Revitalization Key Topic at Chamber Installation

Economic development was a big topic at Wednesday night’s Mount Vernon-Lee Chamber of Commerce meeting and installation at the Mount Vernon Country Club.

New board members and officers were officially installed and the Board Chairman for 2010, Jeff Todd, was honored as he turned over his gavel to make way for new leadership.

Chairman Tim Sargeant gave a short speech before the installation.  One topic he, not surprisingly, touched on was the importance of development along Route 1.

“We must continue to promote and lobby for the continued revitalization of our area,” Sargeant said.

The evening’s featured speaker was Lee District Supervisor Jeff McKay.  He spoke with pride about the board’s ability to preserve local school funding and public safety budgets.

“My goal has always been to protect the core values of our community,” McKay said.

McKay discussed commercial development that’s on the way for the district, specifically in the form of spec office buildings.  He also commented on the very tangible impact the Base Realignment Alignment and Closure (BRAC) at Fort Belvoir will have on the area.

“We have a lot to gain in the Route 1 corridor and we’ve come a long way,” McKay said. “BRAC is an opportunity, not a liability for this community.”

Tony Fontana with the Southeast Fairfax Development Corporation also addressed the impact of BRAC in the Mount Vernon area.

“Everybody knows what’s going to happen with BRAC so we need to address people’s need off post,” Fontana said.  Fontana said the Route 1 corridor needs to have a good mix of different types of businesses and residential development.  He stressed that while big box stores like the proposed Costco are one type of development, there’s still a lot of room for independent development.

“We still want small businesses to have a place on the corridor,” said Fontana.

Fontana said the SFDC is planning a retail conference for early April.  The focus of that event will be the Richmond Highway submarket.