Supervisors approve funding plan for Lake Accotink
The Board of Supervisors
voted unanimously Oct. 29 to fund the plan to save Lake Accotink. That plan,
announced at a community meeting in September, would cost $30.5 million for an initial dredging operation and an additional $2.013 million annually for maintenance.
voted unanimously Oct. 29 to fund the plan to save Lake Accotink. That plan,
announced at a community meeting in September, would cost $30.5 million for an initial dredging operation and an additional $2.013 million annually for maintenance.
The plan calls for the
lake to be dredged and the sediment transferred via pipeline to the area of
Wakefield Park under the power lines for “dewatering.” The dried sediment would
then be hauled by trucks to a quarry in another part of Fairfax County. The trucks would use Braddock
Road and the beltway, not neighborhood streets.
If nothing is done to
save Lake Accotink, it would gradually fill up with sediment and turn into a meadow.
It’s been slowly shrinking, and its average depth is now just four feet. The dredging
plan would increase the average depth to eight feet.
save Lake Accotink, it would gradually fill up with sediment and turn into a meadow.
It’s been slowly shrinking, and its average depth is now just four feet. The dredging
plan would increase the average depth to eight feet.
To pay for the dredging,
the county plans to apply for state financing, in the form of a low-interest
loan.
the county plans to apply for state financing, in the form of a low-interest
loan.
If the county is unable
to secure state funding by the end of 2020, the Board of Supervisors agreed to
direct the county executive to move forward with alternative funding to ensure
that a dredging contract can be awarded during the first half of calendar year
2021. The alternative funding would most likely be a bond from the county’s
Economic Development Authority.
to secure state funding by the end of 2020, the Board of Supervisors agreed to
direct the county executive to move forward with alternative funding to ensure
that a dredging contract can be awarded during the first half of calendar year
2021. The alternative funding would most likely be a bond from the county’s
Economic Development Authority.
The BoS also directed the
Park Authority to engage with the community, including the Friends of Lake Accotink Park, to work on mitigating concerns about the impact of dredging on the environment.
Park Authority to engage with the community, including the Friends of Lake Accotink Park, to work on mitigating concerns about the impact of dredging on the environment.
