50,000 sq. ft. COVID-19 Vaccination Center to Open in Alexandria by the End of the Month

ALEXANDRIA, VA–Tuesday March 9, 2021, at 11am, Mayor Justin Wilson announced the opening of the new Inova Stonebridge COVID-19 Vaccination Center, at 5001 Eisenhower Avenue.

Slated to open at the end of the month, this new 50,000 sq. ft. facility is designed to vaccinate between 6,000 to 12,000 people a day; that would be 192 people every 15 minutes, or 768 people every 60 minutes.

“The headline today is partnership and capacity, and we are very excited to highlight both of those things today,” stated Mayor Wilson in the opening press conference. Also present were Dr. Stephen Jones, President and CEO of Inova Health Systems, Doug Firstenberg from Stonebridge, and Jeff McKay Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in Northern Virginia.

With 64 vaccination tables and vaccinators, 400 waiting room chairs, 30 pharmacy preparation tables and pharmacists, and 20 administrative team members, the Inova Stonebrige COVID-19 Vaccination Center holds true to its promise of capacity.

The open floor plan, HVAC system, social-distancing signage, mask ordinances, and strategically placed hand sanitizing stations ensure safety along with capacity.

Dr. Jones says, “This is an opportunity to collaborate on a community and region wide response to COVID-19. Our first regional site opened back in December to vaccinate healthcare workers. I feel very strongly that these vaccines are safe… We have now vaccinated more than roughly 3,000 Northern Virginia citizens every day since December.”

Chairman McKay adds, “No health district in Virginia has vaccinated more people than Fairfax county.” As the eligible population for vaccinations expands, more infrastructure is needed, so Chairman McKay states he wants to continue to work with partners like Inova to produce that infrastructure.

This new Inova Stonebridge infrastructure is equipped to handle each the Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson and Johnson vaccines, with six freezers of temperatures varying between negative-eighty to negative-twenty to the common household freezer.

To make this facility possible, many communities have come together: government, medical, fire, police, real estate, and many more.

Chairman McKay states, “We look at the entire Northern Virginia region as a cohesive, important neighborhood, and it is more important than ever for our local governments to be working hand and glove with each other to protect our residents. This center is here for you.”

The Inova Stonebridge COVID-19 Vaccination Center is the result of “Herculean efforts,” according to Mayor Wilson. Both EMS and ADA accessible, and close to the Metro system and Beltway, the center is a regional asset, so long as vaccines are available, and Dr. Jones posits that more and more vaccines will continue to become available as more and more people become vaccinated.

Mayor Wilson concludes, “This has been a difficult year for the region, this has been a difficult year for our community, but for one of the first times in the last year there is palpable hope there is palpable excitement, we can feel that we are turning a corner… the beginning of the end is here.”

For more information on the Inova Stonebridge COVID-19 Vaccination Center, visit https://www.inova.org/patient-and-visitor-information/covid-19-advisory.