DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSAL
The Hill, a Davies Family LLC, and Paradigm Companies submitted a proposal to the City of Fairfax in early December 2024 to build 276 apartments and 423 parking spaces in two apartment buildings on the 2.69 acre lot at 4131 Chain Bridge Road in the City of Fairfax.
Building A
Building A is a five-story building facing Chain Bridge Road consisting of 114 units with 6,319 square feet of retail and approximately 4,188 square feet of office on the ground floor level fronting on Chain Bridge Road. This building has separate entrances for retail, office (co-work) and residential units. In response to members of the Board of Architectural Review and the Planning Commission noting the dominating “retail” appearance of the ground floor of the western side (Chain Bridge Road) of Building A and the harsh "dark gray, industrial” appearance of the SW corner of that building, Paradigm revised the appearance of this part of the structure. This drawing from the April 2025 submission shows the SW corner of the Building A with modifications to lighten and soften its appearance.
Building B
Building B is a four-story building facing University Drive that steps up to five stories at a distance of 70 feet from the front of the property. Building B consists of 162 units, a courtyard with a pool area and amenities, and a residential lobby and leasing office in the SE corner fronting on University Drive.
The two apartment buildings combined will have 28 studio apartments, 160 one-bedroom apartments, and 88 two-bedroom apartments. 17 of the apartments will be designated Affordable Dwelling Units to reach the City-mandated target of 6%.
The complex will have 423 parking spaces in below-grade parking (400 spaces for residents, 16 dedicated parking spaces for retail, and 7 spaces for office patrons).
The complex will have 102.6 dwelling units per acre. When compared to other recent or proposed developments, it is matched only by the Christopher proposal at 102 dwelling units per acres, and has over twice the density of City Center West, 44.3; Capstone Collegiate, 44.7; Fairfield at Gateway, 48.4; and Scout at the Circle, 46.
The key access feature for Building A and B is the Private Road (also called the Internal Drive Way, the Access Drive, or the Private Drive) on the northern side of the property. The Private Road will be Right-In and Right-Out for vehicles, with a small curb feature in the roadway to discourage left turns. There will be a five foot wide sidewalk along its southern edge.
Access to the underground garage is through the 24’ wide garage door entering from the north side of Building B from the Private Road. All traffic to the parking garage has to use that one entrance and ramp.
Paradigm altered earlier plans by creating additional short-term parking on the level of the private road. Sheet 33B of the GDP shows a total of nine above-ground short-term parking spaces to accommodate delivery and pickup vehicles within walking distance of the lobbies. These spaces are a welcome addition and will will help prevent delivery and pickup vehicles from stopping on Chain Bridge Road or University Drive. The Developer states that they will mark designations of guest, commercial and short term parking spaces on the property to identify these parking slots.
The proposed lot coverage is approximately 86% (52% building coverage). At the City Council work session on 28 Jan 25, Paradigm announced they had upgraded their initial tree canopy coverage from 5.64% of the property to 10% by following recommendations from the City's Urban Forester to increase the soil volume of the planters for the proposed tree plantings. This means they will now reach the zoning requirement of 10% tree canopy.
Applicant is proposing a Greenway or public pedestrian alley to run north south and through the center of the property in accord with the Small Area Plan. The proposed Greenway is 43 feet in width, with a walking path that is 15 feet wide. It will have a mix of plantings on both sides of the walkway and will feature an art object of some type at one point. The Greenway is not a "road" and the decision was made with input from the City Fire Marshal, according to Paradigm's comments during the City Council work session on 28 Jan 25, that it will not be used by City emergency vehicles, unlike previously discussed. The Greenway will eventually connect to properties to the north and south when those parcels are developed.
The proposal envisions two rooms (one in Building A, and one in Building B near the Greenway, both accessed by the Private Road) to collect building trash prior to removal. Trash will be stored in dumpsters in the separate rooms south of the loading areas. Paradigm informed the City Council work session on 28 Jan 25 that dumpsters would not be moved via the Greenway but rather inside the buildings directly from the storage rooms to the loading area. They also informed the City Council work session that trash would be removed by contract trash trucks on a daily basis, at an optimal time for noise control. This mitigates the effects of collected trash on building residents and neighbors.
The two buildings will be predominately brick with cementitious panels, and may also include stone, and/or metal paneling. Utilities on top of the buildings will be blocked from viewing by parapets around the outside edge of the buildings.
The Applicant proposes to install Level 2 Electric Vehicle Charging Stations in the parking garage to accommodate a minimum of twenty (20) designated electric vehicle parking spaces.
The Developer states that "all existing overhead utilities along the Chain Bridge Road frontage of the Application Property will be either removed or relocated underground." This will markedly improve the appearance of the property along Chain Bridge Road.
Paradigm's current proposal incorporates numerous improvements over earlier proposals, responding positively to suggestions by the public, City Staff, the Board of Architectural Review, the Planning Commission, and City Council. The current Paradigm proposal has 22% fewer apartments (276 vice 355); a more traditional appearance in its choice of windows, siding materials, and colors; and lower overall height. Building A and Building B are set back further from the property boundaries compared to earlier proposals, and landscaping and design of the Greenway and courtyards have been markedly improved. The mansard roof on Building B has been upgraded to a standing metal seam design from its original asphalt shingle design. The southern walls of the buildings are now brick with windows instead of a windowless wall with a large mural. Short-term parking spaces have been added to the private road, and better-situated loading docks and handling areas for trash removal have been added.
