Have you ever walked by the Liberty Crest Apartments in Virginia? If not, you may have missed a little piece of history. These apartments were once a historical prison that housed residents from D.C. called the Lorton Reformatory. It was closed down in 2001, having been open for over 90 years and was known for its dark past and treatment of prisoners.
When they closed their doors, Fairfax County bought the property for $4.2 million and tapped Wisconsin developer, the Alexander Company, to help renovate it into a apartment complex with 165 apartments.
Once renovated, a tenant had found the apartment while doing an online search and told the Alexander Company, “I checked it out and fell in love — the brick, the concrete floors — it was so beautiful.” Ms. Pearson, 32, who works at Fairfax County Schools told Alexander Company, “It wasn’t until she was signing the lease agreement that someone said, ‘Did you know this is an old prison?'”
The Alexander Company specializes in urban development, affordable housing solutions and historical renovations. When the apartment complex was done, all apartments went for a monthly rent ranging from $1,372 to $2,700. Needless to say, they were snatched up quickly and have been occupied since. The 165 apartments are also surrounded by a park, golf course, three schools, and an arts center.
The Alexander Company thinks that renovating historical buildings is the key to preserving history. David Vos, the project manager at the Alexander Company, told CNBC, “…from our standpoint, we really felt that it’s important to preserve history so you can learn from the past so that you don’t make those mistakes again in the future.”
The new apartment complex tried to stay cognizant of the building’s past by keeping signs on the wall, meant to communicate with the prisoners, and the original grandstand on the campus’ field is the exact same one prisoners built by hand with bricks. They managed to maintain the prisons’ Colonial Revival building style and character, adding a contemporary twist to a historical building and revitalizing the neighborhood.