Photo by Susannah Moore for Alexandria Living Magazine
The former Mount Vernon Athletic Club at 7950 and 7960 Audobon Ave. in Fairfax County’s Lee District is undergoing a transformation.
The 50,000 square foot private health and racquet club operated on the 5.3 acre site for more than 45 years before it closed its doors on May 5, 2020. Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority (FCHRA) purchased the property that same month.
The County’s Facilities Management Department has been working on updating and improving the facility before it will be conveyed to the Department of Neighborhood and Community Services (NCS), which will operate the facility when it opens this summer.
NCS currently operates nine community centers throughout Fairfax County including Gum Springs Community Center (8100 Fordson Rd.) and Huntington Community Center (5751 Liberty Dr.) in Southeast Fairfax.
On May 6, during one of the first of five community engagement meetings, NCS announced that it needs help naming the new community center and determining what kind of programs and services area residents would like to see there.
“We want to hear and engage in conversations with the community. It’s important to us as we go about embarking on the journey of designing and instituting programming in the center to serve the community,” said a member of the NCS staff.
Some ideas for services and amenities suggested by community members during the meeting included programming for retirees, pickleball, a computer lab, art classes, indoor bowling and outdoor space including an area for picnics, concerts and outdoor movies.
The center will primarily serve neighborhoods in the Buckman Road area on the west side of Richmond Highway in Alexandria. Neighborhoods include Sequoyah Condominium, Creekside Village, Colchester Towne Condominium, Stony Brook Apartments and Audobon Estate and Harmony Place mobile home communities, but all are welcome.
The upcoming community meetings listed below are designed to be progressive. Different topics will be discussed at each meeting and attendees will have plenty of opportunity to engage with staff members and other community members.
- Thursday, May 13, 2021 virtually via Zoom
- Thursday, May 20, 2021 *in person*
- Thursday, May 27, 2021 *in person*
- Thursday, June 3, 2021 *in person*
All meetings will run from 6:45 to 8 p.m. and will be hosted either virtually via Zoom or in person (based on all appropriate CDC and Virginia Department of Health COVID-19 guidelines) at Mount Vernon Woods Park, 4014 Fielding St. Click here to register.
For more information on the project and how to submit your ideas for the new center name and uses visit www.fairfaxcounty.gov/neighborhood-community-services/lee-district-community-center.
