Best Lawyers© is a peer-reviewed publication listing the most respected legal professionals from more than 70 countries around the globe. This year, Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley & Walsh is ranked nationally in the top tier for Land Use & Zoning and in the metro Washington, D.C., area for Land Use & Zoning Law, Litigation–Land Use & Zoning, Litigation–Municipal, Municipal Law, and Real Estate Law. In addition, five shareholders were recognized as 2016 Best Lawyers in America©. Two of the five shareholders were named Lawyer of the Year: John Foote for Land Use and Zoning Litigation, and Mike Lubeley for Land Use and Zoning Law. John and Mike are joined by Art Walsh, Nan Walsh, and Garth Wainman as Best Lawyers. Read more about what makes them great lawyers in tomorrow’s issue of Virginia’s Land Sense. Not a subscriber? Sign up here.
Firm News
Nan Walsh Featured In Wall Street Journal
Arlington, VA—Managing shareholder Nan Walsh appears in a special supplement to the Wall Street Journal this month. Expanding on the firm’s core competencies, Nan defines how The Land Lawyers have delivered high-quality service for 32 years. Download the article here.
New Study Debunks Myth Concerning Cost of New Housing in Loudoun County
Leesburg, VA—Two recently published articles in The Washington Post and the Loudoun Times-Mirror call attention to a new study stating that, for each new residential unit, Loudoun County pays 42 cents less than calculated in an earlier study. Shareholder Andrew Painter is quoted in both articles, stating that the purpose of the study “is to show that the homes that are being built are positive for the county.”
All-In Loudoun, a group of Loudoun County citizens, companies, and development entities, commissioned the study to respond to the County’s assertion that new homes are a burden on its coffers, which assertion is based on a 2011 study that found every new residential unit in the County costs $1.62 for every $1.00 in taxes paid by the unit. In a press release issued by All-In Loudoun, Andrew states that the new study “shows that new homes are raising the average assessment in the county and that most of the product we’re building is helping to dilute the historic burden of housing. And that’s a good thing for taxpayers.”
The Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing Honors Shareholder William Fogarty
Arlington, VA—The Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH), a non-profit organization serving residents in need of affordable housing, has recognized Bill Fogarty for his more than twenty years of steadfast support. Bill served on the Board of Directors for nearly 20 years, including two years as Board chair. This service, together with Bill’s practical experience in real estate and commercial business transactions, has helped APAH facilitate their mission: to create affordable housing and implement support programs for families and individuals in need. Bill is pleased to receive this award and proud that the organization has flourished. “I have watched APAH grow from a small nonprofit to an innovative, efficient organization that speaks for the needs of low income Arlingtonians and provides quality, stable housing for over 2,500 Arlington residents,” he stated on APAH’s website. Bill, along with Mark Silverwood, President and CEO, Silverwood Companies, will be honored at the APAH’s Annual Fundraiser to be held October 6 at the Clarendon Ballroom. For more information about the organization and its Annual Fundraiser visit APAH’s website.
Six Land Lawyers Selected as 2015 Virginia Super Lawyers and Rising Stars
Arlington, VA—Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley & Walsh, P.C., is proud to announce six of its attorneys were recently recognized in the 2015 Virginia Super Lawyers and 2015 Virginia Rising Stars lists.
The firm’s Super Lawyers are:
Art Walsh: Land Use/Zoning
Thomas Colucci: Land Use/Zoning
John Foote: Land Use/Zoning
Our Rising Stars are:
Andrew Painter: Land Use/Zoning
Michael Coughlin: Eminent Domain
Michael Kalish: Business Litigation
All six attorneys have been on the Super Lawyers list for the past 10 years. Super Lawyers selects outstanding lawyers from a variety of practice areas based on exceptional peer review and professional accomplishment. Super Lawyers Magazine is available in every state and Washington, D.C., reaching approximately 13 million readers.
Andrew Painter talks big-picture and long-term growth for Loudoun and Fairfax Counties now that the Silver Line is up and running.
Keane Enterprises chairman Brian Cullen, with Walsh Colucci Lubeley & Walsh’s Andrew Painter, says Loudoun has a mere eight years worth of detached single family home supply left. Brian praised the county for forging ahead with so much residential – it made up 46% of building permits issued in Virginia the last few years. But he urged leaders to plan with western areas of the county that don’t have public utilities for future growth.
Guest Speaker Mike Lubeley Packs the House
Land Use Attorney Mike Lubeley was the guest speaker at the October meeting of the Women’s Council of Realtors® Northern Virginia Metro Chapter. The article about Mike “packing the house” can be read in the magazine Prince William Living.
Loudoun County Trends
Bisnow, the nation’s largest commercial real estate events producer, hosted the second-annual “Loudoun County State of the Market” symposium on November 28, 2012 at the National Conference Center in Leesburg. The event, which included a “mixed use” panel moderated by Walsh Colucci associate attorney Andrew A. Painter, focused on the future of the commercial real estate industry in Loudoun County. The event featured a keynote address by Loudoun Hounds CEO Bob Farren, who discussed details for his plans to construct a minor league ballpark in the “One Loudoun” project.
The mixed use panel discussed the next stages of development in Loudoun County and the county’s housing, office, retail, and data center markets. The panel included Bill May of Miller and Smith, Buchanan Partners’ Bob Buchanan, John Beatty of Beatty Development, and Buddy Rizer of the Loudoun County Department of Economic Development.
What is important to know in Loudoun County? What is coming? Developers need to be aware of Loudoun County’s “Transition Policy Area,” and the potential for development around the county’s future Metrorail stations. Other important issues include the funding of surface transportation infrastructure, and the existing political climate of Loudoun County. If you want to discuss such matters in more detail, please contact Andrew Painter in our Leesburg office at apainter@ldn.thelandlawyers.com.
Reston Redevelopment
On Tuesday, September 11, 2012, Walsh Colucci representatives obtained PRC Plan approval from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for Reston-based RTC Partnership, LLC’s proposal to allow the redevelopment of its 2.36-acre “RTC Office Building” site in the Town Center North area of Reston. As approved, the existing structure would be replaced by a 23-story “Class A” signature mixed-use building consisting of approximately 413,700 square feet of office uses and approximately 5,200 square feet of retail and restaurant uses at a density of 4.08 FAR.
The owner’s plans envision the property as a Transit–Oriented Development (“TOD”). This complex approval required the owner and Walsh Colucci to navigate through, and evaluate the import of, a series of prior zoning approvals affecting the site. For example, the property’s unique zoning history called for commercial uses on the property without height or density restrictions. Additionally, it is one of only a handful of properties located in Reston’s “Town Center” district that were not subject to the 1987 Reston Town Center rezonings.
The project also necessitated the need to respond to concerns raised by members of Reston Association’s Design Review Board, the Reston Planning & Zoning Committee, the Fairfax County Planning Commission, and the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. In response, significant changes were made to the project’s architecture, layout, and amenities.
As approved, the building includes high-end architectural design features, a 36,000 square foot rooftop terrace, a screened parking structure, a commitment to pursue LEED Silver certification, a contribution towards public art in Reston, an aggressive Transportation Demand Management (“TDM”) program to reduce peak hour trips, as well as pedestrian connections to Reston Town Center and nearby trails, and the planned Reston Parkway Metrorail station. Nearly half of the footprint of the property is set aside for public open space, and the project also includes facilities for cyclists, joggers, and pedestrians.
Key personnel from Walsh Colucci involved in the project approval included Art Walsh, Lynne Strobel, John Foote, Bill Keefe, and Andrew Painter, who gave the presentation before the Board.
