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Virginia: Tidewater and Piedmont » Northern Virginia » Fairfax and Prince William Counties » Manassas » Fairfax County Government Center Complex

Fairfax County Government Center Complex

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1991–1992, RTKL. 12000 Government Center Pkwy.
  • Fairfax County Government Center Complex (Bill Sublette)

A 100-acre suburban office park, this is the latest in a series of solutions to the problem of housing the county government: first, the original courthouse in the city of Fairfax, then various additions, then buildings in the immediate area, and finally complete removal from the town. The site offers hiking trails and provides parking for 2,800 vehicles. RTKL of Baltimore designed the Government Center, a vast, horseshoe-shaped structure focused on an atrium that looks out on a sunken garden and woods beyond. The governmental enterprise is abstractly recalled in the classical pediment shape that forms the massive glazed entrance opening. The remainder of the exterior from the entrance side looks like a fortress. In contrast, the courtyard facade is open and surrounds an amphitheater. The wings also contain atria that recall Frank Lloyd Wright's Marin County Center.

Writing Credits

Author: 
Richard Guy Wilson et al.
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Data

What's Nearby

Grant Avenue Houses
Offices (Prince William County Courthouse)
Bennett School
Hibbs and Giddings Building
Southern Railway Station–Visitor Center

Citation

Richard Guy Wilson et al., "Fairfax County Government Center Complex", [Manassas, Virginia], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/VA-01-NV41.

Print Source

Buildings of Virginia: Tidewater and Piedmont, Richard Guy Wilson and contributors. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002, 67-67.

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