The BOS lobs the ball out of their court and approves Village at Clear Springs

 By Reed Carver

Over 1000 dwelling units of various types were approved by the Board of Supervisors early last month. The developer, Leonard S. “Hobie” Mitchel, whose project is called the Village at Clear Springs, is comprised of 230 single-family detached homes, with 121 being age-restricted. 667 single-family attached units will have 153 age-restricted units, and 12 designated “attainable.” The next housing type is 180 multi-family, “affordable” attached apartments.

The applicant applied for zoning map amendments and special exceptions. Before the project was approved, approximately 50 homes would have been allowed on the 246 acres. The property was zoned Agricultural Rural AR-1, and it is located in the Transition Policy Area.

Most of the site is within one mile of the Leesburg Airport. It is between the Dulles Greenway and Evergreen Mills Road. 

Since Jan. 10, Mitchel’s company, Clear Springs Development, LLC, will be required to inform prospective buyers of the proximity to the Leesburg Airport, and the homes will be constructed with noise-mitigating materials.

The development will have parks, gardens, trails, a children’s play area, and a tree canopy preservation area, which is subject to change based on construction needs. The neighborhood will also include an indoor tennis facility and 28 outdoor courts.

Staff said that multiple issues like building heights and intensity, are inconsistent for the proposed area. The tennis facility exceeds height limits, and the multi-family attached units in particular are not intended for the TPA and are contrary to the County’s 2019 Comprehensive Plan.

In order to account for the increased traffic on Evergreen Mills Road caused by the density in this development, the applicant is proffering $16,623,561 worth of improvements to the road.

Public concerns

John Ellis spoke on behalf of Save Rural Loudoun. “Eighty percent of the homes built will not fall under the limits of attainability.” Traffic congestion would increase, along with greater stress on all infrastructure, which would increase county spending, and taxpayer’s obligations, he said. “Additional student population would increase operational spending by $7-$10 million … which would amount to an increase of $108 – $142 million dollars over 10 years.”

The county should pay attention to costs to taxpayers, especially when future data center revenues are uncertain. Further, the subdivision would add 8,000 vehicle trips per day, he said.

Loudoun Chamber Government Relations Manager Theo Stamatis said the application can address the County’s unmet housing needs. The smaller homes are within reach for many, allowing them to build wealth over time, he said.

Leesburg Vice Mayor Neil Steinberg said that houses steadily encroaching on the Dulles Airport have produced complaints over the years, even though the buyers knew the airport was close. “I fully sympathize with the residents, but the airport was in place before the homes; this application will raise the number of residents under the flight path to over a thousand.”

Cheryl Harper said the development belongs in a suburban area, not right next to the Rural Policy Area, across the road. She asked for revisions. “What good is the zoning ordinance when we approve things that are double, triple, of what is by right?” another speaker asked.

Al Storm, a 40-year resident, and a member of the committee of Habitat for Humanity, said affordable housing is a key need, and he is thankful for the 12 units. “Our members are people the community relies on every day; they need to live close to their work.”

Tia Earman, Piedmont Environmental Council Senior Land Use Field Representative said, “This dense, intense development stands in stark contradiction to our County Plan, and our County’s goals, strategies, and guidelines.” Earman added, “The TPA is our most vulnerable area and it’s developments like Clear Springs that undermine its integrity and purpose.”

The Supervisors speak

Supervisor Kristen Umstattd (D-Leesburg) said she will not support the project. “I do believe it is way too much density, and is the beginning of a change in attitude that will result in denser and denser development.”  Over $7 million more per year will be required for the schools, she said, and, “the costs of this project will outweigh the tax revenue of this project.”

Supervisor Laura TeKrony (D-Little River) said she could not support the project. “My reason … is the multi-family units in the Transition Policy Area; it’s not envisioned within the transition compact neighborhood. There will be two units at a height of 45-50 feet … We need diversity in our housing, not multi-family attached.”

Supervisor Matt Letourneau (R-Dulles) said “I’m very familiar with the [noise] contours. We have an area in which residential development is not permitted, and areas where it is permitted.” It would be “arbitrary and capricious,” he said, to deny based on the noise alone. “I do have concerns about the density of this development … [but] We’re striving to be more than a bedroom community, and this is one of those things that can help us achieve that.”

“If I could vote for this application twice I would,” said Vice Chair Juli Briskman (D-Algonkian) “We have such a unique opportunity to bring the [tennis] headquarters to Loudoun County. We talk all the time about diversifying our economy, and this is it.” 

Chair Phyllis Randall (D-At-Large) said, “We spend taxpayer money to educate children … If anyone says ‘I want to see affordable homes but’ … that means you don’t want to see affordable homes. We want to have people come live in this county who are teachers, who are firefighters, who are wait-staff, who are nurses, the way you have that is by approving attainable homes.”

Supervisor Caleb Kershner (R-Catoctin) made the closing remarks. “These are very hard votes, but this is a very deliberate process … to get to this point … All of these large applications – none of them are going to be perfect quite frankly. They’re not going to be the densities that we want, and that’s why we work so closely with everybody involved … not everybody’s always happy, usually there’s some give and take; there’s no utopia in land development.” he concluded. The motion passed 7-2.