Ashburn Might be Nicest Outside-the-Beltway Suburb (Arlington, Reston: townhomes, neighborhood, to buy)

[TheseGoTo11]

Can't escape cookie cutter outside the Beltway. But the developments in Ashburn seem far better planned, with far more mixed-use projects than the post-war suburbs closer in. Seems like if you live in Ashburn, you can't be far from decent shopping, and in many cases, you can even walk. It also lacks the worn out, 1970s strip malls that you even see in Arlington, McLean and Reston.

Spent way too many years in cities to live in an outer suburb, but have to say that area of Loudoun is being developed with far more consideration of public spaces than many of the more expensive parts of Fairfax County closer to the Beltway.

[Vacanegro]

Loudoun is definately better planned than Fairfax but if you are one of the many many folks that work in and live out, the traffic is going to wear heavily on you day-after-day.

[spencgr]

It's all a matter of opinion and preference. And you can escape cookie cutter.

[gomason]

Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11

Can't escape cookie cutter outside the Beltway. But the developments in Ashburn seem far better planned, with far more mixed-use projects than the post-war suburbs closer in. Seems like if you live in Ashburn, you can't be far from decent shopping, and in many cases, you can even walk. It also lacks the worn out, 1970s strip malls that you even see in Arlington, McLean and Reston.

Spent way too many years in cities to live in an outer suburb, but have to say that area of Loudoun is being developed with far more consideration of public spaces than many of the more expensive parts of Fairfax County closer to the Beltway.

I can't think of a single mixed-use development in Ashburn?? Instead of the old strip malls in Arlington, they have new strip malls.

[dkf747]

Ashburn has quite a few strip malls, and the shopping often takes one to Leesburg or Sterling/Herndon/Reston.

[FCNova]

Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11

Can't escape cookie cutter outside the Beltway. But the developments in Ashburn seem far better planned, with far more mixed-use projects than the post-war suburbs closer in. Seems like if you live in Ashburn, you can't be far from decent shopping, and in many cases, you can even walk. It also lacks the worn out, 1970s strip malls that you even see in Arlington, McLean and Reston.

Spent way too many years in cities to live in an outer suburb, but have to say that area of Loudoun is being developed with far more consideration of public spaces than many of the more expensive parts of Fairfax County closer to the Beltway.

I completely disagree w the bolded. Not only is most of Ashburn not walkable at all, a lot of the residential developments are packed together way too close. I actually prefer the older section of Ashburn because they actually used lots that weren't utterly pathetic. It's so bad in some places there isn't enough enough land for a garage in front so they throw it in the backyard(thus removing the backyard). And I can't think of any great mixed use projects. The closer in areas, even though older are seeing a lot of that. Ex. Mosaic district and Dunn Loring Metro developments, Tysons Corner area, etc. Even my favorite places to go in Ashburn like Lost Rhino or Old Ox brewery, or Fords Fish Shack, are in weird industrial areas or just boring retail areas anchored with a grocery store.

Ashburn does appeal to me for some reasons(young family demographic, affordability), but not at all for the reasons you mentioned.

[TheWatchmen]

Originally Posted by gomason

I can't think of a single mixed-use development in Ashburn?? Instead of the old strip malls in Arlington, they have new strip malls.

Agreed. And Arlington is hardly a bastion of strip malls, even in areas inaccessible to rail.

I can see why people like Ashburn/Leesburg etc. Every time I visit friends, I'm like wow, this is all so new, nice, and clean. But I don't think I'll ever desire living there.

The "more expensive parts of Fairfax County closer to the Beltway" are more expensive for a variety of reasons. People in Ashburn/lLeesburg sometimes come across as butthurt that their counterparts in Vienna, etc. are paying more, sometimes many hundreds of thousands more, for smaller, older houses in older areas.

[NC211]

They come across as "butthurt"? Hahaha!!! I'm guessing that's an auto-correct entry?

That's funny!!

Ashburn is nice, and One Loudoun is a mixed-use development that is going up right now. We don't have a Reston Town Center setting (yet), because we don't really need one (yet). With Leesburg and Reston close enough to us, it's all primarily residential usage.

Ten years ago, you got a .50 acre lot if you wanted to buy new in the area, but entry prices were around $1,000,000 +/-. It was "McMansion" time out there. Recession hit, local land developers lost their option contracts to the national builders with deeper pockets, 5,500 SF became 4,000 SF, and yards started getting cut down to .25 acres and less to increase the density of homes for profits. Larger profit margin 10 years ago on a new home. Now, to get same returns for a developer, it's more quantity of units.

Currently, prices have dramitically increased from just 5 years ago in the area. That translates into higher land prices. Those land plays from the recession that some of the local developers couldn't hold on to and sold to the national developers, are all developed and gone. Land now, costs too much to make a large yard profitable. Entry prices are in the mid $600's now for the same (or even less than) the same house from 5 years ago.

My concern now is townhomes. Too many of them if you ask me. Just walls and walls of vinyl siding going up. This is all because of the land prices for developers. The more butts you can put on a piece of dirt, the more money the developer makes. Building a string of townhomes (5 units in a string) probably costs the same as one McMansion would in matierals. Average price of $450K per townhome = $2.25MM per string on the same 1/2 lot (if that) that you would see a $1.5MM McMansion on. Makes sense if you're a developer.

LoCo needs to curb the townhomes a bit, if you ask me. Or, at least change up the design features, especially the exterior materials allowed and not allowed.

[NOVAEER]

Originally Posted by NC211

LoCo needs to curb the townhomes a bit, if you ask me. Or, at least change up the design features, especially the exterior materials allowed and not allowed.

I agree, though I like the looks of these new ones being built in Goose Creek:

New Homes in Ashburn VA | Brookfield Residential | Goose Creek

[geekocaster]

i reverse commute in to ashburn daily and the only thing I can see that would be a pain is the traffic leaving ash in the AM and returning to ash in the afternoon. People here pay $1M to buy a house but won't pay the $ to take the toll road that goes right thru their neighborhood. they rather sit in traffic on waxpool, LoCo parkway and 28 than take greenway.