A new initiative could transform a former retail space in Tysons
This building used to be The Container Store in Tysons. Now Fairfax County is seeking ideas on what to do with it. Image Courtesy of Google Maps
If you had an extra 19,000 square feet of retail space to use, what would you do with it? This is the question that Fairfax County is posing to the public this month as it launches Activate Fairfax, a project that hopes to revamp and revitalize a closed store in Tysons.
The county is accepting “Requests for Interest,” or RFIs from creatives, businesses, anyone with an “innovative” idea to transform the space into something that could not only bolster economic development, but also create experiences or provide placemaking as well.
“We really wanted to take the opportunity to use that space for a transformational project,” said Rebecca Moudry, Director of the Department of Economic Initiatives for Fairfax County.
The space, located at 8508 Leesburg Pike, was once The Container Store. The county purchased the space last year as part of its Complete Streets initiative.
This image from the Tysons Comprehensive plan shows how the road network will be built. 
Right now Tysons, which has a goal to be an urban center by 2050, has long super streets that favor cars. The Complete Streets project would break up some of the area into manageable girds of shorter streets for pedestrians, bicyclists, and people who use other forms of transit.
In fact, the Tysons Comprehensive Plan says that streets “should become ‘complete streets,’ designed to create a sense of place and promote walking, and the use of bicycles and transit services.”
A map of a grid of streets in Tysons from its Comprehensive Plan. Image by Fairfax County.
But the complete streets project in that area are a few years off from completion, and during that interim time, Fairfax wanted to provide a space for people with a vision and the resources to execute on it.
And perhaps because it is an interim project, the time table for action will go pretty fast. RFI’s will be accepted until April 20. Once done, the County and a steering committee including the Tysons Partnership and several county agencies will look at who has an interest. The goal is to get something up and activated by the fall of this year.
But demand for the space could be high, because of its prime location, less than 10 minutes walk from either Spring Hill or Greensboro Metro stations.
The county is reaching out to those in the creative economy, artists groups, and local makers, but Moudry added that while the county is looking for innovative ideas, “I don’t think the County wants to be terribly prescriptive about what exactly that is.”
While the final verdict as to what the space could be is a little ways down the road, there is a common theme as to what a project like this could mean for Tysons.
“I think the common goal is to turn Tysons into a live, work, play community,” said Paymon Hadjiesmaeiloo, managing partner of the Shipgarten, “so anything that falls under those guidelines, in my opinion, will only enhance the lifestyle of the current residents and workforce in Tysons.”
Readers, what would you do with that space if you have the opportunity? What do you think should and could be done with it?