Lake Anne Plaza — the original Reston’s village center that is about to embark on a revitalization project that developers hope will transform the area — has had a string of business turnover news in 2014.
To recap:
- Jasmine Cafe, longtime restaurant, evicted for non payment of rent
- Lake Anne Pharmacy, sold after more than 40 years on the plaza so owner could retire; Slated to close in September
- Cafe Lakeside, food counter within Lake Anne Pharmacy, closed as space was sold and owners retired
- Cupcake Ladi, closed in August after four years
- New Family Naturals, closed in August after two years
- Lake Anne Coffee House, for sale
- Lake Anne Florist, Virginia Wine and Gourmet, business for sale after more than 30 years; owner retiring
Is it a streak of bad timing, a sign of the economic times or a changing of the guard?
A little bit of all three, says Rick Thompson, president of the Lake Anne of Reston Condo Association, which oversees commercial space as well as residences at the plaza.
Thompson points out that many of the recent closings are from longtime store owners who had businesses at Lake Anne for dozens of years.
“Any set of businesses in any location are always going to go through periods of change,” he said. “Tastes change, businesses go through cycles. I think there are a lot of different reasons at work here.
“Take the cupcake store. She rode the cupcake trend, but that’s probably in the rearview mirror now. Jasmine — he was in business 25 years, but he did not continue to invest in his business and it atrophied. Larry (Cohn, owner of the pharmacy) held on way past retirement. Linda Fuller (of Lake Anne Florist) ran her business a long time. She wasn’t ‘working for the man’ somewhere.”
So what will open at Lake Anne Plaza? It takes a certain type of business owner, but Thompson says he thinks space at Lake Anne will appeal to independent-minded, cost-savvy entrepreneurs. While there is no rule against chain stores at Lake Anne, the size of most storefronts usually deters businesses looking for a more uniform space.
“If it is the kind of business that makes sense here, it is a great location in a growing area,” he said. “It is an affluent economic [area] and there will be redevelopment nearby.”
Rents are far lower at Lake Anne than they are at many other Reston shopping centers or at Reston Town Center, says Thompson. At Reston Town Center, for instance, business owners are bound by management rules. Space at Lake Anne is individually owned with fewer rules.
But that can also work against the plaza, which has a voluntary merchants committee. Some shopkeepers keep irregular hours or do not maintain property properly.
Also impeding progress is Lake Anne Plaza’s historic designation. That means that the “horseshoe” part of the plaza cannot be altered, even if it means outdated entryways or tight fits for delivery trucks.
“There is no way to roll back the historical designation,” said Thompson. “It is already in the county code. Is it better to have free reign and let the architecture go to hell? I don’t think anyone would want that.”
David Peter, president and CEO of Republic Land Development, which is redeveloping Crescent Apartments and the land surrounding Lake Anne Plaza, says the vacancies do not worry him. In fact, they help boost his plan that the Lake Anne area is ripe for higher density and renovation.
“I think this bolsters what we have been saying for two-and-a-half years — that this place needs to be revitalized,” he said. “We think we have a plan that will achieve that. Obviously, we hope other people will pick up where the others left off.”
Peter said Republic’s goal is to start construction in mid or late 2015.
Plans to redevelop Lake Anne Fellowship House have been put on hold indefinitely — and it looks as though some current residents of the affordable housing for seniors may have to pay higher rents in order to stay in the building.
Fellowship Square and Novus Residences had been working for more than a year on plans to tear down the senior housing in need of remodeling and rebuild on the site 140 affordable housing units as well as 285 market-rate housing units.
The plan was organized separately from Republic Land Development’s large revitalization project at Crescent Apartments and the area near Lake Anne Plaza. An initial Fairfax County Planning Commission hearing had been scheduled for later this month.
Lake Anne Fellowship House currently has 240 units for seniors, 114 of which are subsidized. The building, which was built in the early 1970s and does not meet all Americans With Disability Act standards, also has a 20 percent vacancy rate.
The Fellowship House Foundation notified Fairfax County zoning officials last week that the application was deferred “due to our inability to advance our land use proposal in a manner that will produce the best possible outcome for our residents.”
From the start, the proposed project had an obstacle in that there are two different mortgage holders for the six-acre property: The Department of Housing and Urban Development for the west side and the Virginia Housing Development Authority for the eastern half. Both would have to agree to consolidate and retitle, and Fellowship House board member John Thillman predicted last year that that could prove a long — and possibly fruitless — process.
Edward Byrnes, a member of the Fellowship House Foundation board and chair of its Lake Anne Redevelopment Committee, wrote in a letter to county officials that he still believed that foundation’s plan was a good one in spite of criticism that many low-income seniors would be displaced.
“We still believe that our proposal for 140 permanently affordable senior housing units and 285 market-rate units is the best available means for replacing our aging residential complex and retaining affordable housing for seniors in Reston for the next 40 years,” Byrnes wrote. “We arrived at this proposal after several years of reviewing alternate solutions … In the end, we concluded that a self-help strategy of using the increased value of our land at Lake Anne Fellowship House to finance the rebuilding of our complex provided the most dependable and achievable solution. ” Read More
Linda Fuller, owner of Lake Anne Florist, Virginia Wine & Gourmet, says her shop at Lake Anne Plaza is for sale.
Fuller is 65, and she says that after selling flowers and other gift products in Reston for 40 years, it is time to go.
Fuller started her business in 1974, selling flowers from a van in the Lake Anne Plaza parking lot. She opened her first Lake Anne store in 1976, and eventually moved to a larger space in Herndon and a kiosk at Hunters Woods Village Center.
Lake Anne Florist returned to the plaza in 1996, and in 2007 moved into its current space at 11426 Washington Plaza, where Fuller stocks local food products and wine, and Chesapeake Chocolates leases space.
The business has morphed from flowers into gift baskets, wine pairings and gourmet foods. The store is the site of many special events, including wine tastings and food samplings.
“I need to find someone that has the energy to do the marketing to move the business forward,” Fuller said. “I’m not going to wait around for the redevelopment. I have been waiting for 15 years.”
Fuller is speaking of the Lake Anne revitalization project, which will bring more density to the area around Lake Anne, as well as hopefully revitalize the retail area in the historic area of the plaza. Fairfax County chose Lake Anne Development Corporation, a division of Republic Lane Development, last summer to redevelop the aging, 181-unit Crescent Apartments nearby.
LADC plans more than 1,000 housing units, as well as nearly 200,000 square feet of retail and office space, but work has not yet begun on the project.
But meanwhile, it is a period of transition for the existing businesses. In the last six weeks, Lake Anne Florist neighbors The Cupcake Ladi and New Family Naturals have closed up shop.
Earlier in the year, Lake Anne Pharmacy, the oldest continuously operating business at Lake Anne, was sold. If a tenant cannot be found by the end of this month, that store will close. Earlier in the year, Cafe Lakeside, the lunch counter operation within the drugstore, closed.
Also this year, Jasmine Cafe, a longtime Lake Anne restaurant, was shut down after failing to pay the rent. And the Lake Anne Coffee House remains for sale.
Fuller says someone with vision could come in and create a larger and especially viable business that would be well established by the time redevelopment occurs. She added she will stay open at least until the end of the year or until a buyer is found.
The asking price Lake Anne Florist, Virginia Wine & Gourmet is $24,995.
The sounds of jazz return to Lake Anne Plaza Saturday at the 8th Annual Lake Anne Jazz & Blues Festival.
The free event offers fun for the whole family, with notable regional and national jazz musicians. The festival runs from 2 to 8 p.m.
There will be cornhole for the kids and beer and wine for adults, featuring Champion Missile IPA from Charlottesville and Bells Oberon Ale from Michigan.
The Initiative for Public Art Rest (IPAR) will have two displays/activities at the festival. One is a mural by Reston artist Abbie Fundling. People of all ages are invited to add their touch of color to the mural.
The other project is Before I Die by artist Candy Chang. Before I Die is an interactive temporary public art project that invites people to share their personal aspirations in public spaces.
The original wall was created in February 2011 on an abandoned house in Candy Chang’s neighborhood in New Orleans. Since then, more than 525 Before I Die walls have been created in 70 countries in over 30 languages.
This year’s musical headliner is the Adrian Duke Project. Duke is a New Orleans-influenced pianist, composer and vocalist.
Performance Schedule
- 2 p.m. — Nia Olibesi Trio
- 3 p.m. — John Lee Quartet
- 4 p.m. — Mykle Lyons Quintet
- 5 p.m. — Chip Bubeck Trio
- 6 p.m. — Sam Gunderson
- 7 p.m. — Adrian Duke Project
The festival is sponsored by Lane Anne Merchants, Friends of Lake Anne, Northern Virginia Magazine, the Reston Community Center, Reston Association and Republic Land Development.
The festival will be held rain or shine.
The Cupcake Ladi bakery at Lake Anne Plaza has closed its doors.
The shop opened at 11412 Washington Plaza West in 2010, when the national cupcake trend was on the rise.
The Cupcake Ladi featured cupcakes made with organic ingredients and a portion of receipts were donated to groups that helped animals, the owner said.
No word on whether The Cupcake Ladi will continue as a bakery service without a shop or what else will go in there.
Earlier this month, New Family Naturals, a locally owned health food store and juice bar located two doors down at 11414 Washington Plaza, closed after a little more that two years in business.
Development projects in Reston are in a bit of a lull right now as both the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and the Fairfax County Planning Commission are off until September.
However, many of them have upcoming hearings and other important dates coming soon.
Here is a rundown of what to expect.
Lake Anne/Crescent Apartments
The revitalization plan for Crescent Apartments and the surrounding area near Lake Anne Plaza has been in the works for nearly a year. Lake Anne Development Partners were chosen by the county in summer 2013 to transform the county-owned affordable housing development.
LADP plans include replacing the aging 181-unit Crescent Apartments with slightly more affordable housing, as well as mix of townhomes and multifamily dwellings. In all, about 1,000 new residential units are planned, as well as a new retail plaza, new access points to historic Lake Anne Plaza and more than 130,000 square feet of new retail and office space.
Plans also call for housing for seniors and a boutique grocery store.
LADP’s plans will go before the Planning Commission in a public hearing Nov. 5. If the planning commission recommends approval, the plan will go to the Board of Supervisors Nov. 18. Both of those dates are subject to change.
LADP CEO David Peter says he hopes to begin construction in 2015. The revitalization is expected to be a multiyear process.
Meanwhile, LADP has reached an agreement on a land swap with Reston Association. By obtaining a one-acre plot near Lake Anne Village Center, LADP can now proceed with plans to build a 120-space parking garage.
Lake Anne Fellowship House
Novus Residences has filed with Fairfax County Proffered Condition Amendment, Development Plan Amendment and a Planned Residential Community application in order to build on the site of Lake Anne Fellowship House at 11448 and 11450 North Shore Dr.
Plans for the six-acre site include building up to 425 dwelling units that will include a building with 140 independent living affordable units and a second building with 285 market rate multi-family dwelling units.
Current residents of Fellowship House, a residence for low-income seniors that is badly in need of renovation, will be moved to the new building.
A Planning Commission date is scheduled for Sept. 17, 2014 at 8:15 p.m., with a Board of Supervisors public hearing scheduled for Oct. 7. Those dates are also subject to change.
Art Studio on Concord Point
The planning commission will hear a special exemption request from Mary Beth Swicord, owner of First Marks Art Studio.
Swicord has been operating the art studio from her home at 1398 Concord Point Lane for many years. Previously, the enrollment was eight students at a time. Swicord wants to increase enrollment to 18 students on Mondays and 12 from Tuesdays through Fridays from 4 to 8 p.m., and the county requires a special exemption to do that.
She is also proposing a Summer Camp, Monday – Friday from 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. daily, with an enrollment of 12 students.The Planning Commission public hearing is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 9.
JBG/Reston Executive Center
Developer JBG previously filed a special exception to allow for the building 65,000 square feet of development to include retail sales, eating establishment, fast food restaurant and quick service food stores in the 12000 block of Sunset Hills Road
The plan calls for converting 27,850 square feet of existing office use and constructing 37,150 square feet of building additions to the existing office buildings.
The planning commission public hearing has been indefinitely deferred.
Graphic: Artist’s rendering of improved Lake Anne Plaza/file photo
Labor Day weekend at Lake Anne Plaza will be the spot for music lovers as the Jazz & Blues Festival returns on Aug. 30.
The free event runs from 2 to 8 p.m. and will feature a variety of notable regional and national jazz and blues artists.
This year’s headliner is the Adrian Duke Project. Duke is a New Orleans-influenced pianist, composer and vocalist.
Performance Schedule
- 2 p.m. — Nia Olibesi Trio
- 3 p.m. — John Lee Quartet
- 4 p.m. — Mykle Lyons Quintet
- 5 p.m. — Chip Bubeck Trio
- 6 p.m. — Sam Gunderson
- 7 p.m. — Adrian Duke Project
The festival is sponsored by Lane Anne Merchants, Friends of Lake Anne, Northern Virginia Magazine, the Reston Community Center, Reston Association and Republic Land Development.
The festival will be held rain or shine. Photo: Adrian Duke at 2013 Lake Anne Jazz & Blues Festival
It has been six months since owners Alfredo and Rocio Melendez flipped their last burger and scooped the last ice cream at Cafe Lakeside.
The breakfast and lunch counter at Lake Anne Plaza — under different names and owners — has been part of Lakeside Pharmacy for decades.
The Melendez’s closed the food service in February when the pharmacy went under contract to be sold. With the space’s future uncertain, the couple decided to retire.
Meanwhile, ownership of the pharmacy has turned over and the business continues to operate. Reston real estate brokers say that the lunch counter space can be leased or sold separately.
So, what do you think should go in this waterfront location at Lake Anne Plaza? Should it be a restaurant? Or another kind of business separate from the pharmacy?
Tell us your thoughts in the comments.
There is a spot at Reston’s Lake Anne Plaza that serves authentic Latin American food and is open seven days a week.
We would tell you about it, but it has no name.
Lake Anne Market and Deli — the stand-alone convenience store at 1645 Washington Plaza — is mostly a bodega, but in the back of the store you will find Lake Anne Market employees cooking fresh specialities from El Salvador, Mexico and other Central American countries, as well as Tex-Mex versions of popular dishes.
Owners Rogelio and Wendy Martinez installed the kitchen about four years ago. The food service counter has caught on with the neighborhood’s Latin American population — as well as Lake Anne-area residents in the know about the the quality empanadas, pupusas and tacos.
Earlier this summer, the market began selling some of its specialities at a table across the parking lot at the Saturday Reston Farmers Market. It has boosted business in a big way, said Rogilio Martinez.
“We make everything fresh,” he says. “We make the tortillas right here, at the same time you place your order.”
Some of the customer favorites:
- Tacos Tipicos — Three chicken, beef or pork tacos served with black beans, slaw and fresh avocado slices. ($12.25)
- Steak, chicken or cheese enchiladas ($10.50)
- Sides of yuca (5.00) and fried plantains ($4.25)
- Cheese enchilada platter ($9.50)
Food is available to eat-in at a counter and one table or take out.
The market is open 9 a.m. to midnight every day.
New Family Naturals, the health food store and smoothie bar located at Lake Anne Plaza, has closed up shop.
Toya Tanis opened the location at 11414 Washington Plaza West in Summer 2012, after crowdsourcing some of the opening costs on Indiegogo.
The company raised $2,225 in donations to buy commercial sinks and retail refrigerators.
Tanis started New Family Naturals in 2011, mostly selling homemade kale chips and other snacks and juices at farmers markets, including the Saturday Reston Farmers Market at Lake Anne. After leasing the space at Lake Anne Plaza, Tanis remodeled the retail space with eco-friendly features.
Tanis could not be reached, but customers say she is going back to a catering and farmers market operation.
There are three special events in Reston this weekend that are mark-your-calendar worthy.
Saturday
Ukulele Festival: The fifth annual Lake Anne Ukulele Festival takes place at Lake Anne Plaza. The fun begins at noon, with live performances and workshops that will run until 6 p.m.
To see a full schedule of performances, see this previous Reston Now story.
Sunday
Police Sports Extravaganza: With the 2015 World Police and Fire Games opening in Fairfax County in exactly a year, organizers want to give residents a sneak peak of some of the competition that will take place here.
There will be a Police & Fire Sports Extravaganza from noon to 6 p.m. Sunday at Reston Town Center.
There will be a full day of sports, music and fun so visitors can get a sneak peek at the 2015 World Police & Fire Games events, which organizers say is the largest multi-sport competition ever staged in the Washington metropolitan area.
Among the activities: live demonstrations of Honor Guard, Muster Carts, K9, Police Motors, Lawfit, Tug of War, Darts, Martial Arts and Sub Grappling; a Kids Zone; and a touch-a-truck area where youngsters can explore a police cruiser and fire engine.
Reston Town Center will be a hub of activity for the 12,000 athletes and nearly as many spectators here next summer. Town Center will serve as the athletes village for nightly special events. There will also be several competitions in Reston, including the Open Water Swim in Lake Audubon.
Summer Film Festival: Lake Anne Plaza continues its outdoor summer film festival with a showing of “The Breakfast Club” on the plaza a dusk (about 8 p.m.).
Bring a lawn chair or blanket and your own popcorn — though plaza restaurants will be open and ready to serve.
Photo: 2o13 Ukulele Festival at Lake Anne/file photo
The sounds of strings Lake Anne Plaza July 12 at the fifth annual Lake Anne Ukulele Festival.
The free festival features performances by several internationally known and local ukulele musicians, music demonstrations, as well as a public jam session, festival vendors, and other family friendly activities.
Workshops & Open Mic Sessions
9:45 – 10:40 a.m. — Community Showcase & Open Mic at Café Montmartre
10:45 – 11:4 a.m. — Beatles Workshop hosted by Stuart Fuchs at Café Montmartre
Performances:
12:00 – 12:30 p.m. — The Aloha Boys
12:45 – 1:20 p.m. — Sweater Set
1:55 – 2:30 p.m. — Kathy & Marv
2:50 – 3:50 p.m. — Stuart Fuchs
4:00 – 5:00 p.m. — Gerald Ross
5:15 – 6:15 p.m. — Swing Workshop hosted by Gerald Ross – Café Montmartre
The festival is hosted by the Lake Anne Merchants with support from the Reston Community Center, Friends of Lake Anne (FOLA), Northern Virginia Magazine and the Northern Virginia Ukulele Ensemble.
Photo: The Aloha Boys at the 2013 Lake Anne Ukulele Festival/File photo
Dozens of artists took chalk to brick Saturday and Sunday at the inaugural Chalk on the Water festival at Lake Anne Plaza.
The event, organized by the Initiative for Public Art Reston, attracted professional artists and amateur artists of all ages. Participants paid to reserve space on the bricks on which to create the frescos.
There were storybook characters and abstract designs, portraits and animals, among other renderings.
How long the murals remain on the plaza will depend on predicted rain this week.
Prizes were awarded to winners:
Professional Artist
- First — Erica Fallin
- Second — Penny Hauffe
- Third — Milagros Pongo
Middle/High School
- First — Kara Brownback
- Second — Hanna Wilson Black
- Third — Jordon Ismaiel
Elementary School
- First — Kerry Wennnet
- Second — Riley and Gabby
- Third — Viv Schoening
To see works from the winners, visit Lake Anne Plaza’s Facebook page.
Lakeside Pharmacy at Lake Anne Plaza will remain open at least through late July, real estate sources and store employees said.
The sale of the pharmacy, the last original store at Lake Anne, was completed last week.
Previous owner Larry Cohn — who had been trying to sell the property for years so he could retire — will stay on as pharmacist at least through the end of July.
The new owners of the space are investors. They are looking for an independent pharmacy to rent the space, so there is a good chance the location on Washington Plaza will continue as a pharmacy. However, if a new lease is not signed, the space could become vacant.
Cafe Lakeside, the breakfast and lunch counter located in the pharmacy, closed in February. Owners Alfredo and Rocio Melendez, who had operated the space since 2011, said they wanted to retire since the future of the space was unknown.
The lunch counter space is being marketed for sale or lease separately, so a prospective tenant would not necessarily have to run the business inside another business.
The waterfront space that houses Lakeside Pharmacy is not slated for redevelopment as part of Lake Anne Development Partners’ (Republic Development) plan for the area.
Because the pharmacy is in the historic part of Lake Anne, it cannot undergo big changes. Nearby areas such as the current parking lot at Lake Anne Plaza, a grove of trees owned by Reston Association and Crescent Apartments are included in the plan, which includes 60,000 square feet of new retail space, up to 82,500 square feet of office space, and 1,037 residential units.
Meanwhile, other longtime Lake Anne businesses are changing hands. Jasmine Cafe, a locally owned restaurant on the plaza, closed last month. The Lake Anne Coffee House is also for sale.
Jasmine Cafe, the longtime Lake Anne Plaza restaurant, has been closed for a month ever since the landlord locked out the owner for rent that was in arrears.
It does not appear the restaurant will reopen.
Lake Anne Plaza is home to several other restaurants, including Cafe Montmartre, Kalypso’s, Singh Thai and Lake Anne Coffee House.
Jasmine Cafe had been located at Lake Anne for more than 20 years. The restaurant has a local following for owner/chef Eduardo Faubert and his seasonal menu, as well as outdoor seating on the plaza.
What do you think should open in this spot? Tell us in the comments.
