FALLS CHURCH FORWARD | ‘The Little City’ Grows Up 

Earlier this month, US News & World Report released its annual ‘Healthiest Communities’ rankings for 2024. At the top of the list was Falls Church, Virginia—affectionately known as ‘the Little City’. Since the list was first published in 2018, Falls Church has been consistently included, achieving the #1 spot in 2018 and 2024, and the #2 spot in 2022.

In her accompanying essay, Falls Church Mayor Letty Hardi attributed the Little City’s success to a decades-long period of embracing revitalization and mixed-use development with an emphasis on climate, equity, and health:

“We have been embracing the urban planning concept of the ‘15-minute city’ in which a wide array of amenities are located within a 15-minute walk, bike ride or convenient public transit option. In fact, 70% of our residents now live within a 10-minute walk of a grocery store, not to mention our weekly farmers market, diverse restaurants, gyms, parks, and civic and cultural life.”

MV+A’s Broad + Washington project embodies and exemplifies many of the the aspirations detailed in Mayor Hardi’s essay. As such, the project is poised to usher-in a new wave of activity and energy within the Falls Church community. In this Design Brief, we will explore the ways in which our Broad + Washington project is realizing and reinforcing this vision for Falls Church.

A Unique Nexus

Falls Church occupies a unique spot within Northern Virginia [NoVA]. Located ten miles west of Washington, DC, Falls Church is effectively surrounded by Arlington to the east, Alexandria to the southeast, Annandale and Springfield to the south, Fairfax to the southwest, and Tysons to the northwest. Additionally, the city is nestled within a quadrant formed by the 495 beltway, Routes 66 and 7, and the Seven Corners interchange. It is serviced by multiple bus lines and is in close proximity to two metro stations. In short, Falls Church is an optimal location for transit-oriented development.

The intersection of Broad + Washington Streets occupies the nexus of two major routes through NoVA. Broad Street, aka Leesburg Pike, connects Alexandria to Leesburg along a 50-mile long corridor that includes numerous urbanizing communities such as Shirlington, Bailey’s Crossing, and Seven Corners, as well as other, more densely developed communities such as Tysons and Sterling. Washington Street, aka Arlington Blvd., connects DC to Fairfax, traversing the length of Arlington before crossing Falls Church.

Site Context Diagrams

As the most prominent intersection within Falls Church, Broad + Washington has persisted as an innocuous and underutilized location. Looking to capitalize upon this latent potential, Insight Property Group engaged MV+A to plan and design an ambitious, paradigm shifting, mixed use program worthy of this intersection—including a full-service grocery store, local theater group, in-line retail, over 300 apartments, courtyards, public parking, all around a public plaza and green neighborhood connector

Programming Potential

Between 2010 and 2022, the population of Falls Church increased 10 out of 12 years, with the largest annual increase being 4.6% in 2016. A recent study predicted that the overall number will increase by 35% from 2020 to 2030, making Falls Church one of the most densely populated cities in NoVA. With a mix of apartment types—including ‘Live-Work’ units and approximately 10% in affordable housing units—the Broad + Washington project will go a long way in responding to this increasing housing demand in Falls Church.

Given the prominence of the site location, finding an commensurate retail anchor tenant was paramount; Whole Foods Market was a perfect fit. Whole Foods Market stores are well known for their ability to activate the public realm along their building edges—contributing to the vitality of the surrounding neighborhood. In the case of Broad + Washington, the store opens out onto a well-appointed corner plaza that will be animated throughout the day. Furthermore, ‘the Whole Foods Effect’ has been shown to spur development patterns that promote long-term investment and economic returns for the communities they serve. Whole Foods Market’s mission and values also squares well with all those metrics which contributed to US News + World Report’s ranking of Falls Church as the #1 Healthiest Community in the US.

Culturally speaking, Falls Church has a vibrant creative community. A major anchor of this community is the performing arts group Creative Cauldron. With the goal of increasing their visibility within the heart of Falls Church, Creative Cauldron is making the Broad + Washington their new home with a new 5,000 SF black box theater facility. The plaza mentioned above, prominently marking the main intersection, will prove another valuable cultural asset for Falls Church. This signature open space will mark a new center for the Little City serving as a destination for the greater community and building residents alike. Taken altogether, the robust project programing is well-aligned with the long-term objectives and aspirations of this vibrant, growing community.

Rendering of Corner Plaza

Good Neighbors

Buildings can make for good or bad neighbors. This is a particularly fine point in the case of densifying communities. Mixed-Use multifamily residential development can present complex challenges for a community. The most successful designs deliver complex solutions with efficiency and an intent to appropriately engage with their surroundings. Depending on the neighborhood context, the end results will vary.

In the case of Broad + Washington and Falls Church, the MV+A design team went to great effort to efficiently manage a robust and ambitious mixed-use program—334 residential units atop a major anchor retail tenant with adjacent inline retail / commercial space including a signature cultural institution; each with their own parking, access and loading requirements—that not only sensitively responds to the scale and materiality of the surrounding neighborhood but also contributes to a vibrant streetscape experience.

Aerial Rendering of Site from Southwest Broad Street Elevation—careful modulation of scale, setbacks, and materiality proves a successful strategy for integrating an ambitious program into an urbanizing community.

Community, Wellness, and a Piece of Pie

There is an old architectural analogy that a good building should be like a slice of pie. Where the whole pie is the city or town and the building is a single slice, one can experience all the ingredients of the whole pie within the experience of a single slice.

In many ways, the Broad + Washington project can be seen as a reflection of the Little City of which it is a part. While the deferential disposition of the building’s exterior may be readily apparent, the spirit of community that pervades the interior planning is also worth noting.

As the project was planned during Covid, considerable thought was given to the building amenities program. Remote / flexible working options loomed large and, in response, close to 4,000 SF was allocated for open, semi-private, and private work areas—seamlessly integrated into the building lobby and lounge areas. Wellness and access to outdoor greenspace was also of considerable import. While it is not uncommon for a multifamily development of this size to include an outdoor pool terrace or courtyard, the Broad + Washington includes three unique outdoor courtyard experiences—each with a variety of ‘outdoor room’ types that range from very open to sufficiently solitary.

Each of the three courtyards has its own character and corresponding activity / energy level. The central amenity courtyard, at 10,000 SF, includes a play lawn, a wide variety of seating options, and a suite of outdoor BBQ and dining areas. The pool terrace courtyard, at 8,400 SF, includes a range of lounge and seating options for groups and individuals alike as well as options for sun and shade. Lastly, the garden courtyard, at 7,000 SF, is the most subdued with 20-some raised community planters.

Another 6K SF is given over to a mix of fitness, fun, and discovery. In addition to a very well equipped gym and yoga studio, generously sized shared kitchen and dining areas open onto a vibrant lounge complete with niche games and billiards. Additionally, a well-appointed maker space affords another unique venue for exploration.

With the majority of these amenities being centrally located on the same floor, there is a cohesive feeling of community that pervades the place making the Broad + Washington a building worthy of the nation’s ‘Healthiest Community.’

Amenity Photos Courtesy of Insight Property Group | Bozzuto Management | Landscape Architecture by Parker Rodriguez | Interior Design by Streetsense