Arlington County Board June Meeting Agenda Highlights

Published on June 07, 2019

Agenda highlights for the June Arlington County Board Meeting include a proposed residential development in the Ballston-Virginia Square neighborhood, a proposed extension of the County's shared mobility device demonstration project through the end of the year, and a possible new maximum salary for Board Members.

The June Regular Meeting will begin with public comment at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, June 15. The Recessed Meeting will begin at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, June 18, with reports from the Board and the County Manager. Any items carried over from the Saturday Consent Agenda to the Tuesday Recessed Meeting will be heard no earlier than 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Recessed Meeting Regular Public Hearing Items will be heard no earlier than 6:45 p.m. on Tuesday.

WHERE: Room 307, The County Board Room,  on the third floor of the Ellen M. Bozman Government Center, 2100 Clarendon Blvd.

All County Board Meetings are open to the public. Visit the County website for information on speaking at a County Board Meeting.

Watch it Live

All County Board meetings are live-streamed on the County website, and broadcast live on ATV, the County's cable channel, with live captioning. You can watch the Board Meetings on Comcast 25 & 1085 (HD), and Verizon FiOS 39 & 40, or live-streamed on YouTube. Videos of Board meetings are archived on the County website (with captions and staff reports) and on YouTube.

Saturday, June 15 — Regular County Board Meeting

View the agenda and read the staff reports.  (Some staff reports will be posted closer to the meeting). Highlights include:

Washington Blvd.--Kirkwood Road Redevelopment: The Board will hold a public hearing and consider approving a 225-unit residential building at the northwest corner of Washington Boulevard and North Kirkwood Road. The developer, Eleventh Street Development, LLC, is seeking a General Land Use Plan Amendment, rezoning and site plan approval to build a seven-story building. The developer has requested additional density for achieving LEED certification and  providing 16 on-site committed affordable dwelling units that would remain affordable for 30 years. To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 31 on the agenda.

Parking ratios for child care centers: The Board will hold a public hearing and consider advertising public hearings in July on a proposed change to the Zoning Ordinance that, if adopted, would reduce the parking ratio for child care centers from one space per 8 children to one space per 10 children. To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 32 on the agenda.

Administrative approval of relocatables at APS sites: The Board will hold a public hearing and consider amending the Zoning Ordinance to allow administrative approval of relocatable structures at APS sites. Currently, APS must submit a use permit amendment to add a relocatable structure to any of its sites. If the Board adopts the change recommended by the County Manager, the relocatables would be considered a temporary use, subject to placement standards. The Board also will consider amending the definition of design capacity to clarify that relocatable structures shall not count toward design capacity. The County's goal is to maintain a balance between APS's obligation to accommodate student enrollment each year and the recreational and community use of APS property. To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 29 on the agenda.

$150,000 grant to George Mason University: The Board will consider awarding a one-time $150,000 grant to George Mason University to help build a cultural/educational space in the Latitude Apartments at 3601-2625 N. Fairfax Drive in Virginia Square. A site plan approved by the Board for Latitude Apartments in 2013 included a condition that Latitude Arts Space be occupied by a use with a significant cultural and/or educational orientation. The condition was meant to meet Virginia Square Sector Plan goals for a cultural and/or educational use at the site, while limiting the financial resources required of the County to occupy, manage and maintain the space. The County funds, if approved, would account for 25-30 percent of estimated total costs of construction of the interior of the arts space, with the property owner and George Mason University, the lessee, covering the rest of the costs. George Mason is leasing the space to support activities of its School of Art. To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 24 on the agenda.

Connector trail: The Board will consider approving an agreement with Nova Parks that would allow the County to build a connector trail from 9^th Street South to the Washington & Old Dominion Trail. Nova Parks owns the park built on the former Washington & Old Dominion Railroad right of way that stretches from Arlington to Purcellville. The connector trail is an approved Neighborhood Conservation project. To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 26 on the agenda.

Facilitating development of 5G technology in Arlington: The Board will consider approving a public hearing in July on allowing the installation and maintenance of small cell facilities on County-owned structures in the public right-of-way. Under current County Code, these facilities are prohibited on County-owned structures. The County has allowed small cell facilities to be attached to privately-owned utility poles, with the owner of the pole's permission, since June 2017. Small cell facilities are integral to the development of 5G technology. To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 33 on the agenda.

Tuesday, June 18 -- Recessed Meeting

View the agenda and read the staff reports for this meeting. (Some staff reports will be posted closer to the meeting). Highlights include:

3 p.m. — Board and County Manager reports, awards and recognitions

Police overtime audit — The County auditor will present his audit of police overtime costs, and recommendations for improvements, to the County Board. He also will present his 2020 audit work plan for the Board's approval.

No sooner than 6:30 p.m. — The Board will hold public hearings on, and consider, any items pulled from Saturday's Consent Agenda.  No sooner than 6:45 p.m., the Board will hold the following public hearings:

New County Board salary cap: The Board will hold a public hearing and consider adopting a resolution setting a new  cap for Board Members' salaries. If approved, it would be the first adjustment to the Board Members' salary cap since 2011 (cap took effect on Jan. 1, 2012). The Board is seeking public comment on the appropriate salary level for Board Members through an online survey, available on the County website through June 12.

Extending scooter demonstration project: The Board will consider extending the Shared Mobility Devices Demonstration project through Dec. 31, 2019. Staff is asking to extend the project to provide more time for analysis before ordinance changes can be proposed consistent with recent state legislative requirements. The Board approved a nine-month demonstration project in September 2018 that is set to end June 30. Before the pilot program was developed, there were no regulations in place to prohibit the operation and use of these devices in Arlington. Through the pilot program, County staff can regulate the number of devices, their top speeds and other operational elements.

The County has permitted several e-scooter and e-bicycle companies to operate in Arlington during the demonstration project, and has been gathering comments from the public through an online feedback form, and will continue to do so during the six-month extension. To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 35 on the agenda.