President’s Report 2006
The Mount Zephyr Citizens Association was incorporated in late (effective
December 8) 2005 and the executive committee selected a
board of directors. The first meeting of the new Association
was held in January 2006.
The new 12 member board faced several issues early on. The first of
these challenges was to invite JPI Development Corporation to the first Board
meeting to explain their plans for building out the Smitty Lumber lands.
2006 was the year of the Area Plan Reviews where the County of Fairfax holds
task force meetings to review nominations from the public and private sector
to change the Comprehensive Plan. This plan determines land use within
the County and either accepts changes to the Plan or recommends they remain
the same. Mt. Zephyr was successful in having a representative appointed
to the APR Task Force for the Mt. Vernon District.
Dillon Lee of Springman Street was appointed by the Supervisor.
Mt. Zephyr began a membership campaign and was able to triple the membership
within a three month period. Believing there is strength in numbers,
this new strength paid dividends as we continued through the year.
The Board felt it was in the best interests of Mt. Zephyr to defeat the JPI
Nomination and after a long series of meetings with the County, Smitty’s
and other stakeholders the president was able to posture Mt. Zephyr where
reluctantly, JPI withdrew the nomination. We were also able to begin
negotiations with the owners of the three parcels along our long border with
the Smitty lands (APR Land Areas 3 & 6) for a permanent buffer easement.
At the same time
were able to negotiate a permanent closure of Agnew Ave, Jackson Pl and Laurel
Rd so that these streets will never be expanded and go through to Rte. 1
and the VDOT maps modified to reflect this change. This protected
our residents on the West border from Radford to Forest Place from having
to face 6 story buildings in their back yards and being opened up to Rte
1.
At the same time we were faced with another nomination which would have changed
the land use of the area from Mohawk to Radford. Again, this nomination
was challenged and withdrew. This prevented Washington Avenue from
being closed between Mt. Zephyr Street and Mohawk and deferred any plans
for office expansion with a consolidation of land.
A third nomination, MV5 (Riddick Ave, Sec 1 of Mt. Zephyr) was reviewed and
the Association and the Board supported the changes requested. After
testimony before the Task Force the president was required to testify before
the County Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors. The Task
Force did not support our endorsement for an increase in density, however
the Planning Commission did increase the density some, but in a final thrust
against the opposition we were successful in getting our recommendation passed
by the Board of Supervisors. The entire process required 7 months.
Among other reasons for
support, improvement to the infrastructure, conservative buildout of a blighted
area, and others, the most important feature was the end of designs to build
the area out in office or mixed use which would have prompted the connection
of Reddick Avenue with Mt. Zephyr Drive to help with the traffic flow.
The original plans of Mt. Zephyr called for these two streets to be connected
and in light of increasing traffic problems this 700 foot separation became
a topic. (See ISA paragraph below).
Early in the year the Association voted to have the Mt. Zephyr Park dedicated
to Ingeborg Catlett in honor of her 40 years of service to the Community.
The community held a spaghetti dinner and silent auction to raise funds for
the event. What began as 5 months of negotiation and testimony before
the Park Authority and County Officials, ended with our park having
the dedication we desired and a dedication and luncheon was held in early
July. State Senator Toddy Puller, Del. Admundson, Supervisor Hyland
and others honored Mrs. Catlett and put our park “on the map’ with 4 major
news stories.
In March Mt. Vernon District Supervisor Gerry Hyland attended our Association
meeting and held a question and answer session. This informative meeting
further increased our awareness of the challenges before us. Issues
relating to Mt. Zephyr included the renewal of the lease for the Islamic
Saudi Academy, relocation of residents of the trailer parks along our borders,
to adopt a position on a monopole placement at Mt. Vernon High School, the
impact of the BRAC Initiative (Base Realignment) on Mt. Zephyr, remaining
vigilant on our APR quests and the Mt. Zephyr Park issues of riparian restoration
and resumption of deferred maintenance no matter where that road leads us,
and the Gregory Drive Treatment Center.
Rather than adopt a reactive stance the president guided the Board and Association
to become pro-active. This approach has paid many dividends. The Executive
Committee appointed 8 committee chairpersons to carry our concerns and initiatives
to the larger body, the MVCCA, where we quickly began to contribute to their
work for the District. These dedicated chairs and their constant attendance
began to place Mt. Zephyr in a position of leadership. Armed with
their support the president, the voting member at Council, was able to advance
Mt. Zephyr initiatives and contribute to the Council’s overall objectives
in areas impacting not only our community but the County as a whole.
Mt. Zephyr became the lead in several important arenas and thus has become
one of the most admired of all District Associations.
Through months of work effort and dedication to the issues we were able to
secure a lasting and powerful presence at the table on issues effecting Mt.
Zephyr and the County as a whole.
1.
Changes in Park Authority policy were achieved to end the confusion about
the rights of individuals over the rights of a community
when it came to
local neighborhood parks. The previous arbitrarily applied
decisions were
not only unfair to individuals desiring to improve our
parks but to surrounding
communities and their collective desires. Forcing the
application of the tenets
of the comprehensive plan, and powers granted by law,
the Park Authority now
recognizes the rights of individuals do not supersede
those of the community.
Now individuals and communities are encouraged to work
together for the
common good.
2.
Mt. Zephyr led the way in the application of State Law 42.6-1222.1 to be
incorporated into the County Ordinance and worked several months to get this
out of committee with the MVCCA, passed as a resolution and finally ratified
by
the Fairfax Federation where the president
is a voting member. The adoption
of this ordinance will end years long
disputes regarding the unfair application
of parking restrictions in R-2 neighborhoods and apply
the law equally across
the County. This will also help the
police and the Courts by providing guidelines
in enforcement and adjudication.
3. Through
our participation on the Special Committee on Affordable and
Workforce Housing, Mt. Zephyr was able to make one of the most
significant contributions to the MVCCA and County this year. Our leadership
in writing the Mission Statement and Charge of the SCAWH and drafting
the resolutions defining affordable and workforce (authored
by the Mt. Zephyr
president) has contributed to the County’s approach and use
of funds (such
as the 1 penny for Affordable Housing Tax) by defining the
difference
between Affordable and Workforce Housing and is fast on its
way to altering
Regional Housing Authority and State guidelines. With
Mt. Zephyr’s support
this important committee has become one of the most important
in the MVCCA
and County.
4. Mt.
Zephyr and the Board attended two major hearings on the siting of a
dual diagnosis residential treatment center across from the ISA close to
our neighborhood. The nature of this facility, the lack of information
by
the County and the Community Services Board or any attempts to
mitigate our concerns by these agencies was not satisfactory to Mt. Zephyr.
Recognizing that the County approach to this issue would only lead to
further opposition and that “war” was looming on the horizon, the president,
after several months of behind the scenes
work, brought together two
Districts (Lee and Mt. Vernon), their two Supervisors,
their two Planning
Commissioners, Association Presidents, the CSB and our Board
in a special
meeting in an attempt to mediate and mitigate neighborhood
concerns.
Having all the stakeholders together in an open dialogue meeting produced
the idea of a Neighborhood Advisory Board, site
specific, which has gained
full support and will be approved by the Planning Commission in January.
This will be the first such board created site
specific and will serve as a
model for future centers located elsewhere in the County.
One of the major concerns of Mt. Zephyr was the renewal of the Saudi Academy
lease due to expire in June of 2007. With a mandate to support renewal
of the lease by the Association, the president and vice-president began a
series of talks with the ISA and the County in an effort to influence the
County’s decision. The options on the table for the use of the ISA(Old
Mount Vernon High School) ranged from County offices, a mental health facility,
a middle school to becoming a satellite campus of Northern Virginia Community
College. In that the school is owned by the Board of Supervisors, not the
School Board, it could
also be declared surplus property and sold (which means to a developer).
With the changes in the economy and facing a flat budget in 2008 this possibility
surfaced. The last thing we need is 400 townhouses on the lands behind
the old school building which is the only portion protected from tear down
by the historical overlay. Either the townhouse element or the NOVA
element would significantly change Mt. Zephyr as we know it today with increased
traffic, and through streets. Therefore, it became necessary to buy
the needed time to investigate and lobby for use of the property in the best
interests of our neighborhood. On September 25, 2006, in a closed session
of the Board of Supervisors, after many months of work, they instructed the
Facilities Manager of the County to facilitate a new lease with the ISA.
In the next two or so years Mt. Zephyr must remain vigilant in protecting
our interests.
The last major issue came late in the year as VDOT and the Department of
Public Works for the County planned, without notice to the adjacent owners
and having obtained a waiver of notice from the State, to build a 109 foot
traffic island in front of the Smitty’s business and Hollywood and Vines.
After receiving a call from the owners asking for Mt. Zephyr’s assistance,
the president immediately brought together the Transportation
Commissioner, the Transportation Committee of the MVCCA and other officials
to defeat this initiative. In that it would have forced Smitty’s to
leave that location as 90%of their business is reliant on large trucks, removing
the ability to turn left out of Smitty’sand Southbound trucks from turning
left into Smitty’s their business was threatened. Visions of 6 story
buildings began to appear. Developers were sniffing out the property
and all this going on without the knowledge of Smitty’s. After some
quick work and demanding answers from VDOT and the County, they capitulated
and the island removed
from the plan. It also forced resolutions that will now require the
County to notify adjacent business owners, allow them to have public hearings
on the issues, and participate in the planning process along Rte 1 adjacent
to their businesses.
Although Mt. Zephyr led the way in getting the Zoning Commission to approve
the monopole at the Mt. Vernon High School site, it was defeated in a last
minute reversal in School Board Policy which may be appealed to the Board
of Supervisors. However, this defeat may very well be a blessing in
disguise as it now has carriers seeking out alternative sites which may allow
higher poles and more carriers attached. Mt. Zephyr must continue to
support that which is in the best interest of our community.
Police patrols, quicker response by EMS into our community, more arrests
of traffic violators have been expanded and crime is down 82% in Mt. Zephyr
from last year. Signage and infrastructure repair have increased.
(Our sewage mains and stormdrains have been cleaned 4 times this year).
The legal issues surrounding the park and interpretations of the Chesapeake
Bay Act remain unresolved, however, after 12 months of difficult work on
these issues, the heads of the respective agencies will be meeting to mediate
the issues and several of the legal questions have advanced to the
State Legislature. Resolving these issues will significantly impact
parks in Fairfax County and around the State. We are closer to a cleaned
up park than we were last year.
Our pro-active approach has landed Mt. Zephyr in the news 47 times during
the last year. Our bringing BRAC to the community has changed the way in
which the Army now communicates with Belvoir’s surrounding communities with
a more open and inclusive approach.
This report addresses the highlights of this year’s activities. Your
continued support and encouragement is necessary in order for Mt. Zephyr
to maintain the level of strength and importance in the District.
However, besides the civic matters of importance, Mt. Zephyr supports community
recreational opportunities and outings. The spaghetti dinner,
the park dedication event, support of the NHW Halloweenie Roast, encouragement
of the Christmas decorating contest and the annual Christmas party reflect
the commitment to bringing our community together.
Submitted by: Daniel M. Burrier, President
Mt. Zephyr Citizens Association, Inc.