Couple Sues County to Build on Open Space

A couple is suing Prince William County for the right to build a luxury home on a three-acre lot in Occoquan that was designated as a park nearly 30 years ago.

Robert and Janet Wilcox say the county has, in principle, confiscated their land on Foxhall Drive in the Woodmont Estates subdivision and denied them use of their property. The Wilcoxes want either permission to build on the lot they bought for $50,000 in 1996 or $300,000, which they believe to be its fair market value today.

The Prince William County Office of Planning and Zoning has not allowed the Wilcoxes to build on the land based on the 1977 plan for Woodmont Estates, which required the recreational space. The county never took ownership of the land, preferring to keep it as open space.

Today, a developer would give the county land in a proffer, and if the county declined to take ownership, the land would likely go to a homeowners association, said county officials and John L. McBride, the couple's attorney. In the case of the Wilcox land, there is no homeowners association. McBride said the situation is "unfortunate and unique."

On Tuesday, McBride addressed the Prince William Board of County Supervisors and asked the board to use its power to vacate the park designation. After meeting in closed session, the board decided to fight the lawsuit, said Joseph L. Howard Jr., the interim county attorney.

The county wants the park designation to remain intact, Howard said. "We have not done anything improper," he said. "It was designated in the original plat."

That sentiment was echoed by residents surrounding the Wilcox property, said Susie Collins, 54, who has lived in the subdivision since 1992.

"We want the green space. There has been so much building, this is the last open space," Collins said. "I bought my home because of the park designation, knowing that there was green space."

Collins described serene woods in which she can see a family of deer and enjoys walking her Labrador.

Robert Wilcox, 60, who works as a developer and has been building custom homes for more than 20 years, has a different view. "Kids use it for their games. Paintball games," he said.

Wilcox said that the land has also been used for dumping and for riding all-terrain vehicles and that the no trespassing signs have failed to deter people from using the property.

Recently, a discarded Christmas tree lay on the property, and pallets were strewn about.

Wilcox said he wants to use only a portion of the three acres to build a custom home of 3,500 to 4,000 square feet. He said that he would cut down just 13 trees and that the county would have a designated open space through an easement.

Right now, the property is "no man's land," Wilcox said. "When someone gets hurt or killed, no man's land is my land.

"They have to find some graceful way to fix it," he said.

Supervisor Corey A. Stewart (R-Occoquan) said that Wilcox, as a developer, knew what he was getting into when he bought the property.

Howard said the county is uncertain how many plots of land throughout the county have the park designation. The planning department is conducting research, he said.