Three groups vying for control of Silver Lake Park in northwestern Prince William County offer competing visions for the natural reserve nestled in the growing Northern Virginia suburbs.
Each plan includes a campground to take advantage of the 233-acre site and its 25-acre man-made lake, but the proposals carry varying costs and come from entities with varying park operating experience.
County supervisors asked the three bidders to rework their plans so they could review their options again in November.
After the Dominion Valley subdivision developers turned over the land to the county last year as part of its building negotiations, the supervisors asked for qualifiedorganizations interested in managing the park to come forward.
When county staff ranked the options on 10 criteria, the Prince William County Park Authority option received the highest overall rating, while the Bull Run Mountains Conservancy and Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority boasted top scores on key criteria.
“It’s a rare jewel that comes to the public realm only once in a lifetime,” said Rick Washco, a County Park Authority spokesman, who said his group offered a proven record of maintaining and securing parks at a reasonable cost.
The Bull Run Mountains Conservancy plan would include doubling the park property through an additional landowner’s grant, said Michael Kieffer, its executive director. The group won broad support from several park-loving county residents who addressed the supervisors on its behalf Tuesday.
“We are creating something passive for people to enjoy on a user-friendly landscape without a lot of carnival to it,” Kieffer said.
The Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority presented the most expensive option, but also brought the most experience running similar parks across the region and would establish a new fund for buying additional parkland throughout the county, said Paul Gilbert, its executive director.
Delaying a decision will allow each group to improve the proposals, County Chairman Corey Stewart said.
“All the proposals need to be improved,” Stewart said. “I think this is going to give them some time to address the weaknesses that were identified.”
