This essay is part of a series in which we’ve asked Alexandrians to envision our region in 2050.
Learn more about the series and read more essays on the Alexandria 2050 project page here.
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Supervisor Dan Storck, Mount Vernon
If the past is prologue to the future, then vibrant times will continue for many decades to come! Just looking at how much has changed since 1990 from Old Town to the Eisenhower Valley and Huntington to the Richmond Highway Corridor, it is very exciting to think about the Alexandria area in 2050.
I represent the southern portion of Alexandria, the Mount Vernon District (MVD) of Fairfax County, where we have and will continue to invest and focus on the southeastern portion of Fairfax County. Or as Abraham Lincoln said, “The best way to predict your future is to create it.”
The Mount Vernon area has spent its past 30 years revitalizing from mostly mid-20th Century development to becoming 21st century communities of natural and historical areas, suburban neighborhoods, and vibrant, mixed use, walkable urban communities. The transformation of Huntington and Kings Crossing are prime examples of these future urban communities. By mixing the coming Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and Metro, residential and commercial areas with a new street grid that encourages walking, biking and transit, with parks and trails, the vision of how we live, learn, work and play is changing.
My commitment to creating our future, includes ensuring that “no one is left behind.” Equitable development is a cornerstone of this vision, through broad-based engagement, protecting neighborhoods when possible and increasing affordable and workforce housing to ensure that everyone who lives here now can continue to do so. This applies to our many businesses as well. Additionally, we are aggressively working to attract new employers, developers and businesses who will be critical to the success of this redevelopment. My Team MVD, our Strategic Economic Development Taskforce, the Southeast Fairfax Development Corporation (SFDC), the County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA) and our Mount Vernon-Lee Chamber are leading these efforts.
With some of the most storied historic and cultural sites in the region, the new must complement and integrate with the old so as to enhance our Mount Vernon identity. Protecting our history and heritage are fundamental foundations in all our visioning, planning and development. For example, Original Mount Vernon High School (OMVHS), a 1930’s built high school landmark, is in the beginning of a $100 million renovation creating a human development center along Richmond Highway that will provide many new educational, theatre, business, recreational and human services opportunities and partnerships. This recreated human development center will bring generations together as they live, learn, work and play all in one place.
The 2050 vision outlined above, has woven throughout it our efforts to mitigate climate change and its substantial impact on our waterways, shores, climate and environment. We start with protecting and creating more natural, green spaces to help the earth and us. Our smart growth and transit-oriented development plans will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and our expectations for energy efficiency and low energy-use buildings even more. Our commitment to solarize Fairfax to produce sufficient renewable energy to become “net zero” means our houses, parking lots, building roofs and other areas will be key parts of getting to our green.
We look forward to you helping to create our future and a place we will all want to call home!
Dan Storck is Mount Vernon District Supervisor and a longtime resident of Southeast Fairfax County.
