Planning Commission amends and recommends approval of Parking Reimagined
The Fairfax County Planning Commission on Sept. 13 recommended approval of Parking Reimagined after passing several amendments to address some of the concerns raised by residents.
The Board of Supervisors will make the final decision on Parking Reimagined. The board scheduled a public hearing for Sept. 26.
Parking Reimagined revises the county’s zoning ordinance to reduce the minimum number of parking spaces for new developments.
Proponents of Parking Reimagined say that would cut developers’ costs, thus giving them an incentive to build affordable housing and create more green space. They also say it would benefit the environment by encouraging people to use transit instead of cars.
Other residents, including several from Annandale, told the Planning Commission that a large parking reduction for multifamily housing would lead to overflow parking in residential neighborhoods. They also questioned whether developers would actually use their savings to reduce rents.
Related story: Planning Commission defers action on Parking Reimagined
In addition, residents said, people can’t rely on mass transit, especially in places like Mason District, which doesn’t have Metro.
Parking Reimagined, as proposed by county staff, would reduce the base rate for multifamily housing from 1.6 spaces per unit to 1.3 spaces – with further reductions allowed on a tiered basis for more urbanized areas with access to transit.
An amendment proposed by Planning Commission Chair Phillip Niedzielski-Eichner (Providence) would increase that rate to 1.45 spaces per unit.
“The base rate of 1.3 is too deep,” he said. “We are moving in the right direction but the depth of the change is too severe until we understand the implications.”
The Planning Commission passed the amendment, with two commissioners – Darren Shumate (Mason) and Mary Cortina (Braddock) – voting no.
Another amendment approved by the Planning Commission says if a rezoning applicant wants a parking reduction it would have to be approved by the Board of Supervisors, not the director of Land Development Services (LDS). The revised staff recommendation had restricted the size of the parking reduction that could be approved by the LDS director.
The commission approved a follow-on motion requiring Planning and Development staff and the LDS director to collect data to analyze the impact of the parking reductions in Parking Reimagined, including the effect on adjacent neighborhoods. Staff would be required to release their findings in 2027.
The commissioners also passed a follow-on motion directing staff to set up an online mechanism for residents to be notified when a parking reduction is proposed in their community.
Ugh. No one is giving up their cars. Anyone with kids, seniors, or groceries is not going to want to take public transportation. Developers are just being greedy. Wish we had some mandated environmental rules for new construction too. With extreme weather new buildings should be able to withstand more severe weather, fire, and earthquake events.
Gee, what a surprise. Wish I had designated parking like I am sure the Supervisors have. How many of them do you think take public transportation to their offices or bike or walk to work? All you have to do to know this is the wrong direction is to go by any of the large apartment complexes at night and note how many people park on the streets nearby because the lots are already too small. Glad the reelection coffers of the BoS will be full with builder donations.
In the Annandale Revitalization District, the amendment proposes a parking rate of 1.16 spaces per unit for multifamily dwellings and 1.8 spaces per unit (with .3 of those spaces to be allocated to visitors’ parking) for townhouses. These rates can also be reduced further if certain conditions are met to qualify the site for shared parking or transit related parking reductions.
The final public hearing in front of the Board of Supervisors is Tuesday, September 26th. If you think that these parking rates are too low for Annandale, please write to the Supervisors and voice your concerns at [email protected] Also, you can sign up to speak at the public hearing at https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/bosclerk/speakers-form
Honestly, I must laugh at those who claim these changes, which will be supported by the Board of Supervisors, is the result of “greedy Developers.” As my young child says, “that’s baloney.”
Greedy Developers don’t re-elect the Board of Supervisors by double digits each election. That’s the work of the citizens of Fairfax County, who are so enamored of environmentalism that they actually write and post nonsense sentences which appear to allege that “extreme weather” is in some way related to “earthquake events.”
Let’s be clear. Forcing Developers to build buildings in Northern Virginia up to a certain code to withstand “earthquake events” as is done in California, especially the parts of California most significantly impacted by the San Andres Fault, is the textbook definition of lunacy.
Building codes pertaining to structural design already take seismic factors into account, along with wind speed, snow load, soil characteristics, and so on. Fire protection is a huge consideration with all new buildings, and includes sprinkler systems, travel distance to exits, building population, etc. All these requirements are reviewed on an regular basis and updated as needed. So far they do not seem to be going overboard with the nonsense that is ‘climate change.’ Let’s hope it remains that way.
Let’s hope we don’t see increasing violence as a result of the county’s recommendation and decision to pass this ordinance.
https://wtop.com/fairfax-county/2023/10/2-hospitalized-after-fairfax-co-shooting-over-parking-spot-dispute/
More parking might be needed if these Metro service cuts happen:
https://wjla.com/news/local/metro-outlines-service-impacts-train-bus-increase-funding-deficit-transit-agency-washington-dc-maryland-virginia-budget-cuts-less-operating-times-shorter-routes-metrorail-stations-travel-fiscal-financial-millions-dollars