July 21 , 2006
Panel of Experts Helping County Develop Affordable/Workforce Housing Policy
Board-appointed Group Focusing on High-Rise/High-density Developments

In October 2005, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors appointed a panel of experts in high-rise development to work with County staff to develop a policy statement and guidelines for the inclusion of affordable/workforce housing in high-rise development, for Board consideration.  The “High-Rise Affordability Panel,” as it has come to be known, includes some of the most well-known residential developers and housing advocates and officials working in Fairfax County today:

1. Lee Rau, Panel Chairman, Hunter Mill District Commissioner, Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority;
2. Walter Alcorn, Commissioner At-Large, Fairfax County Planning Commission;
3. Bill Berry, President of the Berry Companies;
4. Jim Edmondson, UniDev, LLC
5. Conrad Egan, Chairman, Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority;
6. C. Lee Fifer, Esquire, McGuireWoods LLP;
7. Rick Hausler, President, KSI;
8. Chris Lessard, Lessard Architectural Group;
9. Jan Maxwell, Chevy Chase Bank;
10. Mike Scheurer, Virginia Housing Development Authority;
11. Barry Schwartz, WCI/Renaissance Communities.

The Panel has met and explored the issues and challenges presented to it relating to future high-rise and high-density development.  The Panel agreed that the provision for affordable/workforce housing in future high-rise and other high-density developments is a critical important goal and policy, but that achieving that goal would be challenging. 

In February 2006, the Board of Supervisors accepted the Panel’s preliminary general policy and guiding principle recommendations for the development of affordable/workforce housing in high-rise projects or high-density areas of the County.  In its general policy, the Board stated that “in instances where increases in residential density or non-residential intensity in Fairfax County’s planned and/or existing high-density areas are granted, it is the policy and expectation of Fairfax County that a substantial amount of affordable/workforce housing shall be provided.”  The guiding principles adopted by the Board included:

1. That Fairfax County establish a policy that supports affordable/workforce housing for a range of moderate income families with incomes of up to 120 percent of the Area Median Income;
2. That Fairfax County may consider a variety of options to encourage the development and preservation of affordable/workforce housing, including amending the Fairfax County Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance, and including the use of density bonuses;
3. That Fairfax County will actively participate, as appropriate, in the development of affordable/workforce housing, potentially by providing and facilitating public/private financing and granting or leasing of County-owned and other available land;
4. That Fairfax County may consider a variety of regulatory changes to foster affordable/workforce housing, such as potentially the reduction of development and operating costs, and increased flexibility in development requirements;
5. Fairfax County will actively work to implement long-term affordable/workforce housing for rental and homeownership.

The Panel is working this summer to develop a set of specific recommendations to implement the Board’s policy and guiding principles for affordable/workforce housing.  It is anticipated that the Panel will make its recommendations to the Board in the fall.