The Observer Newspapers | Time to Plan for New Downtown

April 10, 2008

Time to Plan for New Downtown

To the editor:

In Fairfax County, you will find countless citizen committees to plan areas ripe for redevelopment. The McLean Revitalization Committee planned its downtown and what has been built so far is beautiful. They are getting ready to plan the next phase. The Tysons Task Force has been working for years on what they want in Tysons. Falls Church had numerous committees working on their downtown.

We do need to form a downtown committee to study and plan our own downtown now, so we are not reacting individually or in small groups to developer's proposals. I feel it is imperative that we form such a committee including a town senior planner, transportation planner (individual or from town staff), downtown business and property owners, citizens, a member of the Planning Commission and a member of the Town Council, a developer (to tell us what's feasible from their side of the business), an engineer (especially for stormwater management) and an Historic Preservation Review Board member or architect.

Several years ago, we had a charette for the downtown when planning the arts center. It worked very well. We also need to do this again for citizen input before the committee starts to work on our downtown.

It seems that our current Town Council is back into negotiations with developer JPI on a plan to develop the downtown area. I don't believe any contract should be signed prior to this committee's findings and approved plan for our cowntown.

Judith W. Downer

Herndon

Editor's note: Ms. Downer has served as a member of the Fairfax County Planning Commission.