Updated March 2019
It's been a long time coming — but redevelopment of the entire 51-acre Landmark Mall site and changes to the surrounding streets are moving forward.
In December, Alexandria officials posted a series of videos and PDFs explaining the many challenges, moving parts and considerations related to redeveloping the 51-acre Landmark Mall site.
The video below gives information on the past, present and future plans for the mall property. It was recorded just before the crowded Dec. 12 community open house, where officials were on-hand to take feedback and answer questions from Alexandria residents. Read more about the Dec. 12 open house here.
The next community event related to the mall redevelopment is a workshop from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 26 at Francis Hammond Middle School. Lunch and child care will be provided.
Here is additional information on the redevelopment, as well as links to key parts of the video and the documents provided by the City of Alexandria. (Note: The files hosted on AlexandriaVA.gov are very large and may take a minute to load — be patient.)
Planning Process
In addition to the Jan. 26 workshop, another advisory group and community meeting is scheduled for Feb. 27 from 7 to 9 p.m. The location is to be determined. April will bring the start of planning commission and City Council hearings about the redevelopment.
-----
Community Input to Date
Social media, emails and community meetings have all been a part of the input from residents over the past several months. A few central themes emerged: A number of West End residents have said the area has been neglected and lacks a central identity. The Landmark Mall space needs to be more accessible and more useful for residents.
This tag cloud shows what residents are asking for from the Landmark Mall site:
City of Alexandria
Site Background
The transfer of property and development process started back in 2008 and 2009. It has taken years for one owner, Howard Hughes Corp., to gain control over the entire site. (Howard Hughes Corp. owned only the 'central portion' of the mall in 2010, and plans at that time called for creating an open air retail and mixed-use space, but possibly leaving Macy's and Sears intact, as those companies owned their own buildings.) Now that Howard Hughes Corp. has the entire site to redevelop, there are many more possibilities for the space.
This video from the City of Alexandria provides the basics about what's happened in the past 10 years to the West End mall and how the City, Howard Hughes Corp. and other interested parties are moving forward.
The re-planning process should be completed this spring and summer. Then, the developers must go through special use permit applications and approvals before redevelopment can start. Construction could start in as little as two years, but the entire site could take 5 to 20 years to complete.
In the meantime, the Carpenter's Shelter has moved into a portion of the former Macy's Department store while a new shelter and affordable-housing complex is under construction near Old Town. The interior of the mall and parking lots were used for the filming of the next movie in the Wonder Woman series. That movie has an expected release date in November 2019.
Sears and Sears Auto are still open, but those buildings are now part of the redevelopment plans. Officials have not said whether Sears will return to the site after redevelopment.
-----
Land Use/Signature Buildings
The new development is likely to have a mix of residential, retail and office spaces, plus transit, civic and cultural amenities, along with open space.
City officials put these photos on a posterboard at the Dec. 12 meeting to show some of the concepts, but specific building designs are still a long, long way from completion.
City of Alexandria
-----
Transportation Study
A transportation study is underway, and results of that study will be revealed at the Jan. 26 workshop at Francis Hammond Middle School. The study will take into account current transportation policies, regional growth, site access, land use and more. Results from this study will inform "needed future roadway improvements, signal timings, pedestrian/bike facilities, transit, travel lanes, etc."
-----
Transit Hub
In 2009, Landmark Mall was the busiest non-Metro rail station transit hub in Alexandria.
Today, several buses still use the property as a hub, but the hub is near the back of the property, limiting the places pedestrians can reasonably and safely walk to in 5 minutes.
Both redesigning and moving the transit hub on the site and will help make the new Landmark more accessible, walkable and multi-modal transit oriented.
City of Alexandria
But there's a wild card related to planning transit at Landmark Mall: Planners haven't yet learned whether the City has secured grants for the West End Transitway project. They will learn more in early 2019.
The Transitway Project would include the development of rapid bus lanes along Van Dorn Street and possibly elsewhere that would connect a number of major transit facilities and the neighborhoods between them. The transit facilities include the Van Dorn Metro Station, the Mark Center Transit Center, the Shirlington Transit Center and the Pentagon Transit Center. Whether the funding is available to develop the West End Transitway will have a major affect on Landmark site planning.
Learn more in the document and video linked to below.
-----
Pedestrian/Bicycle Connections
Right now, it's very difficult to walk or bicycle to Landmark Mall. The car-focused design, narrow sidewalks and barriers to entry (overgrown woods and retaining walls) make walking or biking to the site unsafe. Planners are looking at a variety of new potential shared pedestrian/bicycle paths, landscaped buffers and improved accessibility.
-----
Van Dorn Street Connections
Access to Landmark Mall from Van Dorn Street is a challenge for developers. There are a few reasons for this: Van Dorn street goes up a significant hill leading south toward Landmark Mall. There's a narrow sidewalk and dense, overgrown woods between the street and the mall property. Once you get past the woods heading south on Van Dorn Street, retaining walls and and ramps from Van Dorn to Duke create safety concerns for pedestrians and bicyclists — even with crosswalks present.
Changing all of this so the new Landmark is more accessible for walkers, bikers and drivers alike may require regrading, removing trees, and controlling invasive species that have infiltrated the property. Planners are considering a variety of new pedestrian crossings and active park space to facilitate better site accessibility from Van Dorn Street.
-----
Open Space
The new Landmark will include a variety of planned green space, which can be used for community events, farmers markets, playgrounds and more, making the area welcoming and useful. Of the 51 acres of space, at least 3.5 acres are being set aside for this "public access open space network to include parks, squares, and plazas."
Here are some of the design and usage concepts:
City of Alexandria
-----
Affordable Housing
Housing affordability is a serious issue in Alexandria and across all of Northern Virginia, as wages have not kept up with the cost of housing and related costs (utilities, insurance and services). In addition, the cost to develop housing of all types has increased significantly in the past several years.
City of Alexandria
Whether affordable housing is part of the development or located elsewhere, more affordable housing will come to Alexandria thanks in part to the Landmark Mall redevelopment agreement.
There are a variety of tools the City of Alexandria and developers can use to make more affordable housing exist in Alexandria — they are outlined in this document explaining the affordable housing challenges in Alexandria.
-----
To keep up on local news, developments and much more, subscribe to Alexandria Living Magazine here.
