Members of the Great Falls Citizens Association’s Executive Board heard a presentation about a 226-acre plot of land straddling the Dranesville and Hunter Mill Districts that has been taken out of the Area Plan Review process and placed in a special study by the two districts' supervisors.
The land, on Hunter Mill and Sunset Hills roads near the Dulles Toll Road, was placed into the special study by Dranesville District Supervisor Joan DuBois and Hunter Mill District Supervisor Cathy Hudgins to better determine what the best density for that area would be to allow for the best use of the land. The area is currently planned to be developed at a density of one house every two to five acres.
The county’s Planning Commission is holding a public hearing to discuss the APR nominations next week, but this special study will not be among the nominations discussed because it is no longer being considered as part of the APR process, said Bruce Bennett, a member of the Hunter Mill Defense Team.
“I’ve had on my list to make a call to someone in your group because there’s a 24-inch water main scheduled to go in your area,” said GFCA board member Joan Barnes. “We’ve learned a little about water and how Fairfax Water works,” she said, referring to the recent controversy over a waterline in the Riverside Manor development that some suspect may not have been handled in a forthright manner.
“We have to work together with people from Hunter Mill and go into the county staff with a delegation to talk about what we want on the land and then go to the Supervisors,” said board member Eleanor Anderson. “Now is the time to make the appointment with the county staff because we need to have a meeting soon.”
Talk about the special study also stirred concerns about what kind of development might come in should the area be rezoned for higher density.
“If you look at the numbers and locations, half of the APR nominations came from LLCs or LLPs,” said board member Kathleen Foley.
“We are affected by this, especially on Route 7,” said board member Estelle Holley. “I think this special study is something we should keep on top of.”
It is possible that the density would be changed in response to two proposed Metro stations that would connect to the planned Rail to Dulles project, which would potentially increase housing.
“There’s no question this is a leap,” said board member John Ulfelder. “On its face, it doesn’t seem to make sense, but I don’t think you should assume because they’re calling it a special study that they’re trying to find a way to make it happen,” he said. Ulfelder has been asked by DuBois to represent Great Falls on a task force to discuss the best use of the land in the special study.
THE SPECIAL STUDY “still has to go through the APR process, but the scope of investigation has been expanded. That’s what a special study means,” Ulfelder said.
He and Bennett also reminded the GFCA board of a meeting at Oakton High School on April 19 to discuss development in Fairfax County. The meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m., and members of the county staff have been invited to attend.
The board also discussed a letter written by board members Robin Rentsch and Eleanor Weck, chairs of the Environment, Parks and Trails Committee to the Board of Supervisors, applauding the work the county’s Park Authority has put into classifying parks throughout the county.
The classification of parks groups all parks in residential areas into one group, making no distinction between active and passive recreational areas.
“Little neighborhood parks usually have a playground or something and are usually adjacent to a neighborhood, so they should have a different category than a park with a soccer field,” Holley said.
“They’re trying to have an equal number of parks throughout the county, and if they decide an area needs another soccer field, the area will get another soccer field,” Rentsch said.
“Places like McLean High School park is the type of land they’re trying to save,” Holley said. “There should be a category for small, neighborhood walk-through parks that would never be considered for soccer fields,” Holley said.
The Planning Commission deferred a decision on creating a fifth category for county parks until a meeting on April 21, Barnes said.
ADDITIONALLY, the board discussed the possibility of proposing a special tax zone in Great Falls that could bring in funds for the community to purchase pieces of land and, therefore, take measures to control development and density in the area.
“I think the county will work with us in terms of bonds in order to control development,” Weck said. “There are a lot of intelligent people in the community that will come together if something important comes along, which we learned with the waterline,” she said.
“This is a time issue. Land sells quickly around here,” said GFCA president David Olin.
“I think it’s an idea worth exploring, to see what the tax base is like here,” Ulfelder said. A referendum would have to be held to devise “a clear proposal so people know what they’re voting on and what’s going to happen, similar to what McLean did with the special tax district to pay for the Community Center,” he said.
“This might be our only hope if we really want to curb development,” Weck said. “Let’s put our money where our mouth is to protect Great Falls.”