Sure there's fellow Fairfax County wealthy 'burbs of McLean and Great Falls, but for some reason, Clifton always means positive things to people.
It gets its cachet by lack of negatives.
Great Falls has been invaded by McMansions and has the diplomatic set that attracts attention, not in the recipe for a sedate retreat.
McLean's monied blue bloods have much to do with DC which means politics and always someone who is unhappy. The town's name is also the office address of half of traffic choked Tysons, taking away from the cachet shimmer.
Civil War Rail Station
Clifton is tucked away, south of Fairfax City and backing onto the Occoquan River, downstream from the famous Bull Run up-creek in Manassas where two major Civil War Battles were fought.
The area was steadily held by Union Troops during the US Civil War and became a disembarcation point for troops and material to the front lines.
The area has maintained its forested landscape. Yet a big part of the appeal is the understated elegance of a real small town core.
Clifton emerged as a classic railroad town during the late 1800s and was incorporated as the first town in Fairfax County in 1902.
During the post WWII housing boom, small towns like Clifton were overlooked in DC in favor of single family suburban areas with air conditioned malls like Fairfax VA or Rockville MD--both newly reachable by car via new freeways.
Restricted Zoning, Forested Landscape, Occoquan Watershed
The 1970s back-to-nature movement saw Clifton's Civil War houses were refurbished gaining the designation of historic landmark within a rural setting.
Construction of Little Rocky Run NW of the Village spurred Fairfax County land use designations and limitations of one house per 5 acres. As Northern Virginia's upper classes are ever growing, this attracted custom home builders to the forested lots eventually branding the area as wealthy.
Shabby Chic, Crafts and Golf
The village is a newer version of Middleburg Va. with its horse farms and favored organic/shabby chic design and Takoma Park MD. Very non-assuming, settled and friendly--to artists and the golfing set alike who slice 'n drive at the nearby Twin Lake Golf Course and Virginia Golf Center and Academy.
The roads through the village serve as an overflow to Rt. 123 which has a bridge over the Occoquan River near I-95. 5pm on weekdays is likely to see stop and go two lane traffic through the village stop signs.
Weekends are likely to see crafts or other festivals, the largest of which is Clifton Day which serves as a town fair each autumn. A large antique auto festival also attracts guests.
The Village of Clifton shares its postal address with the surrounding area of large lot homes, Little Rocky Run, a planned community built in the early 1980s, and Union Mill, another planned community of townhouses and single family homes next to Centreville VA.
"What's a win for you?"
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