Planning Commission to delay decision on Vulcan
Fairfax County Planning Commissioner Julie Strandlie (Mason) plans to make a motion at the commission’s March 15 meeting to defer a decision on Vulcan Materials until April 19. The Board of Supervisors’ hearing will be delayed to May 1.
The company is seeking a rezoning and special exception that would allow it to replace some buildings, consolidate two concrete batching plans, and make other changes at its facility in an industrial area in Mason District.
At a public hearing on March 1, people who live near Vulcan expressed concerns about the company’s future plans to add an asphalt plant to the site, which is close to the Edsall Park community. A petition, with 564 signatures as of March 15, says “the odors and noise from an asphalt plant could have a major detrimental effect on neighborhoods’ quality of life” and “the presence of an asphalt plant will likely lower home values.”
In a message posted to the community on Nextdoor, Strandlie said: “Deferring to April 19 will provide the Planning Commission with the opportunity to tour the Virginia Paving asphalt plant.” That facility, at 5601 Courtney Ave., Alexandria, is near the Van Dorn Metro Station and Cameron Station.
“Once we receive a confirmed date when the plant will resume operations, the tour date/time will be posted on the Planning Commission website since more than two commissioners will attend,” Strandlie said. “We will also determine logistics regarding how interested persons may participate; Virginia Paving informed me that tour groups are limited to around 25 people for safety reasons.”
Comments on the Vulcan case can be sent to the Planning Commission at [email protected].
6 responses to “Planning Commission to delay decision on Vulcan”
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People keep up the pressure and good work!
I hope those in Mason District who are looking forward to having their streets repaved (See other article on repaving schedule.) are supporting Vulcan's rezoning request. Otherwise, it would appear that they would be perfectly happy to reap the benefits as long as the "nasty" part of street paving falls into someone else's neighborhood.
Sounds like you are willing to accept risk to your health for the convenience of making asphalt near residential areas?!
VDOT is responsible for paving and re-paving most all the roads in Fairfax County. They contract out for much of this effort including the asphalt which comes from several sources.
Vulcan NOT having an asphalt plant will not affect VDOT's road maintenance efforts with regards to the availability of asphalt.
Anonymous of 4:25 pm. Thank you. Your comments made my point for me. For me, it's certainly not about convenience, who is responsible for paving, what source the contractor uses, or availability of the asphalt. From you, it sounds like it's more about the comforts and conveniences of YOUR life as long as you can place the burdens and ugliness on someone else.
My point was that SOMEONE ELSE has to put up with the nuisance and potential negative effects of an asphalt plant to make YOUR roads smooth. Do you really think asphalt plants are on deserted islands? Somebody has to live close to them. And, someone else has to put up with the truck traffic etc. in order to transport the asphalt if it's not made at the Vulcan plant.
It's just like a landfill. As long as the trash goes somewhere else, it's out of sight (usually in a place not nearly as affluent), out of mind, and the areas that are responsible for generating the majority of the trash don't have to be bothered with the nuisance or environmental hazards/impacts of a dump.
It's about taking responsibility for, and accepting into your area, the nuisances and hazards that are created by you and your neighbors – not pawning all the less desirable elements of your life's wants and needs off on somebody else. So many people want the niceties of life (nice roads, electricity, etc.) as long as they don't have to be bothered with the dumps, pipelines, power plants, waste water treatment plants, industrial areas, etc.
It's HOORAY our streets are getting paved! What, Vulcan wants to put an asphalt plant in Mason District?! Well, we can't have that now can we?!
The citizens of Fairfax County need to accept responsibility for the impacts of their lives. There has to be places in the county in which the trash gets dumped and burned (Need I remind everyone of the Lorton debate?), concrete and asphalt processed, etc. We can't just pass all that onto someone else.
For a lot of folks here, it's "As long as someone else gets the lung disease, tainted ground water, or has to smell the trash or asphalt, it's all good."
I will take smooth lungs over bumpy roads thanks. NIMBY.
Any residences, churches, private schools and commercial businesses within a few miles of the proposed asphalt plant will not stand for having such a pollution/odor source that lowers home values or ruins business and keeps customers away.