About

About

Fort Hunt Road meanders from Rt. 1 south of Old Town at Huntington over about 5 miles to Mount Vernon. Fort Hunt Road runs generally parallel to the George Washington Parkway where it runs south from Alexandria to Mount Vernon. Where the GW Parkway runs along the Potomac at the river’s edge, Fort Hunt road climbs up to the ridge described in detail here.

Fort Hunt is quilted with quiet neighborhoods that are among my favorite in Northern Virginia. From affordable cozy condos at River Towers and Belle View to the impressive riverside residences to Arcturus or ridgetop homes of Belle Haven, Fort Hunt has all that is great in America. I even love the middle America type neighborhoods of Bucknell Manor and Waynewood. In addition there are architecturally distinctive and important homes at Hollin Hills.

There are two schools on Fort Hunt Road: Belle View Elementary and Carl Sandburg Middle School. (My children attended both of these schools.) There are two nieghborhood shopping centers on Fort Hunt Road: the Belle View Shopping Center and the Hollin Hall Shopping Center. Fort Hunt Park, the road’s namesake is at the lower end of the road.

One of the Best Communities in Northern Virginia

Fort Hunt Road is a scenic byway that leads from Rt. 1 South of Alexandria, Virginia to Fort Hunt just north of Mount Vernon. I live in this area because of two conflicting—but equally cherished—qualities of the area. Succinctly, the area is both urban and rural.

Quiet Neighborhoods

In many ways, the area is quiet and reminiscent of a time past when Virginia was a bit more “southern”. Streets lined with mature hardwoods lead to quiet homes and tranquil neighborhoods. The nearby Potomac River is a perfect neighbor and many parks are in the area. At the same time, the neighborhood is close to culture, services and employment. The neighborhood is not only close geographically, but the traffic patterns, established long before the rise of Northern Virginia’s suburbia, favor the area and are relatively free from traffic and congestion. This means that commutes are shorter by miles, but more importantly, much shorter in terms of time spent traveling.

In this area renters and buyers can find a cross-section of homes which will suit their needs. Everything is here, from high-rise condo‘s, to brick garden-apartments, to townhouses, to cottages, to single-family houses and large manors.

But Convenient …

This demographic cross-section ensures that the services that support the are have similar diversity. It’s a big advantage to live in an area where you don’t have to drive far to enjoy everything the modern world has to offer. From fast-food and dollar-stores; to warehouse restaurants and big-box stores; to gourmet restaurants and high-end boutiques, you’ll find what you need here.

This area is surrounded by urban services, high-rises and major commuter arteries. Mass Transit is well-developed and accessible from all points in the community. The Huntington Metro has 4500 parking spaces and is within walking distance of many local neighborhoods.