Construction on Providence Community Center Starts this Weekend

Oakton residents will come one step closer to having a new community center this Saturday. 

Fairfax County officials are hosting a groundbreaking ceremony for the Providence Community Center, a 32,000-square-foot facility to include a gym, activity room, and classrooms at 3001 Vaden Drive near the Vienna Metro Station. 

“I think everyone is very excited, people have been looking forward to this,” said Fairfax County’s Providence District Supervisor Linda Q. Smyth. “The only [community center] I have in my district is in the extreme eastern end so this will fill a gap in our facilities out this way.”

The community center is set to be completed 2015. 

The facility is a component of the planned mixed-use community MetroWest that will include town homes, condos, apartments, and retail facilities. Fairfax County officials approved the MetroWest project in 2006. 

The developer, Pulte Homes has proffered to provide the land and design and construct the center. They will be putting forward $7.94 million toward the approximately $13 million center.

The community center will mitigate the impact the new development will have on impact on existing public facilities, Smyth said. 

The center will host after-school programs and summer camps, fitness activities, programs for older adults, and technology programs. It will also house Smyth’s new offices, which are currently in a portion of a Fire Station 30 on Lee Highway.

The ground-breaking ceremony is scheduled for 10 a.m. at 3001 Vaden Drive. Smyth, Board of Supervisors Chairman Sharon Bulova, U.S. Rep. Gerald Connolly, and other Fairfax County officials will be there to celebrate.