Belmont Bay Development: Improvement Plan for Area Revitalization

Image an idyllic community on the waterfront. You come home from work, work out at your private club on the water, and enjoy dinner and drinks with friends from the Beacon overlooking the water. The stress of the day has evaporated from your mind and lifted off your shoulders. 

That’s the dream that Caruthers Properties envisions and wants to make a reality for the Belmont Bay If you love Old Town Alexandria, it’s local flare with shops, restaurants, bars, and more, set in the beautiful backdrop of the water, you’ll appreciate the vision  for this planned community. 

Preston Caruthers, an Arlington Real Estate developer, bought Belmont Bay in the 1960s and started the project in the 1990s. Now, the family is ready to complete its vision, using the waterfront as a catalyst for the small area improvement plan of North Woodbridge and Prince William County. The Belmont Bay development is just part of the vision of revitalizing North Woodbridge. The area has been “blessed with great modes of transportation” and the small area plan is to “capitalize on the waterfront, spur businesses and attract restaurants and shops.” 

While Belmont Bay is recognized as one of the County’s premier communities, there’s a vast amount of potential for improvement . For example, the Walk Score of Belmont Bay currently is in the teens-- it is very car dependent; Caruthers wants to raise it by adding the private Beacon Club, a food hall on the water, and other shops and restaurants. While the community feels they have been promised this in the past, these elements will be key commitments to the County for the final phase of the project.

Acting as a focal point on the water, will be The Beacon; just as lighthouses show the way to sailors and ensure safety, Caruthers Properties wants to provide a beacon of hope and safety as well, along with the luxuries and conveniences of a private club. The Beacon would be split into two levels: one public and one private. On the top level of the roughly 5,000 square foot edifice, The Beacon would house a public restaurant, similar to Union Market in D.C. A “casual atmosphere, welcome to everyone” would attract plenty of residents and non-residents alike. Below, on the lower level, will be the Beacon Club to be used exclusively by residents for parties, weight and fitness rooms, and a patio on the water for yacht clubs across the area. 

While the club membership would be included for all buyers in future phases; existing residents would have the opportunity to “opt-in.” Nothing has been finalized, so the company would love to have community involvement and input. Multiple town halls and meetings have already been had, but residents and potential future residents can stay up-to-date with the latest information and happenings by visiting belmontbay.com.  

Residents were promised a lot in the past, and Jay Sotos assures them that Caruthers Properties promises to deliver: “The Caruthers Family is proud to continue its stewardship of Belmont Bay and use the waterfront as a catalyst for economic, housing and recreational opportunities for the community and the County as called for in the North Woodbridge Small Area Plan.”

Stay tuned as this is a developing story. We promise to keep you informed and updated as these plans develop further and come to fruition.