Meetings Coming On Belle View Shopping Center, Other Nominations

BELLE HAVEN, VA — Fairfax County is seeking input for its 2019-2020 South County Site-Specific Plan Amendment Process, which generated land use change nominations for 22 sites. These include a redevelopment nomination for the Belle View Shopping Center and other Mount Vernon District nominations.

The South County SSPA process allows anyone to nominate a land use change in southern Fairfax County. Task forces in the Lee, Mount Vernon and Mason districts are reviewing the nominations to determine if they should be added to the county's Comprehensive Plan, the guiding document for land use and development decisions. If the task force recommends the nomination, it would go to the Fairfax County Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors for consideration.

The nominator for the Belle View Shopping Center calls for a mixed-use development with retail, office, and mid-rise multifamily residential uses. The current shopping center is approximately 182,000 square feet and has grocery store, retail, and restaurant uses.

A preliminary county staff report does not recommend the Belle View Shopping Center nomination to be added to the county's Comprehensive Plan.

Here is what the staff report says:

The proposed intensity would be appropriate in development centers, such as the Richmond Highway Corridor Area, that are planned for more intense development and provide high frequency transit service that enable residents to rely less upon singleoccupancy vehicle travel. The proposed intensity in a Suburban Neighborhood raises significant compatibility concerns. The proposed site layout and building form also do not appear to consider other Plan objectives that seek to minimize the exposure of new development to the potential for flood impacts and prohibit new residential structures within flood impact hazard areas.

Other Mount Vernon District nominations are: changes to the residential uses allowed at 2806 Popkins Lane in Groveton; more felixibility with the permitted uses of two parcels at the Huntington Metro station; replacing a planned office use with residential use at 2550 Huntington Avenue in Huntington; tweaks to the residential use at Engleside Trailer Park/Ray's Mobile Home Colony; tweaks to the residential use at Gum Springs; tweaks to the residential use at 8208 Mount Vernon Highway in Mount Vernon; and an industrial use on portion of 10208 Old Colchester Road in Lorton.

Residents can submit feedback and take part in the nomination process, starting with task force meetings on reviewing the nominations. Task forces are meeting virtually from July to September due to the pandemic. Meetings will include a public comment opportunity, and residents can participate by phone or virtual conferencing.

Residents can also share comments or pre-recorded videos by email to the Board of Supervisors offices. Comments for the Mount Vernon District can be sent to MtVernon@fairfaxcounty.gov.

Should the nominations go to the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors, the public can provide comments during that step of the process.

Here is the task force meeting schedule and meeting links (if provided):

• July 28, 6 p.m. - Belle View Shopping Center and 2806 Popkins Lane
• Aug. 11, 6:30 p.m. - Huntington Metro Station, 2550 Huntington Avenue, and Engleside Trailer Park/Ray's Mobile Home Colony
• Sept. 1, 6:30 p.m. - Gum Springs, 8160-8208 Mount Vernon Highway, 10208 Old Colchester Road
• Sept. 15, 6:30 p.m. - Final votes on all nominations

For updates on the South County SSPA process, residents can follow the Fairfax Land Use Planning Facebook page or receive "Comprehensive Plan Announcements" in the county's subscription list.