Storck to host meeting on Bock Farm; community group favors new option

Signs opposing the rezoning of Bock Farm are seen last fall in a yard across from the property.

Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Strock will host a community meeting on Jan. 26 to give an update on the Bock Farm situation.

The meeting, which will run from 7-9 p.m. at Walt Whitman Middle School at 2405 Parkers Lane, will include remarks from Storck and Bill Mayland, the county’s Assistant Director Zoning Evaluation, as well developer Joe Francone.

Storck has met multiple times with the developer and a group of community members since the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted Nov. 1 to defer a decision on a proposal to rezone a portion of a horse farm near Inova Mount Vernon Hospital. The vote marked the second time the board voted to defer on the proposal.

That proposed development, which has already been approved by the county’s department of planning and zoning, called for rezoning 4.38 acres of the 11-acre Justice Snowden Farm (also known as Bock Farm) so that a four-story independent living facility for residents 55 and older could be built.

Bill and Valerie Bock, who own the property at the corner of Parkers Lane and Hinson Farm Road, have run an equestrian facility there for the last 18 years. Both in their 70s, the Bocks have stated that they are ready to move on from the day-to-day demands of the farm, and worked with the developer on the plan to rezone part of the property for senior housing.

However, a last-minute protest by residents from the local community, who said they were not properly informed of the rezoning request, put that plan on hold. The residents in opposition cited the density of the development, as well as its height, among their concerns. An online campaign called Mount Vernon Residents Against Rezoning launched a blog and Facebook page to lay out their objections and rally support against the proposal.

Plan for townhouses favored

During the meetings between residents, Storck, Bill Bock, and the developer, two alternatives to the original plan were floated: One that called for a less dense and shorter 124-unit independent living facility, and another that envisioned 40 townhouses and scrapped plans for senior housing.

The Williamsburg Manor North Citizens Association was briefed about the alternative proposals at a Jan. 5 meeting, and voted 31-2 (with one abstention) in favor of the plan to build townhouses, according to association president John Harris.

The townhouses, which were described in the meeting as being three stories tall with two-car garages, would sell in the $780,00-$800,000 range, according to notes from the meeting. 

“This was the only alternative presented that would significantly reduce the density and height of the development on Bock Farm,” said a post on the Residents Against Rezoning blog.”The WMNCA has agreed not to pursue legal action against the developer to enforce its restrictive covenant if the developer obtains [Board of Supervisors] approval for this alternative.”

The “restrictive covenant” refers to an agreement from the early 1970s that limited future uses of the farm property. Five covenant holders, including the current property owner and the WMNCA, are required to sign off an any change. The WMNCA voted in June not to release the covenant for the original proposal to build 155 units. 

However, the covenant is not recognized by the county, and would need to be enforced in a civil action. 

Next steps

The Jan. 26 meeting hosted by Storck will be for information purposes only, according to his email to constituents that announced the meeting. Questions will be solicited, but there will be no vote or general comments. Surveys will also be distributed.

The Board of Supervisors will take up the original zoning request again on Feb. 14. The request can either be approved or rejected by the board of supervisors, or it can be deferred again. Another deferral would need to be voted on by all members of the board. 

Storck stated in the meetings with community members that he still favored a 55 and over development, but said in his email that nothing will publicly decided before the board meeting.

“While these options are being discussed, no decisions have been made or will be until the Board of Supervisors consideration on February 14,” Storck said. 

This article was updated to correct the name of the Williamsburg Manor North Citizens Association.