When the redevelopment of the Lorton prison site began, Fairfax County was able to secure a triple-crown agreement of sorts: a deal with KSI Developers of Vienna for the construction for a high school, golf course and senior living campus.
The South County Secondary School opened in September and the Laurel Hill Golf Club opened to the public on Oct. 15. During the October meeting of the Fairfax County Architectural Review Board, a preliminary step was taken toward the development of the Spring Hill Senior Campus.
"In 2003, the county approved our overall project," said Karen Arnold, a director of project planning for KSI Developers which will construct 136 units, a mix of single family homes and condo-style apartments at the Spring Hill site.
Approximately 80 units will be part of a new building which will also have underground parking, said Janice Navarro-Chan, director of multi-family development with KSI. Five existing structures, the commissary and four dormitories, will have one and two bedroom apartment units. All the apartments will be "owner-occupied," Chan said, and 20 units will be designated for affordable housing.
The KSI development will be open for "active adults over the age of 62," Chan said, and the Spring Hill community will be the first of its kind for KSI.
On Oct. 13, the Architectural Review Board approved KSI's plans for the site in concept, which means the board agrees with the design for adaptive reuse and new construction at the former Lorton prison site.
For the past two years, KSI has met with the Architectural Review Board in informal, workshop meetings during their monthly meetings to discuss plans for the site, Arnold said.
When the project was approved two years ago, additional research and planning had to be done to accommodate any historical preservation required at the prison site, she said, including "approval for architectural details and any related landscaping we planned to do at the site."
Each month, KSI representatives would attend the Architectural Review Board meeting to discuss changes to the commissary and dormitory buildings so the new construction would be in keeping with the existing structures but not identical. "We would address any issues they had with our plan and come back with any changes they suggested the next month along with the next round of design concepts," Arnold said.
NOW THAT the plan has been approved in concept, Arnold said KSI will continue to meet with the Architectural Review Board to finalize the plan before sending it to the Virginia Architectural Review Board for consideration.
"The state board are signatories on the Memorandum of Agreement and have their remarks ready for our presentation," said Arnold. The Memorandum of Agreement is the document signed by Fairfax County officials and the federal government that acts as a guideline for the reuse and redevelopment of the former Lorton prison site.
"This has been a great process, it allowed us to talk more informally and they provided us with their expertise and guidance," Arnold said.
The Laurel Hill community and other neighborhoods in the southern part of the county have been involved in the process as well. "We've been to the South County Federation and the Lorton Heritage groups along the way and everyone's been very supportive of our ideas," Arnold said.
Construction could begin in the first part of 2007 if site and building plans are approved by the county in 2006, Chan said.
Some preparation work for the KSI development is already underway at the Lorton site, said John Burns, treasurer of the Architectural Review Board.
Burns described the conditional approval as "a major hurdle" to conquer prior to the groundbreaking. "KSI needed to submit documents demonstrating details of how their concept for the site would be constructed. There is still a portion of the process remaining," he said, including approval from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
Now that a nomination to include the Lorton prison site on the National Registry of Historic Places has been submitted, certain aspects of the building, like landscaping and lighting, will need to be specified before the plan can be officially approved, said Burns. After those details have been completed and the plan adopted by the Architectural Review Board, building permits can be issued and construction can begin.
The Architectural Review Board is usually called in to help the Board of Supervisors determine how best to promote preservation of properties and sites in the 13 historic overlay areas of Fairfax County, Burns said. Spring Hill is not in one of the overlay areas, but the Board of Supervisors asked for the board's advice on this area because of the historic nomination at the former prison site.
Another portion of the site is being developed by Pulte Homes, which has been building townhomes in the Laurel Hill community.
"We have an active adult community of 149 single family homes, 32 villas and 120 condo units in five buildings," said Jonathan Jefferies, a representative from Pulte. One section of their development opened for sales six weeks ago, and 38 of 46 homes have already been sold and will be made available for their owners to move into by mid-February.
Ground will be broken for the second phase of their construction "hopefully in November," said Jefferies. Those units are expected to be completed by early next summer.
The homes, aimed at "active adults ages 55 and older" will also feature a "community area where our clients can meet their neighbors," said Jefferies. The promises of a "maintenance-free lifestyle" where snow and trash removal are part of the amenities offered should attract customers, as will a "club house that features a billiard room, fitness center, indoor pool and spa" and proximity to the newly-opened Laurel Hill Golf Club.