Candidates for Falls Church City Council seem to agree it’s time to pause and take stock of a recent spurt of new construction before moving forward on bigger projects.
The city’s skyline has changed dramatically over the past decade with the arrival of several new mixed-use projects. Contenders participating in a Sept. 25 forum said growth has brought both positives and negatives.
“There’s a lot of stuff coming online. Let it stabilize,” said Arthur Agin, one of six candidates — three incumbents and three challengers — vying for four Council seats on the Nov. 4 ballot.
Four of the six squared off at the debate sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Falls Church and the Village Preservation and Improvement Society. A capacity crowd filled American Legion Post 130 for the two-hour forum.
“We’ve had so much happening so quickly,” said incumbent Council member Laura Downs. She said the pace of development was the number-one issue among voters this year.
“We’ve got to let the dust settle,” added candidate James Thompson. “Allow the buildings to fill, then look at what comes next.”
It may take time to evaluate the impact of the multiple new projects that have sprung up, candidate Brian Pendleton said.
“We’re in such a weird economic time, I don’t think we truly know what the impact is,” he said.
The candidates were asked how the 2.2-square-mile “Little City” could retain its hometown-style allure in an era of rapid development. Pendleton suggested it was a tough challenge.
“We can’t get back some of the charm that we had,” he said.
“We do not want to be Tysons. We do not want to be Ballston. We have to make that crystal clear to developers,” Agin said.
Candidates agreed that the city currently is in a development lull, but more major projects may be on the way. They include potential redevelopment of the Gordon Road Triangle, which contains parcels both in private and city-government hands.
Candidates also were quizzed about residential development, including the city’s new accessory-dwelling rules and its controversial “T-zone” zoning designed to buffer neighborhoods from higher intensity development.
As with commercial development, Thompson said a step back was in order on the residential side.
“We need to stop, take a look” at how new residential development impacts the broader community, he said.
On specific projects, such as a townhouse community planned for S. Lee Street just south of W. Broad Street, “we really need to … look at the effects not just in that local area,” Thompson said.
Downs said she was opposed to the Lee Street plan, and said Council members should consider each new development proposal with care.
“We need to look at things on a case-by-case basis — step by step, one by one,” she said.
Both Agin and Pendleton said it might be worthwhile to revisit the T-zone issue if the community had the interest.
“The details have caused some issues,” Agin said. He pointed, unhappily, to overly aggressive T-zone development plans being proposed by developers.
“There’s a maximist approach that’s being taken,” he said.
Pendleton said he supported new residential development, “as long as it is used to bring in more affordable housing, not just more housing.”
Candidates also fielded questions about transportation, taxes, stormwater management, the school budget, tree canopy, parks, seniors and public engagement.
Barbara Lipsky of the League of Women Voters of Falls Church said the event represented an unofficial kickoff to general-election politicking. It came less than a week after the start of early voting.
“We felt it was important to hold the forum early in the election season,” Lipsky said.
“We hope this forum will help you make your choices,” said Lorraine O’Rourke, president of the Village Preservation and Improvement Society, said to those at the forum.
Two incumbents seeking re-election were absent from the event. Marybeth Connelly had a scheduling conflict and David Snyder could not attend for health reasons. Each sent surrogates to read opening remarks.
For Downs, a former School Board member, this marks a repeat run for office — last November, she won a special election called to fill a vacancy. The pace of development and future of housing also were key issues in that race, in which Downs defeated John Murphy.
This year, she and the other candidates are seeking full four-year terms.
Four of seven Council seats are on the Nov. 4 ballot. Incumbent Debora Schantz-Hiscott is not seeking re-election.
Also on the Falls Church ballot are four School Board seats; the constitutional offices of treasurer, sheriff and commissioner of revenue; and the 13th District House of Delegates seat.
