On July 19, the Board of Supervisors endorsed several modifications to the Site-Specific Plan Amendment (SSPA) process, which allows anyone to nominate site-specific land use changes to the Comprehensive Plan - the guiding document for land use and development decisions in Fairfax County.

The process modifications were developed through a retrospective assessment and are detailed in a report on the SSPA webpage. Changes include:

• More frequent opportunities to submit SSPA nominations through a two-year countywide nomination period (compared to the previous four-year alternating reviews of the North and South County areas).
• New submission criteria (including a required concept plan and property owner’s consent) for nominations to provide the level of detail expected by stakeholders and help determine planning priorities.
• Enhanced community engagement during the screening phase by using community meetings to reach people who would be most impacted by the proposed changes and other stakeholders.
• A Planning Commission workshop during screening to provide a forum for considering the nominations and other planning priorities.
• Reducing the overall timeline for the nomination and screening period to improve efficiency and make better use of stakeholders’ time and resources.

The nomination period is expected to occur Oct. 3-28. Materials for the upcoming cycle, including the nomination form, instructions for the process, roles and responsibilities of participants, and other resources, will be posted to the SSPA webpage in August, along with details on an upcoming series of instructional meetings on Sept. 6, 8 and 13 for anyone who would like to participate in the nomination period.