Renderings of South County Police Station & Animal Shelter. Photo contributed
Happy New Year! The Lorton area of the Mount Vernon District continues to grow and transform and 2019 will see more of the same. Highlights include:
Phase 2 of Liberty, with the adaptive reuse of the Lorton Prison
Studying the Lorton and Silverbrook Road intersection to find solutions to improve traffic flow
Continued planning for the South County Police Station and Animal Shelter and the Lorton Community Center
Demolition and start of construction on new Lorton Volunteer Fire Station
Planning for the CSX/Route 1 replacement bridge
Creating a trail connection from Laurel Hill to the Lorton VRE Station
Start of renovations at Silverbrook ES
Continuing to fully support our schools
Perhaps the most important 2019 development for the Lorton area will be the launch of the Lorton 2040 Visioning Task Force. The Task Force will work in conjunction with our office and County staff to craft a Lorton 2040 Vision to guide future development, consider a Lorton Town Center and define what Lorton will become over the next 20 years. With several new projects underway, from the adaptive reuse of the Lorton Prison site at both the Workhouse Arts Center and the Lorton Liberty sites, the new South County Police Station and Animal Shelter and the new Lorton Community Center, much change is already underway. The closure of the I-95 Construction Debris Landfill and the recently released RFI for continued investments at the Workhouse site offer many additional growth possibilities.
An additional focus of our office in 2019 will include the proposal of a strong environmental package aimed at protecting and enhancing our valuable ecological resources and heritage sites. With numerous rivers and streams in the District, as well as abundant parks and wildlife, the care and preservation of our environment is particularly important to our communities. I will be advocating for the County to take a more aggressive position on these issues, including litter control efforts such as a plastic bag fee, calling for a Community Climate Action Plan and beginning resiliency planning, particularly for our shorelines. Look for more on this in the coming weeks.
As always, my office continues to look for new ways to engage with you. Our goal remains to ensure each and every South County neighbor and business owner has the opportunity to reach their full potential. TEAM MVD is committed to working with you to address your individual concerns, while working proactively to deliver a better quality of life for all District residents. We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you out and about in 2019!
Finally, join us at the 32nd Annual Town Meeting on Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019, from 7:45 a.m. – noon Mount Vernon HS to learn more about the year ahead and how you can get involved.