Suit Against Board Dismissed
A lawsuit against the Arlington County Board over a proposed high-rise project in Clarendon has been rejected.
The lawsuit, dismissed last week in Arlington County Circuit Court, came from three residents of the neighborhood in which the building was planning to be erected. They accused the Board of violating zoning ordinances by allowing the building, which would be used for affordable housing, to be ten stories tall.
The court disagreed, however, stating that the complaint was not allowed under established legal precedents and that it did not state facts that showed that the County Board had acted improperly.
This is a case with a long history in Arlington. The Board originally approved the project, which would use a church’s property to build below-market-rate apartments near the Clarendon Metro station, in 2004.
Neighborhood residents sued then and, as now, lost in Circuit Court. But they appealed their case in Virginia Supreme Court and, late last year, were victorious.
Then, in February of this year, the Board re-approved the project with some minor changes that they hoped would allow it to withstand another legal challenge. Less than a month later, the residents sued the Board a second time.
Gifford Hampshire, the attorney for the residents, said that he is "waiting to hear from my clients" about whether they wish to take the case to the Supreme Court once again. He also said that they will have until around Aug. 20 to file their appeal.
"We're exploring our options," said Mary Renkey, one of the three plaintiffs in the case. "We don't know as of today what we're going to do."
Renkey added that coming up with the money to finance an appeal is "not an issue right now" becuase the plaintiffs have received numerous donations from their neighbors.
Hampshire declined to comment about whether he and his clients had ever expected a favorable outcome in Circuit Court. But he did say that "It’s an adversarial process and you always have possibility of winning or losing. We thought we had a strong case. Obviously, the court disagreed."
— David Schultz
County Holding Volunteer Fair
Arlington County is teaming up with several local organizations to host a volunteer expo for local Baby Boomers
The expo is intended to help citizens 50 and over connect with local organizations that can benefit from their time, expertise, and talent.
"Research shows that people who volunteer show an increased health, both emotionally and physically, and greater overall satisfaction with their lives," said Jeannine Purdy, director of RSVP, a national organization that encourages the aging community to volunteer.
The volunteer expo will showcase a variety of opportunities in areas such as children and youth advocacy; education and literacy; housing and homelessness; and disaster relief.
The event will be held on July 25 at the Arlington Central Library. It will begin at 10 a.m. and last until noon and is open to all area residents who are interested in learning more about volunteer opportunities in Arlington County. Admission is free and refreshments will be served.
Connection Photo Galleries
The Connection recently launched a new feature on the Connection Newspapers’ Web site, photo galleries. Every week, Connection photographers and reporters take hundreds of photos at events around Northern Virginia. And despite taking dozens of photos at some events, often only one or two photos make it into print.
Now on our Web site, readers can find many more photos from events. It is a work in progress, but already we have posted photos from many events, including proms, graduations and community events.
The photo galleries offer a chance to see many more photos of these and other events. Readers can e-mail the images to share them, and also have the opportunity to purchase prints, digital images or other items.
See www.ConnectionNewspapers.com, and click on "Connection Photo Galleries."