On Lake Accotink's Future, Time For Community Input Running Out

SPRINGFIELD, VA—The county is set to determine the future of Lake Accotink in light of sentiment filling in the man-made lake. Before that happens, residents can provide input at an upcoming community meeting.

Supervisors John Cook and Jeff McKay and the Fairfax County Park Authority will hold a community meeting to discuss the management options under consideration for the lake. It will be held Monday, April 30 from 7 p.m.-8:30 p.m. at Lake Braddock Secondary School, 9200 Burke Lake Rd, Burke.

Since the lake was created in the 1940s, sediment filling in the lake has been a continuous concern, according to the Fairfax County Park Authority. The lake has been dredged three times, most recently in 2007.

The options for Lake Accotink range include letting the lake fill in completely, continuing to dredge it, completing smaller, annual dredging, modifying the dam to revert the land to the original stream corridor or modifying the dam to create a single stream and smaller lake. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)

Residents in support of protecting the lake through annual dredging have organized a Save Lake Accotink group. Because the annual dredging has an initial cost of $45 million and annual cost of nearly $800,000, the group aims to get a bond funding annual dredging on the ballot by fall 2019. A Save Lake Accotink petition seeks to get at least 1,000 signatures by Memorial Day (May 28) to make this happen.

Stopping the flow of sediment by restoring upstream waterways would be a long and costly one. The county estimates restoration would take 20 years, and that's not factoring in other bodies of water in need of restorations.

Lake Accotink is a Fairfax County Park in Springfield not far from the Beltway. It has offered families trails, waterfront activities, picnic areas and other activities amid an increasing population and demand for recreation in Fairfax County.

The county has accepted public feedback on the project since 2016. The last public meeting was held in January. Community input will be accepted through May 28.

If you cannot attend the meeting, you can fill out a Park Authority survey and email it to parkmail@fairfaxcounty.gov. Braddock residents may also email Supervisor Cook at Braddock@fairfaxcounty.gov and Lee District residents can contact Supervisor McKay at Lee@fairfaxcounty.gov.

Find the survey and more information about the Lake Accotink plans here.

Image via Fairfax County