The Buckingham Herald Tribblog

Thanks for the update on Buckingham!

Jane Scruggs

Labels: buckingham villages, letter

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 7:49 AM 0 comments

As crews rip out trees and prepare to knock down buildings along Henderson Road, the time is right for a recap of the plans for Buckingham Village 1. (Plus, inquiries have made it to me, and I realized I do not have a post that ties it all up in the way I hope this one will. –ST)

First, a layout of the land is in order. Take a look at this map:

Village 1 is the home of current tree removal across from Barrett Elementary School. It’s the largest of the three villages, and when completed will have over 500 rental units in two large buildings, about 70 townhouses along N. George Mason Drive, and a small county park.

Village 2 is the only divided village. The road down the middle of the village along with the red rectangle showing the approximate placement of the George Mason Apartment complex (which is not part of the original Village 2), separate the other two thirds of the block. The blue dot shows where the townhouses have been built and are under construction. The green dot locates the fenced-in field along Thomas Street. Dozens more townhouses are planned for both sides of Village 2. This village is developed “by right” meaning that Paradigm Construction need not seek county approval for changes, so long they stay within current zoning rules.

Bought by Telesis Corporation just months ago, Village 3 will change little on the outside, preserving the two-storey buildings and the garden-style setting. Some additions will be added to the backs of buildings, and a building of some sort will cover the entrance to an underground community center. This village is protected as a county historic area and falls under the oversight of the Historical Affairs and Landmark Review Board, which will regulate any external changes to the property. All of the units (about 140) will be affordable to people of various levels of income. Some of the units along N. Pershing Drive will be part of a condominium.

Village 1 will undergo the most changes, and for more details on that, peruse the illustration:

Although future plans can change, Paradigm is locked into the current arrangement of buildings in Village 1, given contracts signed with the county. Here are a few details:

Right now, the rules say no.

Mr. Bonilla is a “rod-man” for the Miller-Long construction company, helping place the steel reinforcement bar in the huge columns that keep high-rises vertical. In that job, he makes about $25 per hour, up near $50,000 a year. And that’s just not enough according to the current rules that county staff, Telesis Corporation, and that company’s management partners are considering for home ownership in the condominium.

The current rules say that the total income of residents in the unit must be 60 to 80 percent of the Area Median Income. The AMI is set by the federal department of Housing and Urban Development. Mr. Bonilla would need to make about $61,000 a year to qualify.

Still, there is some hope.

The county board OKed an affordable housing program for Buckingham Village 3 at its meeting Tuesday night. It opens the process of creating a 48-unit condominium in five buildings along N. Pershing Drive between N. George Mason Drive and N. Thomas Street. However, the board left open many of the details of what the condominium finances would look like and who would be able to buy.

“I think I can qualify,” Mr. Bonilla said from a chair in his living room one recent afternoon. He said he has a high credit rating and savings. Plus, the rules dictate the total household income, not one person’s. Perhaps a relative of his would be interested in sharing the mortgage and sleeping in one of the rooms.

His daughters are growing older. Joana is 10 months (and already walking), and Eugenia will turn five in October and will go to the pre-school program at K.W. Barrett Elementary School this fall. It might take a couple years before the units are ready for sale.

“We don’t know when this is coming, so my wife could work too,” in time to qualify, he said. His wife, Maria Sanchez, has been staying home with their children.

Lois Athey and others at the county board meeting urged the board to consider lowering the standard for owner-qualifications. She is a long-time representative of BU-GATA, a tenants’ association in the neighborhood.

“Some of these people will qualify with good credit scores and savings…you’d be surprised,” she told the board.

The question of what income level to serve was discussed at length in the Buckingham Village 3 Working Group, a group set up at the direction of Ron Carlee, the county manager. It is a group of all the stakeholders involved including Telesis Corporation (the new owners of the Village 3 complex), tenants, county staff and others.

“We didn’t come to a complete consensus” on that issue, said Reshma Holla, an assistant project manager with Telesis. Her company will develop and manage the property with the National Housing Trust and other partners.

County staff, she said, got nervous at the level of subsidy when the income level dropped. Currently, the county subsidy is expected to be about $140,000 per unit. If the subsidy has to increase in order to help people at the lower income level, the price rises to about $200,000, she said.

“Ultimately that means we’d be asking for more county subsidy,” she said, adding that county staff just wasn’t comfortable with that number.

It is not just the subsidy but the idea that this level of help has not been done in the county for homeownership before.

“The 60 to 80 percent [of AMI] is consistent with what we’ve done elsewhere,” said David Cristeal, a lead county planner on the project. It is a “nuanced answer” but the county has to be careful to avoid a precedent it cannot keep.

But there still is the possibility that the 50 percent AMI level can be reached, Ms. Holla said.

“The goal is we’d still like to reach that lower income level,” she said. They will be looking to other sources, maybe private sources, for the money.

At the board meeting Tuesday night, Jose Castellon, an 18-year Village 3 resident, told the board to put the emphasis on “a variety of income ranges.”

After the meeting he said, “I’m happy” that the board passed the affordable housing plan. But he still hopes to be able to buy.

“I got good credit,” he said, adding later, “I don’t want to go away.”

He has two children who will be in high school next year. “I don’t want to pull my kids out of school.”

In Mr. Bonilla’s living room, he said he likes the access to Metro, the Glebe Market, the good schools.

“I like the neighborhood. It’s a very good neighborhood,” he said. If he can’t buy, he said he would not move away, but would most likely rent a two-bedroom unit. His daughters can share a room.

“They’re two girls, they can live in one bedroom,” he said.

But would he resent not being able to buy, despite his work on the Buckingham Village 3 working group?

“I wouldn’t be disillusioned because someone from my community would be getting the benefits,” he said.

Editor’s Note: Lois Athey, a long-time activist with BU-GATA, the tenants’ association in the neighborhood, translated the interview with Mr. Bonilla in his living room. --ST

Labels: buckingham villages, BV3, redevelopment, telesis

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 9:44 AM 0 comments

The meeting of the five grew mildly tense at times, when county board member Chris Zimmerman attempted to understand if the rental units and the condo units could be readied for occupancy at the same time, and board Vice Chair Jay Fissette quizzed county staff about the lack of detail concerning geothermal heat pumps as a possible green alternative heat source for the redevelopment.

In the end, the board unanimously approved the affordable housing plan—something never really in question—but will hear more about the geothermal plan during their July meeting.

This allows Telesis Corp. and National Housing Trust, the new owners (with others) of the Village 3 complex, to get their financial ducks in a row for the August 5 opening of the Virginia tax credits competition.

The affordability of these units works best if certain federal and state tax credits are received. There is a finite amount of money in the Virginia tax credit hopper, which is doled out starting August 5, so it helps to be the first in line.

On the rental side, the county has paid about $14.9 million for the purchase of the land and will receive about $10 million back during the long-term lease with Telesis. That leaves about $4 million of county financing in the project, or about $110,000 per rental unit, reported David Cristeal, a lead county planner in the project. He said that the cost to the county for the condominium would be nearly $7 million or about $143,000 per unit. The county may receive some of this money back as the units are sold.

He said last night’s decision required the board to vote so that the company would “sufficient time to meet the time frame of early August.”

Only one of the 10, or so, civilian speakers last night was negative. Long-time county activist Jim Hurysz wondered if the price tag of $110,000 per unit was too expensive.

“Are there better options [to purchase affordable housing] like buying old duplexes” or small apartment buildings at $50,000 per unit, he wondered aloud. He did not give an example of where or how many of those might exist in the county.

In the past, county board and staff have said they liked the idea of saving so much affordable housing all at once, in Buckingham, and of saving the community itself, allowing as many people as possible to remain in the neighborhood while renovation and redevelopment takes place.

If all goes as planned, renovation of the units—all 140 in Village 3 will be renovated—begins next spring.

Mr. Zimmerman focused on making sure the rental units and condo sales happen together since that would mean the least disruption for people who want to buy but are currently renting in Village 3. He said that developing the home ownership segment while maintaining the community is a large point of this project. If the county and Telesis get the home ownership segment moving, but the people in the neighborhood who might have bought have already left, then what is the point, he wondered.

Many of the exact details of how the home ownership would work are still to be worked out.

Mr. Cristeal said that there were site plan concerns with the condo and parking concerns along with setting up the purchasing assistance program for the potential buyers. As well, the county has to sell the section of the property that the condo will own.

“We ought to be able to expedite those,” especially the site plan and housing assistance processes, given that they are under county control, Mr. Zimmerman said.

But then there’s the problem of phased redevelopment—how does Telesis keep people in some units on the property while renovating others?

Perhaps they don’t, Mr. Zimmerman said, offering that they could move people to apartments elsewhere in Buckingham. That has happened during the renovation of The Gates of Ballston and Historic Ballston Park. Now, Buckingham Village 1 has the new Madison at Ballston Station with units that rent at affordable rates.

“One of the obstacles to getting the timing of the ownership units on line with the rental units…was the difficulty of trying to maintain people on site,” Mr. Zimmerman said.

Aimee McHale of the National Housing Trust, explained, “There’s an astronomical cost with relocating people off-site. We should have said that up front.” They plan to renovate one or two buildings at a time and shuffle people around on the property as they do so.

Mr. Zimmerman wondered if perhaps some fraction could move off-site if that meant the condo renovation would keep pace with the rentals.

“We will look at that. Clearly we have a lot to do with respect to phasing. We’ve been focused on the housing program so that we can be ready for the 9 percent tax-credit application that’s due on August fifth,” said Scott Kline, vice president of the National Housing Trust. “We do have a lot more work to refine our renovation plan.”

When board Vice Chair Jay Fissette had his opportunity he wondered why the plans for the use of geothermal heat pumps were conflicting and inspecific.

“[W]hen I read this, I get really mixed messages from the memo,” he said. The use of the pumps which use naturally-occurring heat deep in the earth to heat the apartments would require Historical Affairs and Landmarks Review Board approval, and might interfere with old-growth trees which might have to be removed, and the initial installation is expensive.

But the use of the heat-pumps might still be worth it if it meant that the people who lived in the units would have much lower utilities bills long into the future, Mr. Fissette said.

“We can’t always being thinking about affordable housing without thinking about the context of affordable living,” Mr. Fissette said. He couched his argument for the geothermal heat pump in the idea that people should only be encouraged to buy and rent units if they can also afford to live there long-term. Lowering utilities bills would help that, he said.

In the end, he was willing to draft the motion to approve the affordable housing program while asking for more information about the geothermal program at next month’s meeting.

Click the lines for more information. View larger map

Labels: affordable housing, buckingham villages, BV3, redevelopment

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 4:45 AM 1 comments

Project Manager Micheline Castan-Smith reports via email that the next step in the Buckingham Village 1 redevelopment is to prepare what will be the county’s property on the site. Now that the Madison at Ballston Station apartment complex is completed and is being leased, Paradigm Development Company will focus on space for the extension of N. 3rd Street and the county park just north of the Madison (see the image).

The third street extension will replace what had been a cut-through alley and parking lot between the Culpepper Garden and Buckingham Villages apartments. The change will make the new road an official county street and will be close to, but not exactly where, the alley is.

At the recessed board meeting next Tuesday the county is expected to OK an extension of the Tenant Assistance Fund. Set-up in 2007, this fund was designed to help low-income residents of various Buckingham Village apartments to stay in the neighborhood, according to the county manager’s report.

As buildings were torn down and replaced, this fund has helped 11 families who were already in the neighborhood, stay in the neighborhood, the report states. The fund, with $125,000 taken from the Affordable Housing Investment Fund two years ago, is still in the black and does not require additional money. Nine families are still receiving the help, the report states.

Finally, the board will discuss and vote on major elements of the Buckingham Village 3 redevelopment.

In preparation for this meeting, last month the board met with Telesis Corp. the owners and managers of the property to determine the best mix of home rental and ownership and what type of ownership should be involved. The final decision came down to 92 rentals and a condominium of 48 units. All of the units will be rented or purchased at below market rates.

The question that will remain even after Tuesday’s meeting is how the condominium units will be resold when a purchaser decides to sell. All the units are to remain affordable, almost in perpetuity, so the owner who bought at affordable rates and wishes to sell, cannot do so at market rates. The conventional wisdom says that the owner should be able to reap some reward on his or her investment, but should sell at an affordable price as well. The details of this have yet to be worked out. (More on this story after the meeting next week.)

County and Telesis Prep for June Meeting (May 2009).

County Board OKs Leasing and Financing of BV3 (March 2009).

Arlington to Enter Deal with Telesis (February 2009).

Labels: buckingham villages, BV1, BV3, redevelopment

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 10:35 AM 0 comments

One hundred of the 234-units in this building are priced affordable, that is, within range of people making less than 60 percent of the area median income (about $60,000 for a family of four). People can rent 1, 2, and 3 bedroom apartments (there’s one efficiency at market rate).

I’m sure part of what impresses me is that the building is new; everything inside is clean, the paint is fresh. More than that, though, they feel roomy, especially for apartments in Buckingham. Each has a walk-in closet attached to the main bedroom (the closet is about as big as the kitchen in my Buckingham townhouse. How often do you find that?.) The two bedroom that I toured had some unexpected angles, but they were used well. I really enjoyed the walk-through.

All of the three-bedroom, and some of the two-bedroom units have two bathrooms, another rarity in this just-barely-north Arlington neighborhood. Lots of windows, some balconies; there’s a lot to love.

What’s more, the apartments are the same for both the people who rent at market and those who rent affordably save for the countertops: granite in the market-rate units, laminate for the affordable ones.

"That's the only difference," said Micheline Castan-Smith, the manager of the project for Paradigm Development Corp., the developer of the site.

The countertop choice was a decision made with the county government which loaned the developer about $7 million to be put toward the affordable units. They each have microwave ovens, laundry and dishwashers in the units.

The carpets are a light tan, and the ovens are electric, what had been two sore points for some of the residents of Gates of Ballston after that property went under renovation. The Latino population in Gates complained that the electric was not as good as gas for cooking slowly with large pots over long periods of time. The carpets in some units were quickly soiled, especially by children and by the bicycles that many of the residents use to commute.

Ms. Castan-Smith said “People really struggle with how to decorate,” and the neutral color of the carpet makes that easier. Plus, she said, with 80-some bike racks secured in the basement, “They don’t really need to bring their bikes into the units.”

During the site planning, they decided to go all electric with the appliances because gas at the time was so high, she said.

About 20 apartments have been rented so far. And quite a few people are in the application process. For people wishing to rent affordable units, especially, the process is a long one, requiring renters to prove that they make less than the income limit per household, which shifts depending on the number of adults and children living in the household, according to HUD and Fannie Mae.

This is all part of the large redevelopment plan worked out between Paradigm and the county over the course of a year that ended during the summer of 2007. The redevelopment of Buckingham Village 3 (on the northeast corner of N. George Mason and Pershing drives) is a part of that process as well.

Next up for the project is to move all the people out of the buildings along N. George Mason Drive and N. Henderson Road so that those buildings can be razed to be replaced by another large apartment building, a small county park, and a couple lines of townhouses.

The relocation process is ongoing, with some of the people who live in those buildings taking units in the new building, Ms. Castan-Smith said. People who rent the affordable units must complete a lengthy application process.

The Madison at Ballston Station was built by Paradigm Development Company and is managed by their management arm.

Board Votes on Villages, March 2007

BV Vote (click then scroll down), June 2007

Bham Villages to Begin Relocation (this one is good for a couple design images), June 2007.

Many of these stories have "tags" and other links that would connect you to yet more stories dealing with this very long process. --ST

Labels: affordable housing, buckingham villages, BV1, paradigm

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 7:28 AM 3 comments

Plans for Buckingham Village 3 slid as easily as expected through the recessed county board meeting on Tuesday Feb. 24. (For the most recent story on this, click here).

At that meeting, the board voted to commit about $36 million to the purchase of the ground and buildings that make up Village 3, and they committed money from the Affordable Housing Investment Fund to help preserve the apartments as affordable. On March 19, the county will buy the building and grounds from Paradigm Development and its partners, the current owners.

In the plan, the county OKed a long-term lease, 75 years, with Telesis Corp. of Washington. Telesis will own any improvements made to the property. Arlington must enter into these sorts of deals as the county is legally barred from owning housing.

“There was an area in southeast D.C., it was a very, very old place; they [Telesis] turned that place around,” said Patricia “Pate” McCollough, at the Feb. 24 meeting. McCullough, formerly of Buckingham, but late of Fairfax County, said the apartments in southeast changed from “the wild west” to a nice place to live. She was part of the working group that chose Telesis for this project.

Lois Athey, an activist with BU-GATA, the tenants association echoed the sentiment.

“We asked for participation, well we got it,” Ms. Athey said of the experience working with Telesis as that company plans the takeover.

Village 3 covers about six acres of land north of N. Pershing Drive between N. George Mason Drive and N. Thomas St. The 16 buildings that make up the village fell under the protection of the county’s Historical Affairs and Landmark Review in 2006 when the county entered a memorandum of understanding with Paradigm Development Corp. and its partners, the current owners.

Under that MOU, Paradigm began to renovate Village 1, which sits next to Culpepper Garden assisted living facility of N. Pershing Drive. Village 2, at the corner of N. George Mason Drive and N. Henderson Road is being redeveloped “by right” and has about a dozen upscale townhomes on it now.

All 140 units on the property will remain affordable, starting as affordable rentals. A plan to sell the units at affordable rates is being considered.

SunTrust bank will hold the first deed of trust on the property.

It looks like Lubber Run Center will lose some hours of operation under the county manager’s proposed budget.

Programming might not be cut, but the potential is that it would move to other locations in Buckingham or Arlington.

“During the day, it’s pretty darn busy [at Lubber Run Community Center]….I don’t believe there’s a lot of programming in the evening,” said Susan Kalish, the director of marketing and communications for the county’s Department of Parks Recreation and Community Resources.

It might be, too, that the building, at the corner of N. George Mason and N. Park drives stays open on some odd hours, maybe late on one day of the week but not on others, Ms. Kalish said. The county will be looking at what is offered in the evenings, how the people who attend the events get there, and whether those people would be able to get to another location.

Could have been worse for the Lubber Run Center—at least the county is not threatening to close it as they are the Gulf Branch Nature Center in far-north Arlington. The county manager’s budget aims to close the building and move indoor programming to Potomac Overlook Regional Park and elsewhere in the county. Read the full story here.

Ms. Kalish said in an email after the story ran that letting the park itself run down is not in the plan, though it was a concern for Suzy Wagner, a neighbor interviewed for the story.

“Funding to maintain the park environments is alive and well,” Ms. Kalish wrote.

She admitted in a later email that she supposed the park could be sold, but building on the property is really hard.

“It’s a Resource Protected Area…by the Chesapeake Bay Local Assistance Department. Demolishing on the site won’t be too hard, as long as you provide extra care. But building—oh my—you can’t build bigger than the current footprint, as well as not impacting the stream and nature,” she wrote.

It was exactly that fear that drove Ms. Wagner to take up action to keep the building open she said. At the same time, in the interview she said how tough it is to do anything in a Resource Protected Area, something she learned while renovating her house.

I’ve set up and gotten used to the whole Twitter idea. I need a different phone to really make it work, as I can’t stand the press-the-two-key-three-times thing to type a “c” only to have typed a lower case “c” when I wanted upper case! I tried twitting from the National Mall for the inauguration, but had to stop as the press-the-two-key-three-times thing to type a “c” thing really was too much while walking through masses of people.

Surf to www.twitter.com/heraldtrib to follow my little updates. Only business-related items; I won’t tell you “My shorts are bunching. Thoughts?” as Roland Hedley on Doonesbury did the other morning! Go ahead and follow my twits!

For those of you unfamiliar: twitter is a web site much like a blog. The trick, though, is that someone posting a twit only has 140 characters. It was started by a guy who thought it would be fun to tell people stuff like “I’m drinking coffee” from work. In the last couple of months, it has grown. Twits can still only be 140 characters, but many news types have them in this info-overload world.

As always, you can scroll down to see all the recent stories, or simply click the links below (if the link doesn't work, scroll down to find the story, and email to tell me what's busted: heraldtrib@gmail.com --Steve Thurston).

Today's Headlines:

John Cephas, I Will Miss You

Headlines from Earlier in the Week--the race for the 47th:

Sen. Ticer Endorses Parkhomenko

Hope Picks Up Furlow Endorsement

Headlines from Earlier in the Week--the county budget:

County Proposes Closing Gulf Branch Nature Center (a lot of people have commented on this one--take a peek, add your two eents).

This story is from awhile back (Oct. 2007), but it deals directly with the Glebe Road bridge over Arlington Boulevard. It's rather prescient. I have to admit that I love it when I have already covered a story...

Labels: blues, buckingham villages, budget, BV3, cephas, gbnc, lubber run center

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 2:12 PM 0 comments

The Arlington County board is set to OK a lease with Telesis Corp., the redeveloper of Buckingham Village 3, at the board’s recessed meeting Tuesday Feb. 24. This paves the way for the county to buy the land and buildings of Village 3 from Paradigm Corp. and its partners, the current owners of the property. Closing date for the sale is March 19, capping a process that began in 2006.

Although the county manager’s report to the county board supports the plan, officials from Telesis still met at the Historical Affairs and Landmark Review Board meeting on Wednesday to request a vote of support from the HALRB.

Wanting to follow the “Arlington Way” of getting as much community buy-in before the county board meeting, William Whitman, a Telesis vice president, said after the meeting that he wanted to know that historic changes were OK and to “secure their support.”

The request was granted, and the HALRB decided the best way to handle this was to write a letter to the county board, but the details of the letter took some time to figure out.

The HALRB wanted the letter to express general support for the direction the redevelopment was taking, without appearing to support any particular modification at this point.

Telesis is proposing to redevelop Village 3 in much the same way that AHC, Inc. redeveloped the Gates of Ballston; this makes it less risky for the HALRB to support the concept, people around the table said.

The project includes additions on the backs of buildings and using some of the basements to create new apartments or expand current ones. Telesis hopes to enclose breezeways on the property. A couple tot-lot playgrounds are planned, as well as a new, below-ground community room.

One proposal that came under a bit of fire Wednesday was the number and size of the additions. Five additions were approved months ago, and Telesis last month asked for four more. However, the new ones clogged the backyards, in the HALRB’s opinion, so Telesis asked this month only for two more, but larger, additions. The board wanted the shape of those to change.

Also at the meeting were people representing the disabled, who need affordable housing at a higher rate than other people, said Doris Ray, a member of the county’s Disability Advisory Commission.

“As you consider the historic and architectural features, please also consider that this is a project that will provide some significant number of affordable housing units,” Ms. Ray said. Most of Village 3 will be affordable for rent or sale.

“Affordable housing is very important, but the need for it to be accessible is more important,” she said.

Putting affordability and accessibility together in one project is tough, she admitted. She asked for ramps to the first floor, especially where there was only step to the stoop, lever door handles, and wider doorways where possible.

Board members were quick to say that they control only the outsides of buildings, but that they would encourage accessibility where possible.

The developers said they would look into it.

How the sale and resale works is this: Although the county will buy and own the property and buildings, Telesis will own the improvements to the buildings and will be able to rent the buildings and grounds from the county while they rent the units to tenants, said David Cristeal of the county’s planning division, in a series of interviews and emails.

“The county has to close on this property by March 20, period,” Mr. Cristeal said on Feb. 13. The cost is $34.5 million which will be paid for with a short term note from SunTrust bank and about $625,000 in AHIF funds, a tax-and-fee supported fund the county uses for affordable housing projects. Mr. Cristeal could not release the details of the note from SunTrust.

The lease for Telesis is 75 years, with the option for a five year extension. The details of this lease were still being worked out and were unavailable for print, as well.

The plan is that some of the 140 apartments would be converted into tenant-owned units, either a condominium or a co-op. If that happens, the county would have to sell the land and the buildings, Mr. Cristeal said.

The law prohibits Arlington from acting as a landlord for housing. Although the county’s policy has encouraged low-income housing, its only power to make that happen has been these sorts of deals. If the county were to create a housing authority, this deal would possibly be subject to change, Mr. Cristeal said.

Last November, voters handily struck down a referendum creating a housing authority with two-thirds of the vote going against it. About 70 percent of Buckinghamsters and Arlington Foresters voted against it while Ashton Heightsans voted against it 3 to 1.

Under a memorandum of understanding agreed to by the county and Paradigm in July 2006, while Buckingham Villages 1 and 2 have begun redevelopment, Village 3 was placed under the county's historic protection and would be sold to the county for resale to another developer.

Additions, Basement Apartments and "Roosevelt Room" proposed for Village 3 (Feb. 2, 2009)

Telesis' Plans for BV3 Called "Very Responsive" (Nov. 21, 2008).

Labels: buckingham villages, BV3, halrb, telesis

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 11:31 AM 0 comments

However, Telesis Corporation, Arlington County staff, and the tenants of the apartments which are changing hands as part of a major redevelopment, are working at these problems, and things, if Monday night’s meeting is any indication, are working out.

The meeting drew about 50 tenants and a handful of county staff including Walter Tejada, the chair of the county board. He told the residents that their destinies were in their hands.

Beatriz Torres said she understood that Mr. Tejada was supportive of the project, but she wondered if the rest of the county board felt the same.

The project requires the county to be an intermediary purchaser of the property from Paradigm Development Corp.; it will then be sold to Telesis Corp. for redevelopment.

(Telesis, of Washington, D.C., won the right to purchase and redevelop the site earlier this year. They focus on urban communities including affordable home ownership and mixed-use rentals.)

As part of the redevelopment agreement voted on last year, Village 3 was protected by the county’s Historical Affairs and Landmarks Review Board, meaning any landscaping or exterior changes to the buildings must be approved by the HALRB.

Telesis should take over the property next March; the whole redevelopment is not scheduled to be completed until the end of 2010.

Mr. Tejada reminded Ms. Torres that the county board unanimously approved of the redevelopment plan last year and that the support is shown in the county staff who attend the meetings. (Most of this was said in Spanish, and some was not translated until after the fact; hence, no quotes. –ST)

Much of the meeting’s focus was on what has already been done, including a tenant survey and the results of discussions from previous meetings.

As with other projects in the neighborhood, this one has Telesis balancing the issues of quality construction and quality of life against affordable rents. And since this project will take some of what are now rental units and turn them into ownership opportunities for current residents, the question of how to do that, and make it affordable, is at issue.

“We want to preserve not just the buildings, we want to preserve this housing for you. And we can figure out how to do that with the right information,” said Bert Mason, senior development advisor with Telesis. “Our goal is to try to make this housing affordable to the households.”

The commitment to the people appeared to be appreciated.

Lois Athey, a long-time activist with the tenants, said she thought Telesis has been “very responsive” to the needs of the community.

And the people have been responsive, too. About 165 people in the villages completed household surveys regarding family make-up, ethnicity, income and other factors.

“You’re talking about people who care, Buckingham people,” she said.

Some results from the survey of Buckingham Villages apartments:

The income range per household:

Ethnic make up:

BV3 Sale and Resale to Be Studied (July, 2007)

Labels: buckingham villages, BV3

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 10:01 AM 0 comments

“They all look pretty comparable, pretty good,” he said.

A committee of about 20 people—from housing and tenant groups to county staff in the housing department—will review the proposals during February. Review of the proposals will be followed by negotiations with the top applicant or applicants.

“I think we’re hoping for a recommendation that would go to the [County] Manager [Ron Carlee] and to the commissions in May, or May/June,” said Mr. Cristeal, who chairs the review committee.

Village 3 sits north of N. Pershing Drive between N. George Mason Drive and N. Thomas Street. The plan is for a developer to renovate the units and either rent or sell the apartments at perennially affordable rates.

A complex deal made with Paradigm Companies and their partners, the current owners of the property, and finalized last June, allows the county to buy the property and allow another company to purchase the structures for redevelopment, all for about $32 million. The county has a window from March 2008 through June 2009 to finalize that portion of the deal.

“We’re on track,” Mr. Cristeal said. “That’s the window that is still ahead of us.”

Unknown is whether the meetings to discuss the proposals will be open to the public.

Buckingham Village 3 Sale and Resale to Be Studied


View Larger Map

Labels: buckingham villages, BV3

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 4:06 PM 0 comments

Construction marks a lot of what is in the HeraldTrib this week. At the right, a crew from R.A. Burgess Construction was working just this morning on sidewalks along N. Thomas Street (Buckingham Village 2) at the intersection with N. Henderson Road. This week the HeraldTrib marked the end of demolition at the Buckingham Village 1 site, see the story link below.

I have a column in Arlington Connection this week. I must say that everytime I write something I see mistakes, and here was no exception. I called the Historical Affairs and Landmark Review Board a “Committee.” A stupid, if not huge, error. More importantly, I was writing about gentrification and how the Glebe Market might just go away to be replaced by a Trader Joe’s. I did not focus in my column how I have been contacted by a few people in the community who want the Trader Joe’s and how it’s pressure from many in the community, not just from developers who want to rent space, that drives some of these changes. I just thought I’d clarify that a little here.

Barrett Elementary also tops the list this week, as School Board Chair Ed Fendley spoke at the PTA meeting last night. The story is below. A lot is going at the school right now, so I’ll hit some of the highlights:

The PTA raised $718 from its Barnes and Noble day; that’s 15 percent of about $4,700 spent by parents and others at Barnes and Noble back in December. Way to go.

Barrett school started the year with about 440 students now has about 460, Principal Terry Bratt reported. Many of the new kids are first graders, so she was glad to have had the fifth first grade class (she thought about having only four at the start of the year).

Gym Night at Barrett is Jan. 18, come one, come all, organizers said. 6:30 p.m. to 8. For events, click here.

Finally, the Barrett PTA auction is revving up. Organizers are asking for potential auction goers to answer an on-line survey about what items people want to see offered at the auction. As with everything, volunteers are needed. Karen Hildebrand is asking for interested people to contact her. The announcement reads: “Meetings are NOT required and you can help as little or as much as you want. We have something for everyone!” Contact Ms. Hildebrand karen.hildebrand@visiant.net or (703) 528-1298.

I must say that I really like the remodeled Barrett Elementary School web site, too.

As always, you can scroll down to see all the recent stories, or simply click the links below (if the link doesn't work, scroll down to find the story, and email to tell me what's busted: heraldtrib@gmail.com--Steve Thurston).

Today's Headlines:

APS Chair Ed Fendley Speaks to Barrett PTA

Police Notes for Buckingham
Headline's from Earlier in the Week:

Photos of Santa's Visit to Lubber Run

Primary Demolition Completed in Village 1

Rabies Found in Arlington Forest It's been a heavy year for this.

Labels: Buckingham, buckingham villages, redevelopment

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 1:48 PM 0 comments

Demolition at the Buckingham Village 1 site is completed for now, and Paradigm Construction Companies are working to build “Building A” along N. Pershing Drive, just west of N. George Mason Drive.

Five-and-one-half buildings (a total of eight-and-one-half building sections, or 21 addresses) have been torn down to make room for the 234 unit, 4-storey apartment building. One hundred of the units will be affordable at 60 percent of Area Median Income, about $57,000 for a family of four in this area.

Along with Building A, Paradigm will be installing some street-level landscaping, especially roads, said Micheline Castan-Smith, the project leader. The roads at this early stage are a fire department requirement, she said.

The building is one of five-and-one-half buildings that will be destroyed in the first phase of demolition to make way for a four-storey, 234 unit apartment building. One hundred of the units will be rented at affordable rates. (For a recent story on this, click here.)

View Larger Map

The building itself was demolished either late last week or earlier this week, and crews have been working to remove the debris since then.

(This video was shot with a cell phone video camera, so the quality is very low.)

More stories, video and photos will be coming,though readers may have to be patient and wait until after Thanksgiving. Editing the sound and higher-quality video together will be time consuming.

Labels: buckingham villages, BV1, redevelopment, renovation

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 9:02 AM 1 comments

DON’T FOGET THIS SUNDAY: The HeraldTrib’s first “Meet-n-Greet” with Josh Ruebner, (Green Party) at 2p.m. at the Arlington Oaks Community Center. He’ll talk, take questions, and mingle. He is bringing a Spanish-language interpreter. Light food and beverages will be served. (Click the link for more information.)

Other Meet-n-Greets with county board candidates:

The HeraldTrib is unaffiliated with any political party, but offers these as a public service. More on the other two candidates will be posted as we near those events. --ST

The purchase and renovation of Buckingham Village 3 was the topic du jour at the Buckingham Village 3 Working Group on Monday, Sept. 24. The group, largely responsible for what happens to Village 3, discussed who should sit on a panel to review developer proposals and what that request for proposals should look like.

In the negotiations between county staff, citizens and Paradigm Development Cos. regarding the future of Buckingham Villages, Village 3 fell under the protection of the county’s Historic Affairs and Landmark Review Board and is the village that will remain closest to what it is today.

In the negotiations, the county agreed to buy Village 3 for about $32 million, through a developer, from Paradigm Development Co, which owns the property. No money has yet been spent on the purchase. The working group will help woo and choose the developer with the idea that some, or all, of Village 3 would change from rental to co-operative, condominium or a mixture of the two.

Village 3 sits on Pershing Drive between N. George Mason Drive and N. Thomas Street. More on this when the request is closer to completion.

My column at the Arlington Connection has resumed. (It's about Arlington Freecycle).

For more stories that you might have missed, feel free to scroll down from this page, or click these links.

Today's Headlines:

Troubles clicking through these links? Just scroll down, the stories are all there. --ST

Labels: buckingham villages, BV3, county board, meet-n-greet, politics

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 10:24 AM 0 comments

Anyway, the story talks about the $1.5 million allocated by the county board on Saturday to help families displaced by all the re-construction of Buckingham Village 1. People will be moving out very soon. I’ll have more. (August County Staff Report, September County Staff Report.)

Labels: ahif, Buckingham, buckingham villages, cantu

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 12:25 PM 0 comments

Dr. Fowler’s report highlighted interviews conducted with seven landlords who rent some or all of their units at rates affordable to people with incomes that fall between 60 and 80 percent of Area Median Income.

She produced the report for the Alliance for Housing Solutions of Arlington and summarized it at the ANDC meeting. (Click this link for the report, but the document that pops up at the AHS web site only says that it will be posted Sept. 8.)

“There is a sense of mission to some of these owners,” she said. They see their business mission to offer rental units, but also to provide a community service.

However, “Control over their property was of paramount importance,” she added. These property owners do not want to take on the work, and potential hassles, of designating their units affordable, which might require government oversight.

The problem is that the market-rate rents can rise above the affordable limits and many of the buildings are very old, and the units are small, with little storage. The affordable units often are only one- or two-bedroom units, she said.

The owners reported that often the people who rent the affordable units are not in need of the assistance, but might just be trying to save rent, she said. Buckingham Villages and the Gates of Ballston, before the major changes of recent months and years, were considered market-rate affordable units.)

Many of the buildings that Dr. Fowler studied are very old, and though the owners said they can maintain operations of the buildings, the buildings themselves are often in need of major renovations, she said. Also, many of the owners who have the sense of mission are aging and are looking to children or others to take over operations, and the children might not have the same attitude toward mission, she said.

Property tax abatement, density transfers that would help the owners of multiple buildings, the “right of first refusal” for the county to buy the buildings, and other possible solutions were raised and discussed around the table of nearly 20 people. All the ideas met with concerns.

Labels: affordable housing, ahs, andc, buckingham villages, gates of ballston

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 9:42 AM 0 comments