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A N A D V I S O R Y S E R V I C E S P A N E L R E P O R T

SpringfieldVirginia

Urban LandInstitute$

SpringfieldVirginiaStrategies for Revitalization

May 21–26, 2006An Advisory Services Panel Report

ULI–the Urban Land Institute1025 Thomas Jefferson Street, N.W.Suite 500 WestWashington, D.C. 20007-5201

An Advisory Services Panel Report2

ULI–the Urban Land Institute is a non-profit research and education organiza-tion that promotes responsible leadership in the use of land in order to enhance the

total environment.

The Institute maintains a membership represent-ing a broad spectrum of interests and sponsors awide variety of educational programs and forumsto encourage an open exchange of ideas and shar-ing of experience. ULI initiates research that an-ticipates emerging land use trends and issues andproposes creative solutions based on that re-search; provides advisory services; and publishesa wide variety of materials to disseminate infor-mation on land use and development.

Established in 1936, the Institute today has morethan 34,000 members and associates from 90 coun-tries, representing the entire spectrum of the landuse and development disciplines. Professionals rep-

resented include developers, builders, propertyowners, investors, architects, public officials,planners, real estate brokers, appraisers, attor-neys, engineers, financiers, academics, students,and librarians. ULI relies heavily on the expe-rience of its members. It is through member in-volvement and information resources that ULIhas been able to set standards of excellence indevelopment practice. The Institute has long beenrecognized as one of America’s most respectedand widely quoted sources of objective informa-tion on urban planning, growth, and development.

This Advisory Services panel report is intended to further the objectives of the Institute and tomake authoritative information generally avail-able to those seeking knowledge in the field ofurban land use.

Richard M. RosanPresident

About ULI–the Urban Land Institute

©2007 by ULI–the Urban Land Institute1025 Thomas Jefferson Street, N.W. Suite 500 WestWashington, D.C. 20007-5201

All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of the whole or anypart of the contents without written permission of the copy-right holder is prohibited.

Cover photo © Virginia Department of Transportation.

Springfield, Virginia, May 21–26, 2006 3

The goal of ULI’s Advisory Services Programis to bring the finest expertise in the realestate field to bear on complex land use plan-ning and development projects, programs,

and policies. Since 1947, this program has assem-bled well over 400 ULI-member teams to helpsponsors find creative, practical solutions forissues such as downtown redevelopment, landmanagement strategies, evaluation of develop-ment potential, growth management, communityrevitalization, brownfields redevelopment, mili-tary base reuse, provision of low-cost and afford-able housing, and asset management strategies,among other matters. A wide variety of public,private, and nonprofit organizations have con-tracted for ULI’s Advisory Services.

Each panel team is composed of highly qualifiedprofessionals who volunteer their time to ULI.They are chosen for their knowledge of the paneltopic and screened to ensure their objectivity.ULI’s interdisciplinary panel teams provide aholistic look at development problems. A re-spected ULI member who has previous panelexperience chairs each panel.

The agenda for a five-day panel assignment is in-tensive. It includes an in-depth briefing day com-posed of a tour of the site and meetings with spon-sor representatives; a day of hour-long interviewsof typically 50 to 75 key community representa-tives; and two days of formulating recommenda-tions. Many long nights of discussion precede thepanel’s conclusions. On the final day on site, thepanel makes an oral presentation of its findingsand conclusions to the sponsor. A written report isprepared and published.

Because the sponsoring entities are responsiblefor significant preparation before the panel’s visit,including sending extensive briefing materials toeach member and arranging for the panel to meetwith key local community members and stake-holders in the project under consideration, partici-

pants in ULI’s five-day panel assignments areable to make accurate assessments of a sponsor’sissues and to provide recommendations in a com-pressed amount of time.

A major strength of the program is ULI’s uniqueability to draw on the knowledge and expertise ofits members, including land developers and own-ers, public officials, academicians, representativesof financial institutions, and others. In fulfillmentof the mission of the Urban Land Institute, thisAdvisory Services panel report is intended toprovide objective advice that will promote the re-sponsible use of land to enhance the environment.

ULI Program StaffWilliam P. KistlerExecutive Vice President, Exchange Group

Thomas W. EitlerDirector, Advisory Services

Nicholas GabelSeniorAssociate, Advisory Services

Carmen McCormickPanel Coordinator, Advisory Services

Yvonne StantonAdministrative Assistant

Nancy H. StewartDirector, Book Program

Laura Glassman, Publications Professionals LLCManuscript Editor

Betsy VanBuskirkArt Director

Martha LoomisDesktop Publishing Specialist/Graphics

Craig ChapmanDirector, Publishing Operations

About ULI Advisory Services


On behalf of the Urban Land Institute, thepanel would like to thank Fairfax Countyfor inviting it to assist in the redevelopmentefforts for Springfield. The panel would like

to thank the Board of Supervisors, the Departmentof Planning and Zoning (DPZ), and the FairfaxCounty Department of Housing and CommunityDevelopment (HCD). The panel sends its thanksparticularly to Supervisor Dana Kauffman, whoseinterest and support for the greater Springfieldarea has been exemplary. The panel also extendsits thanks to Supervisor Elaine McConnell and theother elected and selected officials from FairfaxCounty who participated in the panel process. Thepanel wishes to thank Jim Zook, Barbara Byron,

Marianne Gardner, Peter Braham, and St. ClairWilliams of the DPZ; Kathy Ichter of the DOT;and Paula Sampson, Harry Swanson, Bob Fields,and Bridgett Hill of the HCD. Finally, the panelwould like to thank the more than 80 communitymembers—including government officials, resi-dents, business leaders, neighborhood organiza-tions, and property owners—who volunteeredtheir time, thoughts, and experiences during theinterview process. Their insights provided valu-able information that was critical to the comple-tion of the panel’s recommendations.

Acknowledgments


ULI Panel and Project Staff 6

Foreword: The Panel’s Assignment 7

Market Potential 11

Planning and Design 15

Transportation 22

Implementation 30

Conclusion 40

About the Panel 41

Contents


Panel ChairDavid L. LeiningerChief Financial OfficerCity of IrvingIrving, Texas

Panel MembersDonald R. BauerOwner/FounderBauer Planning and Environmental Service, Inc.

Irvine, California

Daniel BrentsConsultantHouston, Texas

David N. GossConsultantHertford, North Carolina

Philip HughesPresidentHughes Investments, Inc.Greenville, South Carolina

Michael J. MaxwellManaging PartnerMaxwell + Partners LLCMiami Shores, Florida

David S. PlummerPresident

David Plummer & Associates, Inc.Coral Gables, Florida

John ShumwayPrincipalThe Concord GroupNewport Beach, California

Ross TilghmanDirectorTilghman GroupSeattle, Washington

ULI Project DirectorThomas W. EitlerDirector, Advisory Services

ULI On-Site CoordinatorCarmen McCormickPanel Coordinator

ULI Panel and Project Staff


The Fairfax County Department of Planningand Zoning in conjunction with the Depart-ment of Housing and Community Develop-ment asked ULI’s Advisory Services Pro-

gram to organize a panel of experts that couldhelp identify redevelopment opportunities andidentify and address issues of concern regardingtransportation for the Springfield area. Thepanel’s recommendations consist of a series ofphysical, organizational, and administrative ac-tions to implement a vision for Springfield. Thepurpose of this ULI panel report is the rebirth ofSpringfield, Virginia, with an emphasis on creat-ing a vibrant, economically viable place with a mixof uses and public plazas where people may enjoyliving, shopping, working, and recreating.

Summary of Key Recommendations To help execute this rebirth, the panel has sug-gested a series of physical and procedural im-provements that will allow the Springfield area toreach its full economic and civic potential. Key fea-tures of the panel’s recommendation include:

• A civic strategy of increased awareness andaction;

• A new development policy to attract high-quality developments;

• A new town plan for the center of Springfield;

• Better local road connections among all thequadrants of the study area, including a newbridge on Backlick Road over Old Keene MillRoad;

• A plan and strategy for nonroad public improve-ments; and

• A marketing approach that plays to thestrengths of the community and the trends inthe marketplace.

Foreword: The Panel’s Assignment

Background Springfield is located in northern Virginia at thejuncture of Interstate 95 and the Capital Beltwayapproximately 20 miles south of Washington, D.C.This area evolved from the early 1950s throughthe mid- to late 1970s with the conversion of greenfields into low-density, single-family residentialareas and strip shopping and services. The areabecame a principal crossroads before the construc-tion of I-95 and the Capital Beltway.

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NORTH CAROLINA

Tennessee

Kentucky

MARYLAND

DELAWAREWEST VIRGINIA

NEW JERSEYO H I O

P E N N S Y L V A N I A

V I R G I N I A

PRINCE WILLIAM

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Washington D.C.

Annapolis

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Annandale

Reston

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Waynesboro

Staunton

Fredericksburg

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Salisbury

Cambridge

Fairfax

Winchester

Easton

Martinsburg

Cumberland

Uniontown

WestminsterAberdeen

Havre de Grace

Chambersburg

Hanover

Bridgeton

Elkton

Glassboro

Coatesville

Woodbury

West Chester

Bellmawr

Springfield

Location map.

Regional map.


As I-95 and the Capital Beltway evolved in themid-1970s, Springfield’s location at the confluenceof these arteries brought development of theSpringfield Mall, which elevated the area fromstrictly neighborhood and community services to aregional shopping center. With the growth of de-fense contracting from Fort Belvoir and the Pen-tagon, Springfield’s residential, office, and hotelmarket responded to accommodate demand.

The continuing expansion of I-95 and the CapitalBeltway eventually turned what had been a posi-tive condition for growth into a series of trans-portation detriments for local businesses andproperty owners. The almost continual construc-tion of ever more complex interchanges inhibitednew investment and eroded Springfield’s tradi-tional retail and service bases. Governmental solu-tions seemed to focus on solving present and fu-ture regional traffic issues without consideringhow those solutions would affect the local neigh-borhood and community retail and service centers.

Springfield is dominated by the over half-billion-dollar Springfield interchange highway project.The interchange is popularly known as the Mixing

Bowl because it involves three interstates, hastwo exits less than a half mile apart, has two un-connected roads going over or under one of the in-terstates less than a half mile apart, and is furthercomplicated by the presence of a separate, re-versible high-occupancy-vehicle (HOV) lane pass-ing through the center of two of the interstates.Major road projects have primarily concentratedon moving traffic through Springfield, mostly atthe expense of local businesses.

A suburb with a somewhat transient populationand little local culture, what Springfield is andhow it fits into the larger suburban pattern ofFairfax County is difficult to explain to someonefrom outside the area. Military families are preva-lent in the Springfield area because of its proxim-ity to nearby Fort Belvoir and the Pentagon.Springfield is characterized by a strip malls andretail plazas, stand-alone restaurants, and cardealerships. Some of them are quite old and havebeen remodeled repeatedly over the decades be-cause of their continuing economic viability. A pos-itive note is Springfield’s considerable popularityfor its affordable multiethnic cuisine, including

The Springfield inter-change dominates theskyline in the study area.


Chinese, Mexican, Afghan, Vietnamese, Thai, andIndian eateries.

Springfield’s emblematic destination point is theSpringfield Mall, a large indoor shopping mall. Itis typical of American shopping malls designedand built in the 1970s and remodeled periodically.The mall has a variety of stores, along with sev-eral anchors, such as Macy’s and JC Penney, twosets of multiplex movie theaters, and a food court.Springfield Mall is particularly popular with teen-agers and the local Hispanic community. In recentyears, the mall has fallen behind other area mallsin aesthetics and, to some degree, reputation.

The AssignmentThe ULI panel met in Springfield for five days toaddress a series of questions and concerns posedby Fairfax County. Two recent proposals to rede-velop the older parts of Springfield have emerged.The first is the high-rise mixed-use developmentcalled Midtown Springfield that fronts on I-95generally on the location of the existing Spring-field Tower and Holiday Inn. The second is therenovation and rebuilding of the Springfield Mallas a mixed-use lifestyle center. Although the panelencourages most elements of KSI’s MidtownSpringfield development and the redevelopmentof the Springfield Mall by Vornado, other potentialeconomic drivers—such as the General ServicesAdministration (GSA) site and Base Realignmentand Closure (BRAC) proposal associated with the

Fort Belvoir Engineer Proving Ground (EPG)—are less certain and required the panel to makevarious assumptions based on best available infor-mation. The panel’s analysis makes clear thatSpringfield needs a serious planning effort andconcentrated attention from the Board of Super-visors if it is to reach its full economic, commu-nity, and civic potential.

The panel sees the Springfield redevelopmentarea as two distinct zones: a regional center and atown center. The regional center is located east ofI-95. Its large blocks of land are owned by a fewprimarily institutional owners and include theshopping mall, office buildings, auto dealers, andhotels, as well as big-box retail, multifamily hous-ing, and entertainment uses. The area’s draw isregional in nature with patrons desiring goods andservices available from national chains, big boxes,and large entertainment venues.

The town center is the west side of I-95, located in and around the community shopping area ofSpringfield. This area draws patrons from theimmediate neighborhood and surrounding commu-nity for local goods and services. The large and di-verse ethnic aspect of its shops, food, and restau-rants is perhaps its greatest untapped strength.Because the area is characterized by relativelysmall parcels owned by a large number of individ-uals, it will not emerge from its chrysalis all atonce, but rather it will evolve over time through aseries of projects. The panel sees this area emerg-

Existing retail in down-town Springfield includesmany ethnic businesses.


retailing—mixing these vibrant ethnic restaurants,food, and specialty stores with traditional neigh-borhood retailing and personal services. The panelbelieves that the growing ethnic diversity pre-sents a special opportunity to create a distinctivefood-based marketplace, similar to that of Cham-blee, Georgia, that would attract customers fromthe local area and ultimately become an excep-tional regional draw.

ing as a traditional town center that becomes theheart and soul of the Springfield community.

The panel believes that Springfield has the poten-tial to reinvent itself as a distinct place within theWashington metropolitan area and as one of thearea’s most affordable and desirable close-in com-munities. Springfield is experiencing an influx of ahigher-income, ethnically diverse population ofeast and west Asian and South American immi-grants. As the population mix has changed, so toohas the nature of neighborhood and community

Springfield Plaza providescommuter parking forhundreds of cars.


The market potential for the Springfield areais strong. The panel took note of the basicmarket conditions in northern Virginia, com-pared the Springfield area to similar areas

in the region, and has identified some of the trendsthat should be leveraged to realize the economicrebirth of the area.

Regional ContextWith the completion of the massive reconstructionand expansion of the I-95/495 interchange project,Springfield is receiving new interest from residentsseeking a shorter commute into Arlington and theDistrict of Columbia, office users with governmentcontracts, and commercial tenants wanting to servethe increasing number of military and Departmentof Defense clients based at Fort Belvoir. In thepast decade, Springfield was not prepared to takeadvantage of these emerging business trends, soretail and office customers went elsewhere in themetropolitan area. At that time, Springfield lackedgood road access, available office space, and prox-imity to clients. These circumstances have changedrecently, and the panel believes that the Spring-field area is poised to capture much of the southFairfax market.

The study area consists of approximately 586 acrescharacterized primarily by industrial and retailland use. Approximately 18 percent of the totalland area is vacant.

The study area has been described by FairfaxCounty generally as separate areas:

• Springfield Community Business Center (CBC);

• Franconia/Springfield Transit Station; and

• Engineer Proving Ground.

Community Business CenterThe Springfield CBC is located in the northwestquadrant of the study area, east and west of I-95,

covering approximately 185 acres. This area is en-visioned as serving both the town and regionalcenters within Springfield and comprises threesubareas: North Old Keene Mill area, South OldKeene Mill area, and North Old Franconia area lo-cated east of the CBC.

North Old Keene Mill. This area has approximately110 acres and is situated in the northwest sectionof the CBC, north of Old Keene Mill Road. Ap-proximately 1.4 million square feet of commercialspace currently exists in this area, which is bestdescribed as older surface-parked shopping cen-ters, stand-alone banks, restaurants, gardenapartments, and older office buildings. TheSpringdale/Richard Byrd Library is also locatedin this area. The development firm KSI is plan-ning 1.24 million square feet of mixed-use develop-ment on nine acres, with 968,000 square feet ofresidential space, or about 800 apartment/condo-minium units; 87,000 square feet of retail; 40,000square feet of office; a 160-room full-service hotel;and 6,000 square feet of civic uses. (For the pur-poses of this panel report, the ULI panel desig-nated this area as the Northwest Quadrant.)

South Old Keene Mill. This area has approximately60 acres and lies to the south of Old Keene MillRoad along both sides of Backlick Road andAmherst Avenue. The area has approximately660,000 square feet of older retail and commercialspace, much of which is automotive related. Thisarea was the most heavily affected by wideningand realignment of Old Keene Mill Road, whichisolated access to the Springfield Plaza and BlandAvenue retail area. Fairfax County is consideringa 1,000-car parking garage at Amherst and OldKeene Mill to replace leased surfaced lots. (TheULI panel designated this area as the SouthwestQuadrant.)

North Old Franconia. This is the smallest area,with only 15 acres. This quadrant is located westof I-95 between Commercial and Franconia roads

Market Potential


and the northbound I-95 on-ramps. The area hasapproximately 440,000 square feet of commercialspace characterized by hotels, a new banquet fa-cility, and older single office and retail uses. (TheULI panel designated this area as the NortheastQuadrant.)

Franconia/Springfield Transit Station The transit station is divided into the followingtwo distinct areas.

North Transit Station Area. This site is in the geo-graphic center of the Springfield Commercial Re-vitalization District at the intersection of FrontierDrive and Franconia Road. Primarily occupied bySpringfield Mall, the area has numerous big-boxtenants, including Home Depot, Barnes & Noble,Circuit City, and Bed Bath & Beyond. The mall isslated for a major renovation, repositioning, andthe addition of a lifestyle center, offices, residentialuses, and a hotel by its new owner, Vornado Re-alty Trust, a multibillion-dollar real estate invest-ment trust. Principally lifestyle oriented, 500,000square feet of new retail space will increase the

present mall size to 2 million square feet. Plansalso call for 1 million square feet of office space intowers on the edges of the mall; 2.8 million squarefeet, or 2,400 units, of mid- to high-rise residentialapartments and condominiums; and a new 300-room, full-service hotel. When complete, the totalfootage at the mall site will be approximately 4.58million square feet. (The ULI panel designatedthis area as the Southeast Quadrant.)

South Transit Station Area. This site is owned andprimarily occupied by the General Services Admin-istration (GSA) with a small industrial park andmid-rise multifamily housing on the fringes. Fair-fax County’s Comprehensive Plan programs thisarea to accommodate a mix of land uses that, ifbuilt, would total approximately 1.3 million squarefeet allocated as follows: 1.1 million square feet forresearch/industrial uses, 160,000 square feet forhotel/conference center uses, 30,000 square feetfor office uses, and 10,000 square feet for retail.Other options include an ideal site for a medical-related use. GSA has been reluctant to relocate

495

95

395

644

617

Old Keene Mill Road

Springfield Mall

EPG Site

GSASite

Franconia Road

Franconia-Springfield Parkway B

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Northwest

Southwest

Northeast

Southeast

Quadrant map.


its facilities to another site, which makes the time-line for eventual redevelopment of this site un-known. (The ULI panel designated this area asthe GSA site.)

Engineer Proving GroundThe EPG is separated from the preceding areasand is situated to the east of the Newington Road/I-95 interchange. This facility is approximately800 acres and is planned to accommodate approxi-mately 6.1 million square feet, of which 3.5 millionsquare feet is planned for office use. All develop-ment on site, if it occurred, would be strictly forgovernment use and most likely self-contained.The panel felt that the topography and access is-sues would significantly limit the ability to useportions of the site for new buildings. Completionof the Fairfax County Parkway by 2011 was alsoquestioned by the panel, but again, little informa-tion was available from the army and its consul-tants at the time this panel was conducted.

What is important to understand is that the GSAsite and the EPG account for approximately two-thirds of the gross potential development of thetotal study area. The rest of the potential develop-ment is to the north in the town and regional cen-ters. Because the county does not control the na-ture or the timing of the development of the GSAand EPG sites, the panel recommends that thecounty seek a federal partnership to ensure thatthe infrastructure to accommodate the eventualdevelopment of these sites is in place.

Competitive ConditionsThe study area’s competitive market area—thearea in which similar areas compete against othermarket areas—is defined as the Southeast FairfaxCounty market.

Demand in Springfield already exists. It is strongand growing stronger. No question exists thatSpringfield can support higher-quality and morespecialized uses. According to the Fairfax CountyTax Increment Financing (TIF) Study, Springfieldis one of the most affordable areas within one ofthe wealthiest counties in the nation. Populationof the study area is not currently a reliable predic-tor, because virtually everyone who uses thestudy area’s retail and other services resides out-

side its boundaries. Only 1,800 persons, or 680households, live within the study area, with an av-erage household income of $76,000. Ethnically,these households are approximately 50 percentwhite, 14 percent African American, 22 percentAsian, and 14 percent Hispanic.

The demographics of the immediate area indicatethat demand is strong and income is growing.With the anticipated growth in population result-ing from BRAC, incomes will continue to improve.This growth will place pressure on the older hous-ing stock, likely increase pricing over time, andwill be a driver for increasing multifamily housingunits in the centers and fringes of the new towncenters.

Information provided to the panel on FairfaxCounty property assessments indicates thatSpringfield Mall declined by 5.5 percent in as-sessed value between 2000 and 2005. The sameinformation also indicated that assessments forneighborhood and community retail and serviceuses within the study area declined, but by 10.8percent, nearly double the decline of the mall overthe same period. The study indicates that Spring-field Mall is the county’s second-largest regionalmall in terms of revenues, although assessed prop-erty values were below market for comparable re-gional malls (Figure 1).

The study also noted that the average value persquare foot of in-line retail space at SpringfieldMall does not command rental rates comparable toother Fairfax regional malls. The per foot value ofSpringfield Mall is $77.47, or 33 percent less thanthe average of three comparable malls in FairfaxCounty (Figure 2).

Figure 1Comparable Mall Property Values

Assessed Value/Square Foot Office Retail

Springfield $128 $173

Tyson’s Corner $185 $289

Source: Fairfax County Department of Tax Administration,ULI Panel Briefing Book.


Barriers to entry for new regional malls and shop-ping centers are extremely high in the metropoli-tan area and have created a significant opportu-nity for redevelopment of the Springfield Mall bya well-capitalized owner with vision and experi-ence. By leveraging off the adjacent power cen-ters, offices, hotels, and residential areas andadding additional density, activities, and marketsegments, the mall’s new owners can catalyze thecreation of a highly definable and visible regionalcenter. Springfield Mall is not only well located atthe intersection of 500,000 daily passing vehicles,but also it can become the shopping locus for thesurrounding residents.

Competitive large-scale shopping, office parks,and mixed-use centers are considered the primarycompetition to Springfield as a whole. Springfieldenjoys the advantage of its location at the conflu-ence of major arterials, Metro, and regional trainand bus lines. Once considered “far out,” its loca-tion is now “close in.” Although Springfield hassignificant competition from Tyson’s Corner, theDulles area, and even communities farther away,it has benefited from the growth of new centers tothe south and east. Significant new competition isplanned in the metropolitan area (Figure 3).

The panel considers that the best way to capturethe growing affluent market and change the per-ception of Springfield is to take what had beenseen as problems and turn them into opportuni-ties. The half-million cars that daily pass the studyarea are potential patrons. The large and diverseethnic population presents an opportunity to cre-ate a shopping district that celebrates and concen-trates these commercial assets into a “marketplace”that is locally and regionally identifiable; however,the devil is in the details of implementation.

Figure 2Comparable Retail Rental Rates

Rent per Mall Square Foot

Springfield Mall $157.48

Tyson’s Corner Center $215.69

Fair Oaks Mall $200.17

Tyson’s Corner $289.00

Average without Springfield $234.95

Source: Fairfax County Department of Tax Administration, ULI Panel Briefing Book.

Figure 3New Mixed-Use Centers in the Washington, D.C., Area

Main Mixed Residential Retail Office HotelName Acres Street Use (Units) (Square Feet) (Square Feet) Rooms

Madison Crescent 43 yes yes 200 124,000 250,000 120

Potomac Center 95 yes yes 433 650,000 200,000

Lansdowne Town Center 24 yes yes 207 188,000 700,000

Falls Church 22 yes yes 400 99,000 200,000

Midtown Springfield 9 yes yes 800 87,000 40,000 160

Source: City Center Update, City of Falls Church, Virginia, September 2005, and Costar Comps Professional, Spring 2006.

Currently, Springfield exists as a place-namebut not as a place. It is unincorporated andhas no recognizable boundaries, no compel-ling history, and little authenticity.

Creating a Sense of PlacePerhaps the most important element to create animage that defines Springfield in the minds of pa-trons and the region at large will be a strong iden-tity that brands Springfield as a special place inthe region. Most northern Virginia communitiesgenerally have a similar appearance, feature thesame design elements, and use the same materi-als. Distinct architectural images are necessary todifferentiate the regional center from the towncenter. Springfield should, as one of its organizingprinciples, create its identity with strong visualiconography, which the panel calls “by design andwith design.” The panel encourages the use of newarchitectural icons and styles, especially for devel-opment in the regional center east of I-95. Use ofmore “historical” themes, traditional spatial char-acteristics, and materials should be reserved tocreate the form for the town center. Scale, density,and form should be the harmonizing elements withthe surrounding residential areas.

Access plays a key role in both the regional andthe town centers. The regional center will beaccessed primarily from regional highways andtransit, whereas the town center will be primarilyaccessed from surrounding neighborhoods by au-tomobiles, bikes, and pedestrians. Pedestrianshave only one opportunity to cross I-95—on Com-merce at the center of Springfield. Pedestrian ac-cess, while a goal, should be looked upon as prac-tical only within each center rather than betweenthem. After arrival at either center, a strongpedestrian orientation is essential to reinforce thelook and feel of being in special people places. Al-though most patrons to both centers will likelyarrive by car, they will park in garages, on the

street, or in lots, and then walk. In either centerthey should be able to stroll down decoratedstreets and sidewalks laced with benches, distinc-tive banners, kiosks, artworks of all kinds, gather-ing places with fountains and water features (the“springs” of Springfield), and trees—the finedetails, spatial quality, and amenities that makeplaces and create distinct identities. The towncenter should have a town square as its centralgathering place for civic celebrations, festivals,and programmed events that enliven it and re-inforce the sense of Springfield as a distinctiveenvironment.

To be successful as retail locations, each centermust supply goods and services that are distinctfrom those the other offers. The regional centershould be limited to primarily regional-destinationgoods, services, and entertainment typically avail-able only from national retailers and service pro-viders. In contrast, the town center should focusits offerings on neighborhood and community goodsand services typically available only from indepen-dent and small mom-and-pop retailers, ethnic foodestablishments, and personal service providers.

The panel sees a particular opportunity for Spring-field to celebrate its diversity by concentrating itsmany ethnic restaurants, food stores, and importedspecialty goods in the town center. Restaurantsand food markets should feature the multiethniccuisines, styles, groceries, and specialty craftsand goods of the local populace. Sidewalk cafésand coffee and tea shops as well as quiet bars,galleries showcasing multiethnic arts and crafts,clothing boutiques, and specialty uses—as wellas hardware stores, plant stores and nurseries,cleaners, and banks that support the neighbor-hood and community—should line the streets.Such a concentration of uses would be similarto a “Chinatown.”

One of the best examples the panel found toillustrate this idea was the transformation of


Planning and Design


Chamblee, Georgia. That community was typifiedby several strip centers that failed after a largeshift in the ethnic makeup of the area. Turning aproblem into an opportunity, strip centers evolvedinto a dense concentration of Asian restaurants,food markets, greengrocers, specialty goods, andcrafts. Additional information, including strate-gies, demographic trends, and marketing, can beobtained from the ULI InfoPacket Series titledEthnic Retail (No. 3002, July 2005).

Both centers must contain a common theme ofwater to reinforce Springfield’s image of “springs,”for which the original community was named. Thisimagery should also be used in all communications.Fountains and water features should be integralto pedestrian environments and visible to cars onlocal streets, the interstate, and public transit. Inaddition to incorporating water as art, Springfieldshould be known as the only area that integrateslarge-scale public art in high-density developmentthroughout both publicly and privately developedspaces. Art in all its forms engages residents andvisitors and is an icon of Springfield that lays thefoundation of the community as a place that cher-ishes a high-quality lifestyle of beauty and ideas.

A four-star conference center or perhaps a civiccenter needs to be woven into the communityfabric. Such a use will stimulate and support re-development of the business environment tohigher-quality offices and hotels that will enable

Springfield to become known as a regional place ofexcellence in which to do business and to host cul-tural gatherings, exhibits, and activities. The con-ference center should not compete with existingbusinesses but cater to corporate, civic, and cul-tural functions that are communitywide and re-gional in nature. More information about this ap-proach is included in the Implementation sectionof this report.

Both the town and regional centers should containa variety of for-sale and rental residential products,from upscale condominiums for empty nesters tolofts for young professionals, to multifloor apart-ments and townhomes that appeal to all segmentsof the local and regional market. Ground-levelcommercial space with living space above will ap-peal to those seeking active urban lifestyles. Be-cause the population is aging, accommodation ofseniors in immediate proximity to the centersshould be planned. The centers should engage andembrace people of all cultures, heritages, and agesto be vital and to enjoy as gathering places.

If well planned, designed, and executed with de-tail and high quality, the dynamic mix of uses andactivities can create a heart and soul within anarea that historically had no “there, there.” All ofthis change will take time and require the deter-mined cooperation of government and business.Both leadership and certitude that governmentwill get it done in a quick, cooperative mannerthat transcends political administrations are es-sential. With both the public and private sectorsinvesting millions of dollars in building and infra-structure, both sectors should look at the revital-ization as a marriage to which each brings one-halfof the relationship. Both sectors need to be com-mitted to investing in the relationship so that itworks well and lasts a long time. The panel hopesFairfax County will take a proactive lead withgenerous investment in time, land assembly, andinfrastructure and a new form-based approach tozoning that achieves excellence with all develop-ment partners by design and with design.

Overview and ContextAlthough community involvement exists withsome revitalization efforts, the panel’s opinion is

Panelists Don Bauer andRoss Tilghman on thetour.


that a civic vacuum remains, with little leadership,organization, and participation from either resi-dents or merchants. From a spatial perspective,the development is fragmented, with disparateuses and property ownership as well as incom-plete and incoherent circulation patterns. Devel-opment has no shared architectural vocabularyor meaningful skyline and is characterized by aprevalence of hard surfaces and a complete lackof visible natural areas and other communityamenities, such as water features. Thus, attemptsto beautify and revitalize the “downtown” withsuch things as pavers, lighting, and signage, al-though well intentioned, still result in an areathat continues to be featureless.

To redress these problems, the panel recommendschanges that can unify the area and create a dis-tinct and attractive community. These changes in-clude recommendations on governmental struc-ture, leadership and responsibility, infrastructure,branding and identity, and plan revisions.

Development ObjectivesThe panel thinks the county has correctly identi-fied the challenges facing this area. The objec-tives that follow are steps needed to addressthose challenges.

• Unify the area.

• Create a distinct and attractive community.

• Develop coherent community circulation.

Development Principles and GuidelinesThe planning proposals (see Plan Essentials) ad-dress how to develop continuity in circulation andland use throughout the study area. Remainingobjectives are to unify the area and create an at-tractive community environment.

Elements that can be used to create a distinctidentity and unify the disparate properties tocreate a “sense of place” include (a) branding,(b) landscaping, (c) wayfinding, (d) visual relation-ships, (e) guidelines and controls, (f) public spacesand amenities, (g) pedestrian and nonvehicularcirculation, and (h) infrastructure.

BrandingCommercial product branding has evolved overthe last 200 years to a fine art. Everyone knowsthe Coca-Cola or Nike brand. Community brand-ing is analogous to product branding as a processof creating the perception in the minds of the pub-lic that a product, or in this case the community, isthe best to serve a specific need and desires of anindividual or group. The goal is to evoke instantrecognition of the benefits of the community inthe public eye.

The branding process must differentiate Spring-field from every other retail concentration in thearea. Principles of branding include establishingand identifying the qualities of the communityusing an “umbrella” concept. The umbrella con-cept establishes the overall feel and recognitionwithin a master identity system, but it often in-cludes districts that are distinct and individualwhile continuing to reinforce the overall identity.

Each shopping neighborhood should be distinctand allow shoppers to determine where they arebut bind them back to the overall theme. Signage,public art, advertising, wayfinding, and publicopen space should all relate to the umbrella theme.

Branding is a specialized and complicated process.It cannot be done on a shoestring budget by thelowest bidder in a field of local advertising com-panies. It requires intense research, artistic apti-tude, and sustainable funding. It also needs buy-infrom the community that is going to use it in thelong term. The panel suggests that the county re-search successful branding exercises and then ini-tiate and implement the branding developmentprocess.

Landscaping DesignAs noted earlier, the panel saw a complete lack oflandscaping and water features within the studyarea. Also, the paucity of public and private openspace, public art, attractive hardscape, and ap-pealing entry features affected the panel’s spaceperceptions and sense of proportion and scale.The absence of these elements results in a lack ofcongruency and a feeling of emptiness and leavesSpringfield undefined, so that a visitor cannot eas-ily tell if he or she is actually entering or leavingSpringfield. To address this deficiency, the panel

recommends significant physical changes withinthe study area.

Water Features. In addition to encouraging indi-vidual private developers to incorporate foun-tains, ponds, and lakes within their developments,the county should undertake the analysis, plan-ning, and construction of a water features pro-gram for public properties for all of Springfield.These features should include simple fountainsand urban streams or basins but could also includean iconic feature that would draw visitors andhelp establish the branding identity previouslymentioned. By way of example, the panel suggestsa water feature similar to the Crown Fountain inChicago or the Bellagio fountain in Las Vegas.

Public Art. Public art should be combined withthe water feature program as another method ofbuilding identity into Springfield. In numerouscases, municipalities have acquired public artthrough competition processes. All public openspaces and most private open space should includepublic art. Public art could include elements of off-site advertising, but, at a minimum, should be in-cluded in all entryways and other common publicspaces, such as bus stops, crosswalks, and informalgathering areas. The county should enforce stan-dards for lighting, colors, and generalized content,but an arts forum or arts advisory council specificto Springfield should determine and establishstandards.

WayfindingWayfinding is a process during which people mustsolve a variety of problems in architectural andurban spaces that involve both decision making(formulating an action plan) and decision execut-ing (implementing the plan). Wayfinding has spe-


cial meaning for Springfield because the panel be-lieves visitors have great difficulty finding theirway around the study area.

People who find themselves in unfamiliar environ-ments need to know where they actually are in thecomplex, the layout of the complex, and the loca-tion of their destination so they can formulatetheir action plans. En route to their chosen desti-nations, people are helped or hindered by thebuilding’s architecture and signage. The physicalenvironment, including the effect of how usersperceive the wayfinding system, is extremely in-fluential in determining whether someone identi-fies the location positively and therefore returnsor suggests that others visit the location.

Wayfinding is not signage, although signage is animportant part of wayfinding. Wayfinding strate-gies should include identity signage, directionalsignage, vehicular and regulatory signage, bannersystems, boundary markers, pattern character,and maps. Wayfinding also includes a process ofvisual relationships, use of landmarks, and knowl-edge of site organization. The county has an excel-lent opportunity to create a consolidated and con-sistent wayfinding system on both sides of I-95 byencouraging land use applicants and propertyowners to collaborate on a common theme. Futurerevitalization efforts, including the public squareat Springfield Plaza and the redevelopment of theGSA site, can incorporate the same system ofwayfinding.

Guidelines and Controls A fine balance always exists between encouragingand requiring good design. The urban designguidelines for Springfield should include a healthymix of building types, architecture, and signageand streetscape elements. The county should im-mediately undertake a design guideline exercisefor Springfield. One way of implementing thebranding, landscaping, and wayfinding mentionedin previous sections can be through a form-basedcode. Form-based codes are a method of regulat-ing development to achieve a specific urban form.Form-based codes create a predictable publicrealm by controlling primarily physical form, witha lesser focus on land use, through city or countyregulations (see box).

Form-Based Codes

Form-based codes address the relationship between building facades and thepublic realm, the form and mass of buildings in relation to each other, and thescale and types of streets and blocks. The regulations and standards in form-based codes, presented in both diagrams and words, are keyed to a regulatingplan that designates the appropriate form and scale (and, therefore, character)of development rather than distinctions only in land use types. This focus is incontrast to conventional zoning, which addresses the segregation of land usetypes, permissible property uses, and the control of development intensitythrough simple numerical parameters (e.g., FAR, dwellings per acre, heightlimits, setbacks, parking ratios). Not to be confused with design guidelines orgeneral statements of policy, form-based codes are regulatory, not advisory.

Source: Definition of a Form-Based Code, June 27, 2006, Form-Based Codes Institute,www.formbasedcodes.org/definition.html.


Although the county has no zoning control overU.S. government properties, the federal govern-ment (GSA and army) should be encouraged to co-operate with the county on design, particularly atlocations with high visibility, such as the GSA siteand EPG.

Public Spaces and Amenities ProgramA significant piece of the urban and communityfabric that is missing from Springfield is publicopen space. The panel recommends a number ofbasic steps to improve public open space in Spring-field. These not only should be quantitative butalso should include all the qualitative aspects thatmake open space the key factor in improving thesocial intercourse in a community.

First, a town square should be created in theNorthwest Quadrant. This square should be sub-stantial (approximately one to two acres in size)and should be designed as a primary gatheringpoint as well as terminus or bookend of the newstreet connecting Springfield Plaza with the KSIdevelopment. The space must be able to accom-modate events, festivals, and celebrations. Thesquare should be designed to accommodate sus-tained activities and should include such amenitiesas a robust electrical connection system for per-formances and water service for farmers markets,restroom facilities, and a substantial water fea-ture. A centerpiece for the square should include a substantial structure, such as a band shell orbandstand-style gazebo. The square needs to be a“people place.” The adjacent development shouldinclude a relocated and improved library. Usesthat front on the square should be oriented in amanner that reflects the square as a centerpiecefor the quadrant. Finally, new development in thearea should be consistent with the intent of thepublic square as the new center of Springfield.

Additional public spaces should be located in eachof the quadrants, including a substantial connec-tion across Loisdale Road from Springfield Mall.

Pedestrian and Nonvehicular CirculationKey features of a successful pedestrian system arecontinuity, sufficient sidewalk width, throughstreets, safety, and lighting. Where appropriate,separation should be provided between heavytraffic corridors and pedestrian thoroughfares.

Circulation should be used to activate open space,not just as a connection to essential uses. Bike-ways and bike lanes should be part of any new de-velopment, and the new bridge proposed for Back-lick Road should provide convenient connectivitybetween the Northwest and Southwest quad-rants. Specific areas should be designated for bikestorage (including lockers) at transit locations, themall, the town square, and all new private devel-opment within the confines of the study area.

Plan EssentialsOverall strategies for urban design should

• Calm and reroute traffic to create pedestrian-friendly local streets;

• Incorporate public amenities and open spaces;

• Seize opportunities to improve and clarify ve-hicular and pedestrian circulation;

• Create developable land parcels;

• Improve street and pedestrian connections;

• Use tall buildings to create a community skylineidentity;

• Develop landscaping to soften and humanize thearea; and

• Create active streets with community character.

Although each of the five districts in the studyarea will carry its own design criteria, two areasare covered by this panel report.

Northwest QuadrantThe Northwest Quadrant should unite aroundtwo emblematic areas: the KSI Midtown devel-opment and the proposed town square in Spring-field Plaza. The two areas should be connectedby a new main street (currently Bland Avenue),and a new bridge for Backlick Road over KeeneMill Road should be paired with the existingbridge over Amherst Avenue to form a coupletmoving one-way traffic through the core area ofthe quadrant.

The Midtown development should be dense andurban and should transition along a new main


street to the more villagelike town square. The di-viding line between urban and village should bethe Amherst/Backlick couplet road. The scale andstyle of the town square should re-create a villageor old town with abundant green space, water fea-tures, and a connection through the old shoppingcenter area to the Cumberland Avenue area andsingle-family residential area beyond. Usesaround the town square should include 14- to 16-foot-tall ground-floor retail, second-floor office orresidential, and at least one civic use—such as therelocated public library, a band shell/gazebo, or acommunity center. The main street connection tomidtown should include abundant green space,wide sidewalks, and retail uses. KSI’s MidtownSpringfield proposal should include significantstreet-level activity. The panel believes the mainchallenge to creating this new space is the walka-

bility factor across Amherst Avenue and BacklickRoad along Bland Avenue. Finally, Bland Avenueshould be renamed with a more exhilarating andstimulating moniker.

Southeast QuadrantVornado is proposing to reinvent Springfield Mall.Although the panel was impressed with most ofthe development changes proposed by Vornado,more could be done to connect the site with thenearby commercial properties on Loisdale Roadand more could be done on site to make the mallwork better. While the Vornado proposal will actas a catalyst to other properties in the area rede-velop, the county—through its previously men-tioned branding, landscaping, and wayfinding ini-tiative—should strengthen the boundary markersand entranceways with green space and civic art.

Old Keene Mill Road

Town Square

New bridgeover Old Keene Mill Road

Amhe

rst A

venu

e

Back

lick R

oad

MidtownSpringfield

Bla

nd Avenue

Suggested design for theNorthwest Quadrant.


Additionally, a new civic center, or alternatively aconference center, should be considered for the of-fice area across from the mall on Loisdale Road. Acommon complaint of suburban communities isthat residents, schools, and employers often haveto host their events (graduations, tournaments,annual banquets, corporate meetings) outside thecommunity because of lack of appropriate facilitieswithin the community. Most hotels are reluctantto construct meeting facilities that exceed 10,000to 20,000 square feet of such space. Private entre-preneurs are similarly reluctant to offer suchfacilities.

A properly designed and operated communitycivic complex, containing 50,000 to 100,000 squarefeet of space capable of accommodating events at-tended by 6,000 to 8,000 individuals, can be atremendous asset for a community. If the architec-ture is distinguished and if the facility is properlylocated so it is integrated with other public andcommercial facilities, the community complex canbe a source of continuing pride and use to a com-munity. Although it would serve community inter-ests, especially on the weekends, it would also becapable of accommodating a wide variety of busi-ness groups and association meetings. An inter-esting architectural design, with well-conceivedfacilities and access to interesting experiences(town centers, lifestyle retail, and visitor attrac-tions) can be a compelling and sufficient reason for meeting planners to consider holding one- tothree-day meetings in Springfield. These meet-ings offer additional opportunities to showcaseSpringfield in a new and different manner. Thiscommunity complex should be considered in addi-tion and complementary to the existing banquetfacility in the Northeast Quadrant.

The panel believes that such a complex is appro-priate for Springfield. Although costly to con-struct and operate, the concept should be dis-cussed and debated. Such facilities are reemergingas a market niche. Some are being paired with ad-jacent hotels, and cross-management operatingagreements are negotiated for operations of thecomplex.

Lois

dale

Drive

Franconia–Springfield Parkway

Springmall Drive

Franconia Road

Frontier Drive

Springfield Mall

Suggested design for theSoutheast Quadrant.

Office buildings along Loisdale Roadprovide both redevelopment andrehabilitation opportunities.


Transportation is normally a component ofthe planning and design recommendations inmost ULI Advisory Services panel reports.Springfield, however, presents so many sig-

nificant transportation challenges that the panelfelt strongly that transportation should standalone as a major topic.

ContextSpringfield has contributed greatly to improvingregional transportation by accommodating majorhighway and transit facilities. As a result, its resi-dents and businesses benefit from a high level ofaccess to other parts of Fairfax County, northernVirginia, and the District of Columbia. However,the scale of transportation infrastructure over-whelms portions of the local community. As theearly highway crossroads expanded, they con-sumed land used by small-scale commercial devel-opments, severed existing connections betweenneighborhoods, blocked potential connections, andgrew to become the dominant image of Spring-field. Springfield also suffered traffic congestionas it funneled traffic to I-95 on local streets suchas Backlick Road as alternate routes to reach theI-495 Beltway.

Large interchanges, complex ramp systems, highvolumes of traffic, and fragmented streets createsubstantial barriers to movement within the com-munity, especially for pedestrians and bicycles. Al-though Springfield enjoys a high level of transitservice from Metro and Virginia Railway Express(VRE) and their supporting bus routes, the trans-portation barriers complicate access to the Metro-rail station.

Ongoing transportation projects are helping to im-prove highway operations. These in turn will ben-efit local streets. The Springfield interchangeproject, nearing completion, has already improvedtraffic flow on I-95 and has reduced backups on

local streets, such as Loisdale, Franconia, and OldKeene Mill roads. Another forthcoming projectwill connect Franconia/Springfield Parkway to I-95 to and from the north. This connection willallow some traffic now using Franconia/Old KeeneMill and Backlick roads to shift farther south,using I-95 and reducing through traffic in the corecommercial area.

The panel’s transportation specialists agree thatthey would customarily plan a transportation sys-tem to support proposed land uses. Roads, paths,and transit can be quite flexible in adapting tospecific land use requirements. In some cases,however—and Springfield is one of them—abasic transportation network needs to be definedin advance to foster better-quality redevelop-ment. A large percentage of development in Fair-fax County has been fairly low density, involvingnew construction on greenfield sites. However,redevelopment in Springfield will undoubtedly bedenser and more urban because of its location asa transportation hub, market demands, and exist-ing physical and land use constraints. Thus, evenwithout knowing the specific land uses, the countyneeds to create a more efficient and effectivetransportation network.

Springfield has shouldered more than its fair bur-den for the sake of regional transportation. Al-though not without benefit, the regional improve-ments have come at a high cost to building andrebuilding the local community. The panel’s trans-portation recommendations address ways of cap-turing the benefits while also overcoming the im-posed burdens.

The panel made a number of observations con-cerning the existing transportation network inthe study area. Within the study area—with fewexceptions—area streets function as highways,major arterials, or driveways. Little difference ex-ists in terms of speed, design (width, landscaping,and lighting), or volume to distinguish one street

Transportation


from another. Grade-separated and high-volumeroadways create major barriers in the middle ofthe community: I-95 sharply divides the east andwest portions; Franconia Road’s “great wall”separates the north from the middle; and theFranconia/Springfield Parkway seals off the mid-dle from the south (and the Metro station). Pedes-trian walkways are remote, sparse, and intimidat-ing. Many barriers are simply unwalkable. Bicyclepaths and routes do not exist in many key areas.Drivers face many decisions about lane choice inorder to navigate from east to west and from northto south. Discontinuous streets force multiple turns(the Amherst/Backlick transition from one-way totwo-way flow is an example).

On those streets that are continuous, namechanges diminish their continuity (Franconia/OldKeene Mill, or Loisdale/Commerce). This systemcomplicates signage and creates confusion. Withthe exception of the Amherst Bridge, streets,walls, overpasses, and stations are harsh, barren,and unattractive. Given their dominant presence,

they create a poor image. They can and should bebetter.

The panel was fascinated with the commuter“slug” process, a quasi-formal carpool system op-erating throughout most of the Washington, D.C.,area. The slug system allows drivers to take ad-vantage of the HOV lanes by picking up “slugs,”or passengers, in an ad hoc fashion. This processhas been operating successfully in Springfield for

Auto dealerships line theAmherst Avenue corridor.

The Franconia/SpringfieldMetro station is a multi-modal transit center withpassenger rail, Metro,bus, and vanpool service.


more than 30 years. Although the slug concept iswell accepted and effective in encouraging HOVuse within Springfield, the lack of control ofpedestrian movements across arterial streets be-tween official park-ride facilities and unofficialslug pickup sites creates a major safety issue.

The current plan to build a commuter parking fa-cility on the south side of Old Keene Mill Road is avery sound idea that the panel encourages. The“level of service” rankings of the major arterialstreets within the study area, especially in peakperiods, are generally poor—typically E or F. Be-cause major changes in this street network aregenerally physically impossible or difficult toachieve and the study area will become moreurban in the future, the county will have to contin-uously manage this situation to support desirednew development initiatives. The Metrorail sta-tion is the study area’s most important transporta-tion facility/opportunity and its use must be con-tinuously promoted and encouraged.

The growth of the interstate highway network in thestudy area has had serious negative development-related effects over the past decade. However, withthe completion of the Springfield interchange proj-ect, Fairfax County must take maximum advan-tage of the improved operation of the interstatesystem to attract new residents and to marketaggressively the new Springfield brand/image tointerstate users.

The panel evaluated several bridge-crossing op-tions for I-95 to accommodate improved east-westcirculation. The panel concluded that while suchcrossings were not a high priority in the short

term, as the study area develops, the county willneed to revisit this possibility, especially south ofthe Franconia-Springfield Parkway near EPG.Because of the heavy use of the Metrorail systemin peak periods, the Washington MetropolitanArea Transit Authority (WMATA) should seri-ously consider adding more Springfield-relatedcommuter bus service to maximize the areawideadvantages associated with the existing HOV net-work serving the community. The quality of VREcommuter-rail service to and from the study areacould be vastly improved if a dedicated rail right-of-way could be acquired from CSX and propertywas available for a new station site.

Transportation PrinciplesGiven its observations, the panel recommendsthese principles to guide development of thetransportation system:

• Create a hierarchy of streets to serve both localand regional trips, using all modes of travel.

• Increase continuity and connectivity of localstreets.

• Maximize opportunities for HOV and non-auto use.

• Provide signage to improve wayfinding andlocal identity.

• Focus on appropriate services for identifiedtransit markets.

• Improve appearance of transportation facilities(roads and transit)—they can and should be at-tractive features.

Furthermore, Metrorail and VRE service areimportant for residents heading out of, and foremployees heading into, Springfield. Such ser-vice is also important for hotel guests with busi-ness in Washington, D.C., according to local hoteloperators. Metro’s regional experience showsthat in suburban areas such as Springfield, resi-dential land use tends to make the greatest useof transit—more so than offices.

Achieving high levels of rail use among residentsrequires that housing be located within one-half

Commuters crossing adangerous section of OldKeene Mill Road on theirway to the “slug” line.


mile of the station, and preferably within one-quarter mile. Similarly, offices must be locatedwithin a short walk (or shuttle ride) of the sta-tion to achieve 10 percent or more transit use.Pedestrian walks linking nearby developmentwith transit stations should be ample, convenient,and safe. Locations farther away can be expectedto attain lower transit use, assuming reasonablebus connections.

In addition to proximity to transit, paid parking atthe worksite is frequently a major determinant oftransit use. Where parking costs more than tran-sit fares, transit use tends to be high, and whereparking costs less than fares or is free, transit useis low.

Travel Demand from New DevelopmentThe Springfield Mall and Midtown projects pro-posed for Springfield could create 1 million squarefeet of new office space, more than 500,000 squarefeet of new retail, 160 new hotel rooms, and 3,200new housing units. Market opportunities appearstrong for additional mixed-use development. Onthe basis of these projections, the panel recom-mends the following for transportation.

Northwest QuadrantThis quadrant contains several key arterial road-ways, as well as a confusing local roadway networkthat needs to be modified to serve new develop-ments. The recent enhancements to CommerceStreet as part of the Springfield interchange proj-ect will help facilitate the movement of morningpeak traffic to I-495 North from Old Keene Mill/Franconia Road. Commerce Street also provideshigh-quality loop road operation on the northernedge of the quadrant.

The panel’s major recommendation is to build asecond bridge over Old Keene Mill Road on Back-lick Road and for Backlick and Amherst to oper-ate as one-way streets through the commercialarea. Although a one-way system has been a poorsolution in many communities, the panel believesthat the Northwest Quadrant will need additionalstreet capacity to support potential development.Without extra connections, too much demand islikely to be concentrated at one or two intersec-

tions on Amherst, creating even longer backupsthan occur today.

The one-way scheme may provoke controversy inprinciple, but the seriousness of the quadrant’straffic circulation problems warrants its carefulexamination. Accordingly, the panel recommendsthat the county undertake local traffic modeling todetermine potential demands more precisely andto test the recommendations. This model shouldprovide sufficient detail on local streets to providemeaningful results. The recommended “couplet”of one-way bridges would also serve the followingpurposes:

• Increase connectivity between the Northwestand Southwest quadrants;

• Add needed capacity without having to widenstreets;

• Increase continuity on Amherst and Backlick,which are already one-way streets north of thestudy area, eliminating the forced turns atCumberland Ave;

• Reduce turning conflicts and simplify signaltiming—this in turn reduces wait time forpedestrians (e.g., pedestrians often wait morethan two minutes to cross Amherst today); and

• Offer two bike lanes connecting north andsouth.

The estimated cost of this project is $5 million to$6 million in 2006 dollars.

Additionally, the panel recommends a new grid oflocal streets to serve the Northwest Quadrant.These new streets would:

• Better distribute traffic from arterial streets tolocal streets to reach new homes, shops, and of-fices, helping to separate through traffic fromlocal traffic;

• Create enhanced pedestrian circulation;

• Support mixed-use development by creatingmore-accessible vehicular and pedestrianroutes; and


• Enhance transit access by giving shuttle/circu-lator buses greater proximity to the sources ofdemand in homes and offices.

Southwest QuadrantTransportation improvements proposed in theSouthwest Quadrant are similar to those proposedfor the Northwest Quadrant, including continua-tion of the one-way bridge-couplet operation tothe current point of intersection of Amherst Ave-nue and Backlick Road, south of Old Keene MillRoad, and modifications to the local street net-work to improve east-west traffic flows within thequadrant. The major change will require movingthe Springfield United Methodist Church parkinglot from the west side to the east side of the build-ing and purchasing some commercial propertiesalong Amherst Avenue.

In addition, the panel recommends providing theproposed commuter garage on the Circuit Citysite, with applicable access considerations.

Southeast QuadrantThe transportation system enhancements in theSoutheast Quadrant are primarily focused on im-proving the local arterial street system to providemore of a grid pattern and better direct connec-tions between the peripheral areas surroundingSpringfield Mall and the mall. The bulk of the spe-cific roadway improvements should be finalizedas the new mall area is revitalized. However, aspart of this revitalization process, making ade-quate provisions for facilitating improved pedes-trian, bicycle, and shuttle/circulator bus circula-tion is important.

GSA SiteThe transportation-related opportunities associ-ated with this site are directly related to its prox-imity to the Metrorail/VRE facility; however, thecurrent difficulty in accessing the facility from asecurity and environmental perspective limits fu-ture use potential. Hence, the provision of high-quality vehicular (auto/shuttle bus), pedestrian,and bicycle connections to GSA and the Metro

The GSA warehouse isstrategically located adja-cent to the Metro station.


must be given priority. This connection can beprovided primarily by extending Frontier Drivesouth to the Loop Road within the transit facilitysite. This connection, most likely a four-lane di-vided roadway, will have to be designed to prop-erly cross the existing stormwater retention area.In addition, separated pedestrian and bicycle ac-commodations should be provided on this roadwayextension.

As the Frontier Drive extension enters theMetrorail/VRE station area, a short portion ofthe existing roadway will have to be convertedfrom a one-way to a two-way operation; additionalright-of-way appears adequate to accommodate thisenhancement. In addition, a traffic signal will needto be placed at a T-intersection with the Metrorailloop roadway to accommodate left turns to theMetrorail/VRE facility. No Frontier Road tripsshould be routed through this critical Metrorail/VRE internal road system.

The missing section of the planned Loop Road onthe GSA site should be completed as soon as possi-ble. As the proposed site development occurs, thecapacity of this Loop Road will have to be in-creased (probably to four lanes) to accommodatethe resulting increased vehicular traffic.

Engineer Proving Ground When the scale and scope of the EPG program asa result of BRAC is known, the following trans-portation initiatives should be undertaken:

• Completion of Fairfax County Parkway. Cur-rent plans for the design of the remaining two-mile section of the Fairfax County Parkway andproposed interchange(s) with EPG will need tobe revisited to adequately reflect the new esti-mated volumes of vehicles to be generated.These estimates should assume that approxi-mately 15 percent of the employees will usepublic transit. In addition, assuming that thenumber of projected employees will be quitehigh—up to 18,000—at least two entrances toEPG should be provided, one off Backlick Roadand the other directly connected to the park-way. Construction of the remaining parkwaysection should begin as soon as the current envi-

ronmental issues within the parkway right-of-way have been resolved.

• Extension of Metrorail. To maximize the usageof Metrorail by EPG employees, the panel rec-ommends that the Metrorail system be ex-tended south, in the existing railroad right-of-way, to an area adjacent to Fairfax CountyParkway. The inclusion of a parking garage withat least a 5,000-space capacity, which will alsoserve commuters coming from the south andgoing to other locations in the region, would beappropriate. The panel recognizes that thisprocess is a complicated regional project andwill hinge on the final plans proposed by theU.S. Army.

• Shuttle-bus service. The various entities to belocated within the EPG need to develop a pro-gram to collectively provide shuttle-bus servicebetween the new Metrorail station and applica-ble buildings within the EPG.

Areawide Public TransitRecommendationsThe panel makes the following recommendationswith respect to transit.

Short Term: Shuttle/Circulation Bus ServicesCurrently, WMATA, Fairfax County, and theTransportation Association of Greater Springfieldprovide relatively extensive collector and shuttle-bus services within the Springfield study area. Asnew developments are built within the study area,Fairfax County will have to evaluate how theseservices should be modified to better serve newmarkets that will be generated by these develop-ments. At some point, these modifications will re-quire additions to current bus fleets. Hence, ade-quate lead time will be required to make surefunds are available to purchase the necessaryequipment and provide the additional services.

Suggested areawide shuttle/circulation servicesinclude the following:

• Between Southeast Quadrant and Metrorailstation. Within the quadrant, adequate busstops need to be provided to serve mall patronsas well as new office and residential complexes.


A separate shuttle service should be consideredto serve existing and proposed developmentseast of Frontier Road, south of Spring MallRoad, and west of Loisdale Road.

• Between Northwest Quadrant mixed-use facili-ties and the Metrorail station. Service is neededhere primarily during peak rush periods, andbetween the Northwest Quadrant and the mallduring midday periods.

• Between the GSA site and the Metrorail station,using the proposed new Frontier Road exten-sion. In the early years, this service would pri-marily serve the community college and exist-ing residential developments. However, as thedevelopment vision for this GSA site becomesreality, the level of service will need to be in-creased substantially to serve new residentialand office-related markets.

For a circulator bus system to work properly, thesystem should include the following characteristics:

• Short, reliable service headways that matchMetrorail schedules for those shuttles servingthe Metrorail station;

• Smaller vehicles with easy access and that aremore maneuverable than standard transitbuses;

• Free fares;

• Frequent stops;

• Well-maintained vehicles;

• Friendly and polite drivers; and

• No outside advertising on buses.

Because of the unknown nature of the EPG, thispotential market should be continuously evalu-ated by the Fairfax County Department of Trans-portation.

Long Term: Springfield Bus CirculatorTo maximize public transit use to, from, andwithin the Springfield study area and to providepremium circulator bus service, the panel recom-mends that exclusive bus lanes be considered forthe Southeast Quadrant and GSA site street net-works. As a first step, a sketch-level preliminary

design should be developed for this circulator con-cept as part of the Station Area Vision Plan Scopeof Services for the Franconia/Springfield Metro-rail Station recently proposed by WMATA.

To facilitate high-quality service, these circulatorsshould operate in an exclusive right-of-way toavoid being delayed by the extensive surface traf-fic within the study area. The proposed Phase 1circulator alignment would link the Metrorail sta-tion with the Southeast Quadrant, primarily themall. The panel recommends, at a minimum, thatthe circulator must be in the Center Road align-ment. Moreover, the panel strongly recommendsthat no additional commuter parking be providedwithin the Southeast Quadrant as part of the cir-culator concept. The primary objective of the cir-culator is to make this quadrant a major destina-tion attraction for transit users as well as toprovide high-quality access to Metrorail for futurequadrant residents.

The proposed Phase 2 circulator alignment wouldlink the Metrorail station with the GSA site whenthis site achieves a critical mass of residential andoffice development.

At this time, the panel does not envision that de-mand would be sufficient to justify a circulator ex-tension to the Northwest Quadrant. Nevertheless,this situation should be continuously monitored asthe various proposed developments in this quad-rant are completed.

Areawide Roadway RecommendationsThe following areawide roadway enhancementsneed to be initiated as soon as possible to ensureacceptable future levels of service on study arearoadways:

• Commerce Street exit ramp to I-495 North. Thisimprovement is scheduled to be completed bysummer 2006 as part of the Springfield Inter-change project.

• Franconia-Springfield Parkway single-occupancy-vehicle ramps to I-95. Final designfor these ramps has been completed, and whenconstructed, should relieve traffic flows on


north-south arterial streets in the study area—especially Backlick Road.

• Widening of Loisdale Road north of the FairfaxCounty Parkway. As the EPG and south transitstation area sites develop, the two-lane portionof Loisdale Road north of the parkway will needto be widened to four lanes to accommodate in-creased traffic volumes.

• Extension of Frontier Drive south to intersec-tion with Loisdale Road north of the FairfaxCounty Parkway. The alignment of this exten-sion would be parallel to the existing railroadright-of way and may require the acquisition ofadditional right-of-way. However, the proposedsouth transit station area development scenariowill require this new north-south arterial road-way to accommodate projected traffic growth.

• More park-ride facilities. To reduce growingpeak-period traffic volumes in the study area,additional park-ride facilities to serve commuterbuses and car/van pools should be providedwherever possible. The proposed new park-ridefacility on Backlick Road, north of the fire sta-tion, is a good example and should be con-structed as soon as possible.

• Enhanced directional signage. The roadwaynetwork within the study area is very complexand especially confusing to visitors. Hence, thepanel strongly recommends that Fairfax Countyundertake a comprehensive program to designand implement special directional signage, usinga new study area logo, to inform people of de-sired travel paths to major attractions withinthe area.

• Transportation demand management (TDM).Fairfax County needs to continue to give highpriority to an effective TDM program to help

manage the increased traffic volumes that willbe generated by the development initiativesrecommended by the panel.

Areawide Pedestrian/BicycleCirculation RecommendationsAs stated previously, the majority of enhancedpedestrian circulation opportunities are within thevarious development districts. The complex na-ture of the arterial street network and the rela-tively long distances between districts precludean effective areawide pedestrian circulation net-work. Wherever possible, however, high-qualitypedestrian accommodations need to be providedor enhanced between the Metrorail station andthe Southeast Quadrant and the GSA site.

Recommended bicycle network improvements in-clude the following:

• Striping bike lanes on Amherst/Backlick roads(reconfiguration of traffic lanes will create roomfor bike lanes);

• Reviewing opportunities to restripe other arte-rial streets to include bike lanes; and

• Including bike lanes on new arterial streetswherever possible.

The transportation improvements outlined hereare based on the panel’s expertise and the bestavailable information obtained by the panel insummer 2006. The cost of such regional improve-ments should be borne by the federal governmentin conjunction with BRAC actions.

Springfield has the opportunity to signifi-cantly improve its future and to better con-trol planning for its destiny; however, thecounty must first take appropriate steps to

implement a coordinated strategy to achieve thehigh-quality developments that Springfield desires.

Springfield began as a suburban, postwar bed-room community benefiting from its proximity toWashington, D.C., and nearby military and gov-ernmental institutions. Over the years, Spring-field has been significantly affected in a negativemanner by the continued expansion of the Wash-ington metropolitan area and its need for widerthrough roads and highways that serve the contin-uing population growth to the south. Althoughhigh-quality developments are scattered through-out the greater region, the older residential andcommercial developments at the main intersec-tions in Springfield seem to have prevented anysignificant new developments from locating thereand improving the tax base, as well as rejuvenat-ing the community.

Because of its great location with multiple trans-portation options, Springfield is now on the vergeof a development renaissance. How this renewal ismanaged will affect not only the immediate futureof Springfield, but perhaps more important, man-agement of the first major new redevelopmentswill directly affect the type and quality of futuredevelopments. The increasing demand to locate inSpringfield is best demonstrated by the currentinterest in two major redevelopments, the KSIproject and the mall project. To properly addressthe many aspects of this great opportunity, thepanel recommends that Fairfax County initiate:

• A civic strategy of increased leadership, aware-ness, and action;

• A new development policy to capture high-quality developments;

• A visioning process to create a master plan forfuture growth;

• A marketing strategy; and

• A major investment in nonroad public improve-ments such as landscaping, open space creation,public art, and pedestrian connections.

Civic Leadership IssuesCivic leadership happens in a variety of ways, butit often revolves around one entity that can act asthe primary advocate for the community. The civicleadership for Springfield should be an active andvisible organization that can use its influence topersuade both the private and public sectors to co-operate in a common plan for the rebirth of thecommunity.

Create a Dedicated Community GovernanceStructureOver the course of the interview and information-gathering process, the panel became aware thatno organization or full-time staff is dedicated tothe development and redevelopment of theSpringfield community. Although any number ofagencies, organizations, and individuals are in-volved in the affairs of Springfield, it is not thepriority of any one group or person.

Springfield is not an incorporated city, and as onlyone modest-sized bedroom community of manywithin Fairfax County, the area is hindered by thelack of a sense of local “ownership” and the result-ing civic pride commonly found in other similar-sized communities. In terms of both public andprivate ownership, well-established leadershipand “city elders” solely focused on the bettermentof Springfield are clearly lacking. No mayor, nostaff, and no major private or corporate benefac-tors are in place to constantly focus on the issuesof improving Springfield. This situation needs to change.


Implementation


The absence of a local government entity, with amayor and city council and the associated localservices, such as libraries, parks and recreation,police, fire protection, planning and zoning, build-ing inspection, convention and visitors bureau,and so on, has created a clear void of community-based organizations and citizen volunteers. Theusual mix of advisory boards supporting parks, li-braries, convention and visitors bureau, planning,and even school board is simply not available. Par-ticipation on such boards and committees allows acommunity to benefit from the input of a broadbase of community leaders and build a solid baseof individuals dedicated to the interests of thelocal community. Essentially, these community or-ganizations are a training ground for future lead-ers and community advocates and a communitysuffers a great void if they do not exist at all. As aconsequence, a local area is left to rely on ad hoccommunity initiatives and a variety of nonap-pointed and sometimes nonsanctioned individualsto assume the mantle of leadership. The results ofsuch an environment are at best uneven and occa-sionally problematic.

The panel recognizes the difficulty of addressingthis sensitive issue of civic pride and leadershipand intends to focus on the future and the positivebenefits these solutions will bring instead of re-flecting on or guessing why it occurred. The panelunderstands incorporation as a city, and the re-sulting increased taxes, is not a favorable sce-nario, especially because the area is already a“donor” community, paying in more taxes than arereturned for community improvements. Althoughincorporation as a city typically generates numer-ous leadership opportunities and civic pride, otherways exist to foster leadership in Springfield thatwill hasten and facilitate improved economic de-velopment.

The panel encourages Fairfax County to givesome careful consideration to this problem. Sev-eral of the recommendations in the panel’s reportaddress aspects of the issue. Perhaps the imple-mentation of each of them will, in the aggregate,resolve the matter. (Community Development Au-thorities, or CDAs, however, are typically not ex-pected to be the vehicle that provides overall com-munity direction and governance.)

Implement a Community Action Plan to PromoteCivic PrideCivic pride for the citizens of Springfield in gen-eral can be improved by having local civic groupsand commercial organizations implement a seriesof relatively simple policies and programs, includ-ing the following:

• Rediscover Springfield’s history and celebrateits past. Do this often and consistently (atSpringfield Days, school initiatives, merchantcontests, and special events).

• Identify a logo or symbol that reflects Spring-field. Use it often and everywhere.

• Nurture and recognize citizen benefactors forsupport of civic projects. Seek out new projectsfor civic improvement annually.

• Create common communitywide improve-ments. These could include a flower box pro-gram for commercial shop windows and facadeimprovement programs. (The Interservice ClubCouncil may coordinate new ideas.)

• Establish a local, effective programming planto support special events. In addition to Spring-field Days, consider adding special events suchas a July 4 celebration and fireworks, ChristmasParade, Cinco de Mayo celebration, high schoolgraduations, and a series of special eventsunique to Springfield.

• Establish performance guidelines and reviewfor new improvements. This will create a senseof pride in new developments. These improve-ments could include attractive, iconic architec-tural design on high-rise buildings; fountainsplaced throughout the redevelopment area; uni-form “cool” lighting standards; specially de-signed transit and maintenance vehicles; andimproved “welcome” monument and signage.

• Develop civic facilities that inspire citizens’sense of pride. Such facilities could include aniconic water feature to reflect “SPRINGfield” ina highly visible location, a new library with out-standing architectural attraction, or a new civicbuilding with special architectural features visi-ble to all.


An appropriate development initiative for Spring-field will capture its share of the future waves ofdevelopment that spread out from Washingtonand that have often passed over or around Spring-field in the past. Many redevelopment possibilitiesexist because of the older style of developmentthat makes up a large part of the central district.Aging strip centers close to major intersectionshave created seas of asphalt that have muchhigher and better uses today. Springfield shouldenact a development plan to implement a bestpractices policy so it can now capture cutting-edgedevelopments that embody the best planning andarchitectural ideas. If implemented properly, thiscivic-minded focus will help improve Springfieldto a new level of desirability, well ahead of its sis-ter communities in the area, and revitalize thecommunity as well as preserve and improve prop-erty values.

Consider Appropriate Corporate Structure An organizational structure that would appear es-pecially appropriate is a Community DevelopmentAuthority. The entity would most likely be fundedthrough the CDA vehicle. Under Virginia law,legal authority exists for such an entity, andprecedent exists within the state for using thatauthority. Guidelines for forming such an entityare clearly outlined within the legislation. A CDAis an independent legal entity with a separatelyconstituted board of directors and a dedicatedfunding source.

The panel has been advised that most of the bene-fits of a tax increment financing arrangement canbe achieved through a CDA, while avoiding someof the limitations of a TIF. Most notably, a CDAcan issue debt that does not become a full-faith-and-credit obligation of the issuing government,therefore not reducing general government debtcapacity. The panel was further advised that thebond market is increasingly comfortable with CDAbonds, thus reducing the cost of issuance and therecurring cost caused by interest rate differentialsbetween such bonds and general obligation debt.Moreover, the CDA is apparently capable of con-structing programs of work and terms and condi-tions of financing and repayment that are flexibleand adapted to the specific needs of the project.

Establish a “Leadership Springfield” Program In addition, the panel recommends Springfieldconsider implementing a special program designedspecifically to mold future leaders. Given the ap-parent absence of leadership development struc-tures within the Springfield community, anothertype of community-based organization may be re-quired to directly address leadership develop-ment. A common program seen in many commu-nities is a leadership orientation program. It iscommonly sponsored by the local chamber of com-merce, but not necessarily. Emerging leaderswithin the community are invited to participate ina yearlong series of meetings and events that in-clude sessions with the county executives and pro-gram directors, discussions with corporate execu-tives whose firms have a presence in the localcommunity, meetings with real estate developersand bankers investing in the local area, and orien-tation sessions with local arts and cultural organi-zations and local advocacy groups. In the currentinstance, specific sessions with key military andgovernment agencies with a major presence in thelocal area would be included.

The mere fact that the panel is suggesting a Lead-ership Springfield program is instructive. Giventhe absence of a local city government structurethat organically allows local leadership to emerge,such a program takes on greater importance.

Economic Development StrategyAs an unfortunate consequence of the inherentstructure of local governance in Virginia, limitedcounty and state resources for community im-provement are spread thin over a large and grow-ing area, perhaps favoring other communities withhigher profiles than Springfield’s. Fairfax Countyprovides caring politicians and concerned staffwho understandably must spend their time and ef-fort in many other places. Unintentionally, Spring-field has missed opportunities in the past to betterposition itself to take advantage of various plan-ning and development opportunities. The panelrecommends the establishment of a new commu-nity development strategy focused specifically onSpringfield with a qualified individual to lead thisnew initiative.


A properly constituted entity, with a good boardof directors and proper funding, that has a goodlocal government contractual arrangement withFairfax County, is most likely to provide a devel-opment management platform that can be sus-tained through the critical early years of the initiative.

Without regard to the actual amount of projectfunds that would be administered by the CDA, theindependent legal status of the entity will proveuseful to the board and the development directorin addressing program stakeholders, including thecounty, the private developers, the local propertyowners, and the local area residents. Clarity ofpurpose and specification of distinct geographicboundaries will make clear the mission of the en-tity and the subjects it can appropriately address.

The CDA will become an obvious and easily acces-sible forum for the development community toseek out in regard to Springfield developmentmatters. Because of the current local leadershipvacuum, the CDA may need to assume a promi-nent role in leadership development.

In addition, the CDA might need to serve as the or-ganization vehicle through which a true community-based visioning process is undertaken and the re-sults implemented. Again, given the absence oflocal community governance structures, the needfor developing a clear and contemporary vision forSpringfield is immediate.

The CDA should approach the development op-portunities in Springfield from the perspective ofa master developer. In other words, the entityshould evaluate the specific development oppor-tunities associated with various areas of the localmarket, such as the Northwest Quadrant, theSpringfield Mall area, the GSA site, and the EPG.The CDA should approach individual developerswho possess the background and qualificationsneeded and establish ongoing relationships to gen-erate awareness, interest, and ultimate invest-ment in these areas. The economic incentives andother inducements the CDA has available (public/private projects, direct development funding,grants) should be presented to these groups andcontinually updated and modified to address thechanging situation within the marketplace.

Funds from the CDA should be geared towardone specific improvement. These improvementsinclude the new bridge over Old Keene Mill Road;the new Town Square and the supporting pedes-trian system; and the landscape, hardscape, andwayfinding systems to link the revitalizationstogether.

Begin a Visioning Process to Create a Master Plan As observed repeatedly, Springfield has a partic-ular history mired by an overgrowth of roads, butit may soon reemerge with the fulfillment of pro-posed projects and the potential for many otherhigh-quality new developments. Visioning thefuture and creating a detailed master plan arenecessary.

No open greenfields are available near the trans-portation hubs—where new development wantsto locate—to accommodate free-flowing mega-developments. These areas have long been de-veloped, and the general vision now is entirely onredevelopment of older areas. The panel under-stands Springfield’s often-subdivided landscapehas created the necessity for potential developersto spend years trying to accumulate the sizabletract that a major development requires today.Developers must plan a large endeavor to justifythe time, trouble, and expense of working throughthese obstacles. The land must be accumulated atextremely high costs, plus holding costs, and therisks taken are without any certainty that zoning,proffering, and permitting will allow for an eco-nomically successful project. And all this prepara-tion time and expense is in addition to the veryreal market risks of another 9/11, an economicdownturn, and the potential of general overbuild-ing in this market area.

A sense of urgency should prevail. Much has beenwritten lately of the fall of the condominium mar-ket, and office demand is weakening nationwide.Remaining an older bedroom community was notthe desire of anyone interviewed. Nor did thepanel find additional big-box retail as the main de-sire of the people it interviewed. Mixed-use devel-opments were often mentioned as highly desirableand seem to be the product of choice of those in-terviewed, and the panel fully concurs. The issueof small available parcel size and lack of inventory


emerges as a significant impediment to high-qualitymixed-use projects. Such projects typically needseveral acres of land to create the critical massand scale that justifies a decision to begin con-struction. To help create the greatest potential forattracting these desired projects, the panel recom-mends Springfield consider revisiting its existingredevelopment plan with the objective of creatingmore fertile ground for sizable mixed-use projectsto locate in the areas most beneficial to redevelop-ing Springfield.

The community must come together as a whole to decide and agree on its common vision for thefuture, and then those concepts can be accuratelyreflected in the master plan. The visioning pro-cess must be well publicized and all-inclusive.After everyone has had an opportunity to under-stand the process and been afforded the chance to be heard in this visioning process, then the mas-ter plan can emerge to reflect the desires of thecommunity.

The panel wishes to emphasize that althoughmixed-use development would be its professionalrecommendation, this decision lies entirely withinthe purview of the local community residents andtheir elected officials. It is their community andtheir decision alone. After the panel’s interviewswith more than 80 people, the panel has proceededon the basis that high-quality mixed-use develop-ments are desirable in Springfield, and its proposedmaster plan generally reflects that assumption.

This special community has special needs. With agood master plan to guide it and the appropriateprofessionals to assist it, Springfield has thechance literally to shape its own future. It willneed to be bold in adhering to its plan. If it decidesto work toward attracting mixed-use projects, as-sembling underused properties to create a mar-ketable site will require strong leadership. A rede-velopment plan in any built-out community isexpected to encounter some tough choices, andpressing forward may be hard at times. Often thedesirability and success of the finished develop-ment is in direct proportion to the difficulty of theplanning preparation beforehand. The panel en-courages Springfield to hang tough in the hardtimes and keep focused on the overall goal. Thepanel’s suggested master plan is conceptual and

delivered as an example of its best ideas as to howthe community may consider planning its future.The panel recognizes working with existing own-ers to implement any plan is important, and not allwill be pleased or cooperative, but this process isthe reality of change. Frequent, direct, and honestcommunications among all parties will greatlyhelp this challenging process.

Externally, the master plan will be a valuable toolin the work to seek out and attract superior devel-opments and win them over to a revitalized com-munity with sites ready for development in a sup-portive environment. The fact that this ULIadvisory panel has been convened in Springfielddemonstrates the strong desire to do more thanjust sit and wait for the next developer to knockon the door with any plan in hand. Springfield canform its own master plan and create the market-ing materials and support personnel to execute aproactive strategy in planning, marketing, andfunding.

As important as having the correct physical char-acteristics in each new project is, creating the cor-rect process and procedures to make it all possibleis equally important. To help create and imple-ment much-needed new procedures, the panel rec-ommends Springfield initiate a model program tosuccessfully implement the objectives.

Recruit a Full-Time Development Team for SpringfieldAs has been previously noted, the Springfieldcommunity does not have a dedicated develop-ment professional or team focused exclusively oneconomic and community development initiativesin the Springfield area. Given the level of develop-ment activity under consideration and given thescope of development that is likely to ultimatelyoccur at the EPG and GSA sites, an abundance ofwork needs to be overseen by an accomplished de-velopment professional and a small but effectivesupport staff.

The charge for this position is relatively straight-forward. The individual needs to be

• The development “point person” for the Spring-field community, serving as the liaison amongthe public and private sector agencies and indi-


viduals that are actively pursuing developmentprojects in the area;

• The “go-to person” for accurate, timely, and rel-evant development information on the localmarket, including good maps, information ondiscrete market segments (residential for sale,multifamily rental, office, retail, and hospital-ity), ownership data, and access to robust Geo-graphic Information Systems (GIS) capabilities;

• The promoter and advocate of strategic devel-opment opportunities within the community;and

• The manager of the economic incentive processfor the area, including structuring and negotiat-ing economic incentive offers, overseeing pro-grams such as a CDA and securing and distrib-uting bond financing secured under its auspices,and facilitating developer incentive applicationsto county agencies.

Although the charge is not difficult to understand,the performance of the duties is by no means easy,nor is it easy to recruit the appropriate personwith the necessary qualifications—especially be-cause of the high level of access this position needsto function effectively.

The individual in the position must be known tohave easy access and the “ear of” elected officials,senior real estate development executives, archi-tects, engineers, planners, and commercial bro-kers. This level of access suggests someone whohas been in the general area for some period oftime, who has a high level of credibility, and who isnonthreatening to appointed staff.

Establishing such a role is even more importantbecause of the current absence of a broad base oflocal development leadership. Given the variousaudiences this position must address, placing theposition within a to-be-established independentdevelopment corporation, such as the CDA previ-ously described, is an appropriate consideration.

Attract High-Quality DevelopersSpringfield’s point person must recognize that thereal estate developer is the “client” as Springfieldseeks out the best potential opportunities to im-prove its future. In this regard, this person must

understand the entire development process fromthe private sector viewpoint and be ready and ca-pable of assisting the developer through everygovernmental approval process quickly and re-sponsively. This go-to person must be, in essence,“Springfield’s developer,” acting on the behalf ofSpringfield while assisting the developer’s projectto reach timely completion. His or her knowledgeand competencies should include the following:

• Must personally know details of each potentialland site, with ownership, survey, topography,pricing, and relevant purchase information, andmust market this knowledge effectively to high-quality-oriented local, regional, national, and in-ternational developers.

• Must know access issues, utility capacities,telecommunications, and all general infrastruc-ture information and assist with letters of con-firmation to developers from all serviceproviders and government entities (in the eventany service is not available, must assist in ob-taining it or finding a suitable alternative).

• Must be empowered and actively help createhigh-quality sites for development or redevel-opment in accordance with an approved masterplan, including land assembly of underused, va-cant, or closed properties. Specifically, with pro-fessional help, a master plan must be estab-lished for the entire redevelopment area,identifying those parcels that are underused orvacant. This person must assist in efforts to ac-cumulate the property to create attractive de-velopment sites. Once cleared, if an immediateopportunity is not in the pipeline, a site may beused on an interim basis for shared ride or slugparking until an appropriate project materializes.

• Must know all requirements and provide one-stop information permitting with all forms andschedules for zoning and complete constructionreview and approval.

• Must create and provide a simplified flow-sheetdiagram showing zoning review, architecturalreview, and approval process. Although all pro-cedures should have a rapid turnaround, highlydesirable projects—such as qualified mixed-use


projects—may justify a faster response withgreater leeway for approval.

• Should review zoning if consideration is given topermissive mixed-use overlay zoning or elimi-nating the multitude of zoning classifications al-together, in favor of a more generalized zoning.

• Should work with the county to implement azoning and development streamlining programthat encourages high-quality mixed-use devel-opments with a fast “time to market” turn-around.

• Must work to create incentives for desired proj-ects and have the authority to make timely, def-inite commitments, especially for appropriatemixed-use projects and projects generally im-proving the civic character of the Springfieldcommunity.

The panel strongly recommends that the develop-ment team be fully authorized and given the pol-icy tools and personnel assistance as necessary toattract high-quality developments as described.With the position comes the understanding of allparties that the goal is to help facilitate, not im-pede, high-quality development by maintaining aninventory of available sites, promoting/making useof flexibility in mixed-use developments, and giv-ing authority to offer real incentives that will at-tract desirable development. This market is verycompetitive; being able to market, invite, and as-sist high-quality projects that will be an asset tothe economic, social, and aesthetic needs of thecommunity is very important.

Limit Development Team to a Select FewA number of transportation projects are under-way and proposed. Given the complexity associ-ated with the integration of regional and localserving systems, the addition of a full-time trans-portation engineer to the team has merit. Thisperson could be an extremely valuable informa-tion resource to the participating agencies and thedevelopers attempting to understand how thesesystems affect the development project they areconsidering. Not uncommonly, state and federalfunding support are obtained for transportationplanning initiatives. Such grants might fully offsetthe costs of this position.

The substantial amount of funding that a CDAmay be capable of generating through incrementaltax revenues justifies the inclusion of a financialposition whose responsibilities would be to sup-port the CDA board and executive director in ad-ministering project fund applications, awards, andprogress payments, as well as actively participat-ing in the detailed and time-consuming deal struc-ture negotiations associated with complex devel-opment projects.

The panel feels that because of the particular tim-ing of currently proposed developments and theneed for an immediate master plan and marketingmaterials, this team may not justify a long-termcommitment. Immediate assistance is recom-mended to help land the KSI and Springfield Mallredevelopment projects. These two projects arevital to jump-start high-quality private redevelop-ment in the entire area, and even more critical forappropriately redeveloping the “heart” of Spring-field. In all positions, consideration may be givento establishing time limits on employment con-tracts, or outsourcing for specific periods of time,in line with a clear and realistic timetable for pro-ducing the desired results.

The panel is quick to note that the recommenda-tion to establish some dedicated staff for the pur-pose of local economic development purposes isnot a call for a high-cost and unaccountable over-head department. A talented manager can achieveconsiderable visibility for the community and in-fluence important development decisions andtransactions without the need for a large staff ofdevelopment professionals. Much, if not most, ofthe actual work assignments can be outsourced toarea development specialists and serviceproviders.

A Marketing PlanThe image identifying Springfield is presentlybeing defined, in the main, by outside individualsand entities. A review of available published ma-terials does not provide much insight into a visionand an aspiration for the future of Springfield.This situation is not uncommon for a community,especially if the community came into being as oneor a series of subdivision developments. But it is


always preferable for the community itself to pre-sent its vision and aspirations.

Springfield is in transition and aspires to introducefundamentally different forms of development andcreate different experiences. Therefore, establish-ing what these aspirations are is especially impor-tant, so they can be effectively communicated.

Accepting that Springfield is poised to prepareand present a new vision and a new set of aspira-tions, the marketing of these messages to thebroader development community can begin inearnest. Given the amount of development activ-ity currently under consideration, time is of theessence.

On one level, marketing entails the familiar tasksof design and production of attractive collateralmaterials, active participation in key networkingevents and meetings, and direct mailing to tar-geted prospects. However, these initiatives areoften ineffective.

Establishing a marketing message for an estab-lished community is similar, in many ways, to de-veloping a marketing message for a new master-planned community. The materials must addressthe following overall aspects:

• Where in the world is this community? All goodmarketing maps show the community in themiddle of the market. In this instance, a 15-mileradius map with Springfield in the middle woulddemonstrate how many attractions and facilitiesare nearby.

• What is the “big idea”? Although inelegantlyput, the point is obviously the importance ofbeing able to succinctly state the importantoverarching idea that is associated with thecommunity (for example, Silicon Valley, Gate-way to the West, Athens of America).

• Who is behind it? Namely, how credible is thepromoter (in this case the local community) andis it likely to be able to accomplish what it is ad-vertising? In the case of a community aspiringto bigger and better projects, including the sub-stantial, credible, private partners that aregoing to assist in making the dream a reality be-comes important.

• What is the product? Being able to enumeratewhat is available to procure (developmentparcels, buildings, recreational services, afford-able homes, great neighborhoods, and greatschools) is important. Of special importance isthe ability to demonstrate that the products,even though similar to products in other com-munities, are made better by virtue of their lo-cation in the subject community.

Adhering to the type of information frameworkoutlined is important in the marketing of a com-munity. If the community representatives are un-able to provide cogent, coherent answers to thepoints listed, outside interests cannot reasonablybe expected to do better. Managing the image of acommunity and the manner in which this image ispresented is a key responsibility of the leadershipof the community.

The overall approach is to establish a sense ofplace for Springfield. If the effect is to establish acertain gravitas within the northern Virginia re-tail, office, and restaurant market, then the ap-proach will have been successful.

An Argument for a Marketing Center Asking commercial brokers where they meet aprospect who is going to tour the area is alwaysinstructive. Usually, the location is a hotel, restau-rant, or country club that has nice drive-up appealand is pleasant and attractively decorated. Whenthe answer differs and is, instead, a location suchas a conventional coffee shop or a franchise restau-rant, then concluding that the community is beingintroduced through an image quite common andoften undistinguishable from similar places in anynumber of other communities is reasonable. Inother words, a location that is unlikely to be mem-orable. The message is, of course, that nothingspecial exists to suggest as a meeting point.

Springfield currently suffers in this regard. Al-though some wonderful meeting places may existin three to five years with the proposed develop-ment at the Mall and Midtown, currently a voidexists. Thus, an argument can be made that thecommunity needs to consider developing a well-located, well-appointed real estate marketingcenter to introduce the brokerage and develop-


munities in which ULI panels serve, attractingthe interest of several qualified development or-ganizations is not the major need.

Rather, in the near term Springfield leadershipneeds to concentrate on facilitating the develop-ment activity currently underway. The KSI andVornado projects represent hundreds of millionsof dollars of new investment of the precise typethe community and Fairfax County indicate theydesire. Neither of these initiatives is completelynegotiated and difficulties could easily emergethat could slow or derail them altogether. The firstpriority, therefore, is to demonstrate a genuinecommitment to the consummation of these deals.

GSA Site. Panel members were impressed, aswere virtually all other planners and developers,with the development potential associated withthe nearly 70-acre GSA warehouse site. Locatedon a site nearly contiguous to the Metro stationand near a major intersection of I-95, the parcelhas to be included in any development plan. It isan outstanding development opportunity. Thepanel believes that the propinquity to the Metrostation, the mall, and the Northern Virginia Com-munity College Medical Education campus makesthe location perfect for relocation of the army hos-pital that is currently being considered for theEPG and the even more remote main base at FortBelvoir.

Although the site will ultimately become availablefor development, the panel was advised by numer-ous individuals that near-term prospects for activeredevelopment of the parcel are remote. GSA hasbeen approached any number of times about relo-cation and has indicated limited interest, espe-cially without an alternative and suitable site anda mechanism to finance the relocation and newconstruction.

The local Springfield development leadershipteam should be actively involved in nurturing thisopportunity. A way through the maze will eventu-ally be identified. The leadership team could playa vital role in facilitating and expediting this possi-bility. If the team could simply become the point ofcontact between the GSA and the local commu-nity, a great deal might be gained in regard to the

ment community to a fresh view of the Springfieldopportunity.

The introduction of a marketing center can be anenergizing project that creates renewed enthusi-asm among local property owners. Done well,much goodwill and positive recognition are to begained from the creation of such a facility. Thisproject would be especially helpful in the nextthree to five years, when no completed projectswould yet be available to tour.

Multipurpose Public Assembly FacilityOn a grander scale, Springfield may want to con-sider a multipurpose public assembly facility toboth serve the community and attract hospitalitybusiness to the community. As noted earlier, a fa-cility with highly adaptable space from 50,000 to100,000 square feet, if properly designed architec-turally, would be a symbolic and recognizable fea-ture that would take advantage of regional high-way access, the mall amenities and visitation, andeasy access from the Metro station. If the hospitalis located on the GSA site, it could serve the med-ical community as a location for conferences andexhibitions. The panel’s observation is that such acomplex might be quite appropriate for Spring-field. Although costly to construct and operate,the concept should be discussed and debated. Suchfacilities are reemerging as a market niche. Someare being paired with adjacent hotels, and cross-management operating agreements are negoti-ated for operation of the complex.

The proposed CDA board of directors should takeup this type of project. It should be evaluated inthe context of the vision statement and commu-nity objectives that have been developed. Finally,the financial cost/benefits should be analyzed andthen a determination made if such a complexshould be underwritten, at least in part, by pro-ceeds of CDA bond issue.

Addressing the Development Opportunitieswithin SpringfieldThe Springfield community has the good fortuneof being in a robust local economy, with stronglocal development firms and with the additionaland more important benefit of a substantialamount of developer interest in project develop-ments of significance. Therefore, unlike some com-


in the ULI stakeholder interviews, even thoughthey were invited.

Nonetheless, a great deal of serious planning andanalysis is obviously occurring at the presenttime. Consultants’ reports and subsequent staffrecommendations are due out by fall 2006. Assum-ing the additional need for review and evaluationat higher levels, six to 12 months more may elapsebefore the military’s intent and development pro-gram are clear. Any proposal that includes relocat-ing personnel and missions to EPG will need to beaccompanied by significant off-site infrastructureimprovements, including roads and utilities.

The Springfield development leadership musttrack the decision-making process closely. To theextent possible, they should seek and get a placeat the planning table as a participant in the mili-tary’s committee of community leaders. Like theGSA opportunity, when the development decisionsare finalized, the opportunities they will afford theSpringfield community are considerable and needto be understood.

ability to establish and maintain a dialogue aboutfuture site redevelopment.

Nevertheless, active programming and site devel-opment planning are not appropriate withoutGSA’s support. Therefore, planning discussionsabout this site should be limited to preparation ofdevelopment scale assessments to assist planningagencies in ascertaining the amount of new de-mands that will ultimately be generated whenreuse actually occurs.

EPG. The development status of the EPG can bebest stated by quoting several of the members of agroup currently evaluating the site: “It’s all up inthe air!” The conflicting information that emergedabout the status of development plans, access tothe interior of the parcel, total amount of develop-ment likely to occur, and the nature of such devel-opment (for example, secured versus unsecured,all military, mixed use with provisions for contrac-tor offices) makes providing conclusions and rec-ommendations an unproductive exercise. Evenwithin the panel, a consensus could not be devel-oped whether the EPG site was likely to be devel-oped as suggested by the army. Although the in-terviewees from the National Geospatial Agencyand the army medical agencies (likely tenants ofthe EPG) were helpful and encouraging of plan-ning cooperation, Fort Belvoir officials who areleading the relocation options did not participate


Work needs to be done in Springfield, im-mediately, in the near term, and in themid to long term. Fortunately, the chal-lenges are spread across a span of years,

thus permitting the leadership team to prioritizeits efforts and carefully allocate resources. Thecounty should focus its efforts by quadrant and en-gage the community to determine specific needs.

Physically, the county should plan to make a vari-ety of improvements. In the Northwest Quadrant,the proposed street “couplet,” acquisition and con-struction of the town square, and connections be-tween developments should take priority. In theSouthwest Quadrant, the construction of the com-muter parking lot and the street “couplet” con-struction should be completed. In the SoutheastQuadrant, the connections should be strengthenedbetween the office parcels east of Loisdale Roadand the new mall improvements.

In the immediate future, attention must be givento creating a CDA or CDA-type entity and hiringassociated staff members, conducting a commu-nity visioning process, and implementing a near-term marketing plan and program, including amarketing center.

Although the GSA and EPG projects are moredistant, their scale and potential impact requirethat some time be devoted to them beginning im-mediately. In regard to the GSA site in particular,

a single decision made within the agency couldsuddenly and abruptly change the situation en-tirely. As the panel noted, GSA could be a good lo-cation for the army’s proposed hospital. Finally,any proposals that significantly increase trafficshould be accompanied by a means to pay fortransportation improvements.

Although large and exciting development projectsare under consideration, they are not reality. Thecounty must never lose sight of the fact that anynumber of situations could occur that could causethese projects to be curtailed. Constant vigilanceis demanded of the Springfield leadership team as well as a willingness to devote the seeminglysometimes endless hours to work through dilem-mas that will inevitably emerge as these projectsget closer to actual construction and development.

The panel has recommended a number of stepsthat will help make Springfield a destination, notjust a place to pass through. The time has comefor the county to implement an approach that willallow Springfield to confront its future and takeits place among the other destinations of north-ern Virginia.

Conclusion


David L. LeiningerPanel ChairIrving, Texas

Leininger joined the city of Irving, Texas, in June2003, and he serves as its chief financial officer. Inthat capacity, he oversees the departments of Fi-nancial Services, the Irving Visitors and Conven-tion Bureau, Information Technology, and the LasColinas Tax Increment district.

He also serves as staff coordinator of the redevel-opment planning for Texas Stadium, current homeof the Dallas Cowboys. The stadium area, at thenexus of three limited expressway freeways, willbe served by a new light-rail line connecting theDallas/Fort Worth (DFW) International Airportand downtown Dallas. In addition, all three of theinterchanges serving the 400,000 vehicles passingthrough daily will be reconstructed by 2012.

Before joining the city of Irving, Leininger wasassociated with Economics Research Associates(ERA), where he served as senior vice presidentand director of the firm’s Golf and Recreation RealEstate strategic business unit. In this capacity hecoordinated the activities of ERA industry practi-tioners throughout the firm.

Over the course of his career, Leininger has beenassociated with a number of private sector firms.During his tenure at ClubCorp International from1986 until 1996, he served in a variety of capaci-ties, including chairman and chief executive officerfor ClubCorp Realty and managing director, NewBusiness Development, Europe.

From 1983 to 1985 he was associated with TrilandInternational, the Dallas developer of ValleyRanch in Irving. He held a number of positions, in-cluding executive vice president and chief operat-ing officer. Prior to Triland he was associated withthe Las Colinas development, a 6,500-acre master-planned development located between Dallas and

DFW airport, where he served as the vice presi-dent and general manager of the Las ColinasAssociation.

He began his career in the public sector in 1971.During the period 1971–1978 he was employed bythe city of Dallas in a variety of capacities, includ-ing budget director, assistant director of housingand urban rehabilitation and director of economicdevelopment. During the period 1974–1976, he wasthe fiscal services administrator for the city ofGarland and served as chairman of the financecommittee of the Texas Municipal Power Pool.

Leininger is a contributing author of Golf CourseDevelopment in Residential Communities, pub-lished by the Urban Land Institute (ULI). He is afull member of ULI and serves as treasurer of theNorth Texas District Council. He has served onfour Advisory Services panels previously.

Donald R. BauerIrvine, California

Bauer is owner and founder of Bauer Planningand Environmental Service, Inc. With more than28 years of experience in urban and regional plan-ning, he has expertise in strategic planning, eco-nomics, and design for new communities andlarge-scale development programs. His emphasison the quality of life, environmental integrity, andlong-term economic value and return of new de-velopments has resulted in a number of nationaland international projects.

Bauer’s experience includes residential villagesand commercial complexes for The Irvine Com-pany; large mixed-use projects in Baltimore,Washington, D.C., Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Dal-las, Orlando, and Denver; new towns such as theWoodlands, Texas; and resort communities, includ-ing Ventana Canyon in Tucson and the Cojo-

About the Panel


Jalama Ranch in Santa Barbara. His internationalwork includes projects in Indonesia; the summernational capital of Saudi Arabia; the new nationalcapital of Nigeria; Colombia; China; Kao Shung,Taiwan; and the Bahamas.

Bauer is a member of the American Planning As-sociation. Between 1992 and 1996, he was ULIDistrict Council coordinator for Orange County,California. He studied sculpture and architectureat the University of Oregon and participated in anexchange program at the University of Florence,Italy. He is a frequent university guest lecturer.

Daniel BrentsHouston, Texas

Brents recently retired as a principal withGensler, where he led the firmwide planning andurban design practice. Recent projects include thedesign of hotels, convention centers, mixed-usecenters, and educational campuses in the UnitedStates and abroad. He now consults on selectedprojects.

Previously, Brents was the vice president of archi-tecture and planning for Disney’s real estate de-velopment group in France at Disneyland Paris,responsible for negotiations with French authori-ties and the development of the 4,800-acre, $4.5 billion resort and mixed-use project.

Brents was the Houston Sports Authority’s devel-opment coordinator for the $250 million downtownMinute Maid ballpark. He has been a consultant toRoss Perot Jr.’s Hillwood Development Corpora-tion on multiple projects. Previous experience in-cludes Wintergreen, a 15,000-acre resort in Vir-ginia; South Shore Harbour, a 1,500-acre resortsouth of Houston; Sony Center in Berlin; and thePhilippines National Centennial Expo.

Brents has served on eight ULI Advisory Ser-vices panels. He is a registered architect in Texas,Maryland, and Florida; a Fellow in the AmericanInstitute of Architects; and a member of theAmerican Institute of Certified Planners. He hasa bachelor’s degree in architecture and a master’sdegree in urban design.

David N. GossHertford, North Carolina

In 2005, Goss retired and moved to North Car-olina where he is presently a part-time economicdevelopment consultant to Perquimans County.

Prior to retirement, Goss was the senior director,transportation and infrastructure, for the GreaterCleveland Partnership. In that capacity he man-aged a regional development/transportation pro-gram that identified, prioritized, and facilitatedstrategic regional infrastructure investments thatsupported northeast Ohio’s physical developmentagenda.

Goss has also served as the vice president, Eco-nomic Development for the Gateway EconomicDevelopment Corporation—the not-for-profit en-tity responsible for the construction of JacobsField and the Gund Arena, and as the executive di-rector of Clinitec, Inc.—a wholly owned, for-profitsubsidiary of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. Inthe latter position, he managed the ClevelandClinic’s real estate interests, identified and pur-sued new health care business opportunities, andprovided general management for the clinic’s for-profit ventures and technology transfer programs.

Goss has 11 years of management experience inthe public transit industry and was an originalmember of the Transportation Review AdvisoryCouncil of the Ohio Department of Transportation.

Philip HughesGreenville, South Carolina

Hughes is president of Hughes Investments, Inc.,a commercial real estate development firm estab-lished in 1990. His development experience, fromAlabama to Virginia, has included the develop-ment, ownership, and management of retail shop-ping centers, office buildings, industrial facilities,apartments, and golf course and residential devel-opment.

Hughes Investments, Inc., specializes in commer-cial projects and land accumulation to supportthem. Recent development projects includemixed-use projects that blend traditional uses


with new urbanist design. Sample projects includeRiverPlace, Chanticleer, and CenterPointe, all inSouth Carolina. Other developments Hughes hasundertaken include a downtown Greenville officebuilding for the National Bank of South Carolinain the central business district along with a 12-story, 256,000-square-foot, mixed-use project in-cluding office, retail, and residential uses, as wellas four other central business district offices.

Hughes received a degree in political science fromDuke University. He earned his MBA and law de-grees from the University of South Carolina.

Michael J. MaxwellMiami Shores, Florida

Maxwell is founder and managing partner ofMaxwell + Partners LLC, a real estate develop-ment, project management, and investment advi-sory firm. Over the course of his career, he hasbuilt a reputation of successful accomplishmentsin leading real estate organizations and planningand developing land, homes, retail, office, indus-trial, and resort properties. As an adviser andproject manager he has worked out, restructured,and strategically repositioned over $500 million inreal estate assets for corporate, private, and insti-tutional investors.

Involved in real estate development for more than30 years, Maxwell founded Maxwell + Partners in1992 to assist lenders and investors in restructur-ing loans and assets with strategic planning, duediligence, asset management, marketing, financialplanning, capitalization, and mergers and acquisi-tion services. Advisory clients include investmentbankers, banks, savings and loans, life insurancecompanies, brokers, and private investors as wellas governments. His work ranges from complexenvironmental negotiations, establishing and lead-ing successful real estate development and finan-cial service firms, to restructuring companies andassets and leading mergers and acquisitions.Maxwell is an expert witness in real estate anddevelopment issues in state and federal courts.

Maxwell has built Maxwell + Partners into a nichedeveloper, project manager, and adviser. His mostrecent work includes developing and repositioning

medical offices, clinics, and residential care facili-ties, and leading the development of luxury homeson infill sites in Miami’s Upper East Side. Maxwell’swork has been honored throughout his careerwith awards for historic preservation, innovativeindustrial buildings, and outstanding renovationprojects.

He holds a BA from the University of Texas atAustin, where he studied architecture and cityplanning, and received a master of planning de-gree from the University of Virginia, with special-izations in real estate and urban design. Maxwellbegan his career with a Texas homebuilder; hasheld positions in government; was vice presidentof Codina Development, leading the initial devel-opment of the award-winning $400 million BeaconCenter in Miami; advised institutions and govern-ments; worked out loan portfolios; and partneredin developing Caribbean hotels and luxury homes.A skilled and effective communicator, he is knownfor his organizational and leadership expertise.

Maxwell’s professional affiliations include theUrban Land Institute, where he serves on the Ex-ecutive Committee of the Florida/Caribbean Dis-trict Council as vice-chair of membership. He is aFlorida-licensed real estate and mortgage brokerand holds the prestigious AICP designation fromthe American Institute of Certified Planners. Heis a board and executive committee member of theGreater Miami Urban League and is foundingchairman of New Urban Development LLC, theaffordable housing development arm of the UrbanLeague.

A graduate of Leadership Miami and former ex-ecutive committee member, Maxwell has servedon numerous community boards in various capaci-ties. He served as an adjunct professor of FloridaInternational University’s Graduate School ofBusiness in real estate development and manage-ment and is a guest speaker on issues of urbandevelopment.

David S. PlummerCoral Gables, Florida

Plummer founded David Plummer and Associatesin 1978. The firm provides a wide variety of engi-


neering services with emphasis on traffic androadway design. His engineering career spansmore than 35 years and includes some of the mostsignificant projects in Florida.

Plummer’s public engineering experience involveslocal, county, and state jurisdictions where he pio-neered studies of street protection systems to re-duce crime and traffic. He was affiliated with theCriminal Justice Institute in South Florida andpromotes close cooperation between law enforce-ment and traffic engineering.

In 2004 Plummer founded, and now administers,The Transportation Exchange at Florida AtlanticUniversity. The exchange provides training in avariety of transportation subjects to practicing en-gineers and planners. The programs include tran-sit, traffic operations, and transportation planning.The programs are creditable toward the continu-ing education requirements of Florida’s Regis-tered Engineers and the ITE Professional TrafficOperation Engineers License.

Formerly, Plummer was the assistant director ofengineering at the Traffic Institute at Northwest-ern University, Evanston, Illinois. While in thatposition he developed and published materials re-lated to capital improvements for transit, guide-lines for driveway design, intersection capacityanalysis, and traffic accident reconstruction.

In addition to Northwestern University, previousemployment included the California Departmentof Transportation and the Illinois Department ofTransportation. He was a graduate of the trainingprograms of both public organizations, which in-cluded planning, traffic engineering, design, mate-rial testing, and construction.

Plummer is involved in professional committeeservice. He was a member of the Coral GablesPlanning and Zoning Board, Dade County ImpactFee Committee, and a member of the NW Dade/SW Broward Planning Committee. In Florida hehas been involved in the Florida Supreme CourtTransportation Training, the Criminal Justice In-stitute, and committees of the Florida Depart-ment of Community Affairs.

John ShumwayNewport Beach, California

Shumway is a principal with the Concord Group,which has offices in Newport Beach and San Fran-cisco, California, and Las Vegas, Nevada. TheConcord Group is a real estate advisory firm pro-viding strategic advice and analysis for land useissues in the development of residential, commer-cial office, retail, and industrial projects. The com-pany’s broad range of clients includes land devel-opers, homebuilders, institutional investors, andfamily landowners as well as public agencies anduniversities throughout the nation.

Shumway has extensive experience, spanning 20years, in the evaluation and analysis of both resi-dential and commercial properties. He has partici-pated in numerous engagements that focused onthe optimum mix of land uses that would ensuretimely absorption of the property and bring en-hanced land value to the landowner.

Shumway’s professional affiliations include theNational Association of Home Builders, the Build-ing Industry Association, the National Associationof Industrial and Office Parks, and the UrbanLand Institute. He is a frequent guest lecturer be-fore the professional organizations, University ofCalifornia, Irvine and Los Angeles, classes, as wellas other academic groups. Shumway has also spo-ken overseas, including a recent lecture to a groupof key Japanese homebuilders interested in learn-ing strategies to expand market penetration in adownsizing economy.

Shumway is a graduate of the University of Ore-gon with a degree in business/economics. He isvery active in local community and civic groups.

Ross TilghmanSeattle, Washington

Tilghman heads up the Tilghman Group, a divisionof Leora Consulting Group, providing real estateplanning services. He brings 20 years of urbanplanning experience, including serving as execu-tive director of a downtown business improve-ment district. He provides transportation-relatedrevenue projections, market studies, planning,


and development strategies to government, not-for-profit, and private sector clients facing real es-tate development challenges. His projects typi-cally involve downtown revitalization, academicand institutional campus planning, historic districtredevelopment, mixed-use projects, special eventaccess, and parking.

Frequently working with nationally recognizedplanning teams, Tilghman recently has detailedtransportation requirements for downtown mas-ter plans for Evansville, Indiana; Natchez, Missis-sippi; St. Louis, Missouri; Green Bay, Wisconsin;and Parker, Colorado. He has provided parkingstudies to determine future demands and marketrequirements for Savannah, Georgia; Portland,Oregon; Sioux City, Iowa; and Olympia, Washing-ton. He conducted transit market studies in Den-ver and Los Angeles.

Tilghman has also specialized in transportationplanning for state capital campuses, working withWashington, Iowa, and Minnesota to improvetheir access and parking programs. Additionally,he has completed special event and recreationarea transportation plans for San Diego’s BalboaPark; Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Florida; theIowa Events Center in Des Moines; Stones’ RiverNational Battlefield, Murfreesboro, Tennessee;Shreveport Riverfront, Louisiana; and Vicksburg,Mississippi’s Downtown and Riverfront.

For the last five years, Tilghman has been work-ing with the city of Tacoma, Washington, to ad-dress its downtown parking needs and the parkingplan for the city’s new convention center. He pro-vided the revenue forecasts used to issue parkingrevenue debt.

Tilghman also served three years as director of adowntown business improvement district in Illi-nois. He oversaw maintenance, facade improve-ments, parking, and upper-story redevelopmentefforts in concert with Main Street redevelopmentprinciples. He successfully authored a $1.9 milliongrant to fund a streetscape construction projectcompleted in 2002.

Tilghman frequently participates in national re-source panels assisting communities with develop-ment questions. Recent assignments include ULIAdvisory Services panels in St. Louis, Los Ange-les, Fort Lauderdale, and Port St. Lucie, Florida;Mayor’s Institute on City Design teams in St.Louis and Cincinnati; an AIA R/UDAT team inSan Angelo, Texas; and Ohio Design AssistanceTeams in three Ohio communities.

Tilghman received an AB, history, WashingtonUniversity, St. Louis, Missouri, and an MA, geog-raphy, University of Washington, Seattle.

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