In This Issue: Avonlea and Cedar Terrace Updates ♦ Dulles Landing ♦ Arcola Town Center Residential ♦ Hiddenwood Assemblage Sent to September Business Meeting ♦ Braddock Road - Royal Hunter Drive to Gum Spring Road ♦ Northstar Boulevard - Evergreen Mills Road to Route 50 ♦ Tall Cedars Parkway and Nations Street Intersection ♦ Pleasant Valley Road/Wade Drive Paving ♦ FAA Community Process Kick-off Meeting ♦ New Pet-Friendly Online Mapping Tool ♦ Announcements | | |
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Introduction
Welcome to the August 2024 Dulles Direct newsletter. I hope that everyone’s summer went well! For those of you with students, welcome back to school! Many thanks to the LCPS teachers and staff who have been working hard to make the new school year a success. This year, LCPS is opening two new schools: Henrietta Lacks Elementary next to Hovatter and Lightridge, and Watson Mountain Middle located on Evergreen Mills west of Brambleton. With these new additions, LCPS now has 100 schools. Please be extra mindful of walkers and school buses now that school is back in session. We are also entering one of the peak traffic seasons in our region, so be patient and allow extra time for your commute.
Town Hall
Earlier this week, I held a Town Hall meeting at Elaine E. Thompson Elementary School. Our main topic of discussion was the Arcola Town Center residential land use application that will be coming to the Board at our September 11 Public Hearing (more on that below). We were joined at the Town Hall by representatives of the applicant to discuss their proposal. We also covered other projects and topics of interest. The livestream from the event is posted on my Facebook page. Thanks to those who attended in person or watched virtually.
National Night Out
Earlier this month, I enjoyed attending South Riding’s National Night Out, which is always a great event for our community. I think this may have been the best attended National Night Out that I’ve seen. It was nice to speak with everyone who stopped by our booth, and it was a great opportunity for citizens to interact with members of law enforcement and other first responders. Thanks to Jeff Smith and team at South Riding for putting on another successful event!
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Avonlea and Cedar Terrace Updates
I have received several questions recently regarding Avonlea, especially given some activity that has taken place on the Avonlea Town Center property. As you’ll recall from past correspondences, Peterson sold most of the Avonlea property to various tenants but retain the southwestern section, which they have been trying to sell to a retail/hotel provider. They have told me there is a serious purchaser for a hotel use that appears likely to close in the next few months. How soon they will move forward with anything on the site remains to be seen.
Avonlea Town Center
Avonlea Town Center initially received approvals for commercial/retail and then went into foreclosure and languished for many years. Peterson Companies ended up acquiring the property, and they came forward with a revised mixed-use plan that included retail, office, residential, and a continuing care facility. Each of these four components will be separately owned and developed on individual timelines. Peterson completed the infrastructure that you see on the ground now and is in the process of turning over the lots to new owners. All of the site except the area that is currently being used for parking has been turned over to the various owners.
Parking Area
I noticed - and I know many of you did as well - that personal vehicles and coach buses had begun parking on the Peterson part of the parcel. I made some inquiries and determined that the lot was being leased out for parking for construction workers who are working on data center projects further west on Route 50. While we do have issues with construction parking in some of these areas, I’m not sure that this is the best solution. I contacted our Zoning Enforcement office, and after review, they determined that this use is considered a commuter parking lot and is not permitted on the site. As a result, the parking will have to cease, and the applicant has 90 days to comply - which puts us into late November.
Retail Component
In the plan approved by the Board, the area being used for temporary parking is designated for retail. We have recently learned that Peterson does have a buyer for this parcel - a hotel operator. I have no details about exactly what they are planning. Once the property closes, we will engage with this new owner and discuss their plans. Depending on the specifics, zoning changes on the property may be required.
Residential Component
The residential portion of Avonlea Town Center is being developed by the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing. They are planning an affordable senior apartment building and a second building that would not be age-restricted. APAH is currently working through the site plan process with the County and we could see construction starting in the next year, depending on how quickly they move with bonds, permits, and bringing a contractor on board.
Continuing Care Facility
The continuing care facility is being developed by Goodwin Living and will include a range of senior housing levels. They have an approved site plan for their building, but increased construction costs and high interest rates have caused them to put the project on hold until conditions improve enough that the project can be constructed within budget parameters.
Office Component
The office parcel is owned by Inova. They are planning to develop a medical office and care facility on the site and the expected timeline (~2028) is set to correspond with the end of their existing lease at the building next to CVS on the west side of Pinebrook Road. I anticipate that they will begin the site plan approval process with the County in 2025 and construction in the 2026-27 timeframe.
Cedar Terrace
Next door, the larger Toll Brothers/Rappaport Cedar Terrace project was approved earlier this year for over 220,000 square feet of commercial retail development as an extension of the existing South Riding Market Square. There will also be 350 residential units mixed into the newly developed area. Residential units increase the odds of the project being successful, as there is a lot of demand for these unit types and the residential traffic in a walkable community will support commercial and retail industries.
Rappaport has begun marketing the development; you can see the site layout and their materials here. They are currently working through the process to get the property subdivided and post bonds and finalize deeds and plats for the infrastructure. Since a site plan isn’t in process yet, we are probably 18-24 months out from construction taking place on the bulk of the site (although there may be some grading and infrastructure work sooner than that). It is likely that the anchor tenant will be a high end gym brand; conversations have been held with various restaurants as well. Route 50 access is another issue on this property, but that component is up to the Virginia Department of Transportation. My office has spoken to VDOT on the topic and is continuing to advocate for a solution that will give this development the best chance for success.
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Dulles Landing
When the new LED sign at Dulles Landing was activated by Beatty, the owner of the shopping center, we received some complaints that it was too bright at night. Beatty has dimmed the sign per my request.
Construction continues on the Chipotle, and we appear to be on track for an opening this winter.
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Arcola Town Center Residential
LEGI-2023-0030
Proposal
At the Board’s September 11 Public Hearing, we will hear an application for a large-scale residential application that also includes commercial and public spaces. The request would rezone existing office and commercial uses to allow 234 townhomes and 290 apartments. There would be 70,000 square feet of commercial/retail uses retained along Arcola Boulevard. This proposal has gone through a few different iterations. At my request, the applicant reduced the number of proposed new units and entirely removed the stacked "two over two" units that tend to create parking issues in the County.
I have been working with the applicant for quite a long time on this proposal. The land in question was originally planned as an office park in the Arcola Plan - it is located just south of Elaine Thompson Elementary School, and adjacent to the northern section of residential units that are being built.
Features
In today’s market, office in this kind of location makes little sense, especially at the scale proposed. What we often see is that this kind of property turns into data centers. This applicant has instead proposed residential, with some retail uses mixed in. I really challenged the applicant to bring us something that is a little different than what we currently have. The central feature of this application will be a barn that the applicant is acquiring from Clyde’s, which could be converted into what they call “eatertainment” space - space where you can have food services from restaurants to food trucks, as well as a performance stage for live music. The concept is similar to Two Silos in Prince William County, though there is flexibility built into the plan depending on exact tenants. In addition, the applicant removed their original plans for stacked “two over two” condos at my request. 50% of the multi-family buildings will be one-bedroom apartments, which is a product that is missing from our area and means fewer children moving in to the new development, so less strain on nearby schools.
Proffers
The applicant has also proffered a 2,800 square foot addition to the community clubhouse as well as an extensive onsite network of linear and pocket parks. I have also spoken with the applicant about incorporating the missing trail segment between Arcola Mills Drive and Loudoun County Parkway into their proffers. This was not part of the original Arcola Center proffers and was to be constructed with the industrial properties that are adjacent to the road. However, not all those properties are built or are planned for the immediate future, so I want to ensure we can get it constructed sooner instead of waiting on individual parcels to come online. The applicant has agreed to include the missing trail segment in their proffers.
Public Hearing
The Board will be reviewing the details of the application at our September 11 hearing. For more information on how to sign up to speak at the hearing on this or any other item, please click here. I'll provide additional updates in this newsletter in the future.
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Hiddenwood Assemblage Sent to September Business Meeting
LEGI-2023-0070
Proposal
At the July 10 Public Hearing, the Board heard an application to rezone properties in the Hiddenwood Assemblage (28.92 acres) from Countryside Residential-1 (CR-1) to Planned Development – Industrial Park (PD-IP) for the purpose of constructing data center uses. About 19 existing homes would be torn down and converted to data centers at the request of the homeowners, who are the applicants. The applicants have proffered out some uses that are allowable under PD-IP zoning but are incompatible with the parcel’s Suburban Neighborhood Place Type, such as utility substations. The Board forwarded the application to the September 17 Board Business Meeting for action. I was not able to attend the hearing due to previously scheduled family travel, but I have met with the applicants and the Briarfield Estates community.
More Information
The applicant is filing an amended application that removes the proposed building closest to Briarfield Estates, reducing the square footage of data center uses. I will be reviewing the new application and discussing it further with the community, but that change wouldn’t resolve the issue of data centers in close proximity to homes. For details on this application as it was originally proposed, see the June newsletter.
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Braddock Road – Royal Hunter Drive to Gum Spring Road
Work continues on the Van Metre widening on Braddock Road near the Gum Spring intersection. A gas line relocation has run into a few issues and is taking a little longer than anticipated. Upcoming work includes storm drain completion, curb and gutter installation, road milling and overlaying, and final roadway striping. Substantial completion on this portion is expected by December.
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Northstar Boulevard – Evergreen Mills Road to Route 50
Road Project
Work continues on the project to construct Northstar Boulevard from Evergreen Mills Road to Route 50. The contractor is currently focused on final earthwork for the southbound lane on Dulles West Boulevard. On Northstar Boulevard, work is advancing on the third stormwater pond, next to the southbound lane, and stone placement is ongoing for the 10 ft. wide shared use paths on both sides of Northstar. The bridge work over the Broad Run is almost complete, with pedestrian fencing and deck grooving to occur in the next month. By the end of September, base asphalt is expected to be placed throughout both Dulles West Boulevard and Northstar Boulevard. Full project completion is expected by the end of this year.
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New Traffic Pattern
The new traffic pattern for drivers accessing Hiddenwood and Youngwood Lanes, and access from Route 50 via Northstar Boulevard, began on August 8. The new road section is a vast improvement over the former substandard Racefield Lane, that had been the only access to that area. The County has been coordinating with LCPS’s transportation division so that their buses use the temporary route.
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Tall Cedars Parkway and Nations Street Intersection
The project to convert the temporary flex posts at the intersection of Tall Cedars Parkway and Nations Street in South Riding to a permanently constructed configuration will be starting soon. A contractor is on board to complete the work and is currently working through the bond process. They are submitting permit applications to VDOT and once those have been issued, work will begin. We expect that to happen this fall, and the construction timeline should be relatively short. I will provide more information once a start date has been set.
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Pleasant Valley Road / Wade Drive Paving
As of last week, paving and milling is now complete on Pleasant Valley Road and Wade Drive. Thank you for your patience as the project was delayed due to weather and other extenuating circumstances. Striping on the project will take place in the near future and all VDOT-led summer paving projects in the Dulles District will be complete for this season.
Now that this area has been newly paved, I will be working to initiate a review of the on-street parking along both roads to ensure appropriate sight distance is provided and to prevent long-term parking of inoperable vehicles from taking place. These issues have been highlighted by property owners and businesses in the area, as well as the Sheriff’s Office.
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FAA Community Process Kick-Off Meeting
Design and Regional Project Groups
As you’ll recall from previous correspondence, the County has endorsed a Design Group and Regional Project Group to engage with the FAA on noise impact issues from Dulles Airport. The Design Group is composed of representatives from the communities that the Board previously chose for inclusion based on their proximity to the most severe noise contours, as well as representatives from the airline industry. The group’s main task is to establish a design philosophy for a potential rule change scenario that will then be presented to the FAA. The Regional Project Group is composed of representatives from County and municipal governments within ten nautical miles of Dulles Airport. This group will provide oversight to the Design Group and holds voting authority on any designs submitted. The Regional Project Group will review design plans from the Design Group before they are sent to the FAA for consideration. Supportive consensus from the Regional Project Group and the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) will be necessary for any proposal coming out of the Design Group.
Kick-Off Meeting
On September 25 at 7:00 p.m., the project team from Loudoun County will hold a virtual meeting to kick off the FAA community process. The meeting is intended to be a community-wide meeting during which County staff and consultants can provide a high-level overview of the project to interested community members. The meeting will also be informative to the communities that will be invited to select a representative to participate in the Design Group, led by aviation consultant Vianair. Please stay tuned for additional information, including a link to join, as we get closer to the date of the meeting.
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New Pet-Friendly Online Mapping Tool
Online Tool
Loudoun County pet owners have a new online resource to help them find a range of resources for their animals. A new interactive map, Pet-Friendly Loudoun, has been added to the Loudoun GeoHub, which provides locations and information about:
- Parks and trails in Loudoun that allow pets, either on or off a leash
- Pet-friendly lodging in Loudoun
- Pet-friendly restaurants in Loudoun
- Veterinary clinics in Loudoun, which can be sorted by species served and language spoken
The new resource was developed in response to calls to Loudoun County Animal Services (LCAS) from residents asking for information about veterinarians and pet-friendly destinations.
Members of the public are encouraged to help develop and maintain the online resource for their fellow pet owners by submitting suggestions for additions to the listings for consideration through this online form.
More Information
Loudoun County Animal Services provides animal welfare, sheltering and humane law enforcement services, and, as the only open-admission animal shelter in Loudoun County, receives approximately 2,400 lost, seized, abandoned or homeless pets each year. More information is online at loudoun.gov/animals.
The Loudoun GeoHub is a geographic information system website and open data platform that features interactive mapping applications, informative dashboards and topical story maps. More information can be found at loudoun.gov/GeoHub.
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
Dulles South Recreation Center Reopened
Following planned maintenance in August, most facilities at the Dulles South Recreation Center has reopened for public use. Please note that the competition and leisure pools are still closed for maintenance and will be reopening Monday, September 2.
The Dulles South Recreation and Community Center is located at 24950 Riding Center Drive in South Riding. For membership information, visit loudoun.gov/dullessouthreccenter or please call 571-258-3456.
Virginia Senior Farmers Market Program Applications
If you are over 60 years old and live in Loudoun or Fairfax County with a monthly income of less than $2,322 (one person) or $3,152 (two people), you can apply for Virginia's Senior Farmers Market Program today! Enrolled seniors will receive $50 in vouchers that can be spent on fresh produce with participating farmers between June 1 and November 17. Applications close at 12:00 p.m. on Monday, September 30. For more information and to apply, click here.
Animal Advisory Committee Opening
The Dulles District position on Loudoun County’s Animal Advisory Committee is currently open and seeking applicants. If you reside or work in the Dulles District, have experience in the field and would like to submit an application, you can do so by clicking here. You should also send me an email to matt.letourneau@loudoun.gov to let me know you are interested. We have received several responses, but so far none have been Dulles District residents. You can find more information on the AAC here. For a full list of vacancies on the County’s boards, commissions, and committees, please click here.
Donations to Local Food Banks
Donations to the Dulles South Food Pantry (DSFP) can be made in person at the pantry at 24757 Arcola Mills Drive on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. or on Mondays from 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., or online. DSFP provides food assistance up to twice a month to any person who resides in the attendance zones for the following high schools: Freedom, John Champe, Lightridge, Independence, Rock Ridge, and Briar Woods. Call 703-507-2795 or email info@dsfp.org to schedule an appointment. See the pantry's website for information on how you can help fight local hunger. The pantry is currently looking for plastic bag donations as well.
Donations to the Dulles South Soup Kitchen can be made on their website or at their location by appointment. Call (202) 930-3775 or email to make an appointment. The Dulles South Soup Kitchen distributes fresh and nutritious hot meals to anyone in need within Loudoun County every Wednesday from 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. at the StoneSprings Hospital Center parking lot by Route 50. Registration is required on their website.
Blood Donation
To schedule an appointment to donate blood or platelets with the American Red Cross, please visit redcross.org/give-blood.
Inova Blood Services also takes donors by appointment. Visit https://www.inovablood.org/ to schedule an appointment.
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