During July's public hearing on Centreville's Quinn Farm Park, several people spoke of the desperate need for soccer fields in this area. And they heartily endorsed the Park Authority's proposal to build nine, lighted fields there.
But many, like Vic Stemberger of nearby Sully Estates, advised Fairfax County to first "look at ... the impact on local homeowners so you don't significantly degrade their quality of life."
Two Braddock Road residents living near the site said the planned realignment of Old Lee and Braddock roads, as part of the project, would make it difficult for them to get in and out of their home. But John Pitts, manager of the Park Authority's Project Management branch, said Monday that the county is addressing this problem.
"We would construct a new cul-de-sac off the realigned Old Lee to provide access to Braddock for residents of Chandley Farms Circle and adjacent residents," he explained. "We're going to be doing enough transportation improvements so that it shouldn't adversely affect anyone living there."
Nevertheless, Chandley Farms Circle, in Sully Estates, is the neighborhood closest to the property, and residents there say the lights, noise and traffic from the soccer complex will disturb their peace and quiet.
According to the Park Authority, the lights will be state-of-the-art with glare shields to eliminate up to 95 percent of the glare. And Park Authority spokeswoman Judy Pedersen noted that the closest house is 630 feet away — "quite a distance." But residents say that's too close for comfort.
"I'm not against soccer fields, but I think they should be day use only," said Lu Ann Maciulla McNabb of Braddock Downs, next to Chandley Farms Circle. "I think it's unfair to that community [Sully Estates] to have fields lit until 11 p.m. There's definitely a need for soccer fields in this area, but I think they could find a better location — away from a residential neighborhood."
Sully Estates resident Frank Ojeda, of the Rock Hill Civic Association, said homeowners still have doubts about how effective the light mitigation will be. "We as residents would like to insure that whatever the Park Authority does is clearly delineated and adhered to," he said.
McNabb also has traffic and parking concerns. "Even if they realign Braddock and Old Lee, I think there'll still be a problem with traffic flow," she said. "And 450 parking spaces is not enough for a tournament. I think there'd be overflow parking into the neighborhood, or along Old Lee and Braddock — which would be even more dangerous."
Pitts agrees that improving the roads there will intensify their use. "But [the realignment] is on the Comprehensive Plan," he said. "And that's the whole reason for roads — to make it less congested."
Yet it's well-known, countered Ojeda, that the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) doesn't have the funds now for road construction. He said members of his civic association are both soccer fans and residents, and they don't have a problem with the nine lighted fields, per se.
"But we do have a problem with [these fields] with the current infrastructure and even with the plans for improvement," he said. "The roads and access to the park are inadequate to support it. Even with the widening of Lee Road to four lanes at the park, all the roads coming to the park are rural, two-lane roads."
Furthermore, although the Park Authority estimates 3,500 people will visit Quinn Farm Park on a peak weekend day — after working with traffic engineers, said Ojeda — "We estimate 6,000-8,000 weekend trips there, plus a significant number of daily trips for practices."
He said his group would prefer the Park Authority to build only as many fields as the infrastructure will support without a problem. He also said safety is of prime importance. "These roads have no shoulders, only ditches," he said. "So if the roads are all blocked up, emergency vehicles won't be able to get through — and that's a concern for both the soccer players and the nearby residents."