RESTON COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT CORPORATION

Board Meeting

June 19, 2007
Lake Anne Office Building
11484 Washington Plaza West
Reston, VA 20190

MINUTES

Board Members Present:
Kurt Pronske
Howard Green
Walt Peter
Van Foster
Rick Thompson
Ron Skinner
Jim Garrett
Anne Strange

Invited Guests:
Lee Rau, FCRHA
Heidi Merkel, FC Planning Division
Fred Selden, FC Planning Division
Bob Fields, FCHCD

Observers:
Jennifer Parker
Chris Parker
Mirza Kurspanic, Reston Connection

MINUTES                         

President Pronske called the meeting to order at 7:35PM.   He asked if the minutes from the previous two meetings were correct.  Mr. Green moved that the minutes be accepted, Mr. Peter seconded and the motion passed unanimously.

Lake Anne Water Level

President Pronske described the recent reduction of the water level in Lake Anne and the potential environmental degradation and RELAC problems.  He noted the original agreement that the golf course could draw unlimited amounts for watering and the later reduction of flow-through volume due to the creation of Lake Newport.  The purchase of the water rights from the Hidden Creek Golf Club had been one of the projects on the list for inclusion in the County’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) and was a concern of the RCRC. 

Mr. Fields reported that the water rights purchase did not make the list included in the CIP, due to its low priority, although the parking facility did.

Comprehensive Plan Amendment

Ms. Merkel said that the staff has reviewed the BBP report and the comments from the community; the conclusion is that the report has many good ideas, but certain areas need further analysis before the staff can prepare the draft Comprehensive Plan Amendment.  She sees three issues:

• Parking:  The report’s plan to put much of the parking underground may have technical and economic problems.  The staff wants more analysis done before putting something of questionable practicality in the plan.
• Fellowship House:   BBP’s “Option 2” concept of realigning the road network needs more study to see if it is practical and beneficial.  
• Illustrative Drawings:   While the staff has not decided whether or not the plan should include drawings, they are considering using a County contractor for this purpose.  

The need for further analysis will extend the schedule for the draft plan; the plan will probably be presented to the Planning Committee in late 2007 and to the County Board in early 2008.  Ms. Merkel anticipates preparing a Statement of Work for the analysis by early August and awarding a contract by the end of summer. 

Mr. Selden commented that the BBP report recommendations for underground parking and the mininimum building height were unusual in comparison with typical comprehensive plan language and will need study.  Also, he felt that the modifications to the road network must be analyzed both to see if they were practical and if the lack of realignment would jeopardize the success of the rest of the plan.  The potential changes include reshaping North Shore Drive, relocating Village Road and providing access across the extended plaza to provide flow through the center and access to the retail area. 

Mr. Selden also noted that the staff accepts that view shed might be addressed in the plan and was considering the RCRC’s comments. 

Mr. Green asked how the need for consolidation of the properties or cooperative development would be handled in the plan.  Mr. Selden said the plan could inclulde incentives to encourage consolidation or cooperation among the property owners, such as allowing a high density. 

Mr. Green noted that the community felt that 15 per cent open space was insufficient.  Mr. Selden said that the staff is comparing the open space figures with other areas

Office of Community Revitalization and Reinvestment (OCRR)

Mr. Fields said that the creation of the OCRR was a result of the Board of Supervisors’ retreat last December and represents the increasing importance of revitaliztion.  Barbara Byron will be the Director reporting directly to the County Executive.  Mr. Fields will be moving to the OCRR along with Bridget Hill and Nicole Thompson.  The new office will be activated on July 1st. 

Mr. Green asked Mr. Fields to investigate whether County funds would be made available shortly to sponsor a study to resolve issues of governance of common areas within the condominium that are fundamental to the public use and essential to a developer's participation in redevelopment of Lake Anne Village. Now is the time to clarify these issues, in order to move revitalization forward in an efficient manner.

Future Role of RCRC

Discussion of this  topic was deferred to a future meeting; Board members were asked to prepare ideas for the discussion. 

Next Meeting Schedule

The next meeting is tentatively scheduled for August 9th; a notice will be sent to confirm whether or not the meeting will be held. 

The meeting was adjourned at 9:10PM.