A bill seeking to permit by-right multifamily development in commercial zones was defeated in the Virginia Senate yesterday (Thursday) despite limitations proposed by Arlington’s state Sen. Barbara Favola (D-40).
The Senate voted 17-22 on HB 816 by Del. Dan Helmer (D-10). The House did not vote on the companion bill SB 454 by state Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg (D-16) but referred it back to the House Counties, Cities and Towns committee.
An updated partnership with Uber will provide more transportation options for senior citizens living in True Ground Housing Partners’ apartment communities.
The expanded program will offer free Uber trips subsidized by the transportation company. Eligible residents will be able to request rides by connecting with True Ground’s resident-service coordinators at each property.
The Arlington County Board has voted to advertise a 2-cent increase to the real estate tax rate, slightly higher than the rate proposed in this year’s budget draft.
If enacted in its entirety, the jump would increase the county’s tax rate to $1.053 per $100 assessed valuation, adding a further tax burden on homeowners already facing higher assessment values.
County Board members will return tonight (Tuesday) for more discussion on an affordable housing proposal on Langston Blvd following debate at a weekend meeting.
At a lengthy discussion on Saturday, Board members and the public zeroed in on remaining concerns at the Leckey Gardens Apartments site — including building height, tree canopy and parking — before deferring final action to tonight’s meeting.
Expiring affordability commitments and a large site where leaders could potentially expand affordable housing are presenting questions for Falls Church policymakers.
“There’s a policy decision: What are the choices before us?” Mayor Letty Hardi said at a Feb. 18 meeting to set the timetable for discussion of key upcoming issues.
Plans for a 249-unit affordable housing building off of Langston Blvd are up for County Board consideration this weekend.
Planning Commission members voted 9-2 on Feb. 9 to support True Ground Housing Partners’ proposal to replace 40 garden-style apartments at the Leckey Gardens complex (2031-37 N. Woodrow Street) with a 10-story affordable apartment building.
Time is running out for 30 residents in Culpepper Garden’s assisted-living wing to find other housing before its planned closure this summer.
With the wing still at 40% capacity, officials at the apartment complex for low-income seniors say they are working with each of those residents to determine the best course of action.
The “Yes in God’s Backyard” movement scored a win this week as the Faith in Housing bill passed the Virginia Senate after gaining initial approval in the House of Delegates.
The Senate voted 21-18 on Wednesday to pass state Sen. Jeremy McPike (D-29)’s SB 388, which would eliminate the rezoning step for faith-based organizations and other tax-exempt nonprofits to develop affordable housing on their properties. The legislation might still need final approval in the House next year, however.
Arlington County Board member JD Spain Sr. is throwing his support behind a state bill to accelerate affordable housing development on church properties.
Spain joined the Rev. Alice Tewell of Clarendon Presbyterian Church — which put its affordable housing proposal in Lyon Village on pause last year amid rising costs coupled with a lengthy approval process — in testifying on behalf of State Sen. Jeremy McPike’s (D-29) Faith in Housing Act.
Falls Church city officials have started talking with potential partners about what could be one of the largest housing projects in the city’s history.
In discussing possibilities with four nonprofit or governmental housing organizations, the city has “laid out a road map” for what could happen to the Virginia Village community, including the construction of a substantial amount of affordable housing, City Manager Wyatt Shields told City Council members at a Jan. 27 meeting.
County Board members voted unanimously on Saturday (Jan. 24) to approve redevelopment of the vacant Inn of Rosslyn motel site for new apartments.
“We are facing a housing crisis. This crisis is today,” Board member Takis Karantonis said in support of the proposal by Monument Realty to construct an eight-story building totaling 141 units, including 13 committed-affordable units.
Northern Virginia Democrats were in high spirits at the inauguration of Gov. Abigail Spanberger this weekend, looking toward new opportunities for a variety of bills held back by the previous administration.
Legislators and political observers expect fewer vetoes and more collaboration with Democratic policymakers — including those in Northern Virginia — under Spanberger, a centrist Democrat who emphasized bipartisan solutions to issues like housing and health care costs on the campaign trail and in her inauguration speech.
