Alwington subdivision plan faces water, transportation questions

In October, the developer of Alwington near Warrenton filed the fifth version of their plan to carve part of the farm into 173 home lots.

And, in the view of frustrated neighbors, Alwington Farm Developers LLC still hasn’t gotten it right.

Today, the county planning commission will review the subdivision plat and hold a public hearing on the developer’s request for three special exception permits for a drinking water storage tank, proposed road over a floodplain and an open space variation to allow for offsite recreation fields.

The commission’s 6:30 p.m. meeting will be held at Warrenton Middle School at 244 Waterloo St.

The 490-acre Alwington Farm fronts U.S. 29 and lies adjacent to The Home Depot, along Warrenton’s southwestern edge.

Jo Tartt Jr. lives on Lovers Lane, which borders the farm’s southern edge.

Tartt and his neighbors on Lovers Lane and Lees Ridge Road have met several times since the fall to discuss the project.

The informal group’s top concerns include water and transportation issues, Tartt said in an interview.

Under the proposal, Alwington would be served by on-site wells, a 100,000-gallon storage tank and a central system that would be built to Fauquier County Water and Sanitation Authority (WSA) standards. WSA would own, operate and maintain the system.

Tartt said he and the group of 40 to 50 neighbors worry that the project’s water demands might jeopardize their individual home wells.

The developer, Arrington Farm Developers, claims ample underground water exists to serve Alwington Farm project without compromising the supply for neighbors, said the retired Episcopal minister.

But, Tartt continued: “Here’s our nightmare: they locate the water and five years down the road there isn’t any water. How are we made whole” when homeowner wells fail?

Developer Andrew Vinisky couldn’t be reached for comment.

The developer also wants approval for a new U.S. 29 access to the project site, just south of Alwington Boulevard, which serves The Home Depot, Wal-Mart and Brumfield Elementary School.

Tartt said the group believes it would be unsafe to create the new access and that the developer should use Alwington Boule - vard to get to the subdivision site.

The group also objects to a proposed road that would link Lovers Lane to the site. The road would track the farm’s western border.

Such a road would increase traffic on Lovers Lane and Lees Ridge Road, making them more dangerous, Tartt said.

The proposal also calls for closing the U.S. 29 median across from Lovers Lane. This would force drivers to head south on U.S. 29 and use the next median break in order to go north on U.S. 29.

“That’s not good planning,” said Dr. Will Allison, a Lees Ridge Road resident, said of the proposed road off Lovers Lane and the median closure plan. “You’re going put all that traffic on Lovers Lane and force people to go south to go north?”

Allison, a Warrenton dentist who served county planning commission when the county approved its first comprehensive plan in 1967, said the proposed road also would feed traffic to Lees Ridge Road, a narrow highway that would be unable to safely handle that volume of cars.

“I want to be clear,” Tartt said. “We’re not anti-growth and we’re not anti-this-development. We just want to be sure proper consideration is given to the impacts this will have on the lives of the neighbors.”