Update 3/3/2024
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The Rose Hill Coalition LLC provides current information on land use issues in the Rose Hill Planning District within Franconia District in Fairfax County, VA. The Coalition supports full transparency in land use issues directly affecting local residents. The Coalition publishes updates as necessary. To unsubscribe from our email list or manage your subscription, click on the links at the top of this page.
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Kingstowne Top Golf Site
Under Review for Rezoning: RZ-2018-LE-009
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For current information on the status of this site application, go to:
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Under current status, of concern was the following found under "More Details > Application Information":
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Question: Has there been a Traffic Impact Analysis determination done related to the land use request?
Answer: NO
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Franconia Governmental Center
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Decision on Conveyance Deferred
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According the upcoming March 5, BOS meeting materials, the BOS will be deferring the decision on the conveyance to May 21, 2024.
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Community Leaders Send Letter to Supervisor Lusk
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Franconia District community leaders sent a letter to Supervisor Lusk on February 25, requesting community input on the future of the Center. No response has been received to date and no mention of the hearing was included in the March Lusk Report.
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"We, the undersigned associations, are aware that the Board of Supervisors would like to transfer the Franconia Governmental Center property to the Redevelopment and Fairfax County Housing Authority (FCRHA) for the purpose of building affordable housing. We are writing to share with you and the Board the community’s concerns regarding the process being planned to determine this property’s future use and the Board’s preferred use. We have several specific requests regarding that process and the proposed development options.
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"To summarize our requests:
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- Community engagement meetings with you (not FCRHA) – All parties acknowledge that the public outreach on this matter was inadequate (see the timeline of events in Enclosure 1). Therefore, extensive public engagement is needed, and we request that this engagement be organized and conducted by you – not the FCRHA.
- Explore all development options – Alternative (non-residential) uses for this property have never been considered. Multiple community-serving organizations critical to the Franconia area are interested in this property, such as the Franconia Volunteer Fire Department and Koinonia (Franconia’s non-profit food pantry/relief group). All possible uses and options for the property should be considered after meetings where other interested organizations share their vision, and the public shares their preferred uses.
- Conduct a full environmental and health impact assessment before holding community meetings. The public has not had a chance to review environmental concerns and any negative impacts to users; this review is important given this site’s extensive history of health concerns, including high cancer rates for those working on the property (see Enclosures 2 & 3) and guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website as well as other prominent municipal and health organizations (see Enclosure 4). We request that the County conduct a full environmental and health assessment (including Benzene exposure) to determine all viable potential uses, including non-residential, and share all findings starting at the first official Franconia District community engagement meeting."
Faith-Based Community Group Supports Conveyance
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Panic Sets in at Fairfax County Police Station After Spike in Cancer Rates
A May 2015, article by WJLA news reported on high cancer rates among police stationed at the Franconia Governmental Center/Police Station. "...within the past five years, at least 13 people who work there have battled cancer. All under age 50, three have already died."
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In The News
March 2024 Lusk Report Makes No Mention of Land Use Issues in the Franconia District.
In stark contrast to regular reports published by other Fairfax County District Supervisors, the Lusk Report* continues to omit any mention of local, County, or state-wide land-use issues.This lack of information is also contrary to the role of District Supervisors to serve and represent their constituents on land use. "The Supervisor's office is here to serve the residents of the Franconia with information about land use, transportation, public safety, park issues, human services, and more." (https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/franconia/)
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Franconia District Supervisor's Office Short-staffed
Supervisor Lusk is still seeking to fill key staff positions, including a Chief of Staff and a Communications Manager. These positions have been vacant since late 2023. Interns are also being sought. For more information on these positions, email Franconia@fairfaxcounty.gov.
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HB 1459 Fails to Pass Out of Committee
Thanks in part to the huge number of folks who took action on HB 1459, the bill failed to pass out of committee this morning. This bill would make it difficult for constituents to hold local governments accountable when land-use decisions are made without properly following the law. Unless proponents try to re-introduce the bill on the floor or by some other limited means, the legislation appears dead for this year.
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Specifically, the bill would allow violations of existing statutory requirements for public process and notice in local government land-use decision-making to be rendered legal after the passage of 30 days. In other words, residents would only have 30 days to challenge local governments if they fail to follow public notice or procedural requirements, and this provision would retroactively apply to land use decisions made in the past as well as future ones. This would include rezonings, special permits and similar decisions, including the adoption and amendment of guiding documents like comprehensive plans or zoning ordinances.
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This bill would also undermine active litigation on several land use cases, including recently challenged data center approvals in the Town of Warrenton, Orange County and Prince William County. The bill is considered to be overly broad, harm public trust in local government, and benefit private interests.
Source: https://secure.everyaction.com/1e3G3kpOYU2kmN6DuKTF-Q2
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FY 2025 Budget Town Hall Meetings
No dates have been listed to date for Franconia District, but most likely it will be televised on Channel 16 (Cox Channel 1016; Verizon/Comcast Channel 16), and streamed online. We have asked Lusk's office whether the town hall will also be in person as the March newsletter did not state.
Source: https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/budget/fy-2025-budget-town-hall-meetings
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Fairfax County Sees Rising Eviction Rates
"Eviction cases continue to rise in Fairfax County as the millions of dollars in financial and legal support allocated during the pandemic run out, county staff say." Fairfax County's social services agency, Coordinated Services Planning (CSP), works with the nonprofit Legal Services of Northern Virginia, the courts, and the Sheriff’s Office to help residents understand their options during the eviction process.
Source: https://www.ffxnow.com/2024/02/29/fairfax-county-sees-rising-eviction-rates-as-pandemic-era-funding-dwindles/
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Plans for Development Are All Around Us
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Rose Hill Civic Association President Carl Sell writes, "There are several other high-density proposals in the process of being considered in Franconia District. One involves the current Franconia Government Center site. Another is a 12-story apartment building on Commerce Street on the Best Buy site across from the Springfield Town Center. Others are located on South Van Dorn Street at the Beltway, a site that has a long history of local residents objecting to increased traffic at an already snarled interchange."
Source: Rose Hill Rambler (February 2024), https://rosehillcoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Rambler2024Q1.pdf
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County Board Urges VDOT to Address I-495 NEXT Concerns
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In mid-February, Fairfax County staff sent a letter asking VDOT’s to provide their plans for mitigating the environmental and traffic impacts of the I-495 construction project (aka NEXT) that has been in progress since 2022. The 2.5 miles of express lanes on the Beltway will run from the Dulles Toll Road in Tysons past the George Washington Memorial Parkway in McLean.
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The Rose Paper: Demographics
Coalition Founder Sharada Gilkey published The Rose Paper in April 2023 to provide background information on local, state, and national issues that affect land use in Franconia, Virginia. Although researched and written with regard to the redevelopment of Rose Hill Plaza, much of the paper is relevant to other local land use issues.
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The section on Demographics states, "The Rose Hill Planning District is a 'Suburban Neighborhood' and is recommended by the County to remain so under the Concept for Future Development."
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Important Dates
March 4 Franconia District Land Use Committee Meeting (open to public)
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March 5 Board of Supervisor's Public Hearing on Top Golf Site
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April 16-18 FY 2025 County Budget Public Hearings
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May 7 FY 2025 County Budget Adoption
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Stay In Touch!
Updates are only sent to residents in the Rose Hill Planning District. Emails are kept confidential and not shared. You can request to be removed from the list at any time via the unsubscribe link below.
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Copyright 2024 Rose Hill Coalition LLC
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