Town Lays Out Its Concerns About Crosstrail Proposal

Leesburg Town Council members voiced their objections to a proposed 500-acre mixed-use development during a meeting Wednesday with Loudoun County supervisors. But several supervisors said they were not swayed by the council's arguments and were likely to support the proposal.

The Crosstrail development, a mix of 1,200 homes, offices, a movie theater, restaurants and other commercial buildings, would be built on land southeast of Leesburg that is owned by the county but part of an area covered by a planning agreement between the county and town.

Leesburg officials contend that the homes would be too close to Leesburg Executive Airport; that the developer's transportation proffers fall $13 million short of offsetting the project's impact on traffic; and that Leesburg, not the Loudoun County Sanitation Authority, should provide water and sewer services to the development.

At their meeting with the Board of Supervisors, council members asked the board to reject the proposal on the basis of those concerns.

"We're asking you to do the right thing," said Leesburg Vice Mayor Susan B. Horne.

Council members also reiterated their request that supervisors bring Crosstrail into the town with a boundary adjustment and that they discuss with the council, at future meetings, long-range planning for land outside the town.

But several supervisors praised the development proposal by Peterson Cos. and disagreed with the council's criticisms.

"A lot of aspects of this project are very beneficial to both the town and the county," said Supervisor Mick Staton Jr. (R-Sugarland Run).

Supervisor Sarah R. "Sally" Kurtz (D-Catoctin) said she would be open to a discussion about Leesburg providing utilities to the Crosstrail property if the town reconsidered its two-tier utility rate structure. Leesburg charges its out-of-town customers twice as much as its in-town customers for water and sewer services.

"My condition for coming to the table would have to include some sort of justification for increasing rates outside town," Kurtz said. Several other supervisors, including Lori L. Waters (R-Broad Run) and Bruce E. Tulloch (R-Potomac), agreed that the out-of-town rates seemed unjustified.

Town officials said they couldn't comment on the issue because the town is in litigation with homeowners who are paying the out-of-town rate and contend that the surcharge violates state law.

But Leesburg officials did note that they have invested $18 million in building water-storage tanks and other infrastructure with the goal of extending utilities to areas outside the town, including the Crosstrail property. Town Manager John A. Wells said that is why Leesburg, not the county sanitation authority, should provide utilities to the Crosstrail development.

Tulloch said he didn't understand that logic. "Why would you invest $18 million in a parcel you don't have control over and might not have control over?" he asked.

Some supervisors also disagreed with the town's position that rezoning the Crosstrail property from office to mixed-use and allowing homes near the Leesburg airport would hamper the airport's expansion.

"I don't think that putting any residential near the airport is going to spell the death of the airport," Staton said, noting that the board recently approved a plan to allow more homes near Dulles International Airport.

Leesburg Mayor Kristen C. Umstattd said that the airport was planning to increase corporate jet traffic and that having homes nearby would be incompatible with that change at the airport.

If homes were built, she said, "you could have a bunch of folks who would be negatively impacted by the air noise and could get politically active to try to shut down the airport."

The county Planning Commission has recommended approval of Crosstrail. County staff, however, has recommended that the rezoning be denied because of the development's impact on local roads.

The board will hold a public hearing on the Crosstrail proposal sometime after 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the County Government Center.