City Halts Lincoln Development Project
By STEPHEN SIEGEL
Falls Church Times Staff
August 8, 2012
City officials on Wednesday accepted the legality of the Planning Commission’s Monday night ruling — that the construction of two new houses at 1007 Lincoln Avenue is in violation of water management rules — and ordered a halt to the project.
But the City went even further than that: it also voided the building permit it previously had issued to the developer, Art McArthur, which means he will need to repeat the city’s “standard approval process” before construction can resume. The project already has been started, and two foundations already have been poured.
“If or when a new grading plan is submitted, it will be reviewed for consistency with the Planning Commission determination,” said a statement from City Spokeswoman Susan Finarelli. “A new plan will also need to successfully complete the City’s standard approval process, which includes staff review, notice to adjacent properties, and a public CBIRT meeting prior to approval. The stop work order will stay in force until a new grading plan is approved.”
The purpose of the CBIRT, which is an acronym for Chesapeake Bay Interdisciplinary Review Team, is to evaluate whether a project meets water management rules. The rules exist to minimize the amount of water entering the city’s stormwater system and improve the quality of water that ends up in area streams, rivers, and, ultimately, the Chesapeake Bay.
In the case of this project, opponents argued that it didn’t meet the CBIRT requirement that a maximum of 35 percent of the land be impermeable, such as a house, driveway, and concrete walkways or decks. The Planning Commission agreed Monday night.
But the issue wasn’t settled with the Commission’s ruling, because there was some doubt if City officials, who were being overruled by the Planning Commission, would enforce the ruling. Neither the Commission chairwoman nor other City officials were willing to comment on it on Tuesday, citing questions about what the City’s next steps would be.
By Stephen Siegel
August 8, 2012
How are these sites going to support the 20% tree coverage stipulated in the CBIRT regulations?
Good bumper sticker: “Obtaining U.S. citizenship should be as difficult as obtaining a building permit”
Kudos to the City for preserving the scenic beauty of our fair town!
Had the City issued a stay, as required in the zoning code, at the time of the appeal of the CBIRT decision, the trees would still be on the property. Instead, there was a rush to develop the property, ignoring the rights provided appellants in the code. Proceeding with construction in the face of a neighborhood appeal defies common sense.
enough already.. the city doesn’t even finish projects from decades ago.. how about the project that makes living easier between pedestrian and driver?
today a woman was struck along the 800 block of w. broad… yet another “casualty” right? nothing more?
where’s all that stuff we paid for and sponsors paid for ages ago and more recently? where is it? where did that money go?
well? now another person suffers.. oh who cares.. right? we’re just freeloaders… the taxpayer…
we’re nothing but a statistic in the way of the city’s excuses.
well? what now? well? ?