In response to the region’s critical transit needs, leading transportation coalition launches the Bus Champions Roundtable, a series of targeted discussions with regional leaders to align priorities and accelerate bus transformation progress.
Category: Fairfax County
CSG in the News: Traffic safety groups implore officials to make upgrades for pedestrians, cyclists after recent deaths
The campaign specifically focuses on the Route 7 corridor around Baileys Crossroads and Seven Corners after 68-year-old Nguyet Ly was hit and killed when walking along a section of Leesburg Pike without a sidewalk on Dec. 13.
Joint Comments from Fairfax Healthy Communities Network on the Community-wide Energy & Climate Action Plan (CECAP)
Dear Chairman McKay & and Members of the Board of Supervisors,
We, the representatives of the undersigned organizations, as part of the Fairfax Healthy Communities Network, are excited to support the Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP). As Virginia’s most populous jurisdiction, Fairfax County can stand out as a leader in the region and have an outsized impact on the race to reduce carbon emissions.
Our network partners envision a Fairfax County where people can live, work, and play in connected communities that are healthy, sustainable and inclusive. In fact, there may be no policy endeavor that better embodies our joint work than a climate plan that addresses all aspects of providing clean air, clean energy, reducing reliance on dirty fossil fuels for transportation, and ensuring natural green space for all county residents. This is a large part of our vision for a healthy community.
The newly-released Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) sixth Assessment Report on the science of climate change provides a dire picture of accelerated impacts. Warming of the planet is happening at an alarming rate, far faster than predicted.
The report predicts that warming of greater than 1.5 C (2.7F) will cause more extreme weather events such as fires, droughts and flooding. These events are already happening. Hurricane Ida, the Caldor Fire, the extreme heat in the Pacific Northwest and even our local intense pattern of rain are all very real “canaries in the coal mine” for all policy makers.
Today, we do not feel the most severe and dangerous impacts here in Fairfax County. However, the current fires and storms serve as the newest wakeup call – we have the opportunity to try to get ahead of the most severe local impacts. Fairfax County is a significant contributor to the emissions problem in the metro area and shares the responsibility to solve it. Only by large and rapid cuts in emissions can these dire impacts be addressed. There is no time to waste, and every jurisdiction has to play a role.
Core to this plan are twelve strategies that outline areas of focus. Each is important, but some will have greater mitigation impacts, such as energy efficiency in buildings and changes in transportation, particularly vehicular impacts. Others come with multiple benefits, such as preserving and expanding our natural resources throughout various land use processes to both sequester carbon and provide additional climate resiliency. Given the complexity of climate change and the world’s evolving response, we cannot rely on residents and businesses to voluntarily change behaviors or know which climate-friendly steps are most beneficial to prioritize, so we count on innovative and ambitious government policies and actions to influence change.
Reaching the goals in CECAP will only be possible if the County moves from ideation to the implementation phase at full speed. An implementation plan must be crafted and put in place with the urgency that is needed. As with all County programs, it is critical that each facet of this program comply with the One Fairfax policy by asking who benefits, who is harmed by any actions, and how we prevent harm.
As advocates representing environmental, smart growth, transportation, affordable housing, and social justice, organizations, we urge the Board of Supervisors to:
- Develop an aggressive timeline for the CECAP Implementation Plan
- Hire a team of climate experts to guide and support staff in implementing the plan
- Fund programs and provide incentives in FY 2023 to begin immediately mitigating carbon emissions
We are counting on the Board to offer its considerable leadership to this formidable task. If it is to be successful, it will also require dedicated, creative, and visionary staff to permeate throughout the government and into the private sector. Success is the only option.
Thank you for taking this important next step in the climate fight.
Sincerely,
Audubon Naturalist Society, Renee Grebe, Northern Virginia Conservation Advocate
Coalition for Smarter Growth, Sonya Breehey, Northern Virginia Advocacy Manager
Friends of Holmes Run, Whitney Redding, Primary Conservator
Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance, Michelle Krocker, Executive Director
Sierra Club, Great Falls Group, Ann Bennett, Energy, Climate and Land Use
South County Task Force, Mary Paden, Chair
Virginia League of Conservation Voters, Bridget McGregor, Senior Northern Virginia Organizer
Washington Area Bicyclist Association, Stephanie Piperno, Trails Coalition Manager
We won a transit-oriented West Falls Church!
With your help, we did it! The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve the West Falls Church plan to transform acres of parking lots into an inclusive, walkable, bike-friendly, transit-oriented community. Thanks to all of you who took action and helped make this a success!
The CSG team worked with local advocates to help shape the plan and win the day! Your donations help keep our team in the field winning more sustainable communities like this.
Thanks to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and the Planning Commission for supporting the vision of a walkable, transit-oriented West Falls Church. We are also grateful that they recognized concerns expressed about the safety of people walking and biking along the major roads outside the development and in the neighborhoods and are initiating a West Falls Church Active Transportation plan to identify and prioritize needed safety improvements to support the redevelopment.
Stay tuned for further updates as the West Falls Church redevelopment and Active Transportation plan move forward for opportunities to continue working with us to ensure the success of this project. Together we will build a more sustainable, equitable, and vibrant future for Fairfax County and our region.
Comments in Support of West Falls Church Plan Amendment 2018-II-1M
Chairman McKay and Members of the Board,
Please accept the attached joint comments on the West Falls Church Comprehensive Plan Amendment (CPA) 2018-II-1M before you tomorrow. We write to express our support for the redevelopment of the West Falls Church Transit Station Area and urge you to consider our recommendations below and vote in favor of the CPA.
These comments are being submitted jointly on behalf of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, the Audubon Naturalist Society, the Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance, the Sierra Club Great Falls Group, Friends of Holmes Run, Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions, and the Fairfax Alliance for Better Bicycling.
Thank you,
Sonya Breehey
West Falls Church Forum Materials
Sonya, our Northern Virginia Advocacy Manager, showed the following presentation at CSG’s West Falls Church Forum on May 5th, 2021:
Evan Goldman of EYA showed the following presentation at our West Falls Church Forum on May 5th, 2021:
Video testimony on Fairfax County’s FY22 budget
See below for our Northern Virginia Advocacy Manager, Sonya Breehey, testifying before the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on behalf of CSG and Fairfax Healthy Communities regarding the FY22 budget.
CSG Comments on ALU proposal in zMOD
March 9, 2021
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors
12000 Government Center Parkway
Fairfax, VA 22035
RE: Testimony in Support of Accessory Living Unit Provision of zMOD
Chairman McKay and Members of the Board:
Please accept these comments on behalf of the Coalition for Smarter Growth (CSG), the leading organization in the DC region advocating for walkable, bikeable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities as the most sustainable and equitable way for the Washington, DC region to grow and provide opportunities for all. CSG appreciates Fairfax County’s efforts to update its zoning ordinance. Our comments focus primarily on the proposed accessory living unit (ALU) provisions, which we fully support. CSG has become a leading expert on Accessory Dwelling Units through our work in DC and our just-released DC ADU homeowners manual.
We also support the liberalization of home-based businesses — particularly in view of the advantages we have seen for home-based work during the pandemic. Home-based businesses would be a great benefit to stay-at-home parents, people with disabilities who have trouble traveling, and the Fairfax economy.
The need: Housing in the county is expensive, shutting out young adults, downsizing empty-nesters, essential workers, teachers, firefighters, and many more. Prices are high and smaller homes can be hard to find. If this pandemic has shown us anything – a home is vital to our health and well-being. Now is the time for Fairfax County to prepare for the future and ensure people have affordable places to live in our county.
Accessory living units can offer less expensive housing options than renting or buying a single-family home because of their smaller size and provide housing opportunities in communities that might otherwise be too expensive. ALUs can also offer a stream of income for homeowners, including lower-income homeowners and retirees on fixed incomes.
Changes proposed are modest and should not be weakened as the Planning Commission proposes: While Fairfax County staff has proposed some positive changes to the ALU policy, which is a step in the right direction, they are very modest and do not go far enough to truly make ALUs a viable housing option in the county. The Planning Commission is proposing to weaken these further by keeping the special permit process in place for interior units for several more years. This will further delay the wide ranging response the county needs to apply to the affordability crisis we’re facing.
Supporting ALUs is in line with Fairfax County’s goals. The Communitywide Housing Strategic Plan developed in 2018 at the request of the Board of Supervisors recommends that the zoning update modify the county’s accessory dwelling policy, now known as accessory living units, and to explore zoning districts for missing middle housing types. However, this zoning update does not tackle ALUs robustly enough and does not consider missing middle housing options at all.
Looking at the comparison chart in the ALU fact sheet provided on the zMOD website, you can see that Fairfax County is lagging behind other local jurisdictions that are doing more to embrace accessory dwellings as a tool to provide more housing options. Meanwhile, Arlington, Montgomery, and DC are all taking steps to study and expand missing middle housing.
Recommendations: CSG supports the county’s proposal to remove the current age and disability requirement for all ALUs. No other local jurisdiction has this requirement. Removing the age and disability requirement is more equitable so people of varying ages can take advantage of these types of apartments. It provides greater flexibility to a homeowner to provide a home for an adult child and other family members or friends needing a moderately priced apartment.
Streamlining the process for interior ALUs located within the main home by allowing for administrative approval will make the process less burdensome and costly for homeowners. ALUs, like the principal home, must meet all required building and zoning codes and are subject to inspection. According to the ALU fact sheet on the zMOD website, Loudoun, Arlington, Montgomery, and DC have moved to allow ALUs by administrative approval.
The 2-acre requirement for detached units is unfortunate and retains an inequitable requirement by only allowing detached ALUs for those who can afford 2 plus acres. It also puts these detached units in car-dependent locations. Homeowners throughout most of the county should have the right to build a detached unit on their property.
In fact, Fairfax County should particularly encourage detached ALUs near transit stations and transit-rich corridors. This can be done by removing the 2-acre requirement for detached accessory dwellings and allowing them on smaller lots closer to activity centers and transit. In addition, removing the parking requirement when ALUs are within a mile of frequent transit helps to remove another regulatory and cost barrier and incentivizes housing in the right places.
The Board should accept the staff recommendations for ALUs and home-based businesses, and reject the Planning Commission’s proposed rollbacks. The county can then monitor the implementation of these changes as part of a more robust study to expand the creation of ALUs and evaluate missing middle housing needs and solutions.
Conclusion: We encourage the County to take the necessary steps to further expand opportunities for accessory living units and missing middle housing in the county as a way to make more affordable homes available in our communities. Creating more housing opportunities near transit and jobs is essential to ensuring an inclusive and economically prosperous Fairfax County where people are able to live near their work, helping to reduce long commutes through the county, and contributing to a diverse and vibrant community.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sonya Breehey
Northern Virginia Advocacy Manager
Event: A Virtual Walk & Talk Along Little Hunting Creek
If you missed our virtual stream walk with the Audubon Naturalist Society and Fairfax County staff, you can watch the presentation here.
From ANS: On September 10th, 2020, Fairfax County staff Charles Smith & JoAnne Fiebe led us on a virtual walk-and-talk of an area around Mount Vernon Plaza, part of Little Hunting Creek, one of the sites of a proposed “ecological spine“. This concept, introduced in Chapter 3 of the Richmond Highway Urban Design Guidelines, envisions how streams can be made part of the community again. Instead of burying streams and building on top of them, how can redevelopment integrate streams and their riparian buffers into walkable, bikeable areas where people and nature can thrive in urban settings?
Tune in to the webinar to hear about the vision for the Route 1 redevelopment and hear about how redevelopment can be tied to creating healthier streams, and therefore a healthier world for us.