On Sept. 10, 2024, the Fairfax County, Virginia Board of Supervisors approved a zoning ordinance amendment that creates new restrictions for data centers. The amended ordinance permits by-right data center development in...more
On July 31, 2024, Arlington County previewed upcoming policy changes for adaptive reuse projects. The county’s current intent is to limit the policy to projects that change the principal use (such as office to residential)...more
In 2020, Fairfax County, Virginia, adopted an Economic Incentive Program (EIP) that, among other incentives, provides for a partial real estate tax abatement equal to the difference in value between the base value...more
On June 6, 2024, the Fairfax County, Virginia Planning Commission recommended approval of zoning ordinance amendments that will create new restrictions for data centers. The proposed ordinance will permit by-right data center...more
On April 20, 2024, the Arlington County Board considered several policy changes designed to address the rising office vacancy rate in the county. The board’s attempts are part of the county’s efforts to revitalize the...more
On Oct. 10, 2023, the Arlington County Board held a working session with economic development staff to discuss potential policy changes to facilitate office-residential projects....more
Fairfax County, Virginia’s Parking Reimagined project moved closer to adoption after the Fairfax County Planning Commission voted Sept. 13, 2023, to recommend approval to the Board of Supervisors....more
On June 20, 2023, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors voted 5-4 to allocate $90,000 and to direct staff to start the process to amend the comprehensive plan and maps to reflect direction from earlier this year related...more
On April 12, 2023, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) announced it has officially withdrawn a proposal for a variance to a state law regarding the use of diesel generators as backup power for data centers...more
Fairfax County’s land use systems — including zoning, site plan, permitting and inspections — will be offline from Oct. 21-31, 2022, for a major system update. This also could impact functionality in the weeks after the...more
Fairfax County, Virginia, planning staff recently released a report recommending changes to the current comprehensive plan Site-Specific Plan Amendment (SSPA) process. The proposed changes are intended to make the overall...more
Changes are coming to the Fairfax County Site-Specific Plan Amendment (SSPA) process. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission held a joint meeting Oct. 12, 2021, to discuss the SSPA process for...more
The Fairfax County, Virginia, Board of Supervisors recently approved an extension to the emergency ordinance that permits flexibility for uses impacted by COVID-19. This includes extending temporary approvals for outdoor...more
This alert was originally published Sept. 16, 2020. New information has been added. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors recently moved forward in its consideration of a new Economic Incentive Program (EIP) that would...more
Arlington County, Virginia, announced in mid-October 2020 that it would develop administrative guidance for office building conversion site plan applications. In the last few weeks, Arlington County officially implemented...more
The Fairfax County, Virginia, Board of Supervisors recently approved a 60-day emergency ordinance that permits flexibility for uses impacted by state or federal COVID-19 requirements. The ordinance suspends any proffer,...more
In response to the impact of COVID-19 on the office real estate market, Arlington County, Virginia, recently announced it is pursuing new administrative guidance to increase flexibility and support for repurposing existing...more
Beginning May 29, 2020, Northern Virginia entered Phase 1 of Gov. Ralph Northam’s “Forward Virginia Plan.” Phase 1 permits greater use of outdoor spaces, particularly for restaurants and health clubs. Use of those spaces will...more
The Virginia General Assembly recently authorized public bodies — including local boards and commissions — to meet electronically during the state of emergency declared by Gov. Ralph Northam in response to COVID-19. This...more
ABC Policy Changes-
Beer/Wine/Mixed Beverage Takeout and Delivery. For the first time in ABC history, ABC adjusted its licensing regulations on March 20 to allow businesses with on-premises licenses (restaurants, eat-in...more
Fairfax County recently completed the Embark Richmond Highway Comprehensive Plan Amendment for the Richmond Highway Corridor in northern Virginia. The amendment created a substantial amount of new density — much of it...more
On the eve of its 40th birthday, Fairfax County has kicked off a Zoning Ordinance Modernization effort to analyze and update its current ordinance, which was originally adopted in 1978. The modernization efforts are part of...more