At the groundbreaking, Casey Whitmarsh, South County Chamber of Commerce; Larry Clark, South County Federation; Alan Weiss, Fairfax County Assistant County Attorney; Christine Morin, Chief of Staff; Mount Vernon Supervisor Dan Storck, Fairfax County Mount Vernon District; Jim Perry, Elm Street Development; Nick Cacaci, Lidl; Gasim Elfaki, Fairfax County DPWES Public Private Partnership Coordinator.
Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck, present for the groundbreaking, said: “The adaptive reuse of the former Lorton Prison has brought many new opportunities to this area. This latest, the groundbreaking for Lidl, not only provides a strong and important anchor for Liberty Market, but also brings a local, walkable grocery store to the many surrounding communities of Liberty, Laurel Hill and Spring Hill.”
Elm Street Development’s James Perry said at the ceremony, “The commercial portion of the Liberty project, Liberty Market, is approved for about 100,000 square feet of space, split between the historic prison structures and new construction. Delivering that much commercial space in one location is only possible if you have a vibrant, attractive anchor tenant that draws people to your center. Lidl is that anchor tenant for Liberty Market.”
Liberty Market is the commercial component of the 80-acre project called Liberty, which includes 172 apartments, over 180 single-family and townhomes, and the retail and commercial center.