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Past
Votes
2008
Potomac
River Resource Protection Overlay district. This ordinance would
have provided additional protections to ensure that development does not dump mud into
creeks that feed into the Potomac River. These creeks surround four state
and county parks, including Crow's Nest. The Board voted 4-3 to defer
this legislation for at least five months, effectively killing it. [top]
New Crow's
Nest road. The Board voted 4-3 to add back into the 2009
transportation plan a new road that dead ends directly at the Crow's Nest property
owned by Stafford Lakes LP (a.k.a. K&M Properties) in the 2008
transportation plan. This project could help facilitate development on
the peninsula. We have always advocated that this project be removed from
the plan, and were hopeful that the Board would follow the Planning
Commission's recommendation to remove this road from the transportation
plan. Unfortunately, Supervisor Schwartz flipped his previous position,
and for the first time voted in favor of this road project. [top]
2007
New Crow's
Nest road. The Board voted 5-2 to keep a new road that dead ends directly at the Crow's Nest property
owned by Stafford Lakes LP (a.k.a. K&M Properties) in the 2008
transportation plan. This project could help facilitate development on
the peninsula. We have always advocated that this project be removed from
the plan. [top]
Water
resource protection overlay ordinance. This ordinance would
have provided
additional protections to ensure that development did not dump mud into
creeks.
Most importantly, in certain designated areas of the County, such as
Crow's Nest, it would have expanded the buffers around creeks to include steep
slopes and highly erodible soils.
This ordinance
was a scaled down version of the sensitive resource
protection overlay previously considered by the Board. In a 4-3
vote, the Board of Supervisors
voted against sending the Water Resource Overlay ordinance to a public
hearing before the Board. Instead, after sitting on it for more than a
year, they sent it back to the Planning Commission for a third time. That
move effectively killed the legislation by burying it in the County’s
bureaucratic process. [top]
2006
Increase
offer and affirm use of eminent domain. On September 5th, the Stafford County Board of Supervisors voted to
increase by $2.7 million their offer to purchase a portion of Crow's Nest.
An offer will now be made to Stafford Lakes LP (also known as K&M
Properties) for $33.2 million. The increased offer was based on the market
value determined by a recently completed revised appraisal.
The Board also voted to initiate condemnation proceedings if Stafford
Lakes, LP refuses the offer.
This is a positive first step, and goes a long way to demonstrate the
Board's commitment to protect Crow's Nest from development. However, we
remain concerned that the offer is for only a portion of the property, and
does not include any of the property owned by Stafford Lakes, LP in the
"Crow's Nest Harbour" subdivision platted out in the 1970's.
That portion of the peninsula is directly adjacent to the heron rookery. [top]
Eminent
domain. The Stafford County Board of Supervisors unanimously
voted to move forward with eminent domain proceedings to purchase Crow’s
Nest. (Read the news
story.) This follows the Board’s previous action of making a $30.5
million offer (see below) to Stafford Lakes LP (aka K&M Properties)
for a portion of the property.
Eminent domain is a legal action governments can take when a property
owner is not willing to sell at a fair price. The purpose of the legal
proceeding is to get a “fair market value” for the property. A panel
of commissioners, who are local landowners, is appointed by the circuit
court to determine just compensation for the property owner. (Read an op-ed
and a letter
about eminent domain and Crow's Nest.) [top]
New Crow's
Nest road. The County's transportation
plan includes a new road that dead ends directly at the Crow's Nest property
owned by Stafford Lakes LP (a.k.a. K&M Properties). This project
was not identified as a hazardous area or a priority for the County by the Youth Driver Task
Force, but it could help facilitate development on
the peninsula. We advocated that this project be removed from
the plan. At the April 18th Board meeting, Supervisors Schwartz and Brito
introduced and seconded a motion to remove the road to Crow's Nest from
the plan but the motion was defeated in a 4-2 vote. The Board of Supervisors
went on to vote 4-2 to approve the plan. (Supervisor Cavalier
was not present at the meeting.) [top]
Offer
to purchase major K&M holdings on Crow's Nest. This resolution
authorizes a bona fide offer for the purchase of K&M's two major
properties on Crow's Nest (see map)
based on a recent appraisal value. However, it does not include land
in the platted Crow's Nest Harbor subdivision. [top]
Well
and on-site sewage disposal ordinance. This ordinance requires an Authorized Onsite Soil Evalutor (AOSE) to certify on
preliminary plans that the location of wells and on-site sewage systems
(such as septic drainfields and alternative systems) meet Health
Department Requirements. (Currently, this is not required until a later
planning state.)
On January 17th, the Board voted on a resolution
to hold a public hearing on this ordinance. The
ordinance will help ensure that adequate information is provided early in
the planning stage to determine if areas with challenging terrains, such
as Crow's Nest, have adequate capacity to provide water and sewage
disposal for the proposed number of lots. We advocated that the Board act
in favor of bringing this ordinance to a public hearing as quickly as
possible.
On March 21st, the Board approved this
important legislation. [top] |
