To the Editor:
I am a concerned citizen of the Clover neighborhood who lives directly behind one of recently subdivided lots. Clover is a beautiful, established neighborhood that is steeped in history. Such noted national figures as President Gerald Ford, Watergate Attorney Plato Cacheris, General Barry McCaffrey, and many others have owned homes in Clover. For over 60 years Clover has been a stable, lovely place to live.
In late April some of the Clover residents received notice that two of the lots in the very nicest section of Clover were about to be turned into three smaller lots. They were advised there was a hearing scheduled for the first week in May but that the Alexandria Planning Office’s Staff Report had already recommended approval of the subdivision. The owners told varying stories about their plans for the lots, including flipping or tearing down and rebuilding an existing home, and “developing” the new lot, which currently serves as yard space with grass and trees.
The thought of subdivision in our previously-peaceful neighborhood alarmed many residents, especially those who live behind the lots in question. There is a large drop-off behind those lots into the neighbors’ backyards, which is propped up by retaining walls. Water runoff has always been a concern and, while the situation is currently stable, if construction were to take place in the “new” lot, underground springs and runoff from the new house could cause large amounts of water to flow toward those lower-situated homes. This could become a serious matter which would require the installation of expensive sump pump systems and the repair of damaged walls and foundations.
We wrote to the Planning Commission in advance of its May 5 hearing on this subdivision matter. We signed up to speak at the hearing. We thought that if the Planning Commission were to hear our concerns they would surely understand and not allow the subdivision — with resulting construction — to proceed. What we didn’t realize was that the “fix was in.” The city’s Planning Office Staff Report recommended approval of the subdivision based on a method that was non-standard (the “close-to" method) and a comparison sample which skewed the results. At the hearing the Planning Commission, which is not allowed to consider future construction in its deliberations, did show concern about the size and potential impact of a new house on the new lot, but was forbidden from acting on its concern. They voted to allow the subdivision.
It is disconcerting to think that a real estate developer can buy property in an established neighborhood and begin to carve it up. It is even more disconcerting to think that the Planning Commission members are almost forced into approving any new subdivision that meets size requirements, no matter how disruptive and harmful the subdivision might be to an existing neighborhood. The fact that a developer can work for months behind the scenes on subdivision plans and only give 10 days’ notice to closely-affected neighbors before the hearing is wrong on many levels and should raise an alarm to other citizens of Alexandria. We ask for your support as we seek to appeal the Planning Commission’s ruling at the June 13 City Council appeal hearing.
Rebecca Rust
Alexandria