Proposed policy would preserve more affordable housing
Fairfax County is working on an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan aimed at encouraging the preservation of affordable housing on a one-to-one basis.
The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the proposed amendment on Feb. 15. The Board of Supervisors’ hearing is scheduled for March 21. Comments can be submitted online through Jan. 18.
The Board of Supervisors has adopted the goal of providing 10,000 new affordable housing units by 2034, said Bree Fuller, of the Department of Housing and Community Development, at a Jan. 11 community meeting.
Meanwhile, the county’s supply of affordable housing is shrinking due to rising rents, the renovation of older units, new developments replacing older ones, and the expiration of developers’ commitments.
According to Fuller, the draft policy says redevelopment should preserve existing market-rate and committed affordable rental housing units with a goal of “no net loss of affordable housing units to the extent practical.”
Committed units are those in which property owners have committed to maintaining affordable rents through a deed restriction, zoning requirement, or other means.
Twenty-nine percent of the county’s committed affordable housing units and 19 percent of the market affordable units are in Mason District.
To accomplish its goal, the county would provide incentives for developers and financing to preserve affordable units. Priority would be given to developers’ commitments to affordable units expiring within 10 years.
In recent years, Fuller noted, the county has preserved 1,321 units in four apartment complexes, including 292 units at Landings I and II in Mount Vernon, 259 units at Colvin Woods in Reston, 570 at Cityside near the Huntington Metro station, and 200 at Murraygate Village in Hybla Valley.
The strategy proposed by staff calls for developers seeking a Comprehensive Plan amendment or rezoning to identify the affordability of existing units. The county would then evaluate development needs, potential resources, and incentives for preserving them.
The county would consider allowing a project to have higher density depending on the number of affordable housing units.
The plan amendment focuses on preserving rental units serving households with an annual income at or below 60 percent of the area median income (AMI).
Related story: Multifamily housing proposed for Bailey’s Crossroads and Seven Corners
If an apartment complex is renovated or replaced, the plan amendment would require existing tenants in affordable units to be provided with affordable units in the new building. The developer would cover the costs of moving the tenants into comparable units during construction.
The county would work with property owners to ensure rents don’t increase and could provide funds to offset the difference between existing rents and market rents or pay for new units on the property.
In determining density bonuses for developers who provide affordable housing, the county would consider such issues as school capacity, transportation networks, and whether the project is next to single-family homes or otherwise fits in with the surrounding community.
The existing rules on the percentage of Affordable Dwelling Units (ADUs) and Workforce Dwelling Units (WDUs) would remain.
ADUs and WDUs would count toward achieving the one-for-one replacement of units. Developers are eligible for a 20 percent density bonus for proving ADUs and WDUs.
For a household with two people, the eligibility for an ADU is $56,900 at 50 percent of AMI and $79,700 at 70 percent of AMI. The maximum rent for a two-person household in a two-bedroom ADU is $1,186 at 50 percent and $1,542 at 70 percent of AMI. That doesn’t include utilities.
Nowhere do I read how the county is going to break up the existing ghetto neighborhoods. And there are many the blog has reported on that have included: an uptick in petty crimes, assaults, car thefts, shootings, lack of basic services such as heat, human trafficking, drug raids and unsafe conditions within these deteriorating housing complexes and the surrounding neighborhoods. This not only puts the inhabitants at risk but also the rest of us that live near these communities.
Lee District, parts of Mt Vernon and Mason District have the worst of these problems. The County has FAILED to thwart the worsening of these conditions by lacking the tools, education and policing enforcement to address the downside of evolving urban conditions. Another words, Fairfax County has put out the welcome mat for criminals and they have been flocking in.
Yep. Conservatives told you; you guys didn’t want to listen.
I prefer that affordable housing be more equitably distributed across Fairfax County. How about moving some of the affordable housing now in Mason to Great Falls, Herndon, McLean, and Vienna? Sounds fair to me.
100% why is all in a concentrated area. It should be spread out!!!
The problem with this approach is that a 2-person household in reality consists of 6 to 8 undocumented adults and their white vans and taxi cabs —- their kids show up at the schools, their parents show up in the emergency room, and their trash shows up all over the neighborhood—- stronger Code enforcement and parking enforcement is the solution — stronger community action by homeowners— and get the Seven 11 and gas station owners out of county government!!
Sounds good, put them right next door to the FFX County attorneys that have added to the problem by handicapping County zoning code and police to enforce existing laws. And if you report a problem to zoning and other County officials they harass the person reporting a problem w the threat of FOIA.
Need new BoS members to clean house!
most of the people in these reply’s don’t even live in these apartments or anywhere near the apartment side of Annandale so I don’t know why you guys are so pissed about this, this looks completely fine and helpful to families. people just be mad for no reason and pissed at the district for what? move out. no one need you here, no one got a gun to your head for you stay here. all i here is “the district isn’t doing nothing about this and that 🤓” then go do something about it instead of sitting behind your computer chatting on a blog that isn’t getting you no where.
“people just be mad for no reason“
You prove their point.
You be ??? More you be example of deteriorating school standards. When did s v agreement become politically incorrect? Was it around the time using a belt to hold up your pants stopped?
Maybe some of the elderly and middle class families cannot afford to move from the areas affected. Get educated or shut up fool.
not bashing anyone who lives in the area but people like you always gotta make shit seem worse then it is. sure the crime rate is getting higher and higher from the west side of annandale but your always in everyone of these comment sections talkin bout
“and what does the government do NOTHING 😫” your actin like they supposed to go out there and help people but its not poverty that’s causing all of this crime its the community
People like vaxed2themax are are just looking for any excuse to go on thinly veiled racist rants.
If only they were veiled….
You’re all delusional as to what is really going on until you end up being a physical victim as a result of your complacent attitude towards criminals infesting our communities.
True. The dog whistles have become bullhorns.
Wait till crime catches up to you, then you will sing a different tune.
and not to mention that your always on a thin line of yelling out a racial slur in any of these comments? your replies always seem so targeted to a specific community. care to share who it is your babbling too?
My responses are targeted to mindless individuals who don’t understand the dynamics of community and economics sustainability.
Instead of accusing everyone of being a bigot, spend your energy on getting an education on the subject matter being debated. Perhaps then you might understand the components of thriving and dying communities.
My back yard backs into the wedge wood apartments. I leave near it. Faifax county needs to spread out the affordable housing. Not sarurate a com.unity/ neighberhood!!!
The responses here are pretty typical. “Crime is bad. Do something about it instead of preserving affordable housing!”
But, Keeping housing costs down helps prevent and mitigate the effects of poverty, which is directly correlated to the rate of crime. “Huh? GET OFF MY LAWN!”
That would be great if it were true.
One time I had a section 8 family in my condo complex. Within 3 months, my car was stolen. It was a friend of one of the 6-8 people “crashing” at the apartment. It was recovered in DC, completely stripped.
This is really ignorant way of looking at things, Joe is right and there are studies and evidence that suggest his statement. Using anecdotes to write off building these housing units to help marginalized and at risk people is not very wise. Very sorry that you went through that but correlation does not mean causation nor does it stop the proven fact that this reduces poverty which is linked to crime
Brookings Institute describes direct connection between poverty and crime rates:
https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/news/2018/dec/7/brookings-institute-study-finds-direct-connection-between-poverty-and-crime-rates/
Agree with Ty. I think to myself: how much crime is in McLean or Langley? Not much. How much affordable housing? Not much.
Then I think about what Seven Corners was like before all the affordable housing was added… very low crime.
I would guess that drug abuse as much as “poverty” accounts for much of the crime in so-called affordable housing areas. In which case, lowering housing costs might reduce poverty, but not necessarily drug abuse or crime.
Making areas affordable has to be accompanied by strong social, employment, transportation, and enforcement support. Otherwise you are just setting up magnets for marginal people and their hangers-on and instead of solving pronlems you are creating undue risk and lower standards of living for those who already live here. As a property owner and taxpayer I do not relish the prospect of supporting more people who need assistance.
The idea that vaxtothemax and everyone else commenting against low income housing are dancing around but won’t say outright is that they don’t want to live around poor people because of the crime they bring.
So don’t. Hit the bricks. Move to McLean or Bethesda.
Mad because you can’t afford it? Then maybe instead of disliking and vilifying the minorities and the poor, the vast majority of whom don’t engage in the crime you are so broken up about, you should ask yourself why you aren’t but a few paychecks better off than them? Is it cause you are lazy and won’t “pull yourself by your bootstraps” or because the vast concentration of wealth by the 1% that has erased the middle class?
The former is the what you republicans say to poor people everywhere, and the latter is the effect of the Republican economic and regulatory policies over the last 40 years.
If you don’t want poverty and the crime that comes with it, vote for policies that invest and keep money in your community.
what is the time and place of the Feb. 15 public hearing?
It’s at the Fairfax County Government Center, The hearing starts at 7:30 p.m. but the affordable housing proposal is the sixth item on the agenda. The hearing is also live-streamed.