In an unexpected development, small businesses in the downtown section of the City of Falls Church, anticipating the disruption of the planned major City Center redevelopment effort in the near future, are looking in significant numbers to a proposed new mixed use project at 400 S. Maple Street as a way to stay in business near their existing customer base.
A number of these businesses have been in talks with the Atlantic Realty developers of the proposed project, the News-Press has learned, in hopes that, if the project is approved to go ahead, they can "dodge the bullet" of downtown redevelopment and prosper in a new and inviting nearby environment.
With this in mind, the S. Maple five-story mixed use project gained the unanimous endorsement of the board of directors of the Falls Church Economic Development Authority Tuesday, prior to the plan coming before the Falls Church City Council seeking preliminary approval this Monday.
Substantial revisions to the project's original design first drew praise from the Falls Church Planning Commission last month, and even more changes plus the evidence of considerable interest from existing City businesses has made the project even more attractive, the EDA board surmised.
Through revisions, the project's commercial component has grown from 80,000 to over 100,000 square feet, with almost all of it unofficially accounted for, mostly by existing City businesses.
Atlantic Realty project manager Jonathan Myers and consultant Chuck Schuyler explained the exciting if unanticipated interest in the site from local Falls Church businesses that currently stand in the pathway of the planned major City Center redevelopment. "There has been a lot of concern by the City about what to do with these long-standing and valued businesses when the City Center project construction gets underway. Well, now we're seeing them orient toward us to relocate while still remaining in the City," Myers said.
An advantage to these businesses, he noted, is that they will remain near their existing customer base while having the opportunity to buy, rather than simply lease, their space. Moreover, they will be relocating into brand new state of the art facilities.
Also, an existing City business is negotiating to fill all the 80,000 square feet of office space in the project.
The developers' plans to dedicate an open plaza featuring public art that can be used for outdoor gatherings and small concerts, as well as to provide 3,000 square feet for lease at a deeply discounted cost to local arts groups, will attract additional traffic to the retailers at the site, as well.
So will an upscale restaurant that will occupy one end of the area around the open plaza. Atlantic is already in negotiations with a potential occupant that "is guaranteed to please everyone in the community with its quality and appeal," Myers said.
Noting that a petition against the project has been circulated by a City resident, Myers said it does not reference the latest modifications to the original plan. "We understand the concerns that neighbors to our proposal may have," he said, "but are confident that as we go forward, our dedication to improving our product will result in something that they will find surprisingly attractive and compatible with the surrounding area."
In addition to the retail and office space, the project is designed to include 230 residential condominiums on four floors above the retail.
Monday's Council meeting will include a public hearing.