Significant development work planned in downtown Fredericksburg

Downtown Fredericksburg appears to be on the verge of a construction boom.

Numerous large projects are either under development or in the planning stages, with work expected to begin on many of them in the coming months. Here is a rundown of current and upcoming activity:

• The Lofts at Frederick Street project, which is on Frederick Street between Charles and Princess Anne streets near the train platform, has begun. The JON Properties and Van Zandt Restorations project will include the restoration of a historic coffee warehouse, a new condominium building with 17 residential units, and four new townhouses. Click here for a “Freehling Finds” video done on this project.
• Just a block away, local builder John Janney is making plans for a restoration project at the historic Janney-Marshall warehouse at 401 Princess Anne St. Plans call for the warehouse to be converted into 12 residential units and about 2,000 square feet of office space.
• The City of Fredericksburg will soon release a request for proposals for the development of the 3.5-acre Riverfront Park between the Rappahannock River and Sophia Street, and Wolfe Street and Hanover Street. The park is expected to host numerous events after opening next year.
• Across the street from Riverfront Park, Tommy Mitchell is working on plans for the One Hanover project at the intersection of Sophia and Hanover streets. One Hanover will include 24 upper-level apartments, about 15,000 square feet of restaurant space with patios overlooking Riverfront Park and the Rappahannock River, about 45 parking spaces and two small retail spaces on the ground level.
• Just down the street in the 500 block of Sophia Street behind Fredericksburg Square, Arlington-based Tradition Homes plans to build the 13-townhouse-unit Riverview development.
• Also on Sophia Street next to Tapa Rio in the 1100 block, three single-family homes are planned in a development called Clearview that will overlook historic Chatham Manor.
• Work is expected to begin on the Dominion Public Market food hall in the coming months at 1010 Caroline St.
• On the former Free Lance-Star headquarters properties between William and Amelia streets, and Winchester Street and Washington Avenue, two significant projects are planned called Liberty Place and William Square. Wack General Contractor’s Liberty Place project will include a 43,000-square-foot, three-level commercial building with restaurant and office space. Preliminary plans for the Vakos Companies’ William Square project call for a structured garage, two buildings with a total of 84 apartments, a fitness center and a 98-room hotel.

(Significant development is also occurring outside downtown in Fredericksburg, including Telegraph Hill/Fredericksburg Park, Highlander off Lafayette Boulevard, the redevelopment of the mobile-home park off U.S. 1, the Minor League Baseball stadium and the Silver Collection project in Celebrate Virginia South, and more is in the works.)

Here is a locator map for the above-mentioned downtown projects: