Storm Water Responsibility Shifts to County

The Kingstowne Residential Owners Corporation achieved a longstanding goal this summer, shifting the responsibility for care over storm water management ponds on land in Kingstowne from KROC to Fairfax County.

On May 11, the Fairfax County Baord of Supervisors approved a proferred condition amendment transferring management of the ponds to the county, according to an article (PDF) in the June issue of the Kingstonian, a newsletter produced by KROC.

The amendment requires the Owners Corporation to fulfill various improvements  before the county assumes control. The  newsletter article estimates that the improvements, which include the installation of a guard rail and the dredging of some basins, will occur by November. KROC will continue to be responsible for mowing grass and general upkeep around the ponds.

KROC says that requiring amounts to double taxation of Kingstowne residents, as they pay taxes for storm water management in other areas of the county while also paying KROC fees that funded storm water management for ponds on public land in Kingstowne.

In the Kingstonian article, KROC Board of Trustees President Kathleen Snyder praised Supervisor Jeff McKay, whose Lee District includes Kingstowne.

"He provided outstanding leadership in brokering the many facets of this initiative between the Kingstowne community and the county, and that was not easy," Snyder said in the article.

The Residential Owner's Corporation did not respond before press time to a request for comment.