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James Walkinshaw
County Supervisor | Fairfax County, VA

From Parking Lot to Housing

Idea Category: Housing | Funding Source: American Rescue Plan

2023 Ideas Challenge Entry

Faced with a shortage of affordable housing and an ambitious goal to develop 10,000 new affordable units by 2030, Fairfax County Supervisor James Walkinshaw has worked aggressively to convert vacant and underutilized county-owned land to affordable housing. Working in partnership with the county's housing authority, non-profit affordable housing developers, and the private sector, the transfer of county-owned land can make possible projects that would otherwise be too expensive due to the significant cost of land acquisition in Northern Virginia. The county has also utilized federal COVID funds on several recent projects.

The conversion of surface parking to housing, community space, and child care will have economic, social, and environmental benefits.

Impact:

Success will be measured by progress toward the goal of creating 10,000 new affordable units in Fairfax County by 2030. Recently, the Board of Supervisors approved Residences at Government Center II, which when complete will deliver 279 units of housing affordable to families earning 30% to 70% of the area median income, and more than 100 child-care slots for low and moderate-income families on what is now an underutilized parking lot in front of the county's main government center building.