Officials kicked off the residential conversion of the long-vacant Victory Center yesterday (Wednesday) with a symbolic wall demolition, as the site is expected to welcome hundreds of housing units along Eisenhower Avenue.
The project at 5001 Eisenhower Avenue by property owner Stonebridge, the City of Alexandria and Amazon’s Housing Fund promises to bring 377 housing units to the 9.73-acre Victory Center property, including committed affordable and workforce units.
The 600,000-square-foot building has been vacant since the U.S. Army Materiel Command moved out in 2003. The conversion is expected to be completed in summer 2027.
“We’re not just talking about four walls and roofs,” Mayor Alyia Gaskins said. “We are talking about the physical, the social, the emotional, the critical spaces where people build them in, where they build memories, where they build relationships, where their stories are formed and told.”
The building is slated to including units affordable to varying levels of the area median income for 40 years, according to the city website:
Affordable units
- 41 units at 50% AMI – exclusively available to income-qualified residents
- 41 units at 60% AMI – exclusively available to income-qualified residents
Workforce units
- 189 units at 80% AMI
- 106 units at 100% AMI
The 80% and 100% AMI units will be available to income-qualified residents for 75 days after each unit is vacated and may be leased at the restricted rent to tenants whose incomes are higher after 75 days
The city is providing a 25-year tax abatement for the project, and Amazon will contribute a 99-year affordability covenant and low-rate subordinate rent, according to Stonebridge.
Kent Marquis, a princip
“It takes a village to put a plan like this in place,” Marquis said.
Senthil Sankaran, managing principal of Amazon’s housing fund, said the property will be able to serve families for generations.
“Victory Center is a shining example of what a true partnership between the public and private sectors can achieve,” Sankaran said.
