The inclusion of the Rose Hill Plaza development plan

 

FRANCONIA, VA — The Fairfax County Planning Commission voted unanimously last week to recommend that county leaders adopt the commission’s “work program,” a plan that includes the proposed redevelopment of the Rose Hill Plaza shopping center.

The inclusion of the Rose Hill Plaza development plan in the work program, approved on March 29 by the planning commission, came with a condition: the proposal will remain a "deferred item" until the owner of the shopping center, Combined Properties Inc., conducts “further community outreach.”

Combined Properties’ proposal to redevelop the shopping center, at the corner of Franconia Road and Rose Hill Drive, has proved controversial in Rose Hill and neighboring communities. Many residents worry they will lose the convenience of walking or taking a short drive to neighborhood shops if the county allows the redevelopment of the Rose Hill Plaza shopping center.

Others welcome the planned addition of up to 400 apartment units as part of the mixed-use redevelopment.

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READ ALSO: Franconia Residents Protest Redevelopment Of Rose Hill Shopping Center

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Combined Properties, which owns several strip malls in Fairfax and Arlington counties, contends now is the perfect time to begin working on getting approval from the county for redeveloping the shopping center.

The existing leases for the stores and businesses at the shopping center are scheduled to lapse in 2027, “which has been strategically timed with the desired start date for construction of the proposed development for the summer 2027,” according to Combined Properties’ statement of justification for the redevelopment.

On April 11, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is expected to vote on the planning commission’s work program and possibly a separate motion about the Rose Hill Plaza proposal.

The planning commission’s work program lays out review schedules and amendments to Fairfax County’s Comprehensive Plan, which guides development in the county. In the work program, priority is given to proposals that “advance major policy objectives” and “address emerging community concerns,” according to the county.

Under its proposed redevelopment plan, Combined Properties said the new mixed-use development would include a grocery store and that a McDonald’s restaurant would remain at the site.

The shopping center currently has about 25 retailers, including a Safeway, Walgreens, fitness center, barber shop, dry cleaners, dentist and several restaurants. Members of the community are concerned that many of these small businesses that they use several times a week will be forced out if Fairfax County approves the redevelopment of the shopping center.

"So far, our voices have been heard loud and clear in opposition of the nomination. The Planning
Commission has recommended that it be placed in deferral," the Rose Hill Coalition, a group formed last fall in opposition to Combined Properties' redevelopment proposal, said in a March 31 update. "We ask the Board of Supervisors to put a full stop on this nomination."

The Fairfax Board of Supervisors will make the final decision on whether to allow a nomination to move forward through each stage of the planning review process. Once a proposal is accepted into the work program after a deferral ends, the supervisor for the district where the development will take place "solely determines the review process and when to include further public input," according to the coalition.

The Rose Hill Coalition is encouraging residents to email Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk and other members of the Board of Supervisors and ask them to reject the proposal submitted by Combined Properties.

Opponents of Combined Properties' proposal also have started an online petition urging Fairfax County leaders to stop the plan. The petition currently has more than 1,200 signatures. "The County Board of Supervisors may act unilaterally to accept this proposal from Combined Properties, especially without strong public opposition," the online petition reads.

The petition's authors want Fairfax County leaders to require Combined Properties "to go back to the drawing board to create something that will fit our community."