Fairfax County supervisors are considering closing a loophole that builders have exploited to create looming, conspicuously tall houses in existing neighborhoods.
Officials pitched the proposal as a simple, unambiguous way to measure building height and prevent more towering structures from raising the ire of communities.
The county imposes a 35-foot height restriction on houses, measured from the average height of the base of the house to the midpoint of the roof. In what staff calls a “fairly common practice,” builders would artificially elevate the ground upon which the house was built by a few feet, thus staying within the letter — though not the spirit — of the law. The extra height in some cases would allow an additional livable floor to be added to the home.
The issue has been simmering for years as part of a large push to rein in an exploding trend of “McMansions,” which — until the housing crash — were proliferating across the county.
The incongruously tall homes don’t just anger neighbors sitting in their shadow; they can cause major drainage problems as well, said Lee District Supervisor Jeff McKay.
After considering several more complicated regulatory fixes, the county is now proposing to simply mandate that the height of most houses must be measured from the original ground level, not the raised one.
“I think it’s a fair balance between the building community and the concerned neighborhoods,” McKay said.
County supervisors are expected to set a Planning Commission public hearing on the proposal for July 23, after which the item would return for the board for a second hearing in September.
The measure would apply only to new detached single-family homes in existing residential neighborhoods. The county may allow some exceptions in case the regulations prove a “hardship” for the owner. Houses built in or near floodplains, for example, require the lowest floor to be at least 18 inches above the plain.
