Old Town Small Area Plan
Summary
The Old Town Small Area Plan is a City of Fairfax planning document adopted on June 23, 2020, governing land use, open space, transportation, and design recommendations for the Old Town activity center area. It provides specific guidance that supersedes general comprehensive plan activity-center recommendations, including directives on green space connectivity, building height and character, sidewalk design, and circulation. The plan has been actively referenced in numerous development review proceedings since its adoption — including applications for multifamily residential, retail/mixed-use, and community center siting — and its recommendations have been cited both in support of and in tension with proposed projects. On June 23, 2025, Chair Feather marked the plan's five-year anniversary. As of mid-2026, two major events since adoption — the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020) and ongoing courthouse-area development commitments — have prompted discussion about whether the plan's assumptions remain current. A work session to discuss a potential formal review and update of the Old Town Small Area Plan (along with the Northfax, Kamp Washington, and Fairfax Circle plans) was scheduled for June 8, 2026, though no confirmed outcome or minutes from that session are yet available.
Open questions & options on the table
- Whether and how the Old Town Small Area Plan will be formally reviewed and updated, and on what timeline — including whether it should be expedited ahead of the Northfax, Kamp Washington, and Fairfax Circle plan updates given the pace of committed development in the Old Town area.
- Whether zoning-related 'bright line' conversations occurring through the zoning islands process will resolve key questions before a formal plan revision is undertaken.
- No confirmed minutes or action record from the June 8, 2026 work session discussion of the potential plan review — outcome remains unconfirmed.
What members have said
On June 23, 2025, Chair Feather noted the five-year anniversary of the Old Town Small Area Plan's adoption and flagged an open Planning Commission seat on the Board of Architectural Review. At the June 8, 2026 work session, Feather acknowledged the concern that much of the Old Town small area plan may already be committed to by the time updates are completed, and suggested there might be benefit in expediting the Old Town (and potentially Northfax) updates at the expense of delaying the other two plans.
At the June 23, 2025 meeting, Mr. Rice provided an update from the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board; no recorded comments specifically about the Old Town Small Area Plan's substance.
A commissioner speaking on February 9, 2026 consistently advocated for pedestrian-oriented design within the Old Town small area plan area, recommending a transit-oriented hub on the north side, prioritizing fire-department-accessible passageways, and expressing a preference for larger pedestrianized plazas and corridors over inter-parcel vehicular connections as shown in the plan's yellow-highlighted open space network.
At the June 8, 2026 work session, a speaker interjected with similar concern to Feather's about the pace of committed development, noting that bright-line conversations would happen through the zoning islands process and suggesting those answers might arrive before the plans are formally revisited. The speaker also noted significant demographic change occurring in the city as a relevant factor.
Positions as recorded in meeting minutes; votes without recorded comment aren’t summarized.
Discussion time
Minutes of named discussion per transcribed meeting.
Full history
[8] Chair Feather noted that June 23, 2025 marks the five-year anniversary of the adoption of the Old Town Small Area Plan.