expertise positions us as a trusted advocate for property owners and businesses navigating the complexities of eminent domain. 

Client-Focused Results 

At Walsh Colucci, our objective is to handle eminent domain matters efficiently and effectively, ensuring our clients achieve the best possible outcomes. We pride ourselves on providing clear communication, strategic guidance, and dedicated advocacy at every step of the process. 

If you are facing an eminent domain issue, contact us today for a free initial consultation. Let our experienced team help protect your rights and ensure you receive the compensation you deserve. 

 

Walsh Colucci proudly announces that Bryan Guidash, Managing Shareholder of the firm’s Prince William office, has been named the 2025 President of the HomeAid National Capital Region Board of Directors. Bryan’s journey with HomeAid began with a profound experience delivering essentials to a “tent city” in Prince William County, an event that sparked his commitment to community service. “I realized that HomeAid was something I should be a part of,” Bryan shared. “Taking part in something that had such immediate and clear results confirmed I had found the right way to give back.”

Since joining the Board, Bryan has served as Secretary in 2023, Vice President in 2024, and now steps into his role as President. Reflecting on his leadership vision, Bryan said, “My predecessors have set an incredible example. I hope to build on their work by increasing Board efficiency and enhancing volunteer opportunities. Expanding committee participation and involving more leaders from the Builder community will be a priority as we grow HomeAid’s impact.”

Bryan will be joined on the 2025 Executive Board by Vice President and President-Elect John Darvish (John Darvish Construction), Secretary Worth Jenkins (DRB Homes), Treasurer Rick Cole (The Long Companies), At-Large Member Alicia Skoug (Drees Homes), and Immediate Past President Tom Twomey (Stanley Martin Homes).

Congratulations to Bryan on this well-deserved leadership role! We look forward to seeing the positive impact he will bring to HomeAid and the communities it serves.

On October 8, 2024, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved VHC Health’s special exception application to redevelop an approximately 2.4-acre retail site located at the intersection or Arlington Boulevard and Graham Road.   

 

As approved, the proposal will demolish an existing, aging retail building known as the Graham Center in order to construct a new 24,250 square foot, one-story medical complex. The new medical complex will be a state-of-the-art facility, integrating sustainable design principles to support and advance community health and wellness. 

 

The primary focus of the redevelopment will be an innovative healthcare facility that combines emergency department services with urgent care services all in one location. Serving to relieve high emergency department utilization on the nearby Virginia Hospital Center main hospital campus, this combined use will provide nearby neighborhoods with an important and currently unavailable care option.  

 

The combined emergency/urgent care component will comprise approximately 14,740 square feet of the new building, while the remainder 9,510 square feet will support a variety of medical services, such as primary care, specialty services, and/or diagnostic imaging services.  

 

In addition to providing a new medical care option to the surrounding community, the approved development offers significant pedestrian safety and accessibility improvements, including a replacement of the existing Arlington Boulevard service drive with 10-foot-wide shared-use paths along both Graham Road and Arlington Boulevard.  These improvements are in direct response to growing safety concerns associated with several fatal pedestrian crashes that have occurred at the Graham Road/Arlington Boulevard intersection over recent years.   

 

In collaboration with the Providence District Supervisor’s Office, the Virginia Department of Transportation, and the County’s Department of Planning and Development, VHC Health is committed to a number of transportation improvements. These include widening and extending the existing median on Graham Road, integrating a new pedestrian refuge at the Graham Road/Arlington Boulevard crossing, creating a new designated left turn lane from Graham Road into the site, and installing a number of traffic controls that will restrict left turning movements from various points along Graham Road. 

 

The approved redevelopment will also be marked by significantly more green spaces, landscaping, and native plantings all around the site. VHC Health will also install new stormwater controls and implement best management practices on the site, where none exist today. 

 

Once constructed, this hybrid medical care model that combines both emergency care and urgent care will be the first of its kind in the state of Virginia.  To bring this innovative healthcare option to Fairfax County, VHC Health has partnered with Intuitive Health, who pioneered the first combined emergency/urgent care facility in Dallas, Texas in 2008. Intuitive Health will operate this new facility as VHC Health’s first off-campus outpatient emergency service department.  

 

Kathryn Taylor successfully secured the approval for this first-of-its-kind project on behalf of VHC Health during the special exception process.

 

 

 

At its November 16th meeting, the Arlington County Board approved the following two initiatives to advance the County Manager’s Commercial Market Resiliency Initiative (CMRI) related to adaptive reuse of obsolete office buildings:  

 

Adaptive Reuse ACZO Amendments: The County Board adopted a text amendment to the Arlington County Zoning Ordinance (ACZO) that creates a streamlined Administrative Regulation 4.1 Site Plan amendment process for “Adaptive Reuse Amendments” to convert obsolete commercial buildings to alternative uses.  

 

The new process requires County Board approval and establishes criteria to qualify for the streamlined process including, but not limited to, a requirement that the existing building be at least 50 percent office, more than 50 percent of the office use would be converted, and that all prior 4.1 Site Plan conditions were previously satisfied. 

 

The new process cannot be utilized for increases in roof height (except for new rooftop amenity spaces), increased gross floor area with additions greater than two stories above the finished grade, vacation or amendments to existing public easements, and reductions in prior 4.1 Site Plan commitments. Conversions utilizing the new process would be exempt from having to provide the base affordable housing requirement.  

 

Adaptive Reuse Policy: The County Board adopted a new policy document, The County Board Policy on the Transformation of Commercial Office Buildings in Arlington, which is intended to provide guidance on tools to reduce, replace, and/or reposition obsolete office supply.  The draft policy sets forth broad goals pertaining to: (1) adaptive reuse of obsolete office buildings; (2) repositioning of existing office buildings; and (3) redevelopment. The draft policy characterizes proposals which reduce or reposition obsolete office supply as a “public priority” that should be incentivized in County regulations, including through the awarding of Bonus Density for 4.1 Site Plan projects.  

 

Adoption of these latest initiatives positions Arlington as a leader in redressing commercial office vacancy rates. They continue the trend of CRMIs first authorized in April 2022, which seek to respond to changing economic conditions in the face of increased office vacancy and decreased commercial property tax revenue. 

 

The staff report for the two initiatives may be found HERE.

 

The adopted adaptive reuse policy may be found HERE.

 

This article was prepared by Andrew Painter of the Land Use & Zoning practice group of Walsh Colucci.

  

At its September 14^th meeting, the Arlington County Board authorized the Request to Advertise (“RTA”) certain initiatives to advance the County Manager’s Commercial Market Resiliency Initiative (“CMRI”), which seeks to enable the County to better respond to changing economic conditions and consumer trends in the face of increased office vacancy and decreased commercial property tax revenue.

CMRI was authorized by the County Board in April 2022. The first round of CMRIs included the establishment of new commercial uses and a minor restructuring of the Arlington County Zoning Ordinance (“ACZO”). The second round of CMRI focusses on opportunities to alleviate regulatory hurdles that could impede market solutions to commercial resiliency.

The most recently advertised initiatives include the following:

• Nonconforming Buildings and Structures: This amendment would add flexibility for owners of nonconforming townhouses and multifamily buildings in the RA and R2-7 zoning districts to make interior structural alterations and limited additions including window wells for basement egress, areaways, exterior stairs, ramps, and decks. This RTA is scheduled to be heard by the County Board no earlier than October 19, 2024. The staff report may be found HERE.
• Certain Increased Crystal City Building Heights: This amendment would refine methods for establishing a 35-foot building height maximum that accommodates a  three-story form of development in a discrete area along the western edge of the Crystal City Coordinated Redevelopment District. This RTA is scheduled to be heard by the County Board no earlier than October 19, 2024. This staff report may be found HERE.
• Adaptive Reuse of Obsolete Commercial Buildings: The amendment would update the review standards and entitlement process for the adaptive reuse of obsolete commercial buildings. The intent is to facilitate a more rapid recovery of fiscal and placemaking conditions that contained the continued presence of obsolete and vacant office buildings.  The County has drafted a new policy document, The County Board Policy on the Transformation of Commercial Office Buildings in Arlington, to provide guidance on tools to reduce, replace, and/or reposition obsolete office supply.  The Policy also contains related measures for these obsolete office buildings for the hospitality industry such as hotel rooms.  This RTA is scheduled to be heard by the County Board no earlier than November 16, 2024. This staff report may be found HERE. The draft policy and draft Zoning Ordinance amendment, released October 1^st, may be found HERE.

Additional information on CMRI may be found HERE.

On October 23rd, BISNOW will be hosting the Future of Loudoun County: Exploring Development and Expansion Opportunities speaker panel. Firm Associate, Erin Swisshelm, will moderate a discussion entitled “Building Loudoun: Mixed-Use Projects and Residential Expansion,” featuring prominent voices from the development community.

At the panel, you’ll learn:

• How mixed-use and residential developments in Loudoun County are evolving to meet the needs of its growing and diverse population.
• What strategies developers are using to balance the demand for affordable housing with the increase in residential projects.
• How Loudoun County is investing in transportation and tech infrastructure to support future growth.
• How the county’s strategic location, including Washington-Dulles International Airport, is being leveraged to attract and support businesses.
• What challenges developers face with local regulations and zoning policies, and how these impact data center expansions and other projects in the county.

You may register for the event HERE.