Fairfax supervisors approve purchase of affordable housing

Using funds tied to bond refinancing of county facilities, the county obtained two vacant, single-family homes on West Ox Road. Housing advocates called it a unique opportunity to retain housing for large families as the county grapples with its goal to shorten affordable housing waiting lists as the county faces shrinking revenue. Democratic Supervisor Penelope Gross said it was a wise investment, referencing a family of 15 in her Mason District, split up because family members were unable to find housing large enough to keep them all under one roof. “I’ve been watching the real estate market,” she said of the price. “That’s not very far off.” The supervisors voted 8-2, with Supervisors Pat Herrity, R-Springfield, and John Foust, D-Dranesville, dissenting, to keep the former group homes used by the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board. The houses have remained vacant for more than a year, according to housing officials. An additional $200,000 in federal stimulus money is slated for renovations. Foust said there was no basis for the price. “You’re asking us to spend $600,000 on two properties we don’t know what they’re worth,” he said. “You’re asking us to spend $600,000 on two properties we don’t know what they’re worth,” he said. Housing officials said they have not performed a recent appraisal on the properties. The money will be used to pay off the remaining mortgage for the houses, which were built in the 1970s. County Executive Anthony Griffin is scheduled to present his budget proposal Feb. 23, outlining plans to meet a $316 million shortfall. Supervisor Michael Frey, R-Sully, said he normally would have balked at the purchase, but cited the already existing mortgage. “I think this makes sense,” he said. “Let’s go ahead and keep them and not dispose of them. I think it’s a fairly creative way to keep an asset we have.”