Lower Parking Requirements For Malls Mulled In Fairfax County

TYSONS, VA — A proposed zoning ordinance amendment would lower the number of parking spaces required for Fairfax County's malls. That could allow flexibility for space to be repurposed for development or other improvements.

County staff recommended a parking rate of 2.5 to 3 spaces per 1,000 square feet of gross floor area. This would only apply to shopping centers of 800,000 square feet or more: Tysons Corner Center, Tysons Galleria, Fair Oaks Mall and Springfield Town Center. The current requirement for large shopping centers is 4 parking spaces per 1,000 square feet of gross floor area.

The county has different parking requirements based on shopping center square footage. The amendment would lower the current large shopping center threshold from 1 million square feet to 800,000 square feet of gross floor area.

The staff recommendation said the change could lower environmental impacts like stormwater runoff and lead to better utilization of mall property. The staff report cites other malls repurposing space for residential and commercial development, plazas and enhanced design for pedestrians.

Consulting firm Nelson\Nygaard analyzed parking conditions at Fair Oaks Mall and Springfield Town Center, highlighting the busy holiday shopping season in December. Data from December 2018 shows Fair Oaks Mall had 42 percent of parking used on peak weekday times when at 100 percent tenant occupancy. That number for peak weekend times was 66 percent.

Numbers for Springfield Town Center came from June 2019, but there were also projections for December. At 100 percent tenant occupancy, Springfield Town Center saw 34 percent of parking utilized on peak on weekday times and 48 percent on peak weekend times in June. Projections for December were 45 percent for weekdays and 64 percent for weekends. Springfield Town Center's owner leases some parking space to car dealerships for vehicle storage, as well as part of a garage for commuter parking.

Based on parking utilization data, Fair Oaks Mall sees 1.82 space per 1,000 square feet used on weekdays and 2.84 spaces per 1,000 square feet on weekends in December. For Springfield Center, the estimated December numbers are 2.01 spaces per 1,000 square feet on weekdays and 2.86 spaces per 1,000 square feet on weekends.

The study does not show data for Tysons Corner Center, perhaps the DC region's busiest mall. According to Inside NoVa, the McLean Citizens Association called for Tysons Corner Center and Tysons Galleria to not be part of the proposed parking requirements. The group cited a need for a parking study for these malls.

The Fairfax County Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m. The Board of Supervisors hearing is scheduled for Dec. 3 at 4 p.m.