The core issue here is not the land swap. It is the fact that an acre of Reston natural area was offered by some members of RA management and board counter to RA policy and guidelines.
I attended the RA Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC) public meeting on November 12, where I heard first hand that RA’s own excellent environmental staff was not consulted. The EAC unanimously approved the following resolution, which will be read at the RA meeting this Thursday:
“The EAC supports the revitalization of Lake Anne, but we find one element of the LADP plan unacceptable because it is in violation of existing RA and County environmental policies. The EAC does not support the proposed RA/LADP land swap, and we urge the RA Board to refrain from signing the LOI that would exchange a parcel of dedicated forested open space for the purpose of constructing a parking garage.”
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The RA Board is being pressured to come to a decision by Thursday evening. There is a December deadline at the County level that is pushing RA to make a decision even though the majority of board members have only known about this for a few weeks and still do not have all the facts nor are convinced that all other options have been explored.
What precedent is being set in Reston??
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Had the land not been offered in the first place, Republic would certainly have come up with a solution and we would not be having this discussion now. This entire development plan would not fall apart over 120 or so parking spaces.
I have emailed Supervisor Cathy Hudgins to ask for relief from this December deadline. The land swap is counter to the Fairfax County Comprehensive Plan, 2013 edition, page 162 which applies specifically to this parcel of mature trees that is located mostly in Land Unit C and partly in Land Unit A. The plan states: “Tree preservation and/or tree cover should be a key condition of redevelopment in this Land Unit, in accordance with guidance in the Environmental section of the Fairfax County Policy Plan. The existing tree canopy in this Land Unit should be preserved to the greatest extent possible.”
I have asked Supervisor Hudgins to do what she can to request that Republic assume the land swap is off the table and present solutions without the RA land. Her email is huntermill@fairfaxcounty.gov.
The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of the author. These opinions do not necessarily represent those of Rescue Reston or its Board of Directors.
