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The Rose Hill Coalition LLC provides current information on Land-Use issues directly affecting the Rose Hill Planning District within Franconia and adjacent communities in Fairfax County, Virginia. The Coalition supports full transparency in land use issues directly affecting local residents.
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Coalition Update
September 1, 2024
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- 1 Public Hearing: Data Center Zoning
- 2 Public Hearing: Workforce Dwelling Policies
- 3 Public Hearing: Franconia Governmental Center Redevelopment
- Plan Forward: Policy Changes Will Guide Future Land Use and Zoning
- "No Casino" Coalition Formed
- In The News
- Website Update: Land Use 101
- Kudos to County Staff!
- Mark Your Calendar
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Data Centers Zoning Ordinance Amendment
Due to County oversight/confusion of new state requirements (effective July 1) for advertising public meetings, another public hearing is required. After considering the recommendations of the Planning Commission (approved with additional changes on June 5) and listening to public testimony on July 16, as well as again on September 10, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors will vote on the amendment.
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Note that those who testified at the Public Hearing on July 16, may but are not required to testify again on September 10. All public testimonials are on record. Residents may also continue to submit email comments up until the 9/10/24 hearing.
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Editorial Comment: Although the Fairfax County Chairman blamed staff for the oversight of the new state requirements for advertising public meetings, note that other than an article written by the law firm McGuire Woods on July 11, no other stakeholder was aware of or followed up on the new requirements. Mistakes happen. Land use is already complicated by the fact that each case is different and the County changed the process in 2023. County staff juggle an incredible amount of work as well as have to navigate the public and the Board. I personally appreciate all the staff does and hope everyone else can do the same.
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How to Provide Public Hearing Testimony
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Note that procedures for a Board of Supervisors Public Hearing are different from the procedures for the Planning Commission.
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For-Sale Workforce Dwelling Unit Policy & Programs
As per above, due to County oversight on new state rules for advertising public meetings, another Public Hearing before the Board of Supervisors will be held Tuesday, September 10, at 3:30 pm. Again, those who testified at the Public Hearing on July 16, may but are not required to testify again on September 10. All public testimonials are on record. Residents may continue to submit email comments up until the 9/10/24 hearing.
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Previously in July, the Planning Commission voted to recommend adoption of the staff recommendation for Plan Amendment 2023-CW-1CP. The staff report for the For-Sale WDU Policy plan amendment is available for review ahead of the public hearing. The proposed recommendations are:
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- Shift the affordability level of the program from a range of up to 80% to 120% AMI to a range of up to 70% to 100% AMI.
- Expand guidance on the proportionality of the bedroom mix of WDUs and that of market-rate units, with flexibility for family-sized WDUs.
- Extend the geographic applicability to certain properties outside of the development centers.
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For more information, go to:
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Franconia Governmental Center Redevelopment Project
In May 2024, the Board of Supervisors voted to convey the Franconia Road property to the Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority (FCRHA) for redevelopment as affordable housing. The Housing Authority will hold it's first meeting since the conveyance on Thursday, September 12, 2024, at 7:00 pm, at the Fairfax County Government Center, Conference Rooms 9 and 10. See links below for more information.
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According to the County's website, the next land-use review stages are two-fold and may be concurrent. Additional information has been posted by Supervisor Lusk via his newsletter on August 30, which we will provide on the Coalition website.
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- Comprehensive Plan Amendment Review
- Zoning Application Review
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Community Engagement Opportunities
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Land Development Policy Changes Will Guide Future Land Use and Zoning
No community engagement meetings have been posted to date.
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The goals of Plan Forward are to:
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- Review, update, and streamline existing Policy Plan elements
- Add new Policy Plan elements as needed
- Ensure the Policy Plan is in alignment with the Countywide Strategic Plan, the One Fairfax Policy, and other recently adopted policies and initiatives.
Four Phases of Public Engagement:
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- Understand
- Contribute
- Collaborate
- Decide
- strive to reach as many community members as possible;
- create clear messages;
- employ new tools and techniques;
- provide engagement opportunities in multiple formats; and
- maximize existing County resources.
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For more information, go to:
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"No Casino" Coalition Formed
The No Casino Coalition is a grassroots group of citizens fighting against casino development in Fairfax County. According to the group, "A casino will forever change the character of our community. It will hurt local businesses, deter desirable new businesses, increase gridlock and public safety problems, lower property values, and encourage risky behavior."
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Representing parts of Fairfax County, Virginia Sen. Dave Marsden was the main proponent of SB 675, a bill that, if passed, would have given the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors (BOS) authority to put a referendum on a future ballot allowing voters to decide if the casino would come to Tysons. In February, the Virginia Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations decided to hold SB 675 over until 2025.
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If the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors vote against the development, Senator Marsden has indicated he will not introduce the Bill in January 2025.
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However, if the Bill is introduced and enacted, the Fairfax County BOS can request a referendum.
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In The News
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Notice of Public Hearing: Franconia Governmental Center Redevelopment
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The Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority (FCRHA) will hold a public hearing on September 12, 2024, at 7:00 pm. The public hearing will address the proposed Interim Agreement for the redevelopment of the 3.26-acre property at 6121 Franconia Road, Alexandria (aka Franconia Governmental Center Redevelopment Project), to create up to 120 affordable residences for low- to moderate-income households, together with surfaced and structured parking.
https://www.fcrha.org/post/notice-of-public-hearing-franconia-governmental-center-redevelopment
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Senior Living Complex Planned for GSA Site on Telegraph Road
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"The owner of the vacant government office building on Telegraph Road across from Greendale Golf Course has offered a plan that would allow for development of new homes on a portion of the property that is currently mostly a parking lot and the conversion of former office space into an affordable senior living complex and Montessori school." This is in addition to the Brightview Senior Living Complex at the former Virginia Hill Baptist Church site. (Rose Hill Rambler, Fall 2024, page 5, https://rosehillcoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Rambler2024Q3.pdf
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Website Updated
See if you can find the changes. Just kidding! New are an integrated event calendar, a page (and section in this newsletter) called "Land Use 101", and new content throughout. We will continue to update the Coalition website as needed and (volunteer) time allows. But if you do see any errors, please let us know. Constructive comments also are always welcome. Thanks for visiting and Stay in Touch!
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Land Use 101
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How to Provide Public Hearing Testimony
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Notice of Public Meetings
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"Before approving and adopting any zoning ordinance or amendment thereof, the governing body shall hold at least one public hearing thereon, pursuant to public notice as required by § 15.2-2204, after which the governing body may make appropriate changes or corrections in the ordinance or proposed amendment." (https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title15.2/chapter22/section15.2-2204/)
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"The local planning commission shall not recommend nor the governing body adopt any plan, ordinance or amendment thereof until notice of intention to do so has been published twice in some newspaper published or having general circulation in the locality, with the first notice appearing no more than 28 days before and the second notice appearing no less than seven days before the date of the meeting referenced in the notice; however, the notice for both the local planning commission and the governing body may be published concurrently." (https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title15.2/chapter18/section15.2-1813/)
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Learn how to access and use U.S. Census Bureau data with FREE how-to videos and in-depth courses, webinars, and tutorials.
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Kudos to Fairfax County Staff
We are happy to congratulate the County Staff on the upgrades to their website this year with regard to land use. The information is much more accessible to the public and better organized. Such a complicated subject is a challenge to present. Whether or not they took my previously voiced concerns into account, the public can now be better educated and involved in the land use and development process, as they must be.
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For those new to the steep learning curve of land use, we encourage you to visit the new "Planning in Fairfax County" webpage that walks you through the guiding (but nonbinding) land use document called the Comprehensive Plan. It's a good place to start your journey.
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Mark Your Calendar*
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SEPTEMBER 9 (Monday), 7 pm
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SEPTEMBER 10 (Tuesday)
Public Hearings: Fairfax County Board of Supervisors
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SEPTEMBER 12 (Thursday), 7 pm
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Public Hearing: Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority
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*Currently the County provides is no single calendar or list of Public Hearings, nor a means for notification. We recommend you sign up for the new Rose Hill Coalition Calendar for notification of Public Hearings regarding land use affecting the Rose Hill Planning District within Franconia District.
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To Subscribe to Rose Hill Coalition Calendar Updates, scroll to the bottom of the Calendar page.
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Stay In Touch!
Emails are kept confidential and not shared.
You may request to be removed from the list at any time.
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Copyright 2024 Rose Hill Coalition LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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