Loudoun County Halts All Rezoning For 12 Months!

Note: The only board member opposed to this was Snow who represents the areas profiled on this site. I'm sure Toll Brothers was heartened by his sympathetic stance towards the need to make every surface in Dulles South impervious to water.

By Amy GardnerWashington Post Staff WriterThursday, January 4, 2007; Page B10
After barreling through most of this decade as Virginia's fastest-growing community, Loudoun County sent a loud message to Richmond and its own traffic-choked residents yesterday by voting to halt residential rezoning applications for 12 months.
In so doing, the Board of Supervisors joined a growing list of Washington area communities seeking to urge state officials to find more money for road improvements and to appease fed-up constituents in an election year.
'After barreling through most of this decade as Virginia\'s fastest-growing community, Loudoun County sent a loud message to Richmond and its own traffic-choked residents yesterday by voting to halt residential rezoning applications for 12 months
Prince William County adopted a similar building freeze last month that, as in Loudoun, was viewed as largely symbolic. In both jurisdictions, rezoning applications generally take at least 12 months to gain approval, so the practical implications are limited.
But the symbolism is significant in a year when the General Assembly, which convenes Wednesday, is planning to devote unprecedented attention to questions of growth management and traffic. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) is traveling to Northern Virginia today to announce proposals to raise taxes for roads, improve the state transportation department and give local governments more power to control growth.
"Richmond has to pay," said Loudoun Supervisor Lori Waters (R-Broad Run). "Richmond has to do its job."
The Prince William board approved its freeze unanimously. Loudoun supervisors voted 8 to 1. They did so less than a month after voting to restrict residential development in the county's rural west. With all nine board seats up for election in November, it has become clear that traffic and growth will dominate the campaigns.
"This is a recognition of the public's concern over the rate of growth and its impact on their quality of life," said Stewart Schwartz of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. "But it's also a recognition that this is an election year."
Yesterday's vote presents more evidence that the Loudoun board is no longer the pro-growth bastion that it appeared to be three years ago, when a new Republican majority reversed several long-standing slow-growth initiatives and unceremoniously stripped board Chairman Scott K. York (I), a moderate on growth, of his powers.
Stephen J. Snow (R-Dulles), the lone supervisor who voted no yesterday, all but accused his Republican colleagues of shifting with the political winds to win reelection.
"You are abrogating your responsibility, and I can't be a part of it," said Snow, a passionate booster for planned communities where the developer donates money for roads, schools and other infrastructure in exchange for the right to build more housing. "You can't stop the growth. You can manage and control it, which we've done for three years."
Mick Staton Jr. (R-Sugarland Run), one of the supervisors who voted to reverse several slow-growth policies three years ago, denied that he supported yesterday's resolution because he is seeking reelection this year.
Staton voted yes after language was inserted making it clear that the board is not encouraging the General Assembly to raise taxes.
"It's a positive resolution," he said. "If anybody up on this dais is basing their votes solely on wanting to get reelected and not on what's in the best interests of the county, they should not be here."
Although most supervisors, including Staton, viewed yesterday's action as largely symbolic, one practical effect could result if voters unhappy with traffic, taxes and sprawl oust a majority of the supervisors in November.
The board has taken several actions to restrict growth -- including enacting the rural limits last month and a vote in the fall to reject a major proposal that would have allowed more than 30,000 residences west of Dulles International Airport -- but many residents have said at public hearings that supervisors should do more. Hundreds wanted even more restrictions on housing construction in the county's western parts. Many are organizing in an effort to unseat the board members who disagreed.
If that happens, developers probably would try to rush through any rezoning applications pending before the board.
But yesterday's action makes that more difficult. If the resolution is honored, any rezoning applications submitted today or later must wait until the new board is seated in January 2008, so a land rush won't be possible no matter what happens during the November elections.