Article Text
Construction is underway on a seven-story apartment building that will replace the former Dunn Loring Center in Merrifield, transforming a long-vacant office property into housing, retail and public gathering spaces.
Elm Street Development broke ground on Elms Dunn Loring at 2722 Merrilee Drive in late 2025. The project is expected to be completed in fall 2027, nearly five years after its approval.
The development will contain 239 apartments and approximately 3,875 square feet of ground-floor retail space. No retail tenants have been announced, and the developer expects leasing decisions to come later in construction.
The site previously held the three-story Dunn Loring Center, built in 1984. The office building stood for more than four decades but had been empty since its remaining tenant leases expired in spring 2023. It has since been demolished.
A site plan approved by Fairfax County staff in July calls for 302 garage parking spaces, including 30 designated for retail visitors.
Publicly accessible features will include a plaza with public art near the retail entrance, a dog park along Merrilee Drive, exercise stations, a gaming area and outdoor seating for dining and gatherings.
Another Elm Street project advances in Woodlawn
Elm Street Development is also building Elms Mount Vernon, a 280-unit apartment community on 5.4 acres at 3505 Buckman Road near Richmond Highway in Woodlawn.
The five-story building, which began construction in fall 2025, is expected to open in spring or summer 2027. Its apartments will include 29 workforce dwelling units.
Although the project will not have retail space, residents will have access to a fitness center, lounge, interior courtyard and swimming pool. A dog park, playground, lawn, exercise station and grilling area will be open to the public as well as residents.
Fairfax County supervisors approved the project in April 2022 as the first phase of the larger, 17-acre Mount Vernon Gateway development. The plan combines several smaller parcels that previously contained single-family houses. The broader Gateway project had been planned since 2005 but was not carried out amid market and other considerations.
A separate proposal for another portion of the Gateway remains under county review. Homebuilder K. Hovnanian applied in October to replace 14 single-family homes at 8115 Janna Lee Avenue with 144 townhouses. A Fairfax County Planning Commission hearing is scheduled for July 15.