A trade group representing Northern Virginia homebuilders is protesting a proposed crackdown on unusually shaped building lots, claiming the policy change will add to sprawl.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors might vote on the measure today, which would set a standard for regular lot shapes to prevent developers from carving out new gerrymandered property lines.
The creative lot drawing was an attempt to cram more buildable space into a single development, and became more prevalent during the recent building boom, according to Sully District Supervisor Michael Frey, a chief backer of the proposed ordinance. Officials worry the practice has allowed drain fields to be placed too far from the homes they service, creating the risk that a homeowner wouldn’t know about his own broken septic system.
The Northern Virginia Building Industry Association, however, has been highly critical of the crackdown, saying it would push out development farther into the county — the definition of “sprawl.”
“Basically, by allowing us to use these lots, we’re able to use land in the most effective manner,” said Laura Hampton, spokeswoman for the group.
Otherwise, she said, more homes would be spread out over a greater distance. But Frey challenges that criticism, arguing the number of lots in question could never be enough to have a substantive impact on sprawl.
“If you take it at face value,you could make that argument,” he said. “In the context of the number of lots we’re talking about, and the number of new homes in the region, it’s a drop in the ocean.”
It’s unclear how many lots in the county were drawn in such a way.
The ordinance would set a simple equation by which to measure lot shape: the square of the lot’s perimeter divided by the lot’s area. A higher number would indicate a more irregular lot shape, which would reduce the change of county approval.
