Agenda: Reston P&Z Committee Meeting, March 18, 2013

WMATA's Metro Open House on the Silver Line, RCC/Hunters Woods, 5PM-8PM, March 14, 2013

Will major property tax increases be coming to Reston with TOD development?

Reston 2020 and the Reston Citizens Association have watched the Tysons tax service district negotiations unfold over the last couple of years, believing that what happens in Tysons in terms of financing the hugely ambitious (OK, grandiose) plans for urbanizing that area would happen here in Reston as plans for TOD development around its new Metrorail stations were finalized.

As the Tysons tax debate heated up, the RCA Board of Directors passed a resolution supporting the McLean Citizens Association in its effort to have developers pay for most of the needed infrastructure development there because, in the end, they will be the only ones to profit from it.  It also testified to the Board in support of the MCA in making infrastructure financing at Tysons equitable.  By in large that has occurred, but as the Tyson Patch article below reports, Tysons residents will see a significant increase in their tax rate as well--in part because Virginia law precludes different rates for different classes of property owners in a given area.

The issue is not so much whether, but how, such a tax template might be imposed on Reston by the Board of Supervisors.  As we know, the BOS has not hesitated in making Reston pay for its own Community Center (Small Tax District #5--STD#5)--the only other such county arrangement for a community center being in McLean where the special tax rate is half the $.0473 per $100 assessed valuation extra paid by Restonians.  And now, of course, The Reston Community Center is proposing to build a $50 million Recreation Center at Baron Cameron Park, which will almost certainly add to the STD#5 tax.

So, will the Board decide that STD#5--taxing all properties in Reston, commercial and residential--is a good enough way to handle the costs of the multi-billion dollar infrastructure--the three new corridor crossings are estimated at a half-billion dollars alone--that will be needed for Reston's TOD areas in the next 20-30 years?

Or will it create a special tax service district just covering the TOD areas (the Reston Task Force Phase 1 study area) that would see an even higher tax rate increase?

Or will the Board come  up with some other way to tax Restonians?

None of this has been discussed officially yet, but there is not doubt that such conversations are going on in the halls of the Fairfax Taj Mahal.

So here's what's happening at Tysons:

Tysons Tax District: Board to Advertise Tax Rate

Residents in the newly-created Tysons District could pay anywhere from $312 to $720 more in taxes, on top of the proposed countywide real estate hike. 

By William Callahan

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors are expected to advertise a number of proposed tax increases for FY2014 during its meeting Tuesday, kicking off the public hearing and community input process ahead of final approval in April.

The hit for Tysons residents is expected to be larger than usual this year, thanks to a newly-formed Tysons Tax District.

The district, which hikes property taxes on both residents and developers, will help fund billions of dollars in transportation infrastructure over the next 40 years, moving the area closer to becoming the county’s new urban downtown center. . . .

Click here for the rest of this article.

Virginia’s Feast on U.S. Funds Nears an End, New York Times, March 2, 2013

The Gray Lady takes a look at the impact of sequestration in our neighborhood.

By TRIP GABRIEL

ARLINGTON, Va. — To listen to the human side of sequestration, wait in line here for the 595 bus to Reston, Va., a journey across a suburbia grown fat and happy on a federal spending boom in the past decade, primarily military. . .

The Washington metropolitan area, especially Northern Virginia, is in line to experience the largest economic hit of any region from the $85 billion in spending cuts that President Obama made official late Friday. . .

“No more movies, no more out-to-dinners, no more fun,” Robin Roberts, a civilian budget employee in the Defense Department, said as she waited for the 595 outside the Pentagon for the ride home. She and her husband, who is retired, have canceled their summer vacation. They switched to a cheaper phone plan. “It’s just pay the mortgage, pay the utilities, no more frills.”. . .

Read the rest of this article.

Millennials & Technology: A Survey Commissioned by ZipCar, February 2013

This survey of more than 1,000 people highlights Millennials' interest in technology.  Indeed, they are the only age group more interested in technology than automobiles, some of which is explained.

Millennials & Technology: A Survey Commissioned by Zipcar from Zipcar_Inc

The website from which this presentation was downloaded has a variety of Millennial-related links in its sidebar.  You may want to visit it and check them out.

Is the new Virginia Transportation Bill Unconstitutional? WaPo Article Says It Is

Here's what happens when ham-handed Virginia state legislators drive to cobble together important--indeed, vital--legislation essentially overnight after weeks of partisan bickering.  Indeed, it is hard to judge which is more dysfunctional--the US Congress of the Virginia General Assembly.  (OK, we'll give Congress the dysfunction award; the GA actually passed a bill, albeit apparently unconstitutional.) 

This opinion piece is written by Paul Goldman, a former chairman of the Democratic Party of Virginia, and Norman Leahy, an editor of BearingDrift.com and producer of the political radio show “The Score.” 

Va.’s transportation bill is unconstitutional

Those praising the Virginia General Assembly’s transportation compromise may not realize that the bill runs afoul of the plain language in the state’s constitution.

Virginia’s constitution is clear that the General Assembly can impose only uniform taxes across the state for similar activities. But the bill that emerged from the House-Senate conference committee last weekend upsets the historic balance between localities and state government; it contains new provisions about taxation, some of which would effectively set up a two-tier system for residents in certain parts of the state. It’s difficult to see how some of these provisions could survive legal challenge.

There are four provisions at issue. . . .

Click here to walk through the details. 

Will this mean that northern Virginia doesn't get its extra taxing authority to improve local transportation?  Does it mean the $300 million Virginia is giving to the construction of Metrorail's Silver Line is at risk?  We don't know, but we frankly expect someone will take the matter to court.