On June 6, 2018, Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley & Walsh hosted NAIOP Northern Virginia’s Prince William Government Relations Subcommittee meeting featuring a presentation from Rebecca Horner, Prince William County’s Planning Director. Ms. Horner explained that in the upcoming year, the Planning Office seeks to distinguish Prince William County’s regional identity as one separate from the rest of the D.C. metro area. The Planning Office hopes to collaborate with the community, the development industry, and its customers to realize Prince William County’s distinct identity through innovative land use and planning. The Director provided updates on the Planning Office’s current work program including zoning text amendments, updates to the Comprehensive Plan, the status of ongoing Small Area Plans, and how the community can provide input with respect to the Planning Office’s objectives.
Ms. Horner briefly reviewed the zoning text amendments that were priorities for the Commercial Development Committee. Some of these zoning text amendments included reviewing mixed-use provisions, the big-box ordinance (retail uses larger than 80,000 square feet), parking on unimproved surfaces, distribution centers, and signage regulations. The Director also mentioned that an Overcrowding Task Force has been established with the goal of determining whether Prince William County’s current approach, not just enforcement, is adequate in addressing the growing burden of overcrowding in residential dwellings. She mentioned that we can expect to see an update sometime in August.
As part of the Comprehensive Plan update, the Planning Office will eliminate the Economic Development Chapter of the Comprehensive Plan and integrate economic goals and strategies within other chapters. In addition, the County will update the level of service components within the Comprehensive Plan beginning in early 2019 and continuing throughout the year.
Throughout her presentation, Ms. Horner made it clear that achievement of the Planning Office’s goals requires input from County businesses and citizens. If you want more information regarding the NAIOP meeting, please contact our Prince William County office and the land use team will be able to assist.