Thursday, August 14, 2008

Old Town Storage Site Development


After changing hands and changing plans, "The Security Storage Site" at 621 North Payne Street in Alexandria will now be developed into mixed-use development, a design that will bring more than 200 residential units to Old Town. Hoping to break ground next year, the developer is not yet committing to for-sale or for-lease units, but condos seem unlikely with financing of condominium construction so limited.

Erkiletian Construction Corporation bought the site, currently occupied by a warehouse, from Security Storage at the end of June, altering the plans presented to the Alexandria Planning Board back in 2007. The prior development plan, submitted by K. Hovnanian Homes in February of 2007, included 146 condominium units in the form of townhouses, live-work units, and low rise building.

Erkiletian will instead develop a three-story, 12,000 s.f. building designed by Rust Orling Architecture. According to Tom Woodhouse, Project Manager, the building will be consistent with the appearance of the surrounding buildings. "It won't be a contemporary high rise because they don't like that in Old Town, we're going with traditional design - brick and glass with cornices. The building is designed to harmonize with those that are already present in Old Town, those from time periods starting around 1725 and going through the present day. So you have all kinds of architectural achievements."

Woodhouse said the developer has not yet filed for permits for the site two blocks from the Braddock Metro Station, but hopes to do so in the near future and begin construction in Spring of 2009. Erkiletian is also responsible for Alexandria's Carlyle Towers and Northampton Place.

5 comments:

David Garber on Aug 14, 2008, 5:51:00 PM said...

Wow. as much as I like development, can they Please stop building every mixed-use project in ALL BRICK!? If you do, paint part of it or something -- or be more creative and use a variety of building materials. brick gets boring when it is ALL that is built new in Old Town.

Anonymous said...

You're smoking something if you think Alexandria will approve something that doesn't confirm to the "Old Town Aesthetic"... Not saying that it's right, but that's reality. It would be nice to see some industrial design incorporated, particularly down near Braddock Road. It's filled with light industrial use as it is... EYA's old project on Henry is a good example of something that would work well.

Anonymous said...

Enough said...YAWN!

Anonymous said...

That sight is right across from the City's troubled Adkins public housing project. It's currently a crime-ridden disaster and it only gets worse. The City is now discussig rebuilding it - in the form of a high rise public housing apartment building. Good luck finding anyone to move into your new development with that across the street..... That whole Braddock Road area will never be anywhere worth living as long as the City keeps segregating all its public housing there.

Anonymous said...

They're only building 12,000 SF? Really?

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