Tysons Corner is an unincorporated area in Fairfax County, Virginia, near Washington, D.C. between the community of McLean and the town of Vienna along the Capital Beltway (I-495). Recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place, the community's population was 18,540 as of the 2000 census. It is home to Tysons Corner Center – the largest shopping mall in the state and the Baltimore-Washington area – and to upscale malls Tysons Galleria and Fairfax Square, which neighbor it to the north and south.

Tysons Corner has 46 million square feet (4.3 million m²) of office and retail space, making it an important business district in its own right and the classic example of an edge city. Notable Northern Virginia companies and structures are often referred to as being located in McLean or Vienna rather than Tysons Corner.

Tysons Corner is the opposite of a bedroom community, with a daytime population greater than 100,000 and a nighttime population of less than 20,000. Local urban planners envision up to 200,000 jobs and 100,000 residents in coming decades.

Geography

Tysons Corner is located at (38.918485, -77.229833).

To local residents, Tysons Corner is the area around the intersection of State Route 123 (Chain Bridge Road) and State Route 7 (Leesburg Pike), which, as recently as the 1950s, was a quiet rural intersection flanked by a few small stores. Tysons Corner Center, a large shopping mall, is located here, and is a main attraction for nonresidents. Tysons Corner also houses many smaller shopping centers and stores (including the Tysons Galleria mall), along with a significant number of car dealerships. In recent years, the influx of technology companies into Northern Virginia has brought many new office buildings and hotels to the landscape.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the community has a total area of 4.9 square miles (12.7 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 18,540 people, 8,814 households, and 4,512 families residing in the community. The population density was 3,782.5 people per square mile (1,460.9/km²). There were 9,474 housing units at an average density of 1,932.9/sq mi (746.5/km²). The racial makeup of the community was 71.20% White, 3.86% African American, 0.13% Native American, 17.73% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 1.26% from other races, and 5.74% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 6.15% of the population.

There were 8,814 households out of which 20.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.0% were married couples living together, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.8% were non-families. 39.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.10 and the average family size was 2.86.

The age distribution of the community was 17.8% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 40.3% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 10.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.8 males.

The median income for a household in the community was $74,151, and the median income for a family was $94,227. Males had a median income of $69,659 versus $49,321 for females. The community's per capita income is $47,292. About 5.5% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 13.2% of those age 65 or over.

Future

In 2008, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to begin a 40-year plan to urbanize Tysons Corner around the coming four stops of Metro's Silver Line to the area, in the vein of neighboring Arlington's Rosslyn-Ballston corridor.

Tysons Corner serves as a "downtown" of Fairfax County, with one quarter of all office space and one eighth of all retail in the county. It is an auto-oriented edge city with severe traffic congestion, and it faces competition from the urban areas of Arlington and newer suburban edge cities such as Dulles.

Fairfax County plans to urbanize Tysons Corner by adding multiple modes of transit, pedestrian-friendly street design, and ground-level retail; however, recent decisions to build above-ground tracks and stations instead of underground tunnels have resulted in controversy.

References

External links

• Tysons Corner, from the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority

• Tysons Corner Development blog/site