Developer Agrees to Deadline to Finish or Raze Stalled Building

An unfinished building that has been sitting idle on Lee Highway in Arlington County's Cherrydale neighborhood since 2006 must be completed within a year or the county will tear it down at the owner's expense, according to an agreement this week between Arlington officials and the building's developer.

The agreement came just a week before the matter was to go to trial in Arlington County Circuit Court, where county officials were going to ask a judge to order the building's demolition. County Board members and neighbors had grown increasingly frustrated that the decaying shell of a building -- the centerpiece of a development known as the Bromptons at Cherrydale -- had become a public safety risk as efforts to resolve the situation stalled.

Ed Peete, who owns the development, is now required to repair and complete the mixed-used retail and condo building on a 12-month time line or pay for its demolition. The agreement, announced yesterday, calls for Peete to set aside $250,000 for the demolition in the event he cannot meet the deadline.

"This is an ironclad agreement that eliminates the uncertainty of this project that has become such an eyesore in the Cherrydale neighborhood," board Chairman Barbara A. Favola said in a statement. "The settlement assures the community that either the building will be completed within the next year or [it] will be demolished at no cost to taxpayers."

The agreement has not been released publicly, and lawyers expect to be in court tomorrow to make the settlement official and ask that the case be dismissed. A trial had been set for next Wednesday.

"My client is pleased that we were able to solve this matter short of trial and that the county has provided an opportunity for my client to pursue completion of the project in lieu of its immediate demolition," said Aristotelis Chronis, Peete's attorney.

The issue has been in limbo for years because Peete has at times indicated he could not fix the building to comply with building codes after structural flaws led Arlington officials to issue a stop-work order in March 2006. By that time, the development's single-family homes and townhouses were completed and occupied, but the most visible element of the project, lining the 3800 block of Lee Highway, was left surrounded by a chain-link fence and began shedding debris.

Despite promises to demolish the building, Peete never did. Residents grew increasingly frustrated and lobbied the board to step in. The county resorted to a lawsuit in October so that taxpayers would not have to shoulder the burden of tearing the building down.

Under the new plan, work on the building could begin as early as next month, with exterior areas taking priority to improve its appearance while Peete redesigns and repairs the inside.

County Attorney Stephen A. MacIsaac said the agreement came together in recent weeks as the trial date approached. MacIsaac said Peete has given the county "every appearance of really wanting to do this" project, but he also said that the county will not hesitate to swoop in if the terms aren't met.

"If they don't finish the project within the time line they've laid out, we can take their cash and tear it down," MacIsaac said. "It's probably as good a result or better than we would have gotten through the court."

Stephen Dove, who lives with his wife and son in a townhouse next door to the unfinished building, said he hopes the agreement leads to the building's completion. Dove has watched it deteriorate over the years, with white Tyvek building wrap whipping in the wind and debris falling into his driveway.

"If there is a path forward to actually complete construction, that would be terrific," he said. "But I'm skeptical. It sounds like it's good news, and I hope they have the wherewithal to accomplish it."