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Summary Staff Report:
Update
The Board of
Supervisors held public hearings on the proposal for an
early grading opportunity within the Design Standards Manual
at their February and March meetings. Concerns were raised
by John Marshall Soil and Water Conservation District as to
how the program would be implemented and the County’s
commitment to and provision for timely enforcement of
in-field erosion and sediment control issues. A draft Early
Grading Permit Administrative Policy memo was prepared to
provide the Board, development community and public with
some insight into the types of provisions that would be
included as part of the approach for consideration of
appropriate projects, application and submission procedures,
and permit and bonding requirements. Following the March
public hearing, Supervisor Trumbo facilitated a work session
with representatives from John Marshall S&WCD, Piedmont
Environmental Council, Community Development and the
construction industry to review the ordinance and the draft
Administrative Policy. Several changes were proposed and
have been incorporated into the ordinance and Administrative
Policy. The most significant changes to the ordinance are:
- The
“Administrative Policy” would be adopted by the Board of
Supervisors.
- The
Early Grading Permit Plan shall include a contingency
site stabilization plan and specifically prohibits
utility installation.
The
Administrative Policy has been refined to include:
- The
Early Grading Plan shall not be approved until such time
as there will be no further significant project
modifications (e.g., building location, stormwater
management, etc.).
- Review
of the subsequent submissions of the EGP Application
shall occur within fifteen business (15) days of
submittal by the County to John Marshall Soil and Water
Conservation District (as opposed to acceptance by the
County).
- A
provision specifying that, should the permit time expire
and the land disturbing permit for the remainder of the
project have not been issued, the developer shall be
responsible for implementing the contingency site
stabilization plan within fourteen (14) days of the
expiration of the permit.
- A
definition for the contingency site stabilization plan
has been included with the definition for a Phase IA
Plan.
In addition
to the resolution provision included by the Board in March
directing staff to be proactive in enforcement of E&S
provisions with early grading permits, the ordinance
includes a resolution provision specifically adopting the
“Fauquier County Administrative Policy for Early Grading”,
dated April 10, 2008, as the guiding policy and procedures
for the implementation of the early grading process.
Background
With the
establishment of the DART program, the Board of Supervisors
has been interested in facilitating a more streamlined staff
review and approval process for the construction of
commercial, industrial and governmental projects once those
projects have been approved through the public review
process. While considerable improvement has been made to
the length of time it takes for a project to get from
submission of the first plan for review, through the review
process, through the bond and developer agreement process to
issuance of a land disturbing permit, it currently takes
approximately eight months on average to complete the
process and move to construction. Often, final approval of
the plans is delayed due to unresolved issues with outside
review agencies, compliance with proffers or approval
conditions or similar circumstances. One of the most
variable conditions that can affect the timing of
construction projects is weather. Contractors like to take
advantage of good weather for earth moving and site
grading. This proposed amendment will give staff an
additional tool in its toolbox to help provide a step up in
the construction process while resolving final issues in the
site plan approval/bonding process.
An example
how beneficial the early grading permit could be took place
recently, with a site plan for a 60,000 square foot office
building at Vint Hill. The County’s review and approval of
this project went quite quickly and last minute changes to
the water meter vaulting required additional review and
approval by the Water and Sanitation Authority (WSA). There
were some delays in that review. As we had good weather,
the developer and contractor were anxious to move forward.
If we had been prepared with this early grading permit tool,
they would have been underway two weeks earlier (and been
the beneficiary of two weeks of good weather).
The Cross
Creek/Costco project is one that will benefit from this
amendment if approved. This project currently has an
approved plan for Cross Creek Drive and its stormwater
management facility. They expect to begin construction on
the road shortly. At the same time, they will be submitting
the major site plan for the development on the east side of
the road, including the Costco building, some in-line stores
and the associated parking and stormwater management. Cross
Creek is required by contract to deliver the site to Costco
pad ready, meaning all the major grading on the site has
been completed. An early grading permit for the Costco site
will allow the contractor to move around the site more
freely and to blend the construction of the roadway with the
construction of the shopping center site.
Proposed Text Amendment
The proposed
text amendment would allow the issuance of a land disturbing
permit for early grading for commercial, industrial and
government projects only. It is required that either a
major site plan or infrastructure plan be in the review
process so that there is a full understanding as to the
ultimate configuration and development of the site. In the
case of infrastructure plans, the project will need to have
an approved plan of development, which is the overall
concept plan for the site. In addition, a Type 1 (field
developed) soil survey is required so that there is full
information on the environmental conditions on the site. (A
Type 1 soil survey is already required for major site
plans.)
The early
grading plan would actually be the Phase 1 or 1A E&S Plan
that will stand alone but will also be part of the full
site/infrastructure plan package, so that when the overall
site development plan is approved, it will incorporate the
early grading component. The elements of the early grading
plan include E&S controls (silt fence, sediment basins,
etc.), site clearing, rough grading, open-ended culverts for
drainage (but not closed storm sewer systems), stormwater
management ponds and trenches, and retaining walls that are
necessary for cut and fill operations.
Prior to the
issuance of an early grading permit, the applicant would be
required to have in place any State or Federal permits
(including wetland permits) and have completed/approved any
required floodplain studies.
This is a
program that staff believes can be very beneficial but will
also need to be monitored closely. There has been concern
expressed that the contractors will get ahead of their
approvals and will continue construction activity beyond
what is shown on the approved plan, especially if final plan
approval continues to be delayed for an extended period. In
order to minimize the potential for this situation, careful
selection of projects that are likely to succeed at the
outset and working with the project during the early stages
of review will be needed. To implement this change to the
Design Standards Manual, staff would seek coordination
between the contractor and John Marshall Soil and Water
Conservation District staff to ensure complete understanding
by all parties of what work can and will be undertaken. In
addition, a simplified bonding approach would be part of the
administrative process and would include execution of a land
developer’s agreement that specifically addresses the risks
to the developer in undertaking this early work (such as the
potential for more expense for E&S measures over time) as
well as the developer’s responsibilities for stabilizing the
land, obtaining final site plan approvals, maintaining a
performance bond and similar provisions.
Identify any other Departments, Organizations or Individuals
that would be affected by this request:
Department of Economic Development
Development Community
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