Falls Church:
Celebrating Its Past,
Present and Future

By Louie Estrada
Washington Post Staff Writer
September 16, 1995

As the city of Falls Church nears its 300th anniversary, the residents are planning to celebrate their efforts to balance historical preservation with the inevitable residential and commercial development that has come with its proximity to the District.

Falls Church, which sits on 2.2 square miles between Arlington County and eastern Fairfax County, was born as a way station for travelers, officially becoming a settlement in 1699. Scattered throughout the city are scores of structures linking the city to its rich history. Among those listed in the National Register of Historic Places is Cherry Hill farmhouse, built in 1845.

An owner of Cherry Hill, Joseph S. Riley was a key figure in the 1875 movement to incorporate the town. Today, the three-story timber-frame house next to City Hall is a local gathering place where story-telling sessions for children, summer concerts and community meetings are held.

"Falls Church takes pride in being a modern city that maintains its small-community atmosphere and preserves its historical heritage," said Cynthia Garner, president of the Village Preservation and Improvement Society. The group, which promotes the city's history, also advises the city council and developers who may want to change the design of the city.

As with other communities, there are strong pressures for change. Beyond the main commercial strip of restaurants and small shops along Broad Street, there are streets of quiet, tree-lined, residential neighborhoods of modest homes with pockets of more-expensive houses. Maintaining this oa\sis of small-town ambience about six miles from the District and minutes away from Tysons Corner is a difficult task, said Keith Thurston, a member of the city's planning commission.

One of the ways the city, with a population of 10,000, resists sprawling development is through preservation of the hundreds of old, towering trees around the city and its parks. The importance officials place on these trees is demonstrated by the fact that a full-time arborist is employed by the city. Another way is through substantial community debate over prospective development plans.

For several years, the city has been grappling with what to do with a tract of land known as the Whittier site, which runs along Hillwood Avenue. A joint task force of Falls Church and Fairfax County residents has made recommendations, which include retaining part of the land for park use, Thurston said. The group didn't rule out commercial use on the west end of the lot, but does want the site to be used to complement the existing residential landscape, he said. The city is expecting to receive developers' proposals for the site this month.

"It's a an example of citizenry involvement and people caring very much what is happening in their community," Thurston said.

"There are usually one of two reasons people give for moving here," he said. "People are after the small-town feel or schools."

Those were the reasons Steve and Jean McTeague decided to buy a home in Falls Church in 1966, when many of the surrounding shopping centers and malls still were unbuilt. With three small children at the time, the McTeagues settled on Falls Church mainly because of the schools, which are operated independently by the city.

While the development and population of the area beyond the city limits has increased dramatically since the McTeagues arrived, their block has remained largely unchanged, said Steve McTeague, a retired construction worker who is originally from Ireland. McTeague said that six other families in the neighborhood have lived there for more than 30 years.

Like many families in his neighborhood, McTeague has put his deep, oversized back yard to good use, growing a vegetable garden that normally produces baskets of tomatoes, which he then shares with neighbors. With little rainfall this summer, however, there have been fewer to go around.

Other residents of the neighborhood use the extra room for expansive decks, large additions to their homes or elaborate play areas for their children.

The city's magnetic pull has supported a healthy real estate market, said Maureen Tuttle, a real estate agent for ReMax. It is not an area with a high turnover rate, said Tuttle, who has been selling homes in Falls Church for the last 10 years.

However, an overall decline in the real estate market has had an impact on the city's home sales, she said. "A Falls Church listing may take a little bit longer to sell, depending on the home, but it will sell."

There is a wide mix of homes. Most are detached homes that can start at $149,000 for a fixer-upper, Tuttle said. On the upper end of the scale, there are restored luxury Victorians that are valued at $789,000 to $1 million, she said. There are also a few recent developments of luxury town houses and several new detached homes in the $500,000 range.

There are a number of community events, including the 20th annual Falls Church Fall Festival, which is scheduled for today. The one-day festival, sponsored by the Falls Church Recreation department, offers food, crafts, music and amusement rides.

During the growing season, residents are drawn together by the weekly farmers market in the parking lot of city hall. Vendors from nearby farms display apples, peaches, vegetables, fresh flowers and baked goods. But more importantly, perhaps, is that the marketplace serves as a meeting place for community activists.

© 1996 The Washington Post Co.

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