Master Developer Contract Awarded to The Alexander Company

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors has selected The Alexander Company as the Master Developer for the Adaptive Reuse Area at Laurel Hill. The contract award was approved by the Board of Supervisors on May 5, 2008.

The Master Development Plan will provide land use planning, design, financial analysis including historic tax credits, and citizen coordination services for the approximately 80-acre County-owned parcel (Tax Map 107-1 ((1)) 9). The 80-acre site includes the former Reformatory which includes 41 buildings, including dorms, an auditorium/hospital and gymnasium, and the former Penitentiary, which includes 15 structures including cellblocks, towers, and a cafeteria.

Since 2002, when the U.S. Congress transferred the 2,300 acres of property at Laurel Hill to Fairfax County, the county has worked with residents and Board of Supervisors'-appointed boards and task forces to develop plans for the future use of the area. This work will build upon recommendations from previous citizen task forces for the redevelopment of the site. The development of a Master Plan for the site is expected to take six to eight months.

The Alexander Company, based in Madison, Wisconsin, specializes in urban infill development, brownfield revitalization and historic preservation. Locally, the company is the master developer for the National Park Seminary site in Silver Spring, Maryland.

The Request for Proposals for the Master Developer was released on August 31, 2007.

 

Engineering Study of the Wall

The Facilities Management Department has received the Lorton Prison Wall Structural Assessment report prepared by Collins Consulting Engineers, Inc., and Edafos Geotechnical Consulting Engineers. Summary of Wall Assessment

Tower Maintenance Work

Maintenance work began in August 2007 on two of the former Lorton Prison penitentiary guard towers (the northwest and southwest towers) and one guard hut at the Adaptive Reuse site. This work will address safety and aesthetic problems associated with vandalism and aging. The Department of Planning and Zoning has provided the Architectural Review Board with a memo summarizing this work. Photos of one of the towers and guard hut are included in this memo. Tower work memo to ARB, August 2007 

July 24, 2007 Revised Meeting Handout On July 24, 2007, citizens from the Spring Hill and Laurel Hill community met with Congressman Tom Davis, Chairman Gerry Connolly and Supervisor Gerry Hyland.

Adaptive Reuse Area Roof Work During late winter 2006-2007 and spring of 2007, roof work was completed on several buildings within the Adaptive Reuse Area (former Penitentiary and Reformatory) as part of the County's building stabilization efforts.

View photos of the work on the Guard Quarters, Laundry Building and Ballfield Bleachers

                                                                                                    

 

Draft Architectural Standards and Guidelines (large file-10MB) are currently under review for the Adaptive Reuse Area at Laurel Hill.  

The draft was discussed at the following Architectural Review Board (ARB) meetings. ARB meetings are held in Rooms 4&5 of the Fairfax County Government Center, beginning at 6:30 p.m. ARB meeting agendas are posted at http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dpz/arb the Friday prior to a scheduled meeting.  Opportunity for public comment on these guidelines will be provided at these meetings.

    ARB vote in principle on the Standards and Guidelines (March 8, 2007)

    Mock Review of a "new construction project" (April 12, 2007)

    ARB vote on Standards and Guidelines - Meeting Date TBD

                 PAC letter to Board of Supervisors regarding Standards and Guidelines (April 2007)

 

Crucifix Removal, Cleaning and Stabilization

Fairfax County removed a life-sized, historic crucifix on December 6, 2006 from the former Lorton prison chapel for cleaning and restoration. The county was assisted in the removal by ELY, Inc., a firm that specializes in the proper handling and packaging of art and artifacts. The crucifix will remain at the ELY facilities for cleaning before being returned to Fairfax County. The County hired Dana Moffett to perform the cleaning and restoration work while the crucifix remains at ELY's facilities. This work has been completed.

The crucifix, which dates to approximately 1961, consists of a plaster body cast modeled after a death-row inmate, later pardoned, and a cross that was likely fashioned from timbers from the prison site. The closure of Lorton prison, in 2001, resulted in a loss of climate control in the buildings causing the 15 by 8 foot crucifix to show signs of deterioration. The removal will allow for the cleaning of the crucifix and placement in more hospitable environment. A final home for the crucifix will be determined by the county.