Old Town Small Area Plan
Summary
The Old Town Small Area Plan is a land use policy document adopted by the City of Fairfax on June 23, 2020, governing development, open space, transportation, and land use recommendations for the Old Town activity center area. The plan provides specific guidance on issues such as green space connectivity, street design, pedestrian mobility, building height and use, and transit — superseding the general activity center place-type recommendations of the broader comprehensive plan. As of its five-year anniversary (June 23, 2025), the plan had been actively cited in multiple development reviews and planning discussions, including applications involving open space design, community center siting, and proposed multifamily development. By mid-2026, concerns were raised that significant portions of the Old Town area would be committed to development before the plan could be updated, given a potential courthouse project and ongoing zoning changes. A work session to discuss a potential review and update to the Old Town Small Area Plan — along with the Northfax, Kamp Washington, and Fairfax Circle small area plans — was scheduled for the June 8, 2026 Planning Commission meeting, though no confirmed outcome or minutes have been recorded for that session.
Open questions & options on the table
- What were the outcomes and decisions from the June 8, 2026 work session discussion on a potential review and update to the Old Town Small Area Plan?
- Will the Old Town Small Area Plan review be expedited relative to the Northfax, Kamp Washington, and Fairfax Circle plan reviews, given concerns about development commitments (e.g., the courthouse) occurring before the update is complete?
- How will the ongoing zoning islands process and its 'bright line conversations' inform or interact with any future revision of the Old Town Small Area Plan?
Recent updates
[8b] A potential review and update of the adopted Old Town small area plan was scheduled for discussion at this work session.
[8] Chair Feather noted that June 23, 2025 marks the five-year anniversary of the adoption of the Old Town Small Area Plan.
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.
This speaker consistently advocated for transit-oriented design within the Old Town small area plan's northern section, recommending a transit hub near the Layton Hall area, prioritizing pedestrian passageways, and favoring pedestrianized plazas and open space corridors over inter-parcel vehicular connections as shown in the plan's yellow-marked plaza designations.
Raised concern that by the time the Old Town Small Area Plan is updated, much of the area will already be committed to development (citing the courthouse as an example); suggested there may be benefit to expediting the Old Town and possibly one other plan update at the expense of delaying the remaining two small area plan reviews.
Noted that the Old Town Small Area Plan was adopted June 23, 2020, and identified two major events since adoption — COVID-19 (March 2020) and unspecified subsequent changes — as relevant context for why a review of the plan may be warranted.
Positions as recorded in meeting minutes; votes without recorded comment aren’t summarized.
Full history
- Jun 23, 2025Planning Commission · item 8
[8] Chair Feather noted that June 23, 2025 marks the five-year anniversary of the adoption of the Old Town Small Area Plan.
- Jun 8, 2026Planning Commission · item 8b
[8b] A potential review and update of the adopted Old Town small area plan was scheduled for discussion at this work session.