Housing Headlines
November 19, 2020
On July 14, 2020, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors authorized consideration of a Comprehensive Plan Amendment to provide updates to the county's Workforce Dwelling Unit (WDU) Policy. The Countywide and Tysons WDU Policies were designed as proffer-based incentives to encourage housing development at a variety of affordability levels in mixed-use activity centers. The WDU Policies adopted in 2007 and 2010 were designed to meet the housing need for households earning between 60 and 120 percent of the area median income (AMI). The proposed changes reflect the current market and would better meet the growing need to serve county residents with low- and moderate-income.
"The WDU Policy has been a useful tool in introducing about 1,600 units into the county,” said Tom Fleetwood, Director of Fairfax County’s Department of Housing and Community Development. “In looking at how the market has evolved over the last decade, we see that market rate rents have not increased at the projected rate, and we are seeing that workers earning 100 and 120 percent of the median income are accommodated naturally through market rate units. It’s time that the policy be updated to more effectively provide units with affordability at a variety of income bands below market rate rents.”
The proposed changes recommended by the Workforce Dwelling Unit Task Force are intended to meet the existing need in the county. The proposal would enhance the affordability of the rental WDUs by adjusting the commitment to units at lower income levels (60, 70 and 80 percent of the AMI), instead of including units at 100 and 120 percent of the AMI. See the following matrix as an example.
For additional details of the proposed changes, visit the WDU Policy Plan Amendment website.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Fairfax County staff will host three virtual open houses where all are invited to learn more about the proposed changes and participate in a Question and Answer session with staff. Events are scheduled as follows:
Saturday, November 21, 2020, 10:00 am
ONLINE MEETING Via WebEx
Audio Only Call-in: 1-844-621-3956, Access Code 173 069 5471
Monday, November 23, 2020, 12:00 pm
ONLINE MEETING Via WebEx
Audio Only Call-in: 1-844-621-3956, Access Code 173 053 3562
Monday, November 30, 2020, 7:00 pm
ONLINE MEETING Via WebEx
Audio Only Call-in: 1-844-621-3956, Access Code 173 186 7134
Comments and questions are welcome via email, letter, online or at one of two public hearings. For details on how to submit your feedback, please visit the WDU Policy Plan Amendment website.
November 18, 2020
As overnight temperatures begin their decent into the winter months, it is anticipated that more than one thousand unsheltered individuals experiencing homelessness will be turning to Fairfax County’s Hypothermia Prevention Program for protection from the wintry cold. To ensure accommodations for expected guests amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Fairfax County has identified eight shelter locations at public facilities with appropriate space requirements to ensure a safe environment for guests to obtain refuge from the elements.
While many individuals who are experiencing homelessness may have access to warm, safe accommodations through friends, family and other programs and services, nearly 1,200 residents rely on the Hypothermia Prevention Program to avoid being exposed to the harsh and dangerously cold winter weather. Last year, the Hypothermia Prevention Program served an average of 215 guests per night. Guests are provided with a warm place to sleep, food, and other supportive services for a variety of basic needs – including clothing, employment, housing and more.
“For fifteen years, the life-saving mission of the Hypothermia Prevention Program has been fulfilled through the extraordinary assistance of numerous community nonprofits and houses of worship,” said Tom Barnett, Deputy Director for Fairfax County’s Department of Housing and Community Development’s Office to Prevent and End Homelessness. “This year, we needed to get creative as many of our previous partners have insufficient space to safely accommodate guests in a COVID-19 environment. We are grateful for the support of our County leadership, staff, and our community partners for their engagement in helping formulate a solution for using vacant and under-utilized public facilities to ensure that everyone can find warm shelter this winter.”
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors have authorized the following public facilities to be designated as Hypothermia Prevention Shelters for the 2020-2021 program season – running from December 1, 2020, through April 1, 2021:
Gerry Hyland Government Center (8350 Richmond Highway, Alexandria)
Lincolnia Senior Center (4710 N Chambliss Street, Alexandria)
North County Human Services Building (1850 Cameron Glen Drive, Reston)
In reviewing locations throughout the county to determine their suitability to serve as shelter locations, staff searched for sites that had sufficient space to host the estimated number of shelter guests; meet the required fire and building code standards to allow for overnight sleeping on-site; and that are publicly owned and expected to be underutilized for the duration of the program.
The public facilities listed above will be joining the County’s list of operating shelters which serve adults experiencing homelessness to ensure sufficient accommodations for unsheltered individuals through the winter months, including:
Eleanor Kennedy Shelter (9155 Richmond Highway, Fort Belvoir)
Bailey’s Shelter and Supportive Housing (5914 Seminary Road, Falls Church)
Embry Rucker Community Shelter (11975 Bowman Towne Drive, Reston)
Shelters will operate 24-hours a day, seven days a week and will be constantly monitored by program staff. Fairfax County has established a number of security and health protocols that will help provide a safe environment for staff and guests alike. For complete details about this year’s Hypothermia Prevention Program, visit https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/homeless/hypothermia-prevention-program.
* The Former Container Store is anticipated to be participating as a shelter location for the 2020-2021 program year; however, staff is awaiting final confirmation on this location. Confirmation of this location will be posted on the Hypothermia Prevention Program website as soon as details are finalized.
November 17, 2020
The Fairfax County Consolidated Community Funding Advisory Committee/Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority Working Advisory Group will meet on:
Wednesday, November 18, 2020
at 5:00 PM
The meeting will be held electronically due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
To attend the virtual meeting, please visit:
https://bit.ly/CCFAC-FCRHAWorkingAdvisoryGroup
Audio only access is available by calling 1-844-621-3956 and entering the access code: 173 337 2280#
AGENDA
Review of Basic Objectives for the Working Advisory Group and Timeline for the Five-Year Consolidated Plan One-Year Action Plan for FY2022-FY2026
Presentation of Draft Allocations of CDBG and HOME Funds (federal resources) Available for Use in FY 2022
Discussion and Adoption of Working Advisory Group Recommendations for the Allocations of Federal Funds for Use in FY 2021
Adoption of Working Advisory Group Recommended Contingency Plan
Remarks and Updates from the Department of Housing and Community Development
For any questions, contact Beverly Moses at 703-246-5060 or via email at Beverly.Moses@fairfaxcounty.gov.
Fairfax County is committed to a policy of nondiscrimination in all County programs, services and activities and will provide reasonable accommodations upon request. To request special accommodations, call 703-246-5101 or TTY 711 as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours (or 7 days for closed captioning requests) before the scheduled event in order to make the necessary arrangements.
