See more Annandale maps

New Hotel Coming to Annandale
From the Times Community
By Frank Mustac
Oct. 27, 2005

A longtime perceived need for at least one hotel in the Annandale business district is being fulfilled by an Alexandria businessman from Korea.

Moon Sik Park won rezoning approval from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Oct. 17 to build the hotel on slightly more than two acres along eastbound Little River Turnpike, just east of the intersection with Backlick Road, currently the location of Magill's Famous Pizza Restaurant.

The seven-floor hotel will include up to about 24,500 feet of retail, including shops and restaurants, plus banquet facilities, a swimming pool and parking for more than 370 cars.

The number of guest rooms the hotel have has not yet been determined but should fall well short of 100.

"This project will make a statement in the Annandale revitalization district," said Mason District Supervisor Penelope Gross (D).

Dan McKinnon, chairman of the all-volunteer community organization called the Annandale Planning Committee, said he was pleased a hotel will be coming to the heart of Annandale.

The committee worked closely with Park and Fairfax-based architects Christopher Consultants on the project.

"The hotel fulfills a long-sought community need where local residents will finally have a place in their hometown for visiting friends and relatives," McKinnon said. "People around here have been talking about this for years."

"The owner has worked for almost a year with the Annandale Planning Committee in order to provide a building that is architecturally pleasing on the outside as well as including facilities on the inside for meetings of community and youth groups," he said.

Because of Annandale's wide ethnic diversity, the planning committee offered suggestions to the developer that they felt would make the hotel appealing to most, if not all, of Annandale's residents and not just one particular ethnic group.

As a result, in addition to making meeting space within the hotel available for community use, Park will require retail tenants to display the name of their establishments in English. Also, restaurants that may be housed inside the hotel will be required to offer menus written in English.

"Everything we asked for they provided to us," McKinnon said. "We have no reason to believe these promises won't be kept."

The name of the hotel, which has yet to be chosen, will also likely be ethnically neutral.

Park's attorney, Robert Lawrence of Reed Smith LLP in Falls Church, said two possible choices are "Park Plaza" and "Annandale Park Hotel."

Before the hotel can be built, the developer must go through a site plan approval process, which may take between six to eight months, Lawrence said.

"It's going to be a very attractive hotel," Lawrence said. "It should be a welcome addition to the Annandale business district."

© Times Community Newspapers 2005