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A long-vacant family home near Kingstowne is slated for demolition as the Fairfax County Park Authority moves ahead with plans to transform the surrounding 10-acre property into a public park.

The land sits along Old Telegraph Road on Kingstowne’s eastern edge and once belonged to Olander Banks Sr. and his family. Although community discussion initially focused on fears that an off-leash dog area would replace the house, Park Authority officials say the dog park has been removed from the plan.

The Franconia Museum urged supporters to contact elected officials about preserving the property, saying the house lot was expected to become an off-leash dog park. That prospect drew criticism on social media, while others questioned whether the house qualified as historically significant.

Hayfield Farm resident Jean Mulroy Martelli said her research indicated that the building does not meet the guidelines required for historic-structure designation.

A Park Authority presentation from May 2011 shows that the agency purchased the site from Banks in 2001 after his wife’s death. The park was dedicated in 2005, when the family installed a monument sign.

The master plan divides the property into several sections, including an open area, a managed natural area with a stream-restoration zone, a leisure zone and an activity zone where the house now stands. Earlier plans depicted a playground, picnic facilities, a meadow, courts, parking and an off-leash dog area.

Park Authority spokesperson Ben Boxer said the agency has been developing a project plan to implement the master plan. Officials have also been speaking with Banks family members about how to tell the family’s story at the former homestead.

Those details have not been finalized, Boxer said, and additional information will be shared with the community when it becomes available.

A Family and Business Legacy

Olander Banks Sr. began building his business career around 1940 in Alexandria. He sold ice in the early morning, invested in real estate and established the Zero Cab taxi service.

Banks later opened Banks Auto Parts at 718 North Henry Street in Old Town Alexandria and expanded the business with a larger location in Woodbridge.

In 1957, Banks and his wife, Margaret, purchased the Old Telegraph Road property. They built the house soon afterward and raised nine children there.

The site is easy to miss from the road. Its only entrance is on Old Telegraph Road, and a line of trees separates it from passing traffic.