Razed Vacant Home Paves Way For Telegraph Road Improvements

Local commuters might be wondering what happened to the vacant house at the intersection of S. Van Dorn Street and Telegraph Road, and they're going to like the answer - it's been torn down so they don't have to get stuck at a traffic light.

The demolition of the structure is one of the first steps in the Virginia Department of Transportation's (VDOT) improvements to the problematic intersection, said Lee District Supervisor Jeff McKay in an interview with Patch before the house was torn down.

Residents curious enough to inspect the blue signs in front of the house when it was standing would have realized it was owned by Fairfax County. 

“That one specifically we purchased because it was in foreclosure, and we felt like we could get a better deal … to buy it early and hold it because we knew we’d need it for the [VDOT] project,” McKay said. “It was really in our favor economically to act on it and get it at a distress sale and we paid well below market value for it because of that."

During its time in the county's possession, the house was looked at as a possible site for SWAT exercises by the Fairfax County Police Department, said Officer Eduardo Azcarate, spokesman for the Franconia District Station. "They chose not to use it due to its size and proximity to the road," he said in an email. 

Adding more vehicle lanes and a bike lane, the Telegraph Road improvement project is intended to relieve congestion for drivers turning left from S. Van Dorn onto Telegraph Road. Currently, a lack of lanes at the intersection can cause delays at the light.

Unfortunately, the improvements to the intersection won't be complete until 2014, McKay said. Much of next year will be spent making land acquisitions, because the extra lanes will infringe on some private property near where the vacant house once stood. 

at in September, draft plans on display suggested one privately-held building is threatened, 6981 Telegraph Road.

VDOT hopes to acquire the land so the department can be ready to hire contractors in 2013 and have the improvements completed the following year. The project is expected to cost $10 million.