Why downtown Mclean is such a drab?

[Anonymous]

Sorry noob question here as I just moved. Isn’t Mclean supposed to be an ultra wealthy area?

[Anonymous]

The ultra wealthy don’t really care about the same things you care about.

[Anonymous]

What do you want that McLean lacks

[Anonymous]

Search the archives here. This question comes up regularly.

[Anonymous]

Oh, there have been people who have pushed for redevelopment for years. Literally decades. But they always get significant pushback from the crazy group that is against it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The ultra wealthy don’t really care about the same things you care about.

The ultrawealthy in cosmopolitan cities want amenities. Maybe not in backwoods Virginia.

[Anonymous]

My parents live in McLean and I have always wondered the same. My mom is constantly on me to move there but honestly? It just seems really boring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry noob question here as I just moved. Isn’t Mclean supposed to be an ultra wealthy area?

They've been trying to redevelop downtown McLean for a couple of decades but the surrounding homeowners associations/residents have been aggressive about petitioning for limitations. Primarily around height restrictions for the new buildings, traffic/parking, density (impact on already crowded schools) and requirements for public space in the plan.

We moved here 5 years ago and while there are some nice aspects of downtown McLean, it is clearly in need of substantial revitalization. We can walk downtown and I for one would welcome many changes. It feels like the old (and well funded) guard, and I mean that literally as the majority we hear/see complaining are 70+, are doing what they can to control the terms of McLean's business development. The whole "McLean small not Tyson's Tall" brigade... While I agree with some of their arguments, it feels like they are just too much overall and discouraging potential developers from stepping into the mix. Its a generalization, but many of the older residents seem to like that its a small and sleepy downtown... which I might be ok with if it was at least modernized. The run down strip malls and vacant storefronts like the old burger joint next to the butchers, are just ugly and don't attract new and interesting businesses/restaurants.

FWIW, we briefly lived in FCC years ago and there were similar issues there... but they eventually worked through them. Just my opinion as a ~45 yo living within walking distance to downtown that is hopeful that there are some improvements in the next decade.

[Anonymous]

Good location. Good public schools. Decent though overpriced housing stock. Low crime.

Boring.

[Anonymous]

Seems to be working for McLean. No shortage of buyers.

[Anonymous]

The county approved a plan amendment in June 2021 that "upzones" McLean and allows greater residential and commercial density in the downtown area. But obviously it is a sensitive time for developers to be making construction plans, and even if they went forward they'd still have to deal with the fact that downtown McLean isn't near Metro and doesn't have the traffic volume of Route 123 further west (Chain Bridge Road in McLean is a spur off of busy Route 123, Dolley Madison Boulevard), along with the fact that other parts of Tysons/McLean are being developed now.

[Anonymous]

One good thing about McLean downtown is that it still largely has big flat parking lots vs. pay as you use parking garages, which I dislike strongly. When it eventually gets redeveloped I suspect some of that will go away. There are some changes coming - as I understand it the group of buildings where Chipolte is is going to become a mixed use property with more stories (don't remember how many -- maybe 8 to 11?) and the Chesterbrook Safeway area is to be redeveloped and spruced up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry noob question here as I just moved. Isn’t Mclean supposed to be an ultra wealthy area?

Old people gonna old.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One good thing about McLean downtown is that it still largely has big flat parking lots vs. pay as you use parking garages, which I dislike strongly. When it eventually gets redeveloped I suspect some of that will go away. There are some changes coming - as I understand it the group of buildings where Chipolte is is going to become a mixed use property with more stories (don't remember how many -- maybe 8 to 11?) and the Chesterbrook Safeway area is to be redeveloped and spruced up.

This is the building planned for behind Chipotle. May just be residential, but adding more residential will increase the demand for retail.

https://www.tysonsreporter.com/2021/11/18/mclean-residential-project-gets-temporary-plan-for-parking-during-construction/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The ultra wealthy don’t really care about the same things you care about.

The ultrawealthy in cosmopolitan cities want amenities. Maybe not in backwoods Virginia.

Except backwoods Virginia is pretty much from where they originated.