At the site of shuttered Manassas newspaper now stands an apartment complex

MANASSAS — After a year of construction, on July 26, Manassas leaders announced the opening of a new apartment complex, Messenger Place, as Downtown Manassas development continues to boom.

The name, Messenger Place, pays homage to the News & Messenger Newspaper formed in 1857, and eventually closed down in 2012.

“Old Town [Manassas] is thriving, and what’s going to continue to make Old Town thrive is people; people that live in Old Town as opposed to people that come for work,” said Real Estate Developer Coleman Rector, who was in charge of developing the project. “The project has been open for about three weeks and we’re at 23% occupancy. It’s really part of the revitalization and sustainability of Old Town, and that’s really what we had in mind.”

Built in the heart of the quaint city, Messenger Place is like no other apartment complex in Manassas. Ninety-four multifamily units for an average monthly $1,600 rent, complete with granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, vinyl tile flooring, and street-level retail shops. 

“The key to downtown development in Manassas is density, and you get density by going mid-rise vertical because we’re trying to maintain the character,” said Patrick Small, Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) for the City of Manassas. “This building allows us to bring more people and activate downtown through that density.”

With more people, however, brings the need for transportation. City leaders have a plan to focus more on mass transit for the neighborhood.

“Things like carpooling, [Virginia Railway Express] , the bus system, and other things that Virginia has to do to get some of the vehicles off the road,” said Small. “One of our goals is to have people come to downtown and stay in downtown, not just pass through downtown.”

As for residents who work in or around Washington, D.C., VRE would be the main choice for commuters headed to Alexandria, and Crystal City in Virginia, L’Enfant and Union Station in Washington, D.C., with options to switch to Metro.

For those with a car, parking is available across from the complex, on the other side of Church Street, as well as in other lots located close by the apartment complex.

Messenger Place is one of many projects the city has already built in an effort to revitalize Manassas; notably, Manassas Station Apartments built last year, and the Courts at Historic Manassas built in 2009.